A light day for baseball starts early, with the finale of the Cubs-Pirates series at 12:35 Eastern. The other matinee concludes a high-scoring 4-game set between the A’s and White Sox.
Our focus is at 7:05, with seven evening ballgames, featuring the red-hot Rangers (25 runs in three games) attempting to sweep the Astros. Colby Lewis $8000 has a 3-0 record in four starts this year vs. Houston, while Lance McCullers $9900 was destroyed by a 6-run first inning the last time he pitched in Texas, by far the worst outing of the 21-year-old’s rookie season.
Another interesting matchup has Corey Kluber $12300 returning from a hamstring strain to duel with Yordano Ventura $9500. The Royals hit Kluber hard in April and May, but in their last meeting, the Indians’ RH pitched a complete-game 5-hitter.
John Lackey $9700 “should” beat Jimmy Nelson $8500 but neither got a decision on August 9 when they last squared off. The Nationals aren’t mathematically eliminated (yet) and just outscored the Phillies 24-9 in a sweep. Tanner Roark $4800 took the loss in Miami just five days ago, but I’m not partial to Jarred Cosart $4900 on the road.
Plays of the Day
The $85K Moonshot is a $3 buy-in (FREE to new depositors at DraftKings) that pays the top 6,530 finishers from up to 32,578 teams, with multiple entries permitted. First place wins $6,000. Enter by 7:05; lineup changes are allowed until each player’s game begins.
Baltimore and Tampa Bay have too many teams to pass for a wild-card berth and not enough time. Matt Moore $4800 has been mediocre in two starts off the DL so Chris Tillman $5400 is a lukewarm choice.
At C, a rejuvenated J.P. Arencibia $4300 reached base three times on Tuesday and rested last night, while Russell Martin $3600 doubled and homered in the Blue Jays’ rout of Atlanta.
1B Prince Fielder $4500 launched two mammoth homers into the upper deck, scored three times and drove in five — a 39-point night — to lead a 14-run explosion. Evan Gattis $3600 had three hits in a losing cause, including an impressive one-handed homer.
Rougned Odor $4200 seems to get two hits every night; his latest bomb came off a lefty ace. 2B/3B Martin Prado $3200 also went deep on Wednesday.
3B Miguel Sano $4800 has a promising matchup, Matt Carpenter $4300 had a 26-point game last night and if you’re stacking Rangers, Adrian Beltre $4100 is playable.
Francisco Lindor $4100 continues to impress in a tremendous rookie season, though he’s never faced the hard-throwing Ventura. Elvis Andrus $3500 fits the Texas-bats strategy.
We are going to keep paying up for Bryce Harper $5900, who homered four times in his last three games and has a 1.315 OPS with 7 HR in his last ten. Shin-Soo Choo $4700 reached base four times on Wednesday, hitting second in a potent order. Mike Trout $4900 had a lousy August by his standards (.689 OPS, 1 HR) but has begun to pick it up this month and faces a soft-tossing southpaw tonight. Among bargain OF, Tommy Pham $2700 is fresh off the game of his life (2 HR, triple, 4 RBI) and Nolan Reimold $2400 faces another lefty. Steven Souza Jr. $3500 is rounding back into form after a hand injury.
| Pos | Premium | Bargain |
| SP1 | Corey Kluber $12300 | Colby Lewis $8000 |
| SP2 | John Lackey $9700 | Chris Tillman $5400 |
| C | J.P. Arencibia $4300 | Russell Martin $3600 |
| 1B | Prince Fielder $4500 | Evan Gattis $3600 |
| 2B | Rougned Odor $4200 | Martin Prado $3200 |
| 3B | Miguel Sano $4800 | Matt Carpenter $4300 |
| SS | Francisco Lindor $4100 | Elvis Andrus $3500 |
| OF1 | Bryce Harper $5900 | Tommy Pham $2700 |
| OF2 | Shin-Soo Choo $4700 | Nolan Reimold $2400 |
| OF3 | Mike Trout $4900 | Steven Souza Jr. $3500 |
The Fantasy Spin features DFS advice every day of the NBA season. Until basketball returns, we’re offering baseball tips on weekdays. Follow Kent Williams @SheridanFantasy for updates.