Dein erstes Forum » weeks. Meanwhile, the Mets have a relia

What was supposed to be a Clayton Kershaw night has turned into a wide-open slate. The only ace, Jacob deGrom, is facing the high-scoring Chicago Cubs. Johnny Cueto, who has pitched like an ace, has the tough task of taming the Arizona Diamondbacks in the desert, while the Boston Red Sox will hope some home cooking and Steven Wrights knuckler work miracles against the Los Angeles Angels. Its set up to be quite a ride, so fasten your seatbelts and point your GPS to Fridays Daily Notes.PitchingEliteDeGrom should be in consideration for June pitcher of the month, registering a 2.45 ERA and 1.03 WHIP with 40 strikeouts to five walks in 33 innings. So why isnt he a no-brainer DFS anchor as he kicks off July? The New York Mets right-hander is tasked with taming the Cubs as the squads embark on a series in Citi Field. Theres strikeout upside as the prolific Cubs fan at an above-average pace, but the warm and fuzzy feeling desired from a cash game anchor just isnt there. Your mileage may vary.SolidVery good but not great is the best way to describe Sonny Grays June. But thats also an apropos characterization of the Oakland Athletics?right-hander, so it appears hes back on track after 30 2/3 innings with a 3.32 ERA and 1.17 WHIP, fanning 22 with just five free passes. A date with the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates will be a great litmus test for the 26-year-old as the Bucs sport a respectable 0.329 weighted on base average (wOBA) versus righties and have the luxury of using a designated hitter. Its hard to justify using Gray in a GPP; the strikeout upside just isnt there but he does profile as a better cash game candidate than deGrom.While on paper Cueto incurs a big park downgrade with a visit to Chase Field to take on the Diamondbacks, as a former Cincinnati Reds hurler, Cueto is well acquainted with working in hitter-friendly ballparks. As such, hes in play for both DFS cash and GPP action. His penchant for going deep into games with a decent 7.7 K/9 provides the cash floor while the Snakes 24 percent strikeout rate facing right-handers avails the tournament upside. You also have to like his offenses chance to put up some tallies with Shelby Miller taking the hill for the home team.Will the real Drew Smyly please stand up? Those of a certain age, or fans of the Game Show Network, recognize that as a To Tell the Truth reference. To tell the truth, Smyly is one of the more frustrating pitchers to analyze. Just as he appears ready to get back on track, hes derailed. The latest crash came last time out against the Baltimore Orioles as the Tampa Bay Rays lefty was tagged for 10 hits and eight runs in five innings. That came on the heels of a pair of outings featuring 17 punchouts with nary a walk in 13 2/3 frames. Next up are the Detroit Tigers, a similar club to the Orioles, though this affair will be in the comforts of Tropicana Field. With a 10.0 K/9, Smyly is best deployed only in a GPP. Hes too risky for cash even in the pitcher-friendly venue.If you were told back in March that Jaime Garcia would give you 88 first-half innings, youd be ecstatic. However, your enthusiasm would be tempered once it was learned those would come with a 4.09 ERA and 1.38 WHIP. Some of that is bad luck as the St. Louis Cardinals lefty carries a hefty 0.329 batting average on balls in play with a slightly high 11 percent home run-per-fly ball mark. But, he also hasnt been as sharp, as evidenced by a spike in walk rate. The veteran southpaw is in a great spot to get the second half going in the right direction as the Milwaukee Brewers make the trip to Busch Stadium for a weekend set with their NL Central foes. The visitors whiff at a 24 percent pace against left-handers, yielding Garcia as a top GPP option.Normally, a pitchers DFS potential is tempered facing the Los Angeles Angels as they dont strike out much. However, throw all that out the window when the pitcher is Steven Wright. The knuckleball specialist is largely eschewed by the DFS community, which always makes him a contrarian play. The Boston Red Soxs vaunted attack is scuffling, not only on the road but also at home. That said, returning to Fenway Park is usually a panacea for the club so run support could be in the offing against Jhoulys Chacin.In seasonal fantasy, theres a cliché that goes something like Hes so underrated that hes overrated. The DFS equivalent could be, Hes so contrarian that hes chalk. This applies to Michael Fulmer as he leads the Detroit Tigers into Tropicana Field for a weekend series with the Tampa Bay Rays. The home teams bats have been productive lately, but a lot of that damage came against lefties and their wOBA facing southpaws is the leagues best. Against right-handers theyre below average while punching out one quarter of the time. On such a varied slate, Fulmer is likely to be a popular GPP pick.Lets save some bandwidth for streamers by briefly identifying the remaining solid DFS options. If you want embellishment, please post in the comments below or shoot a tweet to @ToddZola. Julio Teheran and Tanner Roark are favorable options for cash games while Nathan Eovaldi, Mike Fiers and Jorge De La Rosa profile nicely for tournaments.StreamersUnfortunately, there arent a lot of enticing options to spot in, but well point out the better options since were getting close to the end of the head-to-head scoring period.Wade LeBlanc impressed the Seattle Mariners brass enough to get a second start, banishing Nate Karns to the bullpen. The journeyman southpaw takes on the dangerous Baltimore Orioles, but the affair is in Safeco Field and the visitors whiff at an above-average clip against lefties. Those needing to protect ratios may want to look elsewhere, but if youre chasing wins, the Mariners sticks have been productive so LeBlanc should have some runs to work with.In five June starts with the Atlanta Braves, new Los Angeles Dodgers righty Bud Norris boasted an impressive 2.15 ERA with 29 whiffs in 29 1/3 frames. Studies demonstrate pitchers throwing well usually continue, so despite facing a Colorado Rockies squad that handles righties well, Norris is in play since the Rox do most of their damage in Coors and this meeting is in Dodger Stadium.If Colin Rea can keep the top of the New York Yankees order in check, he should be in good shape as the Yankees as a squad sport a pedestrian 0.314 wOBA against righties. Plus, the game is in Petco, which means a park downgrade and likely no Alex Rodriguez.Martin Perez hasnt pitched as well as his 3.44 ERA suggests, as evidenced by a weak 4.4 K/9 and wild 3.8 BB/9. Against most clubs, the narrative would be expect regression to kick in, but with the Minnesota Twins on the docket, the Texas Rangers southpaws in play for this Target Field encounter.AvoidWhile there are some very risky choices, no one warrants complete avoidance other than the trio of Jeff Locke, Miguel Gonzalez and Jhoulys Chacin, who all check in with projected Game Scores of 45 or below, in the auto-avoid range.HittingFriday could be a day to focus more on individual players in favorable spots as opposed to team stacks since the available pig-piles dont feel as explosive as usual. But there are some locales worth considering, beginning in Minute Maid Park with?Miguel Gonzalez?taking the ball for the visiting Chicago White Sox. The Houston Astros picked it up in June, stroking a 0.364 wOBA against right-handers for the month. Regardless of handedness, Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa and George Springer are always dangerous. Marwin Gonzalez is a tough out along with lefties Luis Valbuena, A.J. Reed and Colby Rasmus. The latter three are best utilized in a tournament stack.The Oakland Athletics are another club hitting better as of late. Theyre in a good spot to keep the lumber pounding against southpaw Jeff Locke. Coco Crisp, Marcus Semien,?Jed Lowrie, Danny Valencia,?Jake Smolinski?and Josh Phegley spearhead an attack that gets better if Khris Davis shoulder is well enough to allow him to play.From the Department of Silver Linings, the Boston Red Soxs recent hitting woes have dropped the prices of the likes of Mookie Betts, Dustin Pedroia, Xander Bogaerts, David Ortiz and Hanley Ramirez. A return to friendly Fenway to face Chacin could be just what the doctor ordered.Whenever theres a late pitching change, its prudent to see if the prices of the affected hitters are out of whack. When the actual change is Bud Norris, a middling righty in for Kershaw, owner of the most valuable left arm on the planet, opposing left-handed hitters could be an absolute steal if they were priced expecting Kershaw. Be sure to check Charlie Blackmon and Carlos Gonzalez as they could be bargains.Most likely to go yard: Josh DonaldsonJosh Tomlin struggles with the long ball and since he doesnt display significant splits, lets anoint Donaldson in Rogers Centre as the hitter despite lacking the platoon edge.Most likely to swipe a bag: Ben RevereAnthony DeSclafani does a poor job controlling the running game and is also prone to walks. Revere may not be the most patient hitter but hell be even more impatient if he gets on base. Look for him to take off if afforded the chance.Cheap Nike Air Vapormax . -- The plastic that was taped across the lockers in Oaklands clubhouse came down and the champagne that was on ice went back into the cooler. Womens Nike Air Vapormax . The Barrie Colts defenceman, who impressed many with his play for Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championship, is the top-ranked skater in the February rankings. He has 19 goals and 24 assists for 43 points in 45 games with the Colts this season. http://www.cheapairvapormaxsale.com/ . Both players have lower body injuries that will keep them out of the lineup until at least January 31, which is the first game they can be activated from IR. Cheap Nike Air Vapormax China . Kozun faked to the forehand and beat Monsters starter, Calvin Pickard, pad side in the second round for the winner. Spencer Abbott also scored in the shootout for the Marlies (25-13-4). Youth Nike Air Vapormax . The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer.A look at the National League wild-card playoff between the San Francisco Giants and New York Mets:---Schedule: Wednesday, at New York, 8:09 p.m. EDT (ESPN).---Season Series: Mets beat Giants 4-3.---Projected Lineups:Giants: CF Denard Span (.266, 11 HRs, 52 RBI, 12 SBs), 1B Brandon Belt (.275, 17, 82, 41 2Bs, 104 BBs), C Buster Posey (.288, 14, 80, 33 2Bs), RF Hunter Pence (.289, 13, 57), SS Brandon Crawford (.275, 12, 84), LF Angel Pagan (.277, 12, 55, 15 SBs), 2B Joe Panik (.239, 10, 62), 3B Conor Gillaspie (.262, 6, 25).Mets: 3B Jose Reyes (.267, 8, 24, 9 SBs in 60 games), SS Asdrubal Cabrera (.280, 23, 62), LF Yoenis Cespedes (.280, 31, 86), CF Curtis Granderson (.237, 30, 59), RF Jay Bruce (.250, 33, 99 with Reds and Mets; .219, 8, 19 in 50 games with Mets), 2B T.J. Rivera (.333, 3, 16 in 105 at-bats), 1B James Loney (.265, 9, 34 in 100 games) or Lucas Duda (.229, 7, 23 in 47 games), C Rene Rivera (.222, 6, 26 in 65 games).---Starting Pitchers:Giants: LH Madison Bumgarner (15-9, 2.74 ERA, 251 Ks).Mets: RH Noah Syndergaard (14-9, 2.60, 218 Ks in 183 2/3 IP).---Relievers:Giants: RH Sergio Romo (1-0, 2.64, 4/4 saves), RH Derek Law (4-2, 2.13, 1 save), LH Javier Lopez (1-3, 4.05, 1 save, .211 BA vs LH hitters), RH Hunter Strickland (3-3, 3.10, 3 saves), RH Santiago Casilla (2-5, 3.57, 31/40 saves), RH George Kontos (3-2, 2.53), LH Will Smith (2-4, 3.35 with Giants and Brewers).Mets: RH Jeurys Familia (3-4, 2.55, MLB-high 51/56 saves in 78 games), RH Addison Reed (4-2, 1.97, 1 save in 80 games), RH Fernando Salas (3-7, 3.91, 6 saves in 75 games with Angels and Mets; 0-1, 2.08, 19 Ks, no walks in 17 games with Mets), LH Jerry Blevins (4-2, 2.79, 2 saves in 73 games, 42 IP), RH Hansel Robles (6-4, 3.48, 1 save), LH Josh Smoker (3-0, 4.70, 25 Ks in 15 1/3 innings), RH Bartolo Colon (15-8, 3.43 in 34 games, 33 starts, team-high 191 2/3 IP), RH Seth Lugo (5-2, 2.67 in 17 games, 8 starts), RH Robert Gsellman (4-2, 2.42 in 8 games, 7 starts), RH Jim Henderson (2-2, 4.37) or RH Erik Goeddel (2-2, 4.54).---Matchups:This is the second postseason meeting between the teams. New York beat the Giants in four games during their 2000 NL Division Series. ... Both clubs finished 87-75, and the Mets earned home-field advantage for this game by winning the season series. New York took two of three at home early in the season before the teams split a four-game series at San Francisco in August. Bumgarner had two of the Giants three wins and is 5-0 with a 1.80 ERA in six career starts against the Mets. He allowed four runs over five innings in a 10-7 victory Aug. 18. He had allowed four runs in his first 35 innings against New York, including six scoreless innings to outpitch Syndergaard on May 1. ... Posey is a .336 career hitter against the Mets. ... New York set a franchise record with 218 home runs, which ranked second in the NL and fifth in the majors. The Mets went 77-40 when they homered. ... New York also clocked a club-record 13 pinch-hit homers this season. Only the Cardinals (17) had more. ... In addition to his quality stuff and sensational postseason resume, Bumgarner could present a matchup problem for the middle of New Yorks lineup simply because hes a lefty. Granderson, Bruce, Loney and Duda all bat left-handed. Reyes and Cabrera are switch-hitters, but injured infielder Wilmer Flores (wrist) will be missed. Flores hit .340 with 11 homers in 100 at-bats vs. left-handers this season, including .393 with 25 RBI in his last 61 at-bats. He had a whopping .710 slugging percentage against southpaws. Flores had been subbing at second base for injured Neil Walker (23 HRs). That role now belongs to T.J. Rivera, an undrafted rookie from New York City who won the Pacific Coast League batting crown. Hes done an excellent job filling in. ... The winner heads for Chicago to play the NL Central champion Cubs in a best-of-five Division Series beginning Friday. New York swept the Cubs in last years NL Championship Series and went 5-2 against them this season, including a four-game sweep at Citi Field.---Big Picture:Giants: After leading the majors with a 57-33 record at the All-Star break, San Francisco stumbled to the finish and nearly missed out entirely on the postseason. The Giants ended the regular season with their first four-game winning streak of the second half to beat out St. Louis by one game for the second NL wild card. Now that San Francisco is in, manager Bruce Bochys team hopes to extend the even-year karma that led to World Series titles in 2010, `12 and `14. ... San Francisco set up its rotation with the right man on the mound for thiis one in Bumgarner, the 2014 World Series MVP.ddddddddddddHe is 7-3 with a 2.14 ERA in 14 career postseason appearances, and 5-1 with a 0.99 ERA in his last seven postseason starts. ... The bullpen was the biggest issue in the second half, with the team setting a franchise record by losing nine games it led after eight innings, including five in September. ... Posey hit just three HRs in his last 63 games but picked up his performance late with 12 RBI in the final nine games. ... Pence, who missed 48 games with a hamstring injury, had a strong finish, batting .340 over his final 24 games. ... San Francisco committed a major league-low 72 errors, with Crawford playing mistake-free defense in his final 43 games at shortstop. ... With 3B Eduardo Nunez not expected to play because of a hamstring injury, Gillaspie will get the nod. He is 7 for 14 with five RBI in the past five games.Mets: Following last years World Series loss to Kansas City, the well-stocked Mets began the season with big expectations and legitimate aspirations of winning their first championship since 1986. Then the aches and pains started piling up. Every established regular besides Granderson spent time on the disabled list, in addition to handy part-time players Flores (16 HRs, 49 RBI) and Juan Lagares. Duda (back) missed four months, and captain David Wright (neck surgery) has been out since late May. By early September, the imposing young rotation had been decimated by season-ending injuries to Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom and Steven Matz. Zack Wheeler never made it back from March 2015 Tommy John surgery, further testing New Yorks pitching depth. The trade-deadline deal for Bruce looked like a bust before he finally went on a timely tear during the last week of the season. But when the resilient Mets reached down to the farm, several marginal prospects delivered under pressure. Lugo and Gsellman saved the rotation down the stretch, while the 43-year-old Colon was a rock throughout -- even becoming the oldest major leaguer to hit his first career home run. Loney and Rene Rivera, steady veterans dumped by Tampa Bay just before the season started, arrived from the minors and provided important contributions. Reyes, released by Colorado after serving a domestic-violence suspension, rejoined his original team at a new position July 5 and combined with Cabrera to energize a sagging offense. Both dyed their hair bright, too, and manager Terry Collins persistent team finally took off. New York was 60-62 after losing at San Francisco on Aug. 19, the day Cespedes and Cabrera came off the DL. Then the Mets went an MLB-best 27-13 the rest of the way and jumped over four teams in the pennant race. They secured the top wild card on the penultimate day of the regular season, reaching the playoffs in consecutive years for the second time in franchise history (1999-2000). That allowed them to hold back Syndergaard for this game. Now, the Mets will try to make another October run with Cespedes. The star slugger can opt out of his contract and become a free agent again this fall.---Watch For:- Closing Time. The bullpen that played such a key role in San Franciscos recent World Series championships melted down in the second half. Casilla tied for the most blown saves in the majors with nine and lost his job. After struggling to find a replacement, Bochy went to Romo, the closer during the 2012 title run. He successfully converted all four save opportunities in the final two weeks. Meanwhile, the Mets have a reliable formula at the back end in Salas, Reed and Familia.- Running Wild. The 6-foot-6, 240-pound Syndergaard has trouble holding runners and is often slow to the plate. He allowed 48 stolen bases this season, 18 more than any other major league pitcher. Its a big reason why strong-armed Rene Rivera has become his regular catcher. San Francisco probably will try to take advantage. The Giants ranked eighth in the NL with 79 steals but were caught 36 times for a success rate of 69 percent.- Power Outage. While the bullpen woes got the most attention, the Giants bats also struggled in the second half. The team went from scoring 4.7 runs per game before the All-Star break to 4.0 afterward, with Posey, Crawford and Belt all struggling to hit for power.- Tried and Tested. The Mets havent played a team that finished with a winning record since Sept. 14 at Washington. Meanwhile, the Giants are coming off a three-game sweep of the NL West champion Dodgers. ' ' '