The Boston Red Sox walk it off, and by walk it off, I literally mean walk off. Chapman couldn’t find the strike zone as he walked Benintendi with the bases loaded in a tie ball game. That is a tough spot for Chapman to be in but with all the money he is being paid, he can’t walk him there. Throw 102 MPH down the middle if they can get a single off of that and win then ok, but walking someone there is just a no can do.
We have a massive day with pitchers on the mound tonight. We have Sale, Kluber, Bumgarner, Scherzer, and Wood. It will be interesting to see which ones are the highest owned, if you can make a line up with Sale and Scherzer, that’s an auto 65 points at least.
Low-Scoring Plays
New York Yankees @ Boston Red Sox- A tough loss last night for New York will leave the frustrated as they head into today’s game. If there is one thing you don’t want from your team it is for them to be frustrated especially against division rivals who they are chasing down for first place. This Yankee team is young and rebuilding so facing this adversity will be tough, especially without players like Jeter, Tex, and A-Rod who could all help them through it. Instead they have Brett Gardner as their leader which isn’t terrible but isn’t one of the three I just named. Sale should have a monster game. He and Scherzer are now on the same day in the rotation so they will be going head to head in the strike out lead each day they pitch. The Red Sox didn’t play great last night, left a lot of players on base, look for them to have a bigger day and to extend this lead in the division.
Targets: Sale, Benintendi, Bogaerts
San Francisco Giants @ San Diego Padres- What if I told you we were halfway through the season and Bumgarner is in search for his first win. Well that is exactly what we are looking at, as he returns from injury. Bumgarner will have a massive day, he knows he screwed up for the Giants this year getting hurt on a dirt bike so look for him to take is personally and pitch with a ton of emotion. I’m saying a career day for Bumgarner, and he will strike out around 15 batters. That is how confident I am in him coming back from injury. If I were the Giants, I would dangle him in front of the Yankees as a possible trade and look to take a ton of their prospects. The Giants are far from good, and you don’t want to give up an arm like Bumgarner, but you could get so much for him it would be worth it.
Targets: Bumgarner
Washington Nationals @ Cincinnati Reds- Scherzer gets the call for the Nationals, who will look to match Sale’s performance and strike out a plethora of batters here. He always have potential to strike out 15 plus in a game, and is a play that I love today. The Reds are less of a threat than the Yankees are so Scherzer will be the better pick over Sale. Sale usually gives up a long ball or two in a start and we know the Yankees can hit them. So if you care choosing one or the other I would side with Scherzer. Harper looked great yesterday as he had two dingers. He is having a great year, but the hype at the break was about Judge and Bellinger. Look for Harper to have a monster second half of the season to take back the headlines and to put the young guns in their place.
Targets: Scherzer, Murphy, Harper
High-Scoring Plays
Chicago Cubs @ Baltimore Orioles-I told you Schwarber would be back as he has now hit home runs in back to back games for the Cubs. Arieta gets that call today as he has been a sketchy play this entire year. He hasn’t been his dominant self, but he will turn it around as he will be the key for the Cubs to make another run this year. The Orioles have fell off the face of the earth but I think they will turn it around as well. Buck Showalter is one of the best managers in baseball and will be able to get his team to perform. I like the Cubs in this one as they will string together a couple of good games here and get their swagger back.
Targets: Schwarber, Bryant, Rizzo
St. Louis Cardinals @ Pittsburgh Pirates-Jameson Tallion has been one hell of a story this year and is pitching well when he does. The Cardinals will have a hard time scoring off of him and he will be one of the most undervalued players today as there are stars taking the mound. So why is this in the high scoring plays? This is a storyline that I like the Pirates to rally behind. They have shown glimpses of being great and put up big games every now and again. Look for them to have a huge game here and give Tallion a ton of support. Playing at home the Pirates are a team that I love.
Targets: McCutchen, Harrison
Philadelphia Phillies @ Milwaukee Brewers- The Brewers mash the ball. Thames is having a great year as we know, and was snubbed out of the home run derby. Sanchez performed well in the Derby, but Thames should have been in over him. Travis Shaw-the Mayor of Ding Dong City- is having a great year and a play that I always love. Look for the Brewers to win this game big with a multi home run game from Thames and a strong performance from Shaw. The Phillies aren’t anything special at all, so it is all shaping up well for the Brewers.
Targets: Thames, Shaw
Undervalued Plays
Hernandez-SEA-SP-King Felix makes his return for Seattle and is only $8300. Anytime you can get him at this price point he is almost a must take. He’s going against the White Sox who are in rebuilding mode so he should have a big day as he is well rested. He is one of the best arms in baseball and should be your second pitcher.
Tallion-PIT-SP- Another starting pitcher at $8300 will be a great play. We know the story line from him and he pitches with a ton of emotion. He will have a strong outing at home as he faces the Cardinals who aren’t great. Hernandez will be a better play, but Tallion will be less owned which could be even more beneficial to you.
Sanatana-MIN-SP- A pitcher with a 2.99 ERA and averages 19.4 points per game is only $8000. Give me a break, if you want to use him and one of the two pitchers above I wouldn’t judge you for a second. That will leave you with a ton of room to take anyone at any position. There are a ton of great pitchers though that will keep the stars from hitting, as we saw in the All-Star game, great pitching triumphs great hitting.
Ramos-TB-C-Ramos played for the Nationals last year and was a play I took almost everyday, he didn’t kill the ball or put up great numbers but he was a hitting machine. He was always good for 8 or 9 points. He is coming back from injury as he was out for most of the first half of the season. Ramos will be a lock in my line up for many days to come.
Bellinger-LAD-1B/OF- A flex player that you can put at first is always nice for your line up. We know what he did in the first half and he is still only $4400, Draft Kings has to be pissed that acquiring Fan Duel is harder than they thought because they want my money and are asking me to put in 20 teams tonight. I might, because I am licking my lips looking at all these cheap players. Man do I love baseball and I love gambling even more.
Schoop-BAL-2B- The brightest player for the Orioles this year has been Schoop. He has been hitting home runs and when he doesn’t he gets on base and finds a way to score. Spending a lot on a 2nd baseman isn’t always worth it but for $4400 you can get a 2nd baseman averaging 8.4 points per game, sign me up.
Stanton-MIA-OF- Stanton is only $4100 and has 26 home runs on the year. He is facing Wood who is a good pitcher, but Stanton is a great hitter. If Wood picks up his first loss of the season here it will be because of Stanton. 26 home runs on the year, and only $4100, you just don’t see that from sluggers. He doesn’t have a team to get on base so his RBI’s won’t be there, but Wood will loss this game, I convinced myself that while typing this. Stanton, lock him in.
A huge day for pitchers I’m curious who everyone takes and how you build your lineup around them. Tweet me who you are taking @sporfolio, or @colincazzetta let’s see what you are all made of.