Steve Pearce- 1B- BAL- Stats- In his breakout season of 2014, Pearce feasted on lefthanders, putting up a slash line of .327/.405/.704 against them. In addition he went .329/.416/.600 in Camden Yards. Today the Orioles have their home opener against southpaw Mark Buehrle, who is 36 years old and had a .289/.330/.422 line against righthanded batters last year, significantly above his .265/.317/.401 results against lefthanded hitters. Value play DraftKings salary $4300.
C. C. Sabathia- NYA- P- Idea- Sabathia's first start of the season was decidedly a mixed bag. He allowed 5 runs in 5.2 IP, 4 of them earned. However, 68 of his 95 pitches were strikes and he walked no noe while striking out 8. There was certainly enough there to be encouraged about Sabathia's fantasy value after an injury-plagued 2014.
Miguel Castro- RP- TOR- Rise Value- Castro picked up his first major league save yesterday. He hadn't pitched above High Class A prior to this year but with a fastball that can approach triple digits, the Blue Jays decided to make use of his talent. Castro is likely to be in the closer role until and unless he falters.
Brett Cecil- RP- TOR- Drop Value- A day after blowing a save in his first appearance of 2015, Cecil was demoted to set up man. He has more success in that role, notching a hold while walking 1 and striking out 2 in a hitless 8th inning. Cecil's velocity has dropped due to a sore shoulder and Toronto has taken him out of a high pressure role while he hopefully gets better. If your league counts holds, Cecil still has value but in standard leagues, he has dropped significantly.
Shin-Soo Choo- OF- TEX- Hot- One of the questions in Texas is whether Choo will return from an injury-plagued season in 2014 (then again, just about everyone on the Rangers had an injury-plagued 2014.) Choo only hit .205 in the Cactus League. He sought to allay worries yesterday, going 2-for-5 with a homer and 3 RBI. In 3 games, Choo has yet to walk and that was a big part of his game before his injuries. That will be a factor to watch out for over the next few games to see if there are early signs of Choo making a big comeback.
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