Fantasy Baseball Final: August 10, 2015
Welcome to the The Fantasy Fix’s nightly fantasy baseball recap, where you’ll find updates on bullpen usage, lineup construction, injuries, and transactions. Whether you play season-long or daily fantasy, expect to see the best coverage from every team, every night, all season long.
It was a quiet night in baseball that saw only seven games in action. Despite the small schedule, there was no shortage of runs or excitement to go around. Both Chris Sale and Johnny Cueto were looking to help their teams pick up important wins, while Gio Gonzalez and the Nationals looked to get back on track against the Dodgers.
IF YOU ONLY READ ONE THING…
It’s not always easy to fit an elite pitcher into your daily fantasy lineup, but sometimes it’s just worth the headache. Cueto was an expensive option for tonight’s slate of games, but he was well worth his price. The Royals starter pitched a four-hit complete game shutout to help Kansas City beat the Detroit Tigers 4-0. The Tigers had no answer to Cuero’s arsenal of pitches—as only three batters were able to register a hit against the righty. He finished the night with 42.85 DK points, way ahead of any other pitcher on the night. The Royals ace will look to repeat his performance from tonight Saturday as the Royals host the Angels at home.
JUST AS WE EXPECTED…
Not to be outdone by Cueto was White Sox starter Chris Sale. The lefty just hasn’t been himself over his last two outings—giving up 14 runs in only 10.1 innings of work. Tonight, Sale was back to his old self, picking up his tenth win of the season against the Angels. The southpaw pitched 7.1 innings, giving up two runs on five hits while striking out seven. At the plate, right fielder Avisail Garcia did most of the damage against Matt Shoemaker—hitting two homeruns and collecting four RBIs. The Sox don’t have a real chance of making the playoffs, but any time Sale takes to the mound, he instantly becomes one of the best daily options for fantasy players.
BUT WE DIDN’T SEE THIS COMING…
The Washington Nationals have been an absolute mess since the trade deadline, but tonight they came together as a team to pick up the win against the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-3 in L.A. The Nationals got out to an early lead thanks to a two-run home run by shortstop Ian Desmond in the second inning. Desmond wasn’t done just yet, as he smacked his 14th homerun of the year in the eighth inning off reliever J.P Howell. He would finish the night 3-for-4 with three runs and three RBIs. Gio Gonzalez also had himself a very productive night, pitching seven scoreless innings and striking out five to move to 9-4 on the season.
THE REST OF THE DETAILS
SAVE CHANCES
- Jeurys Familia (31)
- Zach Britton (28)
LINEUP MOVES
- Mets activated OF Michael Cuddyer from the DL.
- Twins optioned OF Byron Buxton to Triple-A Rochester.
INJURIES
- Phil Gosselin—60-day DL—(thumb)
- Gerald Laird—60-day DL—(back)
- Koji Uehara—out for season—(wrist)
- Wade Davis—day-to-day—(back)
- Matt Joyce—7-day DL—(concussion)
- Howie Kendrick—15-day DL—(hamstring)