Fantasy baseball daily notes: Pitcher and hitter rankings for Monday’s games
Hitters to fortify lineups are also plentiful, especially in the middle infield. This will likely be the case all season, which helps when massaging your in-season roster. Don’t worry about carrying a solid middle infielder, as there will likely be one available for pickup.
Here are Monday’s players in a great spot to get the week off on a strong note.
Pitching
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Josh James (R), rostered in 42% of ESPN leagues, Houston Astros vs. Seattle Mariners: James is still a work in progress but has the stuff to be a front end of the rotation mainstay. The 27-year-old right-hander fanned an impressive 100 batters in 61⅓ innings last season, but that came as a reliever, and he also walked a hefty 35 hitters. James will need to be more pitch-efficient as a starter and draws one of the easier lineups in his first game transitioning back to a rotation role.
Aaron Civale (R), 33%, Cleveland Indians vs. Chicago White Sox: Civale doesn’t have the upside of teammates Shane Bieber and Mike Clevinger, but he has displayed signs he can be a solid back end of the rotation guy. Plus, he throws to Roberto Perez, one of the best backstops in the league, recognized in his capturing the 2019 Gold Glove at the position.
Adrian Houser (R), 21%, Milwaukee Brewers at Pittsburgh Pirates: Houser is another example of a raw arm with the potential to make a difference. He throws an above-average fastball and keeps the ball on the ground. On Monday, he’s in line to face one of the weaker offenses in the league, in PNC Park, one of the better pitching venues.
Chris Bassitt (R), 10%, Oakland Athletics vs. Los Angeles Angels: Bassitt is coming off his best season, posting a 3.81 ERA and 1.19 WHIP with a useful 141 punchouts in 144 frames. If those numbers came from a more recognizable name, he’d be on a team in far more than one in ten ESPN leagues. The Angels lineup isn’t a pushover, but working at home in the cavernous Coliseum, he’s a solid steamer, with another prime matchup against the Mariners over the weekend.
Bullpen: It has only been one weekend, but it could be a microcosm of the season with a closer garnering a save one day then blowing it the next. While neither team is likely to generate many opportunities, the pecking order for the Kansas City Royals and San Francisco Giants appears to be muddled. Ian Kennedy and Tony Watson were assumed to be the closers, but Trevor Gott and Greg Holland were the recipients for their respective teams. These and other scenarios will remain fluid all season. As such, filling in pitching holes with anyone plausible for a save that day could prove fruitful. The Royals are a good place to look early in the week with a set against the Detroit Tigers, and Kennedy, Holland and Trevor Rosenthal are all options. Keep in mind that new Royals manager Mike Matheny and Rosenthal share a history from their time with the St. Louis Cardinals.
Note: W-L, ERA and WHIP are 2019 statistics
Hitting
Catcher — Francisco Mejia (S), 7%, San Diego Padres vs. Arizona Diamondbacks (RHP Luke Weaver): Although he’s working on his defense, Mejia is still in the lineup because of his bat. As a switch-hitter, he has an edge over other backstops in a year expected to feature more pinch hitting to give batters the platoon edge. Using Mejia increases the chance he plays the full game.
First Base — Miguel Cabrera (R), 17%, Detroit Tigers vs. Kansas City Royals (LHP Mike Montgomery): As witnessed over the weekend, there’s still some life in Miggy’s bat. It’s best reserved for when he’s facing a southpaw and while it’s not yet official, the Royals are likely going to send mediocre lefty Montgomery to the hill. C.J. Cron and Jonathan Schoop will also be in a great spot with the platoon bump.
Second Base — Jose Peraza (R), 8%, Boston Red Sox vs. New York Mets (RHP Michael Wacha): Looking to fortify steals is a wise play when filling in lineup holes, and there’s no better team to target than the New York Mets. Peraza isn’t a prolific base stealer, but he has the speed to take advantage of any opportunity presented on Monday.
Third Base — Asdrubal Cabrera (S), 2%, Washington Nationals vs. Toronto Blue Jays (Undecided): With Carter Kieboom hobbled, Cabrera has been seeing most of the early time at the hot corner for the Nats. Like Mejia, Cabrera hits from both sides of the plate, giving him an edge when the opponent is likely to use a parade or arms, which is likely on Monday with the Blue Jays.
Shortstop — Jon Berti (R), 17%, Miami Marlins vs. Baltimore Orioles (RHP Asher Wojciechowski): Berti is another option if you’re looking for an early-week stolen base. The utilityman swiped 16 bases last August and September and is facing one of the lesser starters and bullpens in the league.
Corner Infield — Ji-Man Choi (L), 5%, Tampa Bay Rays vs. Atlanta Braves (RHP Mike Foltynewicz): The Strat-O-Matic Rays love their platoons, with Choi getting the nod against right-handers. Foltynewicz can be effective, but he’s prone to the long ball and Choi has the power to take him deep.
Middle Infield — Robinson Cano (L), 16%, New York Mets at Boston Red Sox (Undecided): The Red Sox haven’t announced their pitching yet, but the likely plan is right-handers Phillips Valdez and Zack Godley, putting the lefty swinging Cano in play. The veteran registered a respectable .799 OPS against righties last season.
Outfield — Nick Senzel (R), 39%, Cincinnati Reds vs. Chicago Cubs (LHP Jon Lester): Keeping with the stolen base theme, Lester’s woes with holding runners is well known. Senzel has 96th percentile sprint speed and stole 14 bases in 19 tries as a rookie last season.
Outfield — Kole Calhoun (L), 30%, Arizona Diamondbacks at San Diego Padres (Undecided): Calhoun isn’t known for running, but he does have pop and is likely going to face right-hander Zach Davies. Davies isn’t homer-prone, but he doesn’t miss many bats.
Outfield — Albert Almora Jr. (R), 1%, Chicago Cubs at Cincinnati Reds (LHP Wade Miley): Almora has been slotted in the lineup’s 6-hole with a lefty on the hill, and with National League lineups using a designated hitter, the lower part of the order has a chance to be more productive. Miley pitched well for most of last season before struggling late — so much he was left off the Astros’ playoff roster.
Hitter ratings account for the opposing starting pitcher’s past history (three years’ worth as well as past 21 days) as well as ballpark factors. “LH” and “RH” ratings account only for left- and right-handed batters, respectively. Weighted on-base average (wOBA) is the primary statistic used in the calculation. Ratings range from 1-10, with 10 representing the best possible matchup, statistically speaking, and 1 representing the worst. So, for example, a 10 is a must-start rating, while a 1 should be avoided (if possible); a 1-2 is poor, 3-4 is fair, 5-6 is average, 7-8 is very good and 9-10 is excellent. A “*” means that the pitcher lacks requisite career major league data to produce an accurate hitter rating; these are the author’s ratings.