There was a 15 game slate on Friday May 10th. I am going to look at a few players who played really well and a couple who underachieved. Salaries and points are based on DraftKings.

Winners

Justin Verlander ($11,000)

Verlander and the Astros hosted the Texas Rangers on Friday and Verlander came out dealing. Verlander pitched seven innings and only gave up one hit and two walks. He also racked up eight strikeouts on his 101 pitches. The Rangers were shut out in this one. He moved to 6-1 on the year. Verlander gave his owners 33.35 fantasy points. His ERA has now dropped to 2.51 and his WHIP is impressively at 0.82. His K/9 is now at 10.68. He continues to be one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball.

Verlander’s Outlook

Verlander’s next projected start will come against the Tigers in Detroit on Wednesday May 15th. Detroit has been picked on this year by opposing pitchers, scoring only 3.55 runs per game. They also have a team batting average of only .230. They also strike out nearly 10 time a game. This is going to be a popular play to roster Verlander in a great matchup. I will be paying up for him even at his expensive price.

Zack Wheeler ($9,700)

Wheeler and the Mets beat the the Marlins at home on Friday. Wheeler pitched seven innings and gave up nine hits and one walk. The Marlins scored two earned runs off him. That is not the most impressive stat line, but he picked up 11 strikeouts along the way, more than making up for it. Wheeler picked up the win and improved to 3-2 on the year. His ERA is at 4.35 and his WHIP is now at 1.35. He has been a strikeout machine, racking up 58 over 49.2 innings. This equals out to a K/9 of 10.5. That is up from his career number of 8.7.

Wheeler’s Outlook

Wheeler’s next projected start will come against the Nationals in Washington on Wednesday May 15th. The Nationals are middle of the road in runs per game at 4.62 and have a team batting average of .244. One area the Nationals are very vulnerable is that they strike out at a very high rate. They Kover 10 times per game. Washington’s offense has struggled lately and I think this is another good spot to roster Wheeler.

Alex Gordon ($4,600)

The Royals hosted the Phillies on Friday and Gordon had a big game. He went 2-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI. He racked up 30 fantasy points for his owners. Gordon’s average is now at .291 and he has an OPS of .926. He has now hit eight home runs and has 30 RBI. He has eight hits in his last six games and has eight RBI over that same span. Gordon is on the rebound after his batting average dropped all the way from .310, where is was at on April 28th.

Gordon’s Outlook

The Royals will play two more games against the Phillies before hosting the Rangers for a three game series. The Phillies have a pretty good team ERA at 3.94, but this could be on the rise, as have the 26th worst opponent batting average at .261. The Rangers’ pitching staff has not fared as well with an ERA of 5.16 and an opponent team batting average of .270. These next five games should be a good spot to roster Gordon, as he looks to continue his bounce back from a mini slump.

Losers

Pablo Lopez ($8,100)

Lopez and the Marlins played against the Mets in New York on Friday and got shelled early on. He was only able to get through three innings and gave up 10 earned runs on 10 hits. Eight of these runs came in the first inning. He also walked two and three of the hits were home runs. He also picked up three strikeouts in the loss that dropped his record to 2-5 on the year. His ERA rose drastically from 4.03 to 5.93. His WHIP also rose to 1.29. He has 42 strikeouts in his 41 innings pitches this year.

Lopez’s Outlook

Lopez’s next projected start will come on Friday May 17th against the New York Mets again. The Mets average 4.4 runs per game this year and have a team batting average of .244. The Mets have the fourth most strikeouts in the league and average just over 10 per game. Lopez will have a very low ownership rate in this one as it will come against the same team he was roughed up by Friday. I will look for a bounce back from Lopez in this one as he had pitched well this year before this blowup. He will come at a reduced price and will be a good contrarian play.

Brandon Lowe ($4,800)

Lowe faced off against the New York Yankees on Friday and couldn’t get anything going. He went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts as the Yankees beat the Rays 4-3. His batting average dropped to .297. He continues to lead the Rays in batting average, home runs, and RBI. He has eight home runs with 22 RBI. His OPS is currently at .913. Lowe has been hot lately and had a 12 game hit streak going into Friday’s game with the Yankees. In the month of May, Lowe has a batting average of .343 and an OPS of .978.

Lowe’s Outlook

Lowe will look to start another hitting streak on Saturday against the Yankees. The Rays have two more games against the Yankees before heading to Miami for a two game series against the Marlins. The games against the Yankees might be a spot to fade Lowe, as they have a great pitching staff this year, yielding an opponent batting average of only .227. The Marlins, on the other hand, give up an opponent batting average of .244 and have a team ERA of 4.68. I like Lowe moving forward but I will be waiting until he gets past the Yankees before rostering him again.

Injury Report

Tyler Glasnow of the Rays left the game early on Friday. Glasnow is dealing with forearm tightness and has a chance to head to the IL.

Jose Altuve left in the first inning with left hamstring discomfort. Altuve should be considered day-to-day.