Check out all of our starting pitcher rankings and other lineup selection tools here to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions. MLB betting tips for each day's slate of games will also be added in the morning. MLB game odds are provided by ESPN BET, and all fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.
Note: All information is accurate as of the time of publication. For updates, including what you might have missed from last night, as well as any breaking news that might impact today's MLB slate, be sure to check out the latest fantasy baseball news.
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Pitchers to stream on Friday
Take away a blow up on the road against the Los Angeles Dodgers and Will Warren sports a 3.89 ERA and 1.22 WHIP. Of course, the poor outing can't be stricken from the record, but with the New York Yankees hosting the Athletics on Friday, an effort in line with the rest of Warren's season is more likely. He has quietly fanned 96 in 75 1/3 innings, though the 31 walks is a concern. However, Warren has only yielded six homers.
Half of Jose Soriano's outings were quality starts, including his previous three. Over that span, the Los Angeles Angels righty rang up 28 batters in 20 2/3 innings. Keeping up that pace will be challenging facing a Washington Nationals lineup with the fifth-lowest strikeout rate versus right-handers, but overall, their offense is below average with a very low walk rate. Soriano lines up for another solid performance at Angels Stadium.
Landen Roupp has posted five quality starts over his last seven efforts. The two subpar games were on the road versus the Dodgers and Detroit Tigers, a pair of potent offenses. On Friday, Roupp and the San Francisco Giants open an interleague series on the road against a Chicago White Sox team with the league's lowest wOBA facing right-handers.
Pitchers to avoid on Friday
Jose Berrios has recorded three quality starts over his past four games, but he fanned only 16 with eight walks in those 25 frames. On Friday, Berrios will take the hill at Fenway Park when the Toronto Blue Jays visit the Boston Red Sox. The home team is in a rut, but the Red Sox bats can snap out of their funk in an instant, especially returning home after a road trip. Berrios is best avoided in this AL East tussle.
Hitters to stream on Friday
Since rejoining the Minnesota Twins after spending around six weeks with Triple-A St. Paul, David Festa has been unable to get in a groove. He registered a 10.00 ERA and 1.83 WHIP in four outings, striking out 17 with 10 walks and six homers allowed in 18 stanzas. Getting on track won't be easy with a Friday night road date facing the Tigers. Kerry Carpenter and Parker Meadows are in a great spot with the platoon edge on the struggling righty.
Betting tips
Best/worst pitcher/hitter matchups and betting projections are generated by THE BAT X, a system created by Derek Carty using advanced methods like those used in MLB front offices, accounting for a variety of factors including player talent, ballparks, bullpens, weather, umpires, defense, catcher pitch-framing, and lots more. Betting projections for every player, team, and game can be found at EV Analytics.
Note: Expected Value is a measure of how good a bet is, factoring the probability that it will win versus the odds the book is providing. If you were to wager $1.00 100 times on a bet with an Expected Value of $25, you would win some and you would lose some, but in the end you would expect to come away with $25 in profit on your $100 investment.
Because odds typically do not get set until the previous day's games are completed, betting tips will be added in the morning.