There aren’t many stories coming out of the league last night. Santana picked up his 12th win of the season as he threw a complete game. He struck out 9 and only allowed 2 runs off 4 hits. Sano provided some fire power as he hit his 25th homer on the season.
Bellinger hit another home run last night as he now has 30 home runs on the season. He will easily win rookie of the year and could be up for MVP as the Dodgers are steam rolling everyone. The Dodgers being good is great for baseball and I wouldn’t hate seeing them win it all this year.
Other than that, not much happened and we have a ton of games tonight with a couple afternoon games.
Low-Scoring Plays
L.A. Dodgers @ Atlanta Braves – This game should be an auto-win for the Dodgers no matter who is pitching. Alex Wood is getting the call for the Dodgers so you can lock him in for your lineup because this one is locked up. Alex Wood will pick up his 13th win of the season and strike out a ton of batters. He has 110 strike outs on the season and the Braves are 27th in the league in walks. The Dodgers will score in this one but the Braves will not.
Targets: Wood, Bellinger
Arizona Diamondbacks @ Chicago Cubs – This game looks to be the pitching matchup of the day. Grienke vs. Quintana are both undervalued aces. The Diamondbacks haven’t faced much of Quintana, but the ones that have, haven’t done much. Quintana’s ERA is higher than his career’s average so he should string together a couple of good starts and drop that ERA. The Cubs have been hot and are flying under the radar as everyone is focused on the Dodgers, Nats, and Yankees. As for the Diamondbacks we know Grienke will be a great play. He started the season cheap but his price has rose as he has proven he is still an ace. I like the Cubs at home but taking Grenke won’t be a terrible play.
Targets: Quintana, Rizzo, Shwarber
High-Scoring Plays
New York Mets @ Colorado Rockies – Rafael Montero gets the call for the Mets and he should be lit up in this game. Montero is a bullpen arm at this point in his career. He has spent numerous years in the minors and just doesn’t have it. The Rockies have a tough lineup and can string together hits at will. Montero doesn’t have a lot of experience outside of this season so his head can get rattled quick. I would stack as many Rockies as possible as they continue their quest to make the post season.
Targets: Arenado, Blackmon, Story
Philadelphia Phillies @ Seattle Mariners – Jerad Eickhoff takes the mound for the Phillies who is 2-7 on the year with an ERA about 4.5. This sets up well for the Mariners who don’t get enough love out on the west coast. If the Mariners get one more arm this offseason they can be a threat for the post season next year. Cano and Cruz are two of the most undervalued players in the league. Cano always gets forgotten about as everyone thinks of Correa, and the smaller second baseman as great. Cano can hammer the ball still and is always my first look at 2nd base. At home the Mariners should be able to knock Eickhoff out of this game quick and make the Phillies rely on their bullpen.
Targets: Cano, Cruz, Gamel
Undervalued Plays
Gray – NYY – SP – Gray is making his Yankee debut and there are two sides you can go here. If he were pitching at home I would say lock it in. However he is on the road against a good team so that is questionable to me. The Indians should be able to get to him but you never know. He could make a great debut for the Yankees.
Freeman – ATL – 1B – Freeman isn’t cheap but he is undervalued. He is $4400 going against Alex Wood which isn’t in his favor. However he is batting .316 on the year with 19 home runs after sitting out for most of this season. If anyone is going to get to Wood and can jack out on him it will be Freeman.
Shaw – MIL – 3B – Shaw is only $4200 which is a very fair price for the season that he is having. Whenever I write about Shaw he usually hits a home run that day. Put him in your lineup and see if my streak stays alive.
Gamel – SEA – OF – Gamel is a very undervalued play. He is batting .312 on the year with 6 home runs. He is very young, and will be a huge star one day. Gamel has a great swing, can get on base, and has Cruz and Cano hitting him in once he gets on base.
Check out our MLB Breakdown Spreadsheet and our Pitcher Breakdown Spreadsheet (these picks – all over/unders – are now at 59.8% accuracy since June 30) where you can compare key statistics and numbers for today’s games.