3 Daily Fantasy Baseball Hitters to Avoid on 4/15/16
As is the case in most daily fantasy sports, finding information on players you might want to roster is a lot easier than finding players to avoid.
While you can get away with a zero from a hitter in daily fantasy, you certainly don't want to target guys whose matchups aren't enticing.
Here are three hitters you may want to lessen your exposure to or even fade altogether on Friday.
Chase Utley, 2B, Los Angeles Dodgers
FanDuel Price: $2,700
Because of all the outfield injuries the Dodgers are going through right now, Chase Utley has been needed by the Dodgers at second base with Howie Kendrick needed in the outfield. However, Utley has to face off against Madison Bumgarner tonight in yet another bad leftie-leftie matchup on this Friday slate.
Last season, Utley had a wOBA of just .252 against left-handed pitching, and in six at-bats this season against lefties, it hasn’t gotten any better, as he's hitting .167. Bumgarner owned lefties last season, as they posted a wOBA of just .240 against him. Bumgarner also posted an insane strikeout rate of 32.9 percent against lefties in 2015, and while Utley doesn’t strike out a lot, his strike out rate last season against lefties was 18.3 percent, over four points higher than his rate against right-handed pitching.
Bummy also owns Dodger Stadium. Throughout his career, the Dodgers hit just .218 off him in 13 career games there. Last season, Bumgarner had a strikeout rate of 29 percent at Dodger Stadium, and Los Angeles’ on-base percentage was just .250 against Bumgarner in 2015 in LA.
Devin Mesoraco, C, Cincinnati Reds
FanDuel Price: $2,700
Devin Mesoraco has been out of the Reds’ lineup over the last two days, but reports indicate that he could be ready to make his return to the lineup tonight as the Reds battle their Central Division rival, the Cardinals, on Friday night. However, while Mesoraco could be ready to return to the Reds’ lineup, it might be best to keep him off your DFS lineups tonight for a catcher with a better matchup.
Mesoraco and the Reds have to face off against Carlos Martinez, who has been very good in his first two outings of 2016. He also tends to be dominant against right-handed hitting -- he has yet to give up a hit to a right-handed batter this season, and in 2015, Martinez had a wOBA against of .276 versus righties. His strikeout rate went up to 26.9 percent against righties in 2015, and those batters had a hard hit rate of just 24.2 percent against him.
Mesoraco on the other hand tends to not hit righties well. He's a career .226 hitter against right-handed pitching, with a wOBA of .304, and a strikeout rate of 21.7 percent. Even if Mesoraco plays, look for other catchers around his price point like Matt Wieters or Travis d'Arnaud, who have much more favorable matchups and much better parks to hit in tonight.
Logan Morrison, 1B, Tampa Bay Rays
FanDuel Price: $2,200
On any given day of MLB DFS, first base is always a position you can pay up for -- there are always good power-hitting options. But a contrarian tournament strategy could also be to pay down at first base, in hopes one of the value options goes overlooked.
Logan Morrison could fit that mold here tonight, until you realize he has one of the toughest matchups any leftie could ask for in Chris Sale.
Sale has owned lefties so far in his career, and just last year, lefties had a wOBA of just .281 against him. Sale’s xFIP against lefties in 2015 was 2.28, and left-handed hitters had a hard hit rate of 17.5 percent. In 2014, he was even better against lefties, as they had a wOBA of just .183 off him.
Morrison struggled last season against lefties, and if he's hitting high in the order tonight, some DFS players may ignore the tough matchup. Morrison had a wOBA of just .245 against left-handed pitching last season, and his hard-hit rate was just 20.4 percent. It’s best to avoid him tonight, even if he hits in the two hole.
