This article is part of our The Lineup Card series.
Projected Starters - A look at Monday's matchups (all times Eastern)CIN (Brandon Finnegan - L) at WAS (Tanner Roark - R) 3:05 PM
STL (Lance Lynn - R) at PIT (J.A. Happ - L) 7:00 PM
TOR (Marco Estrada - R) at BAL (Chris Tillman - R) 7:05 PM
BOS (Eduardo Rodriguez - L) at NYY (Masahiro Tanaka - R) 7:05 PM
MIN (Phil Hughes - R) at CLE (Corey Kluber - R) 7:10 PM
DET (Daniel Norris - L) at TEX (Colby Lewis - R) 8:05 PM
KC (Yordano Ventura - R) at CHC (Kyle Hendricks - R) 8:05 PM
OAK (Felix Doubront - L) at LAA (Hector Santiago - L) 10:05 PM
HOU (Lance McCullers - R) at SEA (Roenis Elias - L) 10:10 PM
LAD (Zack Greinke - R) at SF (Jake Peavy - R) 10:15 PM
Day Game After Night Game: - None
Injuries
Day-to-Day
Carlos Gomez, OF, HOU (back) -- Has yet to receive clearance to take batting practice.
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, LAD (back) -- Missed his second straight game Sunday but manager Don Mattingly expressed optimism he'd be ready to play Monday.
Sonny Gray, P, OAK (hip) -- Is dealing with hip soreness but will give it some time before deciding whether he'll make his next start.
Zack Greinke, P, LAD (calf) -- Threw a bullpen session Friday and is expected to start Monday against the Giants.
Kendrys Morales, 1B, KC (bruise) -- Missed Sunday's game with a bruised ankle.
Trevor Plouffe, 3B, MIN (illness) -- Missed Sunday's game due to an illness.
Jose Reyes, SS, COL (achilles) -- Missed his fourth straight game Sunday and his status for the final week of the season is in jeopardy.
Masahiro Tanaka, P, NYY (hamstring) -- Threw off flat ground Sunday but will not start Monday as planned. If he's unable to return by Thursday, he'll be held out until the postseason.
Out
Ryan Braun, OF, MIL (back) -- Was shut down by the Brewers Sunday due to the lack of progress in his rehab.
Billy Hamilton, OF, CIN (shoulder) -- Underwent season-ending shoulder surgery on Friday.
Greg Holland, P, KC (elbow) -- Has a significant UCL tear and is most-likely looking at Tommy John surgery.
Jung-Ho Kang, SS, PIT (knee) -- Will miss the remainder of the season.
Carlos Martinez, P, STL (shoulder) -- Has been shut down for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs.
Yadier Molina, C, STL (thumb) -- Will be re-evaluated this week after suffering a slight ligament tear in this thumb.
Aaron Nola, P, PHI (coach's decision) -- Will not pitch again in 2015 but will have no innings limit in 2016.
Troy Tulowitzki, SS, TOR (shoulder) -- Swung off a tee Thursday and took grounders Friday, but his timetable to return remains unclear.
Ryan Zimmerman, 3B, WAS (oblique) -- Has begun swinging a bat but is still experiencing pain on his left side.
Players on the DL
Maikel Franco, 3B, PHI (wrist) -- Will get five at-bats in an instructional game Monday.
Hunter Pence, OF, SF (oblique) -- Best case scenario for a return is the Giants' final homestand that begins September 28.
Yasiel Puig, OF, LAD (hamstring) -- Is still having problems running and is unlikely to return this season.
Hanley Ramirez, SS, BOS (shoulder) -- His shoulder injury has not shown any improvement and has been shut down for the remainder of the season.
Giancarlo Stanton, OF, MIA (wrist) -- Put his rehab on hold due to an abnormal amount of scar tissue in his hand.
Mark Teixeira, 1B, NYY (leg) -- Will miss the remainder of the season after x-rays revealed a fracture in his leg.
Transactions - Players who have been called up, sent down, traded, released, you name it. We'll cover it here.
Called Up
None
Sent Down (to Triple-A unless otherwise noted)
None
Activated from the DL (15-day, unless otherwise noted)
None
Placed on the DL (15-day, unless otherwise noted)
Kris Negron, 3B, CIN (60-day DL)
Claimed
Tyler Holt, OF, CIN (from CLE)
Designated for Assignment
None
Signed
None
Released
None
Traded
None
Closer Watch
Arizona Diamondbacks - Brad Ziegler pitched a scoreless ninth inning Sunday against the Padres to earn his 29th save of the season.
Boston Red Sox - Robbie Ross allowed a hit but struck out two during a scoreless ninth inning Sunday against the Orioles to earn his sixth save of the season.
Houston Astros - Luke Gregerson needed only 10 pitches (eight for strikes) to close out a 4-2 win for the Astros on Sunday against the Rangers. He has 29 saves this season.
Kansas City Royals - Wade Davis allowed a hit but struck out two during the ninth inning Sunday against the Indians to earn his 14th save of the season.
Los Angeles Angels - With Huston Street out for the remainder of the regular season and possibly the playoffs, Michael Morin struck out two during a perfect ninth inning Sunday against the Mariners to earn his first career save.
Milwaukee Brewers - Francisco Rodriguez recorded the final out of Sunday's 8-4 over the Cardinals to earn his 37th save of the season.
San Francisco Giants - Santiago Casilla pitched a scoreless ninth inning Sunday against the A's to earn his 37th save of the season.
Key Matchups
Hot Batter Matchups – September 28, 2015Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| D. Ortiz | DH | BOS @ NYY 7:05PM | I. Nova | 25 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 1 | .400 | .483 | .760 | 1.243 |
| J. Harrison | 3B | PIT vs STL 7:05PM | L. Lynn | 19 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | .368 | .368 | .632 | 1.000 |
| S. Marte | OF | PIT vs STL 7:05PM | L. Lynn | 21 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | .381 | .519 | .571 | 1.090 |
| J. Mercer | SS | PIT vs STL 7:05PM | L. Lynn | 15 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 2 | .467 | .500 | .667 | 1.167 |
| N. Walker | 2B | PIT vs STL 7:05PM | L. Lynn | 38 | 14 | 8 | 3 | 10 | 6 | 5 | .368 | .444 | .789 | 1.234 |
| J. Bautista | OF | TOR @ BAL 7:05PM | C. Tillman | 36 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 10 | .278 | .357 | .611 | .968 |
| J. Donaldson | 3B | TOR @ BAL 7:05PM | C. Tillman | 20 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | .350 | .381 | .650 | 1.031 |
| E. Encarnacion | 1B | TOR @ BAL 7:05PM | C. Tillman | 46 | 15 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | .326 | .367 | .522 | .889 |
| R. Goins | 2B | TOR @ BAL 7:05PM | C. Tillman | 20 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | .400 | .429 | .550 | .979 |
| M. Brantley | OF | CLE vs MIN 7:10PM | P. Hughes | 19 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | .263 | .333 | .579 | .912 |
| J. Mauer | 1B | MIN @ CLE 7:10PM | C. Kluber | 36 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 10 | .250 | .341 | .528 | .869 |
| A. Avila | C | DET @ TEX 8:05PM | C. Lewis | 17 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | .353 | .476 | .765 | 1.241 |
| M. Cabrera | 1B | DET @ TEX 8:05PM | C. Lewis | 23 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | .348 | .393 | .522 | .915 |
| V. Martinez | 1B | DET @ TEX 8:05PM | C. Lewis | 20 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | .450 | .450 | .600 | 1.050 |
| M. Moreland | 1B | TEX vs DET 8:05PM | J. Verlander | 18 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 6 | .333 | .400 | .556 | .956 |
| C. Crawford | OF | LAD @ SF 10:15PM | J. Peavy | 24 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | .333 | .333 | .542 | .875 |
| A. Gonzalez | 1B | LAD @ SF 10:15PM | J. Peavy | 20 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 2 | .250 | .250 | .700 | .950 |
| J. Rollins | SS | LAD @ SF 10:15PM | J. Peavy | 16 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | .313 | .421 | .625 | 1.046 |
Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Hot Pitcher Matchups – September 28, 2015Hot Pitcher Matchups – September 28, 2015Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| Marco Estrada | TOR @ BAL 7:05PM | 92 | 16 | 8 | 4 | 11 | 11 | 25 | .174 | .260 | .381 | .640 |
| Phil Hughes | MIN @ CLE 7:10PM | 144 | 40 | 13 | 3 | 14 | 4 | 29 | .278 | .298 | .412 | .710 |
| Corey Kluber | CLE vs MIN 7:10PM | 229 | 44 | 20 | 6 | 22 | 11 | 67 | .192 | .240 | .336 | .576 |
| Jake Peavy | SF vs LAD 10:15PM | 140 | 30 | 10 | 6 | 15 | 11 | 30 | .214 | .272 | .376 | .648 |
Cold Batter Matchups – September 28, 2015Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| A. McCutchen | OF | PIT vs STL 7:05PM | L. Lynn | 42 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 | .167 | .167 | .262 | .429 |
| A. Ramirez | 3B | PIT vs STL 7:05PM | L. Lynn | 29 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | .103 | .161 | .103 | .265 |
| M. Reynolds | 1B | STL @ PIT 7:05PM | J. Happ | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| L. Chisenhall | 3B | CLE vs MIN 7:10PM | P. Hughes | 19 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | .211 | .200 | .211 | .411 |
| C. Santana | 1B | CLE vs MIN 7:10PM | P. Hughes | 21 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | .143 | .174 | .190 | .364 |
| B. Dozier | 2B | MIN @ CLE 7:10PM | C. Kluber | 30 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | .133 | .161 | .267 | .428 |
| E. Escobar | SS | MIN @ CLE 7:10PM | C. Kluber | 20 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | .150 | .190 | .150 | .340 |
| T. Hunter | OF | MIN @ CLE 7:10PM | C. Kluber | 22 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | .136 | .174 | .182 | .356 |
| C. Gentry | OF | OAK @ LAA 10:05PM | H. Santiago | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | .200 | .333 | .200 | .533 |
| A. Ethier | OF | LAD @ SF 10:15PM | J. Peavy | 38 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 11 | .158 | .214 | .237 | .451 |
| M. Byrd | OF | SF vs LAD 10:15PM | Z. Greinke | 29 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 11 | .172 | .250 | .310 | .560 |
Cold Pitcher Matchups – September 28, 2015Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| Chris Tillman | BAL vs TOR 7:05PM | 218 | 71 | 28 | 12 | 37 | 19 | 38 | .326 | .388 | .564 | .952 |
| J.A. Happ | PIT vs STL 7:05PM | 73 | 22 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 20 | .301 | .370 | .380 | .751 |
| Ivan Nova | NYY vs BOS 7:05PM | 82 | 25 | 11 | 5 | 13 | 8 | 8 | .305 | .367 | .558 | .925 |
| Colby Lewis | TEX vs DET 8:05PM | 122 | 40 | 14 | 4 | 14 | 9 | 13 | .328 | .380 | .511 | .891 |
| Hector Santiago | LAA vs OAK 10:05PM | 111 | 32 | 12 | 5 | 14 | 16 | 25 | .288 | .388 | .494 | .883 |
Recommended Pickup
Rich Hill, P, BOS - The Rich Hill revival tour has made three stops and the reviews have all come back positive, as he's got a 1.17 ERA (1.68 FIP) with a whopping 30 strikeouts to just two walks over 23 innings. Non-believers are being converted, as he's striking out 10 batters in every start. At Triple-A Pawtucket, he had a 2.78 ERA (3.64 FIP) with 29 strikeouts and nine walks over 32.1 innings, so this isn't out of nowhere. Still with one more start left this season (against the Yankees on the road), grab a ticket to see if he can keep the magic alive.
Other Recent Recommendations:Kevin Kiermaier, Steve Pearce, Darren O'Day, Mikie Mahtook, Jorge Lopez and Tyler Duffey.
DraftKings Value Picks
SP - Brandon Finnegan, CIN ($4,000)
C - Matt Wieters, BAL ($2,800)
1B - C.J. Cron, LAA ($3,300)
2B - Steve Pearce, BAL ($3,300)
3B - Lonnie Chisenhall, CLE ($2,800)
SS - Jose Ramirez, CLE ($3,000)
OF - Alex Gordon, KC ($3,500)
