MLB Cash Game Picks: 4-9-15

Cash Game Locks: MLB Daily Fantasy Baseball

There are two slates in play today, but only three games in the second one. I will touch on that late slate at the end as well. Lookout for bad weather in Detroit today, not sure they get that one in. Good luck!

Pitcher

This will be a low scoring affair between the Mets and the Nationals, I have to lean on Strasburg at home. At home in 2014 he had a 2.56 ERA and has that great strikeout percentage of 28%. It is unfortunate the two best pitchers are against each other on this slate, because the win bonus is important with high price tags. On FanDuel he is the only option I am looking at, DraftKings I will be pairing him up with Graveman here. The Rangers offense has looked dreadful as expected, and their pitching and bullpen is not much better. Oakland is favored today, and Kendall Graveman is making his first start in the Major League. He posted a 1.83 ERA in 27 games started in the minors last season. As long as he can give quality innings, Oakland should provide plenty of run support today. He is a great SP2 behind Strasburg on DraftKings.

Catcher

The Royals have been very impressive here to open things up, and mostly their offense is clicking. Perez bats lower in the lineup, which takes some value away, but overall there are not many better catching options today. His price is great on both sites, and matches up against John Danks, who had a 4.76 FIP last season. Vegas thinks there will be a ton of runs here, and so do I. I like Perez on both sites. Jason Castro has more home run potential than Perez today, Houston is a great home run park for left-handed bats- with a park factor of 120. Castro has great power, with a .184 ISO and Trevor Bauer has a 4.39 career FIP.

First Base

Jose Abreu is one of the elite play on the board today, and he has already went deep once this series. Vegas has this game to be very high scoring, and it has so far in the first two games. His stats above do not need much explaining, he simply punishes baseballs. Edinson Volquez is most likely the weakest pitcher he will face this series. I like him over at DraftKings as my top choice, FanDuel he is a good play, but Votto's salary has me loving him there with Strasburg on the hill. Burnett struggled against left-handed bats last season, and Cincinnati is not the place to struggle in. Left-handed bats have a 151 in the home run department. Burnett allowed a .350 wOBA to left-handed bats last season, guys like Votto, Bruce, and Hamilton jump out for plays to me. Votto's salary is much more attractive on FanDuel. Ike Davis is your value play here, a big power guy facing Nick Martinez who carried a 4.94 FIP last season. I love the A's offense today, they can spray the ball all over the field.

Second Base

The top of the A's lineup matches up well with all the lefties against Martinez, I like him more over on FanDuel with his salary what it is. Martinez allowed a .366 wOBA to left-handed bats last season, Zobrist should easily be one of the top second baseman today. Neil Walker is my DraftKings second baseman, where his salary is only $100 more than Zobrist. Walker has great power for a second baseman, and mentioned earlier, Cincinnati is a great place to hit. Desclafani has shown little ability to pitch at the big league level so far, I will snag a few Pirates in a great hitting environment before they head back home. Asher Wojciechowski is making his first major league start, and with a heavy lefty lineup in Cleveland, it could be a rough start. Michael Brantley was a late scratch last night, and it forced Jose Ramirez into the second spot, I like his value there on both sites. Ramirez a little more on DraftKings with his second base and shortstop eligibility.

Shortstop

Escobar has thrived in that leadoff spot, for both us and the Royals. He has a great matchup vs. Danks, and has collected five hits in the first two games. His price could be on the rise with another few games like he has had, use him at this price while you can. Billy Hamilton qualifies at shortstop on DraftKings, you should be able to spend freely even with Strasburg as your pitcher. Shortstop more often times than not is your weaker position, it is always nice to get someone who doesn't play there to play there for you in your fantasy game. He has tremendous upside with his speed, and also there is a possible chance of the Reds top half of the lineup producing greatly today. With the money to spend, why not add Hamilton as your shortstop.

Third Base

These picks are equal on both sites, Harrison is my top play at third base today. His breakout year last year has put him on the map. This game has potential to get out of hand offensively, and Harrison faces an unproven right-handed pitcher. Harrison had a 135 wRC+ against right-handed pitching today, and he is not too pricey on FanDuel. Luis Valbuena is your value today, he is along the lines of how Jason Castro matches up. He had a .355 wOBA and a 124 wRC+ against right-handed pitching last season. The Astros have had two tough matchups to start off the season, and today they get their chance to face an average righty.

Outfield

With salary being a little tighter on FanDuel, Rios fits in nicely as a top outfield play today. He has slashed lefties throughout his career with a .344 wOBA. He has come into Kansas City and already made an impact. With the matchup vs. Dank and the history vs. left-handed pitching he is a great play on both sites today. McCutchen is mainly for DraftKings, the matchup and park factors are in his favor today, just that steep price tag is his only downside. On DraftKings today that shouldn't be a problem, FanDuel it may be a little tougher to fit him in, although doable. He is a fantasy stud, and in smaller slates it is good to cover yourself with a guy like McCutchen. Sam Fuld has four hits, two of them triples, in two games so far. He will likely hit first or second when right-handed pitching is on the mound. In a game like today where the A's should score some runs he becomes a great value play.

Late Slate:

Just a three game slate, but two of them should be high scoring games. I am looking to target Toronto's right-handed bats against C.C. Sabathia. Sabathia allowed a .347 wOBA to right-handed bats in 2013, and was not any better before missing 2014. The Red Sox have a favorable matchup against David Buchanan, but after last night's showing vs. Aaron Harang it has me worried. They should rebound, Buchanan does not miss many bats, and struggled vs. right-handed bats. Ian Kennedy is my lone pitcher for tonight's slate, he faces the Giants at home. Pitching at home will benefit him greatly, and I like his ability to provide punch outs.