MLB Cash Game Picks : 7-17-15

Pitcher

There are two clear cut hurlers for cash games tonight, and one is Sonny Gray. Not only is he a heavy favorite, he is slightly cheaper than Jose Fernandez, who is my second option. Minnesota ranks just around the league average in offense against right-handed pitching, but certainly have their work cut out for them in Oakland tonight. Gray has been an elite cash game pitcher this season, but I feel he is overlooked at times. He has a 2.04 ERA on the season and is allowing a 13.8% line drive rate. Not much coming off the bat hard from either side, especially the right side with just a 17.9% hard hit ball rate. The Twins lineup is built to mash on left-handed pitching and the occasional average right-hander, Gray is neither of these things, and he is in for a big night. On FanDuel I am leaning more on Gray due to the fact a win is weighted so heavily in scoring.

Jose Fernandez has jumped the $10,000 mark already, and deservedly so. He has a 15.9% swinging strike rate this season, and he gets the league's worst offense. They have just a 78 wRC+, and also the 29th lowest team ISO. The team below them is the Marlins. Fernandez is clicking already, and he may have to provide some run support with his bat to get a win tonight. The Marlins offense has been horrendous, and even more so without Giancarlo Stanton. This creates my worry for him on FanDuel, where I really want that win, On DraftKings, let him fly. He has 15 strikeouts in two starts this season against pretty decent offenses, the young right-hander has everything working in his favor tonight.

Catcher

Robbie Ray may be allowing a .264 wOBA to right-handed bats this season, but he has been hit hard, allowing a 41.6% hard hit ball rate. He also has a ridiculously low ground-ball rate sitting at 32.4% on the season. Get these Giants in a ballpark like Chase Field against a bad lefty, they jump to excellent cash game plays. It starts off with Buster Posey, who is a top catching option anytime he faces a lefty. Posey has .324 wOBA off lefties this season, which is not on par with his past, but owns a 41.7% hard hit ball rate.

First Base

The corner infield spots are very odd today, there are usually a ton of options, but today it is very light. I will attack Julio Teheran all day from the left side of the plate, especially with his ability to serve up the long ball. He has a career 1.26 HR/9 against lefties with a .338 wOBA allowed. This season, he is allowing a .375 wOBA, with a 29.7% line drive rate. Hello, Anthony Rizzo. With a .403 wOBA off right-handed pitching, Rizzo is the only Cub lefty I trust in cash games tonight. Going down a tad in salary, Adam Lind is also in play this evening.

Second Base

Jose Altuve against a lefty is pretty close to the definition of a "cash game lock." Martin Perez is making his first start of 2015, and he is nothing more than your average lefty. He has allowed a .334 wOBA in his career to the right side and has had a low swinging strike rate in two of the three seasons. Altuve has a .357 wOBA against left-handed pitchers this season, and gives a very safe floor for cash games. The ceiling is created by the speed he has, with 25 stolen bases, and nine coming off lefties. He is the elite option up the middle. However, Matt Duffy is second base eligible on DraftKings, if you wanted to go a different route.

Third Base

Like I said with the corner infield being weird, Alex Rodriguez has the looks of a top high priced option this evening. Michael Montgomery had a nice run of some shutout ball, but was dismantled quickly by the Angels in his last start. With a 7.5% swinging strike rate, and a very low .233 BABIP, Montgomery is headed for some regression. A-Rod ended the first half with two homers in the Sox-Yankees series that capped off a terrific first half for the designated hitter. He has a .384 wOBA off lefties this season, with a 24% line drive rate. Like a lot of these Yankees' bats, Yankee Stadium ups their wOBA and ISO quite a bit.

The Duff-man, Matt Duffy, is one of the top value options tonight. Duffy has moved to the third spot in the lineup, which creates even more value. Over two seasons he has a .316 wOBA, which doesn't say much, but has impressive batted ball stats. He has a 24% line drive rate in that span, and throw him in against Ray, he should thrive in the desert tonight. Chase Field has a 120 park factor for right-handed extra base hits and a 107 park factor for runs.

Shortstop

The Houston middle infield duo are big time cash game plays tonight. Carlos Correa has been dynamite against lefties this season, and he has a pretty safe floor already. His upside is sky-high and some days he can pick up the slack for other hitters in your lineup. He has a 26% line drive rate off left-handed pitching so far in his career, and cuts down his strikeout rate when lefties take the mound. Minute Maid Park has held a 118 park factor for right-handed homers in the last three seasons. Get some Correa in your lineups tonight.

Outfield

With Bryce Harper and Mike Trout being your top options, I am looking at this guy to have a very similar floor/ceiling tonight against the lefty John Danks. Lorenzo Cain has feasted on lefties this season, and his floor/ceiling is great. Cain has a .430 wOBA off lefties this season, with a 30% line drive rate. Moving to U.S. Cellular tonight will also add the chances of the long ball. Cain has 17 stolen bases on the season and can get points in bunches. I do not mind paying up for him on either site as a top outfielder.

The main gripe against Michael Brantley this season has been the lack of power. He is moving to Cincinnati for tonight's game, which has had a 150 park factor for left-handed homers in the last three seasons. Leake has allowed a .337 wOBA in his career to lefties, and can give up the long ball to them, especially at home. While I don't mind other Cleveland bats tonight, Brantley is far from a boom or bust option unlike the others.

Another San Francisco bat to target against the lefty tonight. Hunter Pence has always been a solid bat against left-handed pitching, and is another value bat for San Francisco. It has been an injury plagued season for Pence so far, which has led to a diminished price tag. Hitting fifth in the order tonight, the top of the lineup should score plenty of runs against Ray. Angel Pagan is another value outfielder if you need to go deeper down in salary.