This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.
Friday is going to be hot, and there is barely any rain offering a hint of threat across our great nation (and also Canada, since the Blue Jays are at home). All 30 teams are in action, naturally, and the first game starts at 7:05 PM ET. The World Cup may be on, but don't forget about daily fantasy baseball.
Here are my recommendations for your lineup.
STARTING PITCHER
Reynaldo Lopez, CWS vs. DET ($37): Lopez has an impressive 3.26 ERA, but at home he's been even better. In the confines of his Chicago base, he has a 1.85 ERA and 0.94 WHIP. The Tigers have been mediocre offensively, but now they are without Miguel Cabrera for the rest of the season. That's not going to help.
Julio Teheran, ATL vs. SD ($34): Teheran has a 4.31 ERA, but his career ERA is 3.64. This is more about the matchup, though. The Padres are in the bottom 10 in runs scored, but it feels like they've still been lucky. They have a team slash line of .233/.298/.373.
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CATCHER
Chris Iannetta, COL at TEX ($16): Iannetta's return to Colorado hasn't gone perfectly, but last season he had a .865 OPS with 17 home runs in 89 games with the Diamondbacks. This year, he has a .744 OPS, which is pretty good for a catcher. The Rangers are starting Yohander Mendez fresh from Triple-A. He has a 7.31 career ERA in the majors.
FIRST BASE
Justin Bour, MIA at BAL ($17): Bour has a .377 OBP this season, a personal career high. Additionally, he's been hitting righties quite well, and that has been true throughout the years. Kevin Gausman is right handed, and he has a career 4.14 FIP. He's also allowed 1.64 home runs per nine innings this season.
SECOND BASE
Dee Gordon, SEA vs. BOS ($11): Gordon does two things well; put the bat on the ball and swipe bags. He has a career .292 batting average and has stolen at least 58 bases in his last three full seasons. It's these skills that have helped him average 6.1 fantasy points per game this year. Given that fact, being able to snag him at this price feels like a nice value.
THIRD BASE
Anthony Rendon, WAS at TOR ($15): Rendon's numbers are a bit down, but a .273 BABIP (his career number is .309) is a big reason for that. He has a career slash line of .278/.356/.453, and his number should start regressing toward the mean eventually. For the second season in a row, Toronto's Aaron Sanchez has a FIP over 5.00, which bodes well for Rendon.
SHORTSTOP
Jordy Mercer, PIT vs. CIN ($16): Mercer hit a career-high 14 home runs last season, and this year he's picked up four homers and 22 RBI through 60 games. He also has a .264 batting average, his best since 2013. When Matt Harvey moved to the Reds, he briefly showed improvement, but that hasn't panned out. Over his last six games he has a 5.04 ERA, and overall he this season his ERA is a hefty 5.97.
OUTFIELD
George Springer, HOU at KAN ($22): Springer is having another stellar season, as he's slashed .293/.367/.507 with 14 home runs in 67 games. He's one of the best hitters in the league, which is why he's averaged 8.1 fantasy points per contest. Jakob Junis has FIPs of 4.59 and 4.64 over the two seasons of his career, and on top of that he's allowed 1.51 home runs per nine innings.
Nomar Mazara, TEX vs. COL ($18): Unsurprisingly, the 23-year-old Mazara is having the best season of his career. He has a .813 OPA and has already hit 14 home runs in 68 games. In each of his last two seasons he's hit 20 homers as well. This season, Chad Bettis has been much better on the road than at Coors Field. However, the last two years he's actually been worse in away starts. Plus, it's not like Texas is favorable to pitchers either.
Adam Jones, BAL vs. MIA ($16): Jones is a bona fide veteran at this point, but he still has some skill left in his bat. His .286 batting average is actually better than his career number of .278, and he's hit 10 home runs in 64 games. The 32-year-old also has hit at least 25 homers in each of his last seven campaigns. Miami's Jose Urena has a 4.59 ERA, which is actually a little better than his career number (4.69).
