MLB daily notes: Fantasy rankings for Saturday

ByTODD ZOLA
April 23, 2016, 9:44 AM

— -- In an effort to serve daily fantasy players and season-long fantasy players who use daily lineup settings, we present daily notes each day of the season. It's a daily version of our Fantasy Forecaster in which we project the best pitcher game scores as well as the best team hitting matchups based upon a number of factors.

Pitching

Elite

Felix Hernandez was scratched from Friday's start due to illness, and while it's not definite, the Seattle Mariners hope their big righty is well enough to work Saturday. Seasonal owners hope King Felix doesn't miss the weekend series versus the weak-hitting Los Angeles Angels, while DFS owners should think about fading him -- especially in cash contests. It's always a risk using a pitcher after an illness since he may not be at full strength thus may not go as deep into the game (or could be a late scratch again). More relevant is that the Halos carry a poor weighted on-base average (wOBA) against right-handers, limiting run scoring, but they also don't fan a ton in that scenario, limiting DFS points potential for the pitcher.

Similarly, Jose Fernandez has a date with the San Francisco Giants in AT&T Park. The only club that whiffs less against right-handers than the Angels is the Giants. That said, at this point in their respective careers, Fernandez has better stuff than Hernandez, so of the two, Fernandez is more likely to get some punchouts -- making him a contrarian play to those influenced by the numbers. At his likely cost, though, the likelihood of a reduced number of strikeouts makes Fernandez a risky cash anchor.

Corey Kluber rounds out the elite as the Cleveland Indians continue a weekend visit to Motown. The Tribe's righty is an excellent DFS tournament option, as his points potential is high while his ownership likely will be tempered. The continued optimism stems from a big strikeout rate versus right-handers exhibited by the Detroit Tigers, but, well, it is still the Tigers, at home, and Kluber's surface stats are poor -- scaring a lot of people off, and driving his usage down.

Solid

Three aces, and no cash recommendation. Don't worry, Masahiro Tanaka profiles nicely. The New York Yankees entertain the Tampa Bay Rays in an American League East battle Saturday. The visitors are whiffing at an exaggerated 26 percent clip against righties while carrying a pedestrian 0.299 wOBA. Furthermore, Tanaka is an intriguing GPP option, since all eyes will be on the Rays' shiny new toy, Blake Snell, who makes his debut against the Bronx Bombers.

Before featuring a few more solid tournament options, a sneaky cash play is Hector Santiago, squaring off against King Felix (assuming he's able to go). The Mariners don't fan excessively versus southpaws, but league average is adequate for Santiago and his 8.7 K/9 to do some damage at home at Angels Stadium. The veteran southpaw also has the platoon edge over Robinson Cano and Kyle Seager. As a whole, the visitors check in with a below-average 0.290 wOBA against lefties.

Taking a chance on some upside plays looks to be the best course of action on this full -- but split -- Saturday slate. Truth be told, unless there's a standout cash option, sticking to GPP play isn't a bad idea on smaller slates. Chicago White Sox left-hander Carlos Rodon and his big strikeout upside draws a Texas Rangers club that sits at a 26 percent strikeout pace when facing southpaws. The Detroit Tigers' Anibal Sanchez has punched out 15 in 15 2/3rds innings and now faces a Cleveland Indians group whiffing at a 23 percent pace against righties. The best of the bunch could be St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Michael Wacha, as he takes his 8.3 K/9 into Petco Park to challenge a San Diego Padres unit fanning a league-high 28 percent of the time against right-handers.

Streamers

Hot spots

Maybe J.A. Happ can be effective outside of Pittsburgh after all. The veteran lefty stifled a hot Boston Red Sox team in Fenway Park the last time out, and now he gets the Oakland Athletics in the Rogers Centre. The platoon-happy visitors are down Danny Valencia, which hurts an already weak 0.284 wOBA against lefties.

Steven Matz is obviously better than his early-season 7.27 ERA and 1.50 WHIP suggest. After taking the Turner Field hill against the Atlanta Braves and their anemic 0.231 wOBA versus southpaws, expect those ratios to head downward.

For the past two seasons, Milwaukee Brewers' righty Chase Anderson has recorded a strikeout and walk rate around the league average -- but his ERA has been worse than average, due to a slightly high home run rate. That isn't as much of a concern against the Philadelphia Phillies, even in Miller Park.

Cold streams

This could be a high-scoring day, as a bunch of the best hitters' venues are housing action this weekend. While the lack of exposure to his stuff should play in Kenta Maeda's favor, Coors Field has a way of neutralizing edges. On the other side, Tyler Chatwood has pitched very well on the road, but he was lit up in his only home start.

Colby Lewis and his fly ball tendencies are too risky for the non-forgiving U.S. Cellular Field.

Dan Straily pitched decently in his first start, going five frames with four whiffs and two walks against the Colorado Rockies in the Great American Ballpark. But with due respect to Nolan Arenado and mates, the Chicago Cubs sport a more dangerous lineup from top to bottom.

Hitting

The Los Angeles Dodgers left-handers are in a great spot in Coors Field against Chatwood. Top-of-the-order stalwarts Chase Utley, Corey Seager and Adrian Gonzalez are the primary beneficiaries, though Joc Pederson and Yasmani Grandal are in play as well. On the other side, Carlos Gonzalez and Gerardo Parra enjoy the platoon bump over Maeda, while  Arenado is in play regardless of hurler.

As alluded to, the Bucs handle right-handed pitching very well despite just a pair of lefty-swinging regulars in John Jaso and Gregory Polanco. Since so many blindly adhere to using hitters only if they have the platoon edge, a Pirates stack including Andrew McCutchen, Starling Marte and David Freese offers an intriguing pivot from the action in Denver.

The Cubs are going to bombard former teammate Straily with a deluge of left-handed swingers, starting with Dexter Fowler and Jason Heyward, followed by Anthony Rizzo and Ben Zobrist. In the middle of all that is Kris Bryant, who's capable of taking anyone out of the yard.

We'll wrap up a docket of favorable hitting spots with U.S. Cellular Field, as Colby Lewis will have trouble keeping the ball in the yard with the likes of Jose Abreu and Todd Frazier taking cuts, despite lacking the platoon edge. Adam Eaton and Jimmy Rollins are also threats to get on and score some runs in what should be a productive game for the home nine.

Most likely to hit a homer: Gut call ... Frazier takes Lewis deep in a blowout.

Most likely to steal a base: Pittsburgh receivers have trouble controlling running, so look for Jean Segura to make something happen in the desert.