MLB The King’s DFS Stacks for 6/17: Load Up on L.A. Scott Engel 5 years ago written by Scott Engel My favorite stacks can be found in Los Angeles tonight. One is a usual quality lineup, and the other is one I would rarely recommend as a stack, obviously. I will start with the Dodgers against San Francisco’s Tyler Beede and his 8.60 ERA. He is 0-2 with an 8.80 road ERA. Cody Bellinger ($5,700 on DraftKings) homered on Sunday and is hitting .397 with 15 homers and 33 RBI at home. Alex Verdugo is at .345 at home with 18 RBI in 35 games and should be ready to rip after an off day. He is a prime play at 4,000. Max Muncy (5,000) is hitting .291 with five home runs and 20 RBI at home. Catchers Russell Martin and Austin Barnes are both under 3,600 and can be used as salary savers. Also consider Kike Hernandez at 3,500 as is Chris Taylor. Joc Pederson gets the lefty platoon split at 4,600. Of course we have to stack anyone against Edwin Jackson and his 10.22 ERA. Splits don’t matter, get all possible Angels bats in there that have any modicum of respectability. You have to spend the 5600 on Mike Trout against any mediocre or less starter and then build around him. Cesar Puello (4200) is hitting .345 at home and is at 4,200 on DK. Tommy La Stella (4700) is hitting .345 with five homers and 14 RBI at home. Shohei Ohtani (5100) is hitting .299 at home with 15 RBI. You can try and save some cash with Justin Bour at 3800 and Jonathan Lucroy at 3300. Justin Upton finally returns to the lineup and is a GPP value play at 3900. He fits nicely into the stack at the right time. Andrew Cashner has a 5.05 road ERA and splits do not matter against him, as RHBs have a .305 BA vs. Cashner. He faces the A’s in a pitcher’s venue, so the Oakland stack is GPP only. Khris Davis will be the obvious play, and Robbie Grossman (4300) is hitting .319 with 15 RBI and 14 runs scored at home. Marcus Semien (4400) is hitting .304 with five homers and 22 RBI at home. Matt Olson (4800) has a .292 home BA with seven homers in 19 games. Josh Phegley has six home HRs with 30 RBI and is just 3900. 5 years ago 0 comment 0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
MLB Hitting and MLB Prop Picks for 6/17: Don’t Dodge Dodgers Cora Baylis 5 years ago written by Cora Baylis We’ve been killing it with our Monkey Knife Fight picks and these articles are a major reason why. Breaking down a slate is key in order to make the correct decisions when picking props and these articles truly help to whittle away any bad plays. With that in mind, there are a couple of teams we absolutely love on this slate and the ballclub we’re really going to key in on is the Dodgers! If you want more information and some other great insights check out our premium packages right here. Catcher Jonathan Lucroy, LAA at TOR DK ($3,300) FD ($2,700) If you’ve read my articles, you know that I pay up or punt the catcher position. For this slate, we’re going to punt and go with Lucroy. While the Angels catcher has struggled recently, he’s still providing a .678 OPS for the season. That’s by no means a special number but it’s all you can ask for from a catcher who remains so cheap. What makes him intriguing on this slate is his matchup with Edwin Jackson. The Blue Jays righty is pitching to a 10.22 ERA and 2.03 WHIP this season, which simply puts all of the Angels bats in play. First Base Max Muncy, LAD vs. SF DK ($5,000) FD ($3,700) Muncy has been one of the best power hitters in the Majors since joining the Dodgers and it’s impossible not to like him in a matchup like this. Since joining Los Angeles, Muncy has a .567 SLG, .300 ISO and .952 OPS. A large amount of those special numbers have come against right-handers, with Muncy generating a .393 OBP and .965 OPS in that span. The matchup is superb too, and we’ll go over Tyler Beede’s ugly numbers later in the article. Second Base Whit Merrifield, KC at SEA DK ($4,500) FD ($3,600) Finding a second baseman is easily the toughest thing to do on this slate but Merrifield makes a fantastic value on both sites. This is a guy who’s typically $4,000 on FD and $5,000 on DK and it’s hard to understand why his price has dropped. Over his last 17 games, Merrifield is hitting .348 while averaging more than 10 FD points per game. That hot stretch becomes particularly enticing against a lefty, with Merrifield posting a .338 AVG and .869 OPS against southpaws so far this season Third Base Manny Machado, SD vs. MIL DK ($4,500) FD ($3,500) Machado is starting to get hot and now’s the time to hop on the train while his price remains so low. This is a perennial All-Star whose typically $500 more on each site and recent results show just why. Over his last four games, Machado is 10-for-19 at the plate while collecting three homers, 10 runs scored and six RBI in that span. That’s a lot of positive regression hitting quickly and it could continue against Jhoulys Chacin, who’s pitching to a 5.74 ERA and 1.48 WHIP so far this season. Shortstop Adalberto Mondesi, KC at SEA DK ($4,500) FD ($3,700) Let’s keep our mini Royals stack going with Mondesi. What’s really bizarre about this guy is the fact that these DFS sites continue to undervalue him. We’re talking about a player whose Top 10 in total fantasy points since the All-Star break last season and he’s not being priced like that. Any guy averaging 13 FD points per game should be well above $4,000 and there are simply not many players who can match his upside. Getting the platoon advantage in his favor only adds to his value, with Mondesi posting an OPS north of .800 and a SLG just shy of .500 against lefties since last year’s All-Star break. Outfield Cody Bellinger/Joc Pederson, LAD vs. SF DK ($5,700) FD ($4.700)/DK ($4,600) FD ($3,200) We left a little bit of foreshadowing in the Muncy write-up about this matchup, as we absolutely love the Dodgers on this slate. The reason for that is because they face Tyler Beede, who’s pitching to an 8.06 ERA and 2.06 WHIP this season. That’s why the Dodgers are projected for five runs, which should be higher in my opinion. Getting a matchup like this puts all of these talented lefties squarely in play and that’s a scary thought from such a potent lineup. Joc Pederson is definitely the value play of the bunch, as he’s been stellar as the leadoff hitter for the Dodgers. In fact, Joc has all 18 of his dingers against righties so far this season, accruing a .976 OPS against them. Bellinger’s numbers speak for themselves, with the slugging outfielder ranking either first or second in BA, SLG, RBI, OBP and OPS. Don’t be afraid to stack all of these guys together. Khris Davis, OAK vs. BAL DK ($4,000) FD ($3,600) Davis might be my favorite per-dollar play on the board. The reason for that is because he’s getting hot and when Davis starts heating up, you use him! Over his last seven games, Davis has three homers and six RBI. That’s the power hitter we’ve become accustomed to, with Davis leading the league in home runs since 2015. His ISO is actually approaching .300 in that span too, and that further shows just how much power this dude possesses. Facing Andrew Cashner is the finishing touch, with the Baltimore righty pitching to a 4.60 ERA and 1.46 WHIP dating back to 2016 while providing a nightmare HR rate. Yasiel Puig, CIN vs. HOU DK ($4,000) FD ($3,000) Puig is a personal favorite of mine and he’s been great to me in these articles. While his .223 AVG is nothing to write home about, this guy just continues to provide fantasy points. He has 13 homers, nine steals and 37 RBI. Those are elite counting statistics and it always puts him in play at this sort of price. What I like here is that he gets the platoon advantage against Wade Miley, with Puig posting an .895 OPS against lefties so far this season. Monkey Knife Fight Pick of the Day Max Muncy, Joc Pederson and Cody Bellinger over 5.5 runs+RBI This play really doesn’t take a whole lot of explanation after my write-ups. The simple fact is, I think the Dodgers are going to approach double-digit runs here. These lefties will surely play a huge factor in that, especially against a guy with an 8.06 ERA and WHIP above 2.00. Play MLB Player Prop Games and Get 100 Percent Bonus!Mike Trout over 1.5 hits+walks I didn’t include Trout in the write-up because it was simply too easy of a pick. We’re talking about the best player in baseball facing a guy with an ERA above 10.00 and a WHIP north of 2.00. That alone makes Trout a great play, but the MVP candidate is also leading the Majors with an absurd .453 OBP. He’ll get on base at least twice 5 years ago 0 comment 0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
MLB Hitting and Monkey Knife Fight Picks for 6/6: New York Groove Alisia Gustafson 5 years ago written by Alisia Gustafson CatcherGary Sanchez ($4,500 FD & $5,500 DK): Last night I mentioned the Yankees right-handed bats for multiple reasons, which basically boiled down to an advantageous stadium and a right-handed pitcher that just didn’t have the ability to work through a great Yankee lineup. The same holds true tonight. Edwin Jackson is not pitching well at the moment. Yes, he’s drawn some unlucky starts like one in Coors, but he’s also seen San Francisco in one of the largest stadiums in the league. So, after four starts I think it’s safe to say Edwin Jackson has a another tough matchup that he will not have the ability to get through. Let me rattle off some stats: Jackson is 0-4 with a 13.22 ERA this season. Right-handed batters are hitting .447 against Jackson with six home runs. This is a Gary Sanchez kind of night! Do I dare say double dong potential? Sure. Lock in thes Yankee bats on this small five game slate. First BaseLuke Voit ($4,300 FD & $4,900 DK): Voit has been boom-or-bust as of late and I think the same applies for tonight. Home run(s) or bust in this one. Playing both Sanchez and Voit is a strategy I like to implement on FanDuel because it immediately takes your UTL and first base position out of play. Most are hesitant to do this but I think it’s a good strategy to separate your Yankee stack from the pack. Second BaseI swear after this I’m only writing up one more Yankee. I just want to be clear about who I believe should make up this Yankee stack. Along with Voit and Sanchez, D.J. LeMahieu ($3,800 FD & $4,400 DK) clearly belongs in this stack. After hitting last nights homer, he’s officially the hottest Yankee with the highest floor. Lock in LeMahieu as the third member of your Yankee stack. Keep in mind that your key decisions on a small slate aren’t necessarily what team you want to stack, but what players to include within your stack. The Yankees are favored at -195 with 10 under/over. Lock and load. Third BaseRenato Nunez ($3,600 FD & $5,200 DK): Check out that price differential between FanDuel and DraftKings. Nunez is a great FanDuel play in a hitter’s park, facing a rookie pitcher. Simple stuff. Nunez is facing Ariel Jurado, who is allowing a .279 BA with four home runs to opposing right-handed batters, while allowing a mere .200 BA with no home runs to opposing lefties. We have ourselves some reverse splits here. Baltimore right-handed batters have the advantage over left-handed batters. Against a right-handed pitcher this is relativity rare. Lock in your Oriole righties, not lefties tonight as they set to face the Texas Rangers as slight underdogs with a 10.5 under/over.ShortstopFrancisco Lindor ($3,900 FD & 4,800 DK): Lindor is on a tear! Recent game logs are through the roof and I don’t see Jose Berrios slowing him down. Lindor is batting .294 against Berrios in 19 at-bats. Cleveland is at EVEN odds with an 8.5 under/over. Don’t think too much here, lock him in.Outfield Khris Davis ($3,600 FD & $3,900 DK): Davis owns a .389 BA in 28 at-bats with two doubles and four home runs. This is consistent domination. And that’s all we’re really looking for at the end of the day, consistency. Mike Trout ($4,800 FD & $5,700 DK): Trout is batting .381 with four doubles and two home runs in 26 at-bats vs. Mike Fiers. This is definitely a slate where a value pitcher should come into play as I want many of these expensive batters. Cameron Maybin ($2,400 FD & $3,700 DK): The last Yankee in my four man Yankee stack for tonight. Maybin is batting .429 in 10 at-bats against Jackson. On a night where we need to find value, Maybin comes in as a solid value play with a high floor.Monkey Knife Fight Picks of the DayIt should come as no surprise that we’ll be going to the Yankee game for this one and why not go big again for 19x our money! Let’s start with Happ. We’re going to take the OVER on 5.5 strikeouts as Toronto does swing and miss on the slider very often, not to mention Happ owns a .250 OBA against Toronto while fanning 10 of 28 faced batters for a 35 % strikeout rate, I would say that’s crazy but it is in a very small sample size so let’s not get too excited. After selecting the OVER for Happ’s prop, we move onto Grichuk at 1.5 total bases. After hitting two home runs last night, Grichuk has homered in two straight, totaling three over his last two. We’re going to lock in the OVER for Grichuk for sure and just to save time Gary Sanchez is next and you guys know I like me some Sanchez tonight. The first three parlays we’re going to lock in OVER, OVER, OVER. Aaron Hicks has a lop-sided prop here as I see him totaling way more then 1.5 hits + walks, so once again we’re going OVER. Lastly, Luke Voit at 1.5 hits + walks. I do expect a home run (or two), therefore we can only assume Voit will total more then 1.5 hits + walks. All five props I believe will go over. 5 years ago 0 comment 0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
MLB Hitting and Monkey Knife Fight Picks for 6/6: New York Groove Alisia Gustafson 5 years ago written by Alisia Gustafson CatcherGary Sanchez ($4,500 FD & $5,500 DK): Last night I mentioned the Yankees right-handed bats for multiple reasons, which basically boiled down to an advantageous stadium and a right-handed pitcher that just didn’t have the ability to work through a great Yankee lineup. The same holds true tonight. Edwin Jackson is not pitching well at the moment. Yes, he’s drawn some unlucky starts like one in Coors, but he’s also seen San Francisco in one of the largest stadiums in the league. So, after four starts I think it’s safe to say Edwin Jackson has a another tough matchup that he will not have the ability to get through. Let me rattle off some stats: Jackson is 0-4 with a 13.22 ERA this season. Right-handed batters are hitting .447 against Jackson with six home runs. This is a Gary Sanchez kind of night! Do I dare say double dong potential? Sure. Lock in thes Yankee bats on this small five game slate. First BaseLuke Voit ($4,300 FD & $4,900 DK): Voit has been boom-or-bust as of late and I think the same applies for tonight. Home run(s) or bust in this one. Playing both Sanchez and Voit is a strategy I like to implement on FanDuel because it immediately takes your UTL and first base position out of play. Most are hesitant to do this but I think it’s a good strategy to separate your Yankee stack from the pack. Second BaseI swear after this I’m only writing up one more Yankee. I just want to be clear about who I believe should make up this Yankee stack. Along with Voit and Sanchez, D.J. LeMahieu ($3,800 FD & $4,400 DK) clearly belongs in this stack. After hitting last nights homer, he’s officially the hottest Yankee with the highest floor. Lock in LeMahieu as the third member of your Yankee stack. Keep in mind that your key decisions on a small slate aren’t necessarily what team you want to stack, but what players to include within your stack. The Yankees are favored at -195 with 10 under/over. Lock and load. Third BaseRenato Nunez ($3,600 FD & $5,200 DK): Check out that price differential between FanDuel and DraftKings. Nunez is a great FanDuel play in a hitter’s park, facing a rookie pitcher. Simple stuff. Nunez is facing Ariel Jurado, who is allowing a .279 BA with four home runs to opposing right-handed batters, while allowing a mere .200 BA with no home runs to opposing lefties. We have ourselves some reverse splits here. Baltimore right-handed batters have the advantage over left-handed batters. Against a right-handed pitcher this is relativity rare. Lock in your Oriole righties, not lefties tonight as they set to face the Texas Rangers as slight underdogs with a 10.5 under/over.ShortstopFrancisco Lindor ($3,900 FD & 4,800 DK): Lindor is on a tear! Recent game logs are through the roof and I don’t see Jose Berrios slowing him down. Lindor is batting .294 against Berrios in 19 at-bats. Cleveland is at EVEN odds with an 8.5 under/over. Don’t think too much here, lock him in.Outfield Khris Davis ($3,600 FD & $3,900 DK): Davis owns a .389 BA in 28 at-bats with two doubles and four home runs. This is consistent domination. And that’s all we’re really looking for at the end of the day, consistency. Mike Trout ($4,800 FD & $5,700 DK): Trout is batting .381 with four doubles and two home runs in 26 at-bats vs. Mike Fiers. This is definitely a slate where a value pitcher should come into play as I want many of these expensive batters. Cameron Maybin ($2,400 FD & $3,700 DK): The last Yankee in my four man Yankee stack for tonight. Maybin is batting .429 in 10 at-bats against Jackson. On a night where we need to find value, Maybin comes in as a solid value play with a high floor.Monkey Knife Fight Picks of the DayIt should come as no surprise that we’ll be going to the Yankee game for this one and why not go big again for 19x our money! Let’s start with Happ. We’re going to take the OVER on 5.5 strikeouts as Toronto does swing and miss on the slider very often, not to mention Happ owns a .250 OBA against Toronto while fanning 10 of 28 faced batters for a 35 % strikeout rate, I would say that’s crazy but it is in a very small sample size so let’s not get too excited. After selecting the OVER for Happ’s prop, we move onto Grichuk at 1.5 total bases. After hitting two home runs last night, Grichuk has homered in two straight, totaling three over his last two. We’re going to lock in the OVER for Grichuk for sure and just to save time Gary Sanchez is next and you guys know I like me some Sanchez tonight. The first three parlays we’re going to lock in OVER, OVER, OVER. Aaron Hicks has a lop-sided prop here as I see him totaling way more then 1.5 hits + walks, so once again we’re going OVER. Lastly, Luke Voit at 1.5 hits + walks. I do expect a home run (or two), therefore we can only assume Voit will total more then 1.5 hits + walks. All five props I believe will go over. 5 years ago 0 comment 0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
MLB DFS Hitting and MLB Prop Picks for 5/13: Twins and Indians! Cora Baylis 5 years ago written by Cora Baylis This is a rare small six-game slate and it’s clear that many teams have a travel day ahead of them. The best game to stack is actually the 6:45 ET matchup between the Yankees and Orioles but we’re going to forget about that one since it’s not a part of the major prize pools. What we do need to keep an eye on is the weather though, as we’ve had troubling forecasts throughout the opening month. The games we need to focus on here are MIL-PHI and BAL-NYY. Luckily, that Yankees game doesn’t matter to us and the Philly forecast is nothing to worry about. Catcher Omar Narvaez, SEA vs. OAK DK ($4,300) FD ($2,900) Picking a catcher is like pulling teeth, but it’s hard to argue with Narvaez’s recent production. In fact, Narvaez has at least 12 DK points in three-straight games, with a dinger in back-to-back outings. That has raised his OPS north of .900 and his average above .300, which are some of the best marks in the league for any catcher. While Mike Fiers threw a no-hitter in his most recent start, this is a guy we want to exploit with his 5.48 ERA and 5.16 xFIP. Not to mention, the A’s gave Fiers an extra day off after throwing 131 pitches, which is also a recipe for disaster. Also Consider: Blake Swihart has a quality matchup against Nick Kingham and has shown serious potential against right-handers throughout his career. First Base C.J. Cron, MIN vs. LAA DK ($4,300) FD ($3,500) Cron has quietly been one of the best power hitters in the game over the past three seasons, collecting 55 home runs over his last 275 games en route to a .250 ISO. That’s all you can ask for from someone in this price range, and Cron gets the benefit of facing a southpaw too. In that same three-year span, Cron has a .917 OPS against lefties and an absurd 1.376 OPS against southpaws so far this season. Also Consider: Jay Bruce is one of the AL leaders with 12 home runs and gets the platoon advantage against Fiers. Second Base Jonathan Schoop, MIN vs. LAA DK ($4,100) FD ($3,000) Stacking Twins is going to be popular on this slate and rightfully so. Not only do they rank first in xwOBA, they also sit third in runs per game. That puts all of the Minnesota bats in play, especially the righties. After allowing eight runs in his most recent start, Skaggs now owns a 4.79 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and .344 wOBA. The southpaw typically struggles with righty bats, allowing a .333 career OBP and OPS approaching .800. Schoop is in good form right now too, collecting three doubles, two homers, six runs and seven RBI over his last 10 games. Also Consider: Jason Kipnis has been batting from the two-hole recently and he could be a contrarian play in an Indians stack. Third Base Jose Ramirez, CLE at CWS DK ($4,300) FD ($3,500) Ramirez’s price remains criminally low and he’s hard to avoid until he gets closer to $5,000 on DK and $4,000 on FD. That’s pretty much where he sat last season and recent form would indicate that he’s recapturing that form. In fact, Ramirez is averaging 12 DK points per game across his last 23 outings, despite hitting below .250. That tells us that he’s providing elite counting statistics and that makes him particularly intriguing against Reynaldo Lopez, who owns a 6.38 ERA and 1.75 WHIP. Ramirez will bat from the left side, and he has a .933 OPS against righties since the beginning of 2017 and is way more likely to steal a bag against a right-hander. Also Consider: Jeimer Candelario has been too good to be priced at just $3,100 on DraftKings and should bat in the heart of the Tigers order. Shortstop Francisco Lindor, CLE at CWS DK ($4,700) FD ($3,600) Stacking Ramirez and Lindor is one of my favorite strategies on this slate, as they should have success against Lopez. The White Sox right-hander has those ugly ERA and WHIP numbers to match his atrocious .392 wOBA. That should be huge for Lindor, who owns a career .198 ISO and .355 wOBA. That doesn’t even take into consideration his speed, with Lindor swiping at least 15 bags in three-straight seasons. Also Consider: Tim Beckham has been a pleasant surprise for the Mariners and will be a great value at $3,700, if you’re looking to stack Seattle. Outfield Bryce Harper, PHI vs. MIL DK ($4,400) FD ($4,400) It’s tough to use Harper on FanDuel but the $4,400 price tag on DraftKings is hard to overlook. We’re talking about a guy with a career OBP approaching .400 and an ISO above .220. Those are simply dominant numbers and his .960 OPS and .405 OBP against righties since the beginning of 2017 shows just how amazing he is with the platoon advantage in his favor. Freddy Peralta is a guy we definitely want to exploit too, posting a 6.75 ERA and 1.61 WHIP in six starts this season. Khris Davis, OAK at SEA DK ($4,000) FD ($3,800) Davis is in a terrible slump right now but any guy with this sort of power potential is worth a shot in this price range. The simple fact is, Davis has at least 42 homers in three-straight seasons and appears well on his way to another 40-homer year with 10 dingers in 36 games. That’s elite power and his .243 ISO this season is only slightly below his .270 career ISO. That makes this price tag hard to believe, especially considering the fact that Davis gets the platoon advantage against a lefty here. Jake Bauers, CLE at CWS DK ($3,800) FD ($3,200) After a terrible start to the year, Bauers appears to be finding his rhythm. In fact, the left-hander has a .301 average over his last 23 games, providing 10 runs and 10 RBI in that span. This is a guy we want to use against right-handed pitching too, as his OPS is nearly 200 points higher than when he faces lefties. The Lopez statistics speak for themselves and Bauer makes for a beautiful three-man stack with Ramirez and Lindor. Also Consider: If you’re stacking Phillies, don’t forget about Andrew McCutchen at just $4,100. Monkey Knife Fight Picks of the Day Jose Berrios over 5.5 Strikeouts It’s strange that this number is so low, as Berrios hasn’t had fewer than four Ks in any game this season. That alone makes him an attractive option, as he’s also reached at least six innings pitched in all eight of his starts. Any pitcher with a 25 percent K rate is worth using, especially when they have a six-inning floor against an average offense. Jose Ramirez over 1.5 hits+walks The write-up from earlier tells you everything you need to know about this play, as it would be hard to imagine Ramirez not getting on base at least twice. In fact, Ramirez has accomplished that feat in five of his last seven games and is traditionally a better on-base guy from the left side. Play MLB Player Prop Games and Get 100 Percent Bonus! 5 years ago 0 comment 0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
MLB 50 Top Hitters Jason Mezrahi 5 years ago written by Jason Mezrahi 50. Trea Turner – From a pure hitting standpoint, Trea is very solid sporting a .344 OBP along with an average of .271. However, it is on the base paths where he really does his damage, stealing 43 bags last season and making him a very solid SS target on most slates. 49. Joey Gallo – Mr. HR or go home is always a nice GPP option with massive HR upside, but he can also strikeout 4 times and leave you dead in the water. 48. Justin Upton 47. Justin Smoak 46. Shin Soo-Choo – The platoon specialist SSC is always a solid option in DFS when he is facing off against right handers that struggle against lefties. However, we always have to factor in the element that he may only bat 2 or 3 times before being pinch hit for if the opponent pulls out a lefty reliever. 45. Kyle Schwarber – Although the strikeouts are a major issue, there is no denying the power and potential possessed by Schwarber. 44. Edwin Encarnacion 43. Cody Bellinger 42. Yasmani Grandal – As far as catchers go, Grandal is easily top 10, but he falls to #42 on my list of total hitters with a respectable .349 OBP and a .466 SLG performance in his 2018 campaign. 41. Ben Zobrist 40. Travis Shaw 39. Didi Gregorius – As someone who can really take advantage of the Yankee Stadium design, Didi is a promising target as he heads in to his age 29 season hoping to improve on his 27 HRs from last season by finally hitting the big 30 mark. 38. Tommy Pham 37. George Springer 36. Matt Olson – Coming off a solid season where he was 1 homer shy of 30, Olson returns to a pretty stacked A’s lineup that can pack a serious punch and should be a popular stack when they are facing gas cans that have a fly ball tendency. 35. Andrew McCutchen 34. Aaron Hicks 33. Andrew Benintendi – While I wanted to put him a bit higher, Benintendi can not yet quite call himself one of the top 25 bats in all of the MLB. Improving on his power will certainly get him there in 2019, especially given the juicy stolen base upside he possesses. 32. Joey Votto 31. Scooter Gennett 30. Jose Altuve – The Houston speedster narrowly edges out the 2 Great American Small Park sticks, mainly due to that stolen base upside. He also is more patient at the plate and struck out over 20 fewer times than Votto/Gennett and as long as he can stay healthy, it is tough to see him slowing down. 29. Anthony Rizzo 28. Nicholas Castellanos 27. Nelson Cruz – At the ripe young age of 38, Cruz just continues to get it done. Spanking an impressive 37 homers to boost his OPS to .850, one of the top 30 highest figures in all of the majors. It is fair to expect a slow down at some point, but assuming the production does not fall off a cliff, Cruz could still reach the 30 HR mark this season. 26. Charlie Blackmon 25. Giancarlo Stanton 24. Matt Chapman – A member of the low-key loaded Oakland A’s lineup (Which unfortunately just took a big hit with the Matt Olson injury), Chapman will look to break the 30-homer mark as he fell just 6 shy in the 2018 season. 23. Rhys Hoskins 22. Francisco Lindor 21. Michael Brantley – Two Clevelanders back to back on the list. Mr. Brantley is getting up there in age, but has shown that he still has plenty left in the tank. Sporting a respectable .832 OPS, Brantley boasts a low strikeout rate and a solid .300+ average, but will need to leave the park a lot more in 2019 to crack the top 20. 20. Miguel Andujar 19. David Peralta 18. Javier Baez – Javi had a very impressive 2018, a year in which he reached on 176 hits, made it around the bases 101 times, and also jacked up 34 homers. Not someone that we typically consider a major power hitter, Javi benefits from playing in Wrigley, especially when the wind is in our favor. 17. Jesus Aguilar 16. Eugenio Suarez 15. Xander Bogaerts – The X man did not have an amazing 2018, but it was certainly a strong one and his position on this list also has a lot to do with potential. Bogaerts is a player that goes on streaks – Both hot and cold. If he can steady his production he should be able to improve on his power, although he was a double hitting machine in the small Fenway Park last season. 14. Freddie Freeman 13. Matt Carpenter 12. Manny Machado – Mr. Money Bags Manny Machado signed a contract heard around the world late this offseason (At least until Trout said hold my beer). So, 2018 clearly was a good year for him to reach nearly a 4 digit OPS, along with 37 home runs and 188 hits which tied him for 3rd place in the majors. 11. Alex Bregman 10. Trevor Story 9. Paul Goldschmidt – Goldy was another streaking player in 2018, but when the dust settled he finds himself in the top 10 of many 2019 hitter lists. While the humidor is always a hot topic in Arizona, MLB’s PG still posted .533 SLG and 83 RBIs, although the strikeouts (173) were a major problem area that he will need to improve on. 8. Jose Ramirez 7. Nolan Arenado 6. Bryce Harper – The last of the 3 massive contract trio is the Home Run Derby hero Bryce Harper, who will be in Philly for the LONG haul. Although his OPS was a shade under 900 and his average left much to be desired, Bryce drew a ton of walks in 2018, and if pitchers will throw him hittable pitches at just a slightly higher rate, expect that 100 RBI figure to shoot up. 5. Khris Davis – Yet another A’s batter to make the list, Khris Davis just continues to get the job done each season. After nearly breaking the 100 run, 150 hit marks in 2018, Khris sneaks into my top 5 due to the whopping 48 dingers that he smacked in the 2018 season. 4. Christian Yelich – With a top 4 OPS in the entire MLB (and one of only 4 players that finished in 4 digits), it would be tough to leave Yelich out of any top 5 hitters list. However, that is exactly what plenty of top hitter rankings are doing heading in to 2019. Yelich is my sleeper top 5 hitter in the league for the 2019 season. 3. J.D. Martinez – There are a few players in the league that it feels like hit a home run at every one of their at-bats, and JDM is certainly in that group. While he did lose the HR race in 2018, he still ended up with 43 dingers, along with the 3rd highest OPS in the entire MLB. Playing half of his games in the friendly little confines of Fenway Park should lead to another amazing 2019 season for Martinez. 2. Mike Trout – It is crazy for me to put the hitter with the highest OPS in the league in 2nd place, but from a fantasy perspective that is what I must do. Trout is headed straight to the HOF, and his hitting numbers are up there with the all-time greats. He is one of the most complete MLB players that we may ever see, and should be in the top 2 of any best hitters list. 1. Mookie Betts – Did anyone really expect me to put Trout over the GOAT Mookie Betts? I know I am in the minority here but hear me out. Yes, Trout does have a better OBP than Mookie, but many would be surprised to hear that Mookie actually has a higher SLG AND AVG than the all-star Angel. He also has the speed edge, reaching the coveted 30 SB mark in 2018, while almost never striking out, and winning that whole World Series thing. Mookie Betts is my #1 hitter for the 2019 MLB season. Go Sox! 5 years ago 0 comment 0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
