BvP for MVP – May 24

This week we will only have two editions of BvP for MVP as I will be going out of town on Thursday for an annual outing that I attend with my father and his buddies.

They call the place Flatrock and this group of fellows have been going for nearly all 33 years of my life. My first year was 2008 and have been almost every year since. We eat great food, consume lots of beer, golf and play endless rounds of washers. We converse about life, they reminisce about the good ol’ days while ragging on the younger guys that attend (i.e. me as I am the youngest of the group).

This year my buddy Jay will be joining the Flatrock clan, his first trip and my first time to have a friend tag along. My dad and his friends are in their 60s, but you wouldn’t know it by the way they talk, act and golf (well, maybe how they golf…). It’s a standing tradition. Some guys have come and gone, others haven’t been back in years. Some miss a year here and there because, well, life happens.

But I am all about tradition. There’s a feeling attached to them. Whether it’s an annual trip somewhere, or a 5th-Sunday brunch with your family, or a certain meal at Christmastime each year. You love it when the traditions come back around. They likely wouldn’t be as great if they occurred frequently.

Baseball has its traditions: Ceremonial first pitches, the Star-Spangled Banner sung at the beginning of every game in the U.S, bean ball retaliation, and so on. Before our baby was born, my wife and I used to go to a Rangers game every year around the time of my birthday. This was the second year we haven’t done that due to baby fever. What are some of your favorite baseball traditions or what traditions do you, your family and/or friends have at a baseball game? Comment below or hit me up on Twitter @hotdog_phingers!

Speaking of traditions, it’s Tuesday and time for some BvP picks!

But first, remember to check out dailybaseballdata.com for all the BvP data you could ever want. Also, I have a couple of BvP options I like that may not enter the lineup tonight, so keep an eye on starting lineups when they were released. And lastly, I am very much in favor of the Giants vs. Andrew Cashner, but you won’t see them below because I am not comfortable with just how much Cashner will pitch in his first outing off the DL. The 3 guys I like, Posey, Crawford and Belt might only see Cashner a couple of times.

Dustin Ackley – 2B/OF – Yankees – vs. R.A. Dickey

BvP: 6-for-13, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 1 BB

Analysis: Dustin Ackley hasn’t exactly been lacking when it comes to shellacking mother fracking R.A. Dickey. How fun is alliteration by the way? Anyway, should Ackley be inserted into the lineup at Yankee stadium, he’s got a good eye on Dickey’s knuckler. While the pitch is erratic and can be outright filthy, I’ll take BvP against a knuckler any day. Ackley will come at a cheap punter’s price, so yea, Yankee stadium, lefty versus Dickey, you’re welcome.

Welington Castillo – C – Diamondbacks – vs. Francisco Liriano

Castillo BvP: 6-for-17, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 6 BB

Analysis: The only thing holding this matchup back is the venue: PNC Park, but Liriano hasn’t exaclty been great this season. Walks are getting the best of Francisco and he’s allowed 4.63 BB/9 to RH hitters this season. Castillo already has 6 walks in 17 ABs against the Pirate southpaw and has belted a couple of HRs. Castillo comes at a cheap price and is one of the best D-Backs hitters vs. left-handed pitching

Robinson Cano – 2B – Mariners – vs. Kendall Graveman

BvP: 4-for-6, 2 2B, 1 BB

Analysis: This one and the next feel like cheating. Cano comes in with a steady stream of points in his last 10 outings facing a young pitcher who has struggled getting traction on the road. Graveman owns a .365 wOBA against lefties and allows buckets of free passes as well. Cano comes at a steeper price tag, but he has a high ceiling, high floor and is very cash game viable despite the home venue.

Starling Marte – OF – Pirates – vs. Shelby Miller

Marte BvP: 5-for-15, 1 2B, 2 3B, 2 RBI, 1 BB

Analysis: Another pick that feels like cheating. You don’t always have to have a .400 average for me to like your BvP. Sometimes all it takes is extra-base hits and a fading pitcher. We have that perfect storm here today as Starling Marte, back from paternity leave, facing Shelby Miller, who is allowing a .346 wOBA vs. RHs. Marte is a reverse-split hitter and comes in with 14 hits in his past 10 games, including 4 multi-hit efforts. If I were you, I would make sure you stack a lot of Pirates today, including Marte.

Freddie Freeman – 1B – Braves – vs. Jimmy Nelson

Freeman BvP: 0-for-1, 2 BB

Analysis: Freddie returns! Tonight Double F gets the likes of Jimmy Nelson and his 4.40 road ERA. After a slow start to the season, Freeman’s vitals are returning to life. He’s got 9 hits in his last 10 games with a couple of HRs sprinkled in. Nelson loves walking lefties (4.00 BB/9). So far, Nelson has been tough on lefties this season, but has a 38.9% hard contact against them. The positive regression favoring lefry bats is coming, and let’s hope it starts tonight!

Chris Davis – 1B – vs. Doug Fister

Davis BvP: 5-for-13, 2 HR, 3 RBI

Analysis: Manny Machado or Chris Davis? Manny Machado or Chris Davis? Well, you could use both, but after careful consideration, I went the boom or bust rout with Crash. Fister has been dreadful against lefties this season, allowing a .385 wOBA and a .315 batting average against. There’s not a lot of consistency with Davis’ stats against Fister, but I don’t think Fister is getting any better as a pitcher and is hurling for a team in turmoil. Davis is not a cash game play for me, but a GPP only.

Jimmy Paredes – 2B and MIchael Saunders – OF – Blue Jays – vs. Nathan Eovaldi

Paredes BvP: 2-for-6, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 2 BB

Saunders BvP: 3-for-8, 1 2B, 1 BB

Analysis: You can tell I must like lefty bats tonight because we have two more here for a nice little stack at Yankee Stadium and it’s short right field porch. Paredes is the second guy I am recommending that may or may not crack tonight’s lineup. I am going to bet he does though after being called up and is able to hit from the left side. Paredes is a streaky hitter who has hits in all 4 games he’s played in this season for the Blue Jays. Saunders is another lefty that can lead off or bat clean up this season. The Blue Jays have been trying to work some things out on offense and have been using Joey Bats leading off with Saunders hitting 4th or 5th. Either way, I love Saunders and Paredes against Eovaldi tonight. Eovaldi has been pitching well of late, but still allows a 386 wOBA to LH hitters. Saunders has been red hot with 14 hits in his last 10 games, including 5 multi-hit efforts. As long as Saunders is in the lineup, he’s a formidable weapon against RH pitching.

Jeff Samardzija – SP – Giants – vs. San Diego Padres

PvB: 24-for-105, 6 2B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 8 BB, 29 Ks

Analysis: You know, Julio Teheran was of great consideration tonight, but his price tag on DK is a little too high for me to recommend. Not that the price gets much better, but Samardzija does have a pristine matchup. Now Samardizja has been lit up by the Padres once this season at a much cheaper price, but in his last outing, which was at PETCO, Samardzija struck out 8 batters 8 innings, allowing just 1 ER. In fact, Samardzija has allowed just 5 ER runs while striking out 29 batters since allowing 5 runs to the Padres back in April. He will be an interesting play with Chris Sale and Stephen Strasburg on the mound in the 5-digit price range on DraftKings.

As always in Tuesdays, we recap our BvP lineups from the week before and provide you a new one for use in GPPs or cash games.

Here’s how last week panned out. I did have to do some late swapping as usual due to the early nature of when we publish. It seems like we get at least one solid lineup per week, but I would very much like to be more consistent with this.

Jake Arrieta and Aaron Sanchez were a huge help to our winnings on Friday. I actually had my best night all season on Friday, this was just a little cherry on top to publish today.

Here is tonight’s projected lineup, assuming some in aren’t sitting.

Lineup Analysis: I am in love with Joey Gallo, therefore, assuming he is in the lineup, I am rostering him this evening along with a very depressed price for Carlos Correa. Originally, I had Manny Machado and Zack Cozart in the 3B and SS positions, respectively. However, I feel Gallo and Correa offer more combined upside, even if the Astros do suck. David Price’s price also is very low but he has a tough matchup against the Rockies. It’s a tough one, but I am willing to bite. Price is an elite pitcher and is getting paid to shut the toughest offenses down.