This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.
There aren't any aces on Thursday night's slate, which means there should be a variety of pitchers selected. I focused on guys who are pitching well in good matchups to go with bats that can hit it deep, and a value play or two.
PITCHER
Sonny Gray, NYY vs. KC ($37): It feels like stepping on glass with this pick, but Gray has at least been respectable in his last two outings with 14 strikeouts and only six hits allowed. He faced the Royals in May and went eight innings, allowing one run. Kansas City hasn't improved with a 23.9 K percentage, .153 ISO and .290 wOBA against righties in the last month.
Dereck Rodriguez, SF vs. MIL ($35): Rodriguez is another shaky play, although he's hit double-digit fantasy points in his last seven starts. As long as he can hit five strikeouts, that'll be enough to reach value against the Brewers, which strikeout a lot with a 25.7 K% and .313 wOBA against righties over the last month.
CATCHER
Elias Diaz, PIT vs. NYM ($13): Diaz is usually worth a shot against any southpaw, with eight extra-base hits (3 HR) in only 55 at-bats this year to go with a career .359 wOBA. Steven Matz hit a rough patch and has allowed 17 hits and eight runs in his last two starts. His overall numbers are fine for a 4-8 record, but he still has a 1.51 HR/9 and 4.40 xFIP against righties.
FIRST BASE
Matt Olson, OAK at TEX ($19): Olson's been a monster against righties this year (18 HR), and this is a good spot to do more damage. Bartolo Colon is giving up runs every start and has allowed at least seven hits in six of his last seven to go with a 4.72 xFIP against lefty bats.
SECOND BASE
Daniel Murphy, WAS at MIA ($13): After getting a late start due to injury, Murphy's picked up his numbers with a .361 OBP in July. The hope is that he returns to his 2017 form when he had a .231 ISO and .396 wOBA against righty arms. Dan Straily could help with that even after a couple good outings, as he still has a .349 wOBA allowed to lefties.
THIRD BASE
Rafael Devers, BOS vs. MIN ($15): Devers has slowed down a bit in terms of power, yet still has 28 extra-base hits (11 HR) against righties, which is good enough at this price. Kyle Gibson is pitching well, but couldn't reach six innings against the Royals last time out and still has a .336 wOBA allowed to lefty bats.
SHORTSTOP
Elvis Andrus, TEX vs. OAK ($13): I'll stick with Andrus until his price rises or he cools down, but for now, he's worth it. He has 10 hits in his last seven games, which is helping him get back to 2017 numbers when he had a .340 wOBA against righties. Trevor Cahill has a sub-3.00 ERA, but the game's over/under is above 11 runs and he's a year removed from a .387 wOBA allowed to righties.
OUTFIELD
Stephen Piscotty, OAK at TEX ($21): This is a nice spot for Piscotty, as he sports more power against righty arms with 11 homers and a .361 wOBA. That fits in well against a struggling Colon, who has been lit up by righties for 17 home runs, and that amounts to a .350 wOBA allowed and 2.52 HR/9.
Odubel Herrera, PHI at CIN ($17): Herrera has the most lefty power (14 HR, 13 2B) in the Phillies lineup, with a career .343 wOBA against righties and faces a struggling Tyler Mahle. The righty hurler has allowed 14 hits and 11 runs in his last two outings and has a brutal 2.25 HR/9 against lefties.
Austin Slater, SF vs. MIL ($8): It's expected that my value outfielder will get more time, especially against lefties. This matchup fits the bill for Slater, who has a .400 BABIP in 62 plate appearances against southpaws over the last two years. Wade Miley has a few good starts, but that'll change at some point after he allowed a .374 wOBA to righties last year.
