I’ve been on the wrong side of Jon Gray ($16,800) all season long it seems like. I drafted him in season long leagues, only to suffer through his miserable first half and drop him once he was sent to the minors. Next, he was picked up by another team only to see him go on a run that was ace-like. Besides his most recent hiccup in LAA, Gray has given up more than 3 ER just once since his return. Tonight, he gets the hapless Padres in Petco, which is a dream matchup for any pitcher, nevermind one with the strikeout upside of Gray. To make things even more juicy, the Padres are second in the league in team strikeouts, just one strikeout behind the White Sox. Gray should be a staple of GPP lineups tonight and I could even see using him in cash.
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Clayton Kershaw, SP: $23,100 – Kershaw and the Dodgers are one of the two top favorites on the night at -175. Kershaw is your top pitching choice for cash games, but I’m not sure I’d go that route myself. The DBacks can be a tough out and I think I’d rather grab some better bats than pay up for Kershaw
Eduardo Rodriguez, SP: $16,100 – I’m not usually one to start a pitcher fresh off a DL stint, but as I mentioned in the lede, the White Sox are tops in the majors in strikeouts. The fact that Jose Abreu is out is icing on this cake. E-Rod has looked filthy in two rehab starts for Double A and I’m totally fine deploying him at will. Be warned, he may only last 5 IP, but that should be enough for the win and 6-8 Ks.
Dylan Bundy, SP: $13,900 – This is strictly playing for the win with the O’s facing the Royals and Heath Fillmyer. This game could be a war of attrition for sure, but Bundy should be solid enough to beat out Fillmyer. The Royals don’t strike out a ton, so this is straictly a GPP play where you hope for the win and high teens in points.
Daniel Poncedeleon, SP: $13,500 – Poncedeleon and the Cards are other team at -175 on the night. That’s good enough for me to recommend him vs. the Reds and Luis Castillo. Poncedeleon is at home and has been pretty impressive in limited work thus far. I love a Gray/Poncedeleon tag team lineup tonight.
Matt Carpenter, IF: $10,300 – This is one of the reasons I don’t want to pay up for Kershaw. I love Carpenter to take Luis Castillo yard tonight and will gladly pay the price for him.
Jonathan Villar, IF: $8,000 – Villar has been a total stud since moving to Baltimore and should have no trouble continuing that trend vs. Fillmyer.
Lourdes Gurriel, IF: $7,300 – Wei-Yin Chen is going for the Marlins, so deploy any and all Blue Jays, especially righties. Lourdes should be leading off and scoring plenty.
Steve Pearce, IF/OF: $8,500 – Pearce is another player who has benefited greatly from a change of scenery. With the platoon advantage against Carlos Rodon tonight, Pearce should be batting in the meat of the Red Sox lineup, setting him up nicely to score all kinds of points.
Trey Mancini, IF/OF: $8,400 – As Grey mentioned the other day, no one has been hotter than Mancini right now and I’m low-key loving a Baltimore stack against Heath Fillmyer.
Dee Gordon, IF/OF: $7,200 – Daniel Mengden, more like Daniel “Meh”den amiright? Alright, maybe not, but I still like the Mariners lefties in Oakland.
Ronald Acuna, OF: $9,700 – I’m all about picking on Chris Archer and his homer-itis and I’ll gladly pay up for Acuna, who should be good for a long ball or two.
Juan Soto, OF: $9,400 – Chase Anderson and his 5.36 FIP does nothing for me, but Juan Soto and his .922 OPS does all kinds of things for me.
Eddie Rosario, OF: $8,800 – Yovani Gallardo alert! Yes, somehow he’s still pitching in the major leagues.
I’m Only Happy When It Rains
Unfortunately, it looks like a night filled with rain in Chicago for the battle of the Sox. That could really put a damper on E-Rod’s return. There’s also the chance for rain in Washington, which knowing them, means they will PPD the game 2 minutes before lineup lock.
Doing Lines In Vegas
As mentioned earlier, the big favorites on the night are the Dodgers and Cardinals at -175. The highest over/under is in Texas where the Twins are favored. Looks like Vegas is surprised Yovani Gallardo is starting MLB games too. Kershaw and Corbin doing battle in LA makes for an over/under of only 7 runs so I’d avoid bats in that game.
