Baseball is back! This is the best time of the year- especially on MLB Sunday afternoons. We have a full slate of 10 games starting at 1 pm and my job today is to find you some cheap pieces that make your lineups work. Here are some value options that I’ve identified for your DFS lineups in DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo Fantasy.
PITCHERS
Steven Matz (St. Louis Cardinals) $7.1K DK/7.9K FD/$36
Steven Matz closed his Spring Training season looking like the type of pitcher that the Cardinals were hoping to get when they paid $44 million (4 years) for him over the winter. The southpaw threw 6 2/3 innings on Tuesday afternoon allowing only two hits, striking out five and walking only one batter. Last season Matz was 14-7 in Toronto with a 4.04xFIP and struck out 22% of the batters he faced. He finds himself with a good chance to win today (-210 favorite) against a notoriously weak Pirates offense.
Zach Eflin (Philadelphia Phillies) $7.7K DK/$$8.9K FD/$35 Yahoo
Zach Eflin put together a solid spring (0.96 ERA) and did not even give up a hit until his final start last Tuesday. This has been optimistic news for the Phillies who lost Eflin at the end of last season to knee surgery. Today he gets to face an Oakland offense that is in total rebuild mode and lacking big sticks on offense with only one batter (Seth Brown) that had an ISO over .180 against righties last season. Like Matz, Eflin is a big favorite today (-210) and should be able to pick up the win points making himself a solid value on all sites.
BATTERS
Tyler Naquin (Cincinnati Reds) $3.7K DK/$2.5K FD/$9 Yahoo
Tyler Naquin has found a home as the #2 hitter in the Reds order. This is a player that can hit for power and has gained a reputation as a righty killer of the years. Last season Naquin had a .242 ISO/.369wOBA with 44.3% hard contact against right-handers. He also was just fine away from his home park (a hitter’s stadium) posting a respectable .274/.328/.464 slash on the road. Today he gets to face a righty (Ian Anderson) in Atlanta and is too cheap on all sites.
Jeff McNeil (New York Mets) $3.0K DK/$2.6K FD/$14 Yahoo
Jeff McNeil is coming off a bad year at the plate which is totally out of character. Since his rookie year in 2018 McNeil hit between .311-.329 until the unexpected 2021 drop-off of .251. If the start of the 2022 season is any indication, McNeil may be back. He is one of the hottest hitters in the game batting .462 (6-for-13) with a .500 OBP and 1.192 OPS. Today he faces Nationals right-hander Erick Fedde, who really struggled against left-handed bats last season- .207 ISO/.367wOBA with 44.7% hard contact allowed. No signs of seeing McNeil slowing down today.
Josh Lowe (Tampa Bay Rays) $2.6K DK/$2.6K FD/$16 Yahoo
The Rays, one of the top organizations in recognizing talent, trusted Josh Lowe enough that they traded star Austin Meadows last week to Detroit. Lowe is a 24-year-old lefty hitter that put up a 20-20 in AAA Durham last season. He was 27-for-27 in steals with 22 home runs in 402 AAA at bats. Now enter MLB and he has not disappointed with a .333 batting average while hitting in the middle of the order. Today he gets the platoon advantage against Orioles right-hander Tyler Wells and should be batting fifth.
Trey Mancini (Baltimore Orioles) $2.9K DK/$2.7K FD/$13 Yahoo
Trey Mancini returned after missing all of 2020 and proceeded to hit .255 with 21 home runs and 71 RBIs last season. This is a talented hitter that has not hit less than 21 home runs in a season and is less than three years removed from a .291 average: 35 home run and 97 RBI season. Today he should be in the middle of the Orioles order facing 35-year-old Corey Kluber whose best pitching days are behind him and was a reverse splits pitcher last year allowing a .353wOBA and .193 IS to right-handed bats. Do not be surprised if Mancini goes yard for the first time of 2022 today.