Dream11 Fantasy NPB: Marines at Buffaloes

Chiba Lotte Marines (32-25-2) at ORIX Buffaloes (19-36-3)

Friday, August 28th, 5:00 AM EDT

Projected Starters

Home: TBA

Away: TBA

Game Preview

Neither team has announced its starter for Friday's contest. When it comes to form, though, it's clear the Marines have been the better team all season long. They own a 32-25-2 record and have won two of their last three contests. As for the Buffaloes, they enter this game in a three-game losing streak and sit dead last in the Pacific League standings. In fact, they're the only team in the entire NPB that is yet to crack the 20-win plateau.

Injuries

Andrew Albers - Out - Undisclosed

7/30 2:57 AM IST - The Buffaloes deactivated Albers on Wednesday, Jim Allen of JBallAllen.com reports. Though an explanation for Albers' removal from the roster isn't known, it's likely the result of an injury rather than any dissatisfaction the club may have had with his performance. The 34-year-old southpaw had fared respectably through his first six starts, going 2-3 with a 3.78 ERA and 29:9 K:BB over 33.1 innings.

Motoki Higa - Out - Biceps

7/9 4:26 AM IST - Higa was removed from the Buffaloes roster Wednesday due to an injury to his left biceps muscle, Full-Count.jp reports. Higa is a right-handed pitcher for Orix, so while his biceps issue appears fairly concerning, it's somewhat of a relief that the injury is to his non-throwing arm. The 37-year-old has been a trusted member of the Buffaloes bullpen so far during the young season, appearing in eight games and recording four holds while having yet to allow a run.

Shoki Katsumata - Out - Orbital

7/23 1:17 AM IST - Katsumata was diagnosed Wednesday with a orbital floor fracture of his right eye, Full-Count.jp reports. Katsumata sustained the injury after being hit in the eye during a defensive drill with the Buffaloes' minor-league affiliate. The 23-year-old appeared in three games with Orix earlier this season, going 0-for-4 at the dish in those contests.

Brandon Laird - Out - Back

8/5 11:54 PM IST - The Marines deactivated Laird on Wednesday while he contends with a stiff back, Jim Allen of JBallAllen.com reports. Laird's back issue first cropped up Tuesday, resulting in him being pulled in the sixth inning of the Marines' game against the Buffaloes. Rookie Hisanori Yasuda is expected to take over as the Marines' everyday third baseman in place of Laird, who is batting .233 with six home runs and 15 RBI across 147 plate appearances.

Yuji Nishino - Out - Elbow

6/30 10:26 AM IST - Nishino (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Monday. Nishino suffered a torn medical collateral ligament in his right elbow in mid-June, and he underwent surgery to repair it Monday. If all goes smoothly, he should be able to resume throwing in approximately four months.

Takashi Ogino - Out - Biceps

7/23 3:09 PM IST - Ogino was removed from the Marines' active roster Thursday with a right biceps injury. Ogino suffered the injury Wednesday, and he'll miss at least 10 days as a result. It's unclear exactly how much time he'll miss. In his absence Shuhei Fukuda should see an uptick in playing time.

Aderlin Rodriguez - Out - Forearm

7/31 1:35 AM IST - The Buffaloes deactivated Rodriguez on Thursday after he suffered a left forearm contusion in Wednesday's game against the Fighters, Jim Allen of JBallAllen.com reports. Rodriguez was credited with a game-tying RBI when he was hit by the pitch, but it came at a costly price. While Rodriguez was fortunate that X-rays cleared him of any structural damage to his forearm, he'll still be shut down for a few days while he looks to shake off the bruise. Rodriguez is batting .223 with five home runs and 19 RBI across 142 plate appearances on the season.

Atsuki Taneichi - Out - Undisclosed

8/3 7:10 AM IST - The Marines deactivated Taneichi on Sunday, Jim Allen of JBallAllen.com reports. The 21-year-old's demotion comes after he followed up a 10-strikeout, four-hit shutout July 25 against the Lions with a disaster of an outing in Saturday's 8-0 loss to the Eagles. He struggled with locating his pitches in the start, giving up all eight runs on 12 hits and three walks over 5.2 innings. Assuming there's no physical issue behind his deactivation, Taneichi will likely head to the Marines' farm team for the next week or so to get his command woes figured out before he rejoins the big club.

Taisuke Yamaoka - Out - Oblique

6/27 9:58 AM IST - Yamaoka (oblique) was diagnosed with muscle damage and will likely miss some time as a result of his injury from Friday's loss to the Marines, Baseball King reports. The right-hander exited Friday's start after just three pitches after experiencing left flank discomfort, and he underwent an MRI on Friday that revealed "muscle damage of the left internal oblique muscle." Yamaoka will be sidelined until at least July 7, but it's unclear whether he'll have to miss any additional time afterwards.

Orix Buffaloes Expected Lineup

1. Takahiro Okada

2. Steven Moya

3. Masataka Yoshida

4. Adam Jones

5. Keita Nakagawa

6. Koji Ohshiro

7. Kenya Wakatsuki

8. Ryoichi Adachi

9. Shunta Gotoh

Chiba Lotte Marines Expected Lineup

1. Shuhei Fukuda

2. Leonys Martin

3. Ikuhiro Kiyota

4. Hasanori Yasuda

5. Seiya Inoue

6. Shogo Nakamura

7. Katsuya Kakunaka

8. Tatsuhiro Tamura

9. Yudai Fujioka

Top Picks From Each Team

Leonys Martin, Marines: Martin is hitting a team-leading 14 home runs and, in fact, he is only one of two Marines that have already cracked the 10-homer mark – the other is Seiya Inoue, who has 12 long balls this year. Martin, who never showed that kind of power in his nine MLB seasons, is also slashing .252/.400/.510 with a .910 OPS in 255 plate appearances.

Adam Jones, Buffaloes: Jones has nine homers with 31 RBI this season, and he has been one of the best offensive threats for the Buffaloes in 2020 – although that's not saying much overall. The veteran MLB outfielder is also hitting .249 with a .754 OPS this year.

Captaincy Options

1. Adam Jones
2. Leonys Martin
3. Takahiro Okada
4. Seiya Inoue

Dream11 Team

P – Takahiro Matsunaga

C – Tatsuhiro Tamura

IF – Seiya Inoue

IF – Yudai Fujioka

IF – Masahiro Nishino

OF – Takahiro Okada

OF – Leonys Martin (C)

OF – Adam Jones (VC)

OF – Katsuya Kakunaka