A.L. Player Report July 24th, 2015

Sam Wallach

Jul 23, 2015

DFS Picks:

Xander Bogaerts (SS-BOS) - One matchup I'm interested in watching on Friday is Xander Bogaerts versus Justin Verlander. This season Bogaerts is hitting .306 with a .364 BABIP and a 15.3% K rate. His opposition, Verlander, has been anything but impressive. Verlander's 6.62 ERA and 1.50 WHIP have been hard to ignore. His K rate is down to 5.82 K/9 and his strand rate is a minimal 60.5%. All the more reason to put Bogaerts in your DFS lineup on Friday. FanDuel Value Pick $2,900

Kole Calhoun (OF-LAA) - If there's one player Colby Lewis doesn't want to face it's Kole Calhoun. In 19 career at bats against Lewis, Calhoun is 9 for 19 with six runs scored and five RBIs. Four of his nine hits have gone for extra bases. To give Lewis credit where it's deserved, 8 of his last 9 outings have been quality starts. However, the one blemish came against the Angels when Lewis allowed 10 runs on 11 hits. That game, Calhoun went 2 for 5 with a home run, four RBIs, and two runs scored. Just based on history alone, Calhoun makes a great DFS pick. He's swinging a hot bat and the Angels are streaking. FanDuel $4,000

Heating Up:

Eric Hosmer (KC-1B) - Eric Hosmer must be eating something different for breakfast, because he has 13 hits in his last six games. Including his 2 for 4 performance on Thursday night, Hosmer has multiple hits in five of his last six games. During this stretch he has three extra base hits, four runs scored, and four RBIs. Right now, Hosmer is a wrecking ball at the plate and his .351 AVG in July proves it. He hit a 452-foot home run just a few nights ago, and is so dangerous that his bats should be checked for magnets.

Stacks of the Day: Angels vs Colby Lewis and Tigers vs Rick Porcello

As a team, the Angels have killed Colby Lewis. Five of the nine starting hitters have a career home run against Lewis. Let's start with the best of the best. Albert Pujols is 9 for 20 off of Lewis with 3 home runs. Kole Calhoun, as previously mentioned, is 9 for 19 against Lewis with four extra base hits. As you go down the list, it keeps getting better. Mike Trout is 9 for 24 against Lewis with two home runs and Matt Joyce is 3 for 9 against Lewis with one home run. If you are willing to dish out the big bucks then the Angels will reward you. A combination of Calhoun, Trout, Pujols, and Joyce would be ideal.

Rick Porcello is one of the easiest pitchers to stack against. He's got a ridiculously high .292 BAA and a pathetic 1.5 HR/9. Seriously, what sinker baller allows 18 home runs in 105.2 innings? I could talk about Porcello's .329 BABIP or 61.8% strand rate, but instead I'll talk about the Tigers offense. To this point, Detroit has the second highest run total in baseball. Even without Miggy they're dangerous. For example Ian Kinsler is hitting .375 in July, J.D. Martinez has 18 home runs in the last month and a half, and the nine hitter Jose Iglesias is batting .325. My suggestion would be to stack right-handed power since Detroit is playing at Fenway. Here are two ideas: