All but one game on a packed Sunday Major League Baseball schedule is a matinee. That means a ton of options for DraftKings players. There’s only so much salary to go around, so it’s easy to get overwhelmed in this situation.
We can’t go big on every selection. You’re going to need to find some sleepers and bargain options. Here are five for Sunday’s schedule, including a low-cost pitcher to watch on the mound.
Josh Tomlin, SP ($5,600)
In three starts this season, Josh Tomlin is trending upward. He’s gone at least six innings in each start. He and the Cleveland Indians host the struggling Los Angeles Angels on Sunday. The Angels haven’t scored more than three runs in a game in their last four contests.
Tomlin doesn’t walk a ton of hitters. To be specific, he’s issued just two free passes in 19.1 innings. Last but not least, Tomlin strikes out 8.38 batters per nine innings. That’s a big reason he’s averaging 21.7 fantasy points per game this season.
Obviously, that’s not a total you can be completely content with from the pitcher spot, but Tomlin’s low salary gives you some flexibility. Perhaps you want to draft the Chicago Cubs’ Jake Arrieta for $12,400, he and Tomlin’s salaries combined are just $18,000. That’s an average of $9,000 per pitcher spot.
That’s reasonable, as it would allow you to fill a solid lineup of position players as well.
Lonnie Chisenhall, 3B ($2,900)
When he’s gotten an opportunity to play of late, Lonnie Chisenhall has been on a tear at the plate. In his last 10 games, he is hitting .565, slugging .752 and his OPS is 1.333. Indians in Depth on Twitter offer even more perspective on Chisenhall’s performance in August:
The Indians will face scuffling Angels starter Jered Weaver on Sunday. He’s allowed four or more runs nine times this season. Most recently, Weaver surrendered six earned in his last start against the Detroit Tigers on August 25.
To boot, Chisenhall is hitting .412 in 17 at-bats against him. It seems crazy for the Indians or any DK player not to have him in the lineup on Sunday.
Marcel Ozuna, OF ($3,000)
In his last four games, Marcel Ozuna has been hot.
He’s hitting .375 in that span with three multi-hit games and three extra-base hits. Ozuna’s hot hitting isn’t the only reason to draft him on Sunday. The 24-year-old Miami Marlins outfielder will be facing the Washington Nationals’ Stephen Strasburg, and Ozuna has gotten the better of this matchup in their career meetings.
In 17 at-bats, Ozuna is hitting a paltry .412 with a home run, double, triple and five RBI against Strasburg. With recent success at the plate and positive history against the opposing pitcher, Ozuna could be a steal for $3,000.
Danny Espinosa, 2B/3B ($3,200)
The Marlins may need all they can get from Ozuna. Miami is sending Brad Hand to the mound to face the Nationals, and that could be problematic.
Current Nationals hitters are batting a combined .326 against Hand. Not least of the bunch is Danny Espinosa. In 11 at-bats against the Marlins left-hander, Espinosa is hitting .455.
Espinosa had a single and scored a run on Saturday. The hit was his first in three games, so he may be breaking out of a slump. Facing Hand could help continue to improve.
Victor Martinez, 1B ($3,400)
The 36-year-old Victor Martinez hasn’t had a very good season for the Detroit Tigers this year. Martinez echoed those sentiments in a quote captured by Matthew B. Mowery of the Oakland Press in Pontiac, Michigan:
Despite his 2015 struggles, Martinez has always hit Toronto Blue Jays starter Mark Buerhle. Guess who the Blue Jays are sending to the mound on Sunday?
In 78 at-bats, Martinez is carrying a healthy .359 batting average against the veteran lefty. He’s slugging .538 against Buerhle and he’s taken him deep four times.
Martinez doesn’t have a recent hot streak to reference, but his overwhelming success, in such a large sample size of at-bats against Buerhle, is reason enough to draft the Tigers veteran.
All stats per DraftKings.com, unless otherwise linked. The head-to-head references per ESPN.com.
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