This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Starting Pitcher
Andrew Heaney ($7,000)
You can pay up for quite a few studs on the mound Sunday: Jacob deGrom, Zack Greinke, Gerrit Cole and Dallas Keuchel have all been very good, but none of them are cheap. A guy who has been very good and is somewhat cheap is Heaney. The young lefty for the Angels has been great lately. Since joining the rotation in late June, he has five consecutive double-digit fantasy scores and is averaging just shy of 15 fantasy points per start. He faces a team in Texas that is very lefty dominant. They have the seventh highest strikeout rate against left-handed pitching at 23.3 percent and the sixth worst batting average at only .232. Heaney has a 1.52 ERA and 0.82 WHIP, he is striking out about 7.5 batters per nine and is favored at home. He might not have the same ceiling as some of the studs, but he could be the best bet for value at his discounted price.
Catcher
Kyle Schwarber ($3,400)
Schwarber has been on a tear since being called up. In his four starts since, he is 11-for-18 with four runs scored, five RBI and those two monster home runs from that epic game against the Reds that went into extra innings. He faces rookie Aaron Nola, who is making his second start in the bigs. In the minors, he allowed left-handed batters to hit .286 with a WHIP of 1.50 and three homers in 15 innings at Triple-A. Schwarber has a .516 wOBA with an ISO of .342 in the majors, so there is no reason not to look his way if he is in the lineup.
First Base
Albert Pujols ($4,000)
The popular choice will be Joey Votto at $4,600 going up against Kyle Kendrick at Coors Field and that is a great option too, but you can look to Pujols for differentiation and salary savings. Pujols faces Nick Martinez, who has allowed right-handed bats to hit .311 against him this year with seven homers in 50 innings. Pujols has been crushing righties this year to the tune of a .388 batting average and an ISO of .296. Pujols has hits in seven of his last eight games, which includes a pair of doubles and three home runs. No one can knock Votto's stats if you can afford him, but Pujols is also in play and will be lower owned.
Second Base
Logan Forsythe ($3,200)
This is a great spot to roll out a guy like Forsythe because he faces Wei-Yin Chen, who has only allowed a .240 batting average to right-handed bats this year, but has given up 14 homers in 86 innings. Forsythe has very good numbers against left-handed pitching: he has a .403 wOBA with a .304 ISO. That means he has been crushing lefties for both a high average and a good amount of power. Forsythe tends to bat cleanup against the southpaws and he should be in line for a few RBI as well as being one of the top options for a home run.
Shortstop
Jose Iglesias ($2,700)
None of the expensive options truly stand out at shortstop Sunday but Iglesias does stand out as a solid salary-saving play. The Tigers' shortstop has hit safely in six straight games, going 11-for-24. He has a .431 wOBA against left-handed pitching and faces a lefty in Eduardo Rodriguez. Iglesias is not the high upside, multiple home run type of play, but he is very solid for cash and is a great salary-saving option on tournament rosters. While he may not be the highest scorer, he should provide a safe, consistent amount of points to help buoy your fantasy rosters.
Third Base
Alex Rodriguez ($3,400)
Rodriguez went yard three times Saturday, including the eventual game winner. He is obviously seeing the ball pretty well right now. He now faces Kyle Gibson, who has allowed right-handed bats to hit .275 against him with seven homers in 60 innings. Rodriguez has a wOBA of .378 with an ISO of .232, so he profiles well against a guy like Gibson. It is not feasible to expect another three home-run game, so temper the expectations. He is still one of the better options on the day at third baseand the price is friendly enough to allow him to slot easily into most lineups.
Outfield
Preston Tucker ($3,500)
Tucker has been quietly turning into a monster against weak right-handed pitching. When the Astros face a righty, he tends to find himself in the two spot sandwiched between Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa. He faces Yordano Ventura on Sunday, a pitcher who has allowed left-handed bats to hit .284 against him with five homeruns in 38 innings. The young Astros outfielder homered against a righty on Friday and now has a .404 wOBA with an ISO of .285 on the year. Those are elite numbers usually reserved for a guy well above $4,000. At only $3,500, Tucker is a steal.
Adam Jones ($3,000)
Jones has seen his price really take a dip this season. He has not been great, but his numbers are not horrible either. He has six multi-hit games in his last nine and has always smashed left-handed pitching. He faces Matt Moore, who has struggled since coming off the DL a few weeks ago. Moore has allowed batters to hit well over .300 against him this season, so a lot of the Orioles make sense to roll out. Jones has a .398 wOBA with an ISO of .254, so if there is anyone on this team to use, he is the top option.
Carlos Gonzalez ($4,900)
Gonzalez is finally looking like the guy many season-long players decided to take in the top part of their drafts. He has now hit in nine of his last 10 games and has multiple hits in three of the last four. Over that four game stretch, he has five RBI, five runs scored, three home runs, and is 7-for-17. He faces Michael Lorenzen, who has allowed left-handed batters to hit .313 with six homers in 27 innings. CarGo has a .389 wOBA with a .310 ISO despite his early-season struggles. He has 24.5 fantasy points over his last four games which is an average of 6.1 per start. He is very expensive at $4,900, but he is the top outfielder option to pay up for if you choose to go that route.
