Nick Castellanos
Castellanos has made the impressive transition from underrated to overrated with his hot start to 2016. Castellanos is slashing .363/.376/.563 with three homers, 24 RuBIns and a steal. However, there are some potential warning signs for Castellanos owners. He has a .464 BABIP, and although it has seemed that Castellanos has been due for some positive regression in that area in seasons past, thanks to a high line drive rate, obviously a .464 clip is unsustainable. Castellanos' line drive rate is an impressive 28.1 percent, but he had a 28.5 LD% in 2014, and only had a .326 BABIP that season. Castellanos also has an incredibly poor strikeout to walk ratio, with 23 strikeouts to just three walks in 85 plate appearances this season. That's always been a weakness of Castellanos, and he is swinging at more pitches outside of the strike zone this season. It's possible that Castellanos' success has made him a bit more trigger happy at the plate, which could haunt him in the long run. The power surge from Castellanos seems legitimate, but the batting average should plummet in upcoming weeks. Now would be an all right time to sell high on Castellanos.
Rougned Odor
Odor went three-for-five with three doubles and two runs scored on Saturday, and is now slashing .264/.312/.448. The Texas second baseman has had an interesting season to date. He started off hitting for an extremely poor BA, coming in at a .167 clip over his first ten games, but owners who hung on to the potential star have been rewarded with a .333 BA in the 14 games since. Odor has also produced plenty, with three homers, four steals (having not been caught this season), and 19 RuBIns. All of that adds up to quite the productive season for the 22-year-old so far. Expect a few more homers to start leaving the park, as well, as Odor has increased his fly ball rate by over seven percent this season. Power from second baseman is rare, and being able to combine that with speed - even rarer. Odor could be in for an Ian Kinsler-like next 5-10 years, and owners in keeper leagues should be doing dances over that. Owners who still have Odor for this season should be plenty happy as well, as Odor continues to produce at a solid rate.
Rick Porcello
Porcello continued his strong start to the 2016 season, and may just be putting together all the pieces that looked like they were so close to coming together through his first seven seasons. Porcello went seven innings, allowing six baserunners and striking out six. Porcello's strikeout rate sits at a meaty 9.92, a big jump from last year, but the possible peak from a multiple season incline. Porcello is sporting a spiffy 2.76 ERA to go along with that strikeout rate, and while his left on base rate is a crazy (and unsustainable) 88.0%, his FIP (3.60) and xFIP (3.02) suggest the fall won't be too steep. That's partially because Porcello has been victimized by the long ball this year. Two of his starts before today have come against Toronto, so that might explain some of it, and I'd trust Porcello as a rosterable pitcher at this point, and not just a solid streaming option. Right now he's available in about half of leagues, and his next start is in New York against the Yankees. Unless you really need to stream guys on Sunday, I would hold on to Porcello for a couple more starts. He's gone at least six innings in every start this season and has struck out at least six in every start, as well.
Daily Fantasy Leagues
Rich Hill
The Rich Hill Experience ($8,900) has continued into 2016, as the 36-year-old continues his late-career complete rejuvenation. Hill is sporting a 2.42 ERA that is bolstered by a 2.23 FIP and 2.68 xFIP. He also strikes out 12.81 hitters per nine innings, which is what makes him such a good play against the strikeout-happy Astros on Sunday. The Astros strike out 27.1 percent of the time, highest in the major leagues (before Saturday's game), and Hill has been a strikeout monster. He has a K/9 rate of over 10.0 in every single start this season, so even if he doesn't go deep into the game (which has happened in two of his five starts), he should still get you some points via his strikeout totals. Somewhat interestingly, Hill's two rough starts have come at home, while his strong starts have come on the road. Sunday's start will be at home. However, this is a very small sample, and given that O.co is a friendly pitching stadium, it is more likely a coincidence more than anything else. I'm still high on Hill for Sunday.
DraftKings: $8,900
Victor Martinez
Martinez ($3,800) has gotten hot again, just as we thought his career may need a eulogy. Martinez is once again a regular in the Tiger lineup (although make sure to check Sunday, given how many straight days he has been in the lineup, and his relative old age) and deservedly so. Martinez is slashing .329/.393/.645, and five multi-hit games in his last seven. Three of those games have included home runs, and seven runs and nine RBI over the stretch. Martinez also has good numbers against Sunday's probable, Ricky Nolasco, which shouldn't be too surprising given that Nolasco is a garbage pitcher. Martinez is 5-for-11 with an RBI in his career versus the Twins righty. Just a final bonus, Martinez is hitting righties for better average AND power in 2016, and Sunday should be a big day for the 37-year-old
DraftKings: $3,800
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