Yahoo DFS Baseball: Thursday Plays and Strategy

Yahoo DFS Baseball: Thursday Plays and Strategy

This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.

Baseball brings a light slate Thursday that consists of only six games. The main evening slate on Yahoo is made up of just three games. We don't have a ton of options to choose from, but that doesn't mean you can't come away a winner. Here are some pitchers and hitters to consider for your lineups.

Pitchers

The Athletics have a .760 OPS on the road this season, but that mark is just .625 at home. Their home stadium is very pitcher-friendly, and the environment doesn't really favor them since so few fans show up. That makes it a great opportunity to roll with Nathan Eovaldi ($39), who has a 2.18 FIP and a 1.10 WHIP over his first seven starts.

In his first year with the Giants, Alex Cobb ($38) finished with a 3.73 ERA and a 2.80 FIP last season. This season, he has a 2.01 ERA and a 2.91 FIP over seven starts. Not only has he shown excellent control, but he has only allowed 12 home runs over 190 innings since joining the team. The Diamondbacks won't be the easiest of matchups, but Cobb still stands out as one of the best pitching options for this limited slate.

Top Targets

It's not often that Aaron Judge ($16) is available at this cheap of a salary. In two games since coming off the IL, he is 3-for-7 with a double and two walks. Drew Rasmussen ($42) is no pushover, but the combination of Judge's reduced salary and his career .312 ISO and .424 wOBA at home still makes him a top target.

The Diamondbacks will start lefty Tommy Henry ($25) against the Giants, who have just a .656 OPS versus southpaws. However, one of their more potent right-handed bats has been J.D. Davis ($16), who has a .376 wOBA this season. Further helping Davis's cause is that Henry has only posted a 15.8 percent strikeout rate over 62.2 career innings.

Bargain Bats

Anthony Volpe ($12) launched a grand slam on Wednesday, marking his fourth home run this season. While his batting average isn't great, he has hit for power and stolen 11 bases. He has also shown to have a good eye at the plate, posting a 12.0 percent walk rate. All he needs is to get on base one time and record a steal to provide value at this salary.

Stacks to Consider

Rangers vs. TBD, Athletics: Marcus Semien ($19), Adolis Garcia ($19), Ezequiel Duran ($14)

As of early Thursday morning, the Athletics had yet to officially name their starting pitcher for this game. It was originally supposed to be Ken Waldichuk, but he has been pushed back to Friday. With the team running out of healthy pitchers, whoever they decide to roll with will likely be an underwhelming option. That should be their downfall against a Rangers team that has scored the second-most runs in baseball. Duran has quietly been an important member of their lineup, recording a .355 wOBA.

Rays vs. Domingo German ($34), Yankees: Wander Franco ($20), Randy Arozarena ($19), Josh Lowe ($17)

On a limited slate, stacking the team that has scored the most runs in baseball probably isn't a bad idea. Not only have the Rays scored the most runs, but they have also hit the most home runs. That's a noteworthy stat for a matchup against German, who has given up 35 home runs over 210 combined innings the last three seasons. Leading the way for the Rays has been Franco, who has a .241 ISO to go along with his .392 wOBA.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Mike Barner plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: mbarner, DraftKings: mbarner51.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mike Barner
Mike started covering fantasy sports in 2007, joining RotoWire in 2010. In 2018, he was a finalist for the FSWA Basketball Writer of the Year award. Mike also won the 2022-23 FSGA NBA Experts Champions league. In addition to RotoWire, Mike has written for Sportsline, Sports Illustrated, DK Live, RealTime Fantasy Sports, Lineup Lab and KFFL.com.
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