MLB daily notes: Fantasy rankings for Sunday

— -- The All-Star break stands a single game away, but fantasy never sleeps. The axiom "good pitching stops good hitting" will be put to the test Sunday, as one of the top left-handers in the league faces one of the best lineups when there's a southpaw on the hill.

Pitching

Elite

Amidst all the injured and underperforming upper-level starting pitchers, Madison Bumgarner is doing what he always does, sporting a sparkling 2.09 ERA and 1.02 WHIP -- all fully supported by outstanding peripherals. The Diamondbacks' weighted on-base average (wOBA) vs. lefties is the best in the game, and it's not all due to Chase Field either, as they carry the fifth-best mark on the road in that scenario into AT&T Park to close out the pseudo-first half demarcated by the All-Star Game. There's not a lot of competition in terms of cash game play, so despite the tough opponent, Bumgarner is still the optimal choice for that format, though fading him for a cheaper option is the smart play for GPPs.

If you're concerned that Bumgarner may get hit, Carlos Carrasco is also in a very good spot, taking the hill in Progressive Field to square off with the New York Yankees. After a rough stretch in early June after returning from the disabled list Carrasco has righted the ship, boasting a 1.21 ERA over his past four starts with 32 punchouts in 29 2/3 innings -- albeit with 10 walks. The free passes are the only concern here, as Carrasco remains a little inconsistent with his control, but fortunately for him, the Yankees aren't nearly as disciplined as in past seasons (though they don't whiff much either). The lack of strikeout upside yields Carrasco as another ace better suited for cash play.

Pop quiz: Which team leads the American League in woBA vs. lefties? If you guessed the Tampa Bay Rays, nice job. That said, they also whiff at an above-average rate in these conditions. When the Rays faced David Price in late June, they tagged him for nine hits and four runs in 6 1/3 innings. However, the ex-Ray fanned 10 on his former team with only one walk, which has been a microcosm of his first half -- great peripherals, terrible results. Please don't interpret that as all bad luck, as Price hasn't been as sharp with runners on base along with allowing more homers than usual. Price will benefit from home-field advantage but, remember, Tropicana Field is a hitters' park while Fenway favors offense; that means high strikeout potential, but also presents a risk of giving up some runs -- sounds like a GPP play.

Solid

Those who took a chance on Kenta Maeda in seasonal formats have to be ecstatic with his first half. Let's see what happens after the break, as the weather continues to warm and the workload continues to grow. As for Sunday, Maeda has a great chance to head into the break on a high note with the San Diego Padres closing out a set in Dodgers Stadium. The Friars tote a weak 0.298 wOBA and generous 24 percent strikeout rate against right-handers, and with a 8.8 K/9, the Los Angeles Dodgers righty is set up nicely for either cash or GPP play.

Since coming off of the disabled list in late June, A.J. Griffin has scuffled in his three efforts, tossing five innings only once. Look for Griffin to regain his early-season form as the Minnesota Twins and the Texas Rangers meet up in Arlington. The guests are below-average vs. righties, while offering Griffin just enough strikeout upside to be a lesser-priced tournament hurler.

Miami Marlins righty Tom Koehler doesn't have much upside, but with a home date against the Cincinnati Reds he profiles as a safe option as a second arm for cash play. The visitors carry a below-average wOBA in concert with an above-average strikeout rate in to Marlins Park.

With 20 of the 32 scheduled starters falling in the streaming range, I'll open the floor if you have questions on the other options in the solid tier, John Lackey and Steven Matz, but to be honest, neither lines up well for DFS action. Please post your queries in the comments below or send them via Twitter to @ToddZola and I'll be sure to answer anything pertaining to Sunday's ledger.

Streamers

Shall we go to the well again? Earlier in the week this space recommended streaming James Shields, and those who heeded this advice were rewarded. Considering that the Atlanta Braves are one of the weakest clubs when a righty is on the hill, let's roll the dice again. It's encouraging that the Chicago White Sox veteran right-hander has surrendered only four homers in his past five outings, though one of those was a shellacking at the hands of the Cleveland Indians. Still, the litmus test with Shields is the long ball, and if he can do a better job keeping the ball in the yard he's still useful in American League-only formats.

Head-to-head leagues have varying ways of dealing with the short week following the break. If your league's scoring period ends Sunday and you need some strikeouts,  Cody Reed could be your guy as he draws the Miami Marlins and their 24 percent whiff rate against lefties. The Cincinnati Reds rookie southpaw has opened his career with a hefty 9.9 K/9 but beware, the punchouts may come at the expense of ratios.

Masahiro Tanaka is a solid pitcher who has dropped to the streaming tier due to a tough road matchup with the Cleveland Indians. Even so, I don't sit a hurler of Tanaka's caliber, so the New York Yankees right-hander remains an active option.

Gio Gonzalez is another risky option for those chasing punchouts, as the Washington Nationals lefty toes the Citi Field rubber to face the New York Mets and their 25 percent strikeout clip against southpaws.

Dallas Keuchel heads the list of first-half disappointments. The Houston Astros lefty will look to head into the break on a winning note as the Oakland Athletics send Sean Manaea to the Minute Maid Park hill. Keuchel should be favored if you need another win to capture the week.

Mike Leake is another option for a late-week win, as the St. Louis Cardinals visit Miller Park. Leake doesn't miss many bats, but because the Milwaukee Brewers fan at a generous 26 percent clip against right-handers, he may tack on a couple extra punchouts while being in play for the win.

Avoid

There are a number of potential streamers who weren't highlighted, but aren't so risky that you should categorically avoid them either; those discussed in the above category stand out as the best options to garner the late win or handful of strikeouts. The only three Sunday starters who are too dangerous unless you have no other choice are Tommy Milone, Tim Lincecum and Zach Eflin. Milone is tasked with keeping the Texas Rangers in check in Globe Life Park while Eflin has the unenviable job of facing the Colorado Rockies in Coors Field. Lincecum has had issues with the long ball, which doesn't bode well against the Orioles in Camden Yards. To reiterate, this may be the last day before the break, but we'll still be on alert, looking for your questions in the comments.

Hitting

The team hitter rankings corroborate the pattern discussed in pitching regarding a slew of borderline options, as there are only six lineups registering an overall ranking that's above a six. Two squads come in at nine, along with an eight and three sevens.

The chalk play will be the Colorado Rockies facing Eflin. Eflin may not have the pedigree or hype of some of the more heralded Philadelphia Phillies prospect pitchers, but he does have a chance of becoming a major league-level starter. That said, he's currently overmatched in Coors, so look for Charlie Blackmon, Carlos Gonzalez, Nolan Arenado and Trevor Story in order to take advantage.

The Baltimore Orioles are the other top-ranked offense, squaring off with Lincecum. The Los Angeles Angels righty hasn't pitched more than four frames since his six-inning debut, and while the Orioles have been relatively quiet this series, look for that to change; that charge should be led by Chris Davis and Hyun Soo Kim with the platoon edge, along with Adam Jones, Manny Machado and Mark Trumbo, who are still in a good spot without it.

The Chicago White Sox possess the eight ranking among those top six lineups, against Atlanta Braves right-hander Mike Foltynewicz. Adam Eaton is the strongest play, as he'll enjoy the platoon split, with Jose Abreu and Todd Frazier also in play -- especially considering Foltynewicz's 2.4 HR/9.

The first of the teams scoring a seven mark is the Philadelphia Phillies in Coors against Tyler Chatwood. Odubel Herrera and Cody Asche are the best plays, even though they struggled early in this series.

Next up is the Seattle Mariners, who have an away affair in Kauffmann Stadium against Dillon Gee and his 19 HR/9. The usual suspects reign, including Leonys Martin, Seth Smith, Robinson Cano, Kyle Seager and Nelson Cruz.

Finally, the Texas Rangers right-handers are in play against Minnesota Twins lefty Tommy Milone. Most notably, Ian Desmond, Adrian Beltre and Ryan Rua are in the best spots.

Most likely to go deep: David Ortiz has a flair for the dramatic, so sending the Fenway faithful home happy heading into the break is right up his alley. It helps that Jake Odorizzi and his 1.4 HR/9 will be doing the throwing, at least to start.

Most likely to swipe a base: Let's stay in Beantown and tag Mookie Betts, especially if Hank Conger is back behind the dish for the Rays.

Enjoy the break, everyone. We'll be back Thursday with the Daily Notes for the first Friday of the second half.