With the 2015 season well past the halfway mark, DFS diamonds in the rough that made their existence known the first couple months of the season have since seen their salaries skyrocket.
Some of those players include Devon Travis, Carlos Correia, Manny Machado, Nolan Arenado, Charlie Blackmon, A.J. Pollock, Brian Dozier, Lorenzo Cain, Kolten Wong, and Stephen Vogt.
The purpose of this piece is to target players that still have reasonable salaries that can add value and major punch to your DFS lineup for the remainder of the regular season and beyond.
BATS
Rougned Odor 2B - The Rangers second baseman got out to an extremely slow start to his 2015 campaign. So much so that he was sent back down to the minors to rediscover his swing. Since returning in the middle of June, the 21-year old has done nothing but rake in hitting .391, .319, and .267 the last three months. He’s racked up 7 HR, 27 RBI and scored 22 runs during that stretch and looks firmly entrenched in the No. 2 slot of the Ranger’s potent lineup.
Anytime you can snag a key piece like that at the top of an order at a decent price, you do it.
Wellington Castillo C - As a Cubs fan, I was a bit saddened to learn we shipped Wellington off earlier this season for a useless bullpen arm. I liked the pop in his bat in his sporadic starts, and now that he’s getting routine spots in Arizona’s lineup, he looks to be coming into his own.
In 61 July at-bats, the 28 year old hit for a .311 average and 1.048 OPS with 5 HR and 8 RBI. Cheap power like that is often tough to come by, so look the way of Wellington especially when at home with Chase an excellent venue for right-handed power.
Ben Paulsen 1B – With Troy Tulowitzki shipped out of town and Blackmon, Arenado, and Carlos Gonzalez normally the most expensive Rockies to roster, you’re getting quite the value fix with Paulsen who now has sole ownership of first base with Wilin Rosario once again sent down to the minors.
Though he struggles with lefties, Ben has done nothing but mash righties to the tune of a .298 average and .882 OPS with 8 HR and 30 RBI. Get this power bat in your lineup whenever the Rockies are in Coors and facing a righty.
ARMS
Raisel Iglesias SP – With the Reds now building for the future after shipping All-Star Johnny Cueto to Kansas City, some slots have opened up in the starting rotation and Iglesias is making a strong bid to secure one for next season. Though the long ball has been an issue with him allowing at least one in each of his last four starts since returning from injury, the 25 year old Cuban has racked up an impressive 22:6 K/BB ratio.
He’s been real tough on righties limiting them to a .185 average, so he’d be an excellent add to any DFS roster when matched up against heavy right-handed hitting teams like the Cubs and Pirates within the division.
Luis Severino SP – With Michael Pineda once again back on the DL and the Yankees not doing much of anything at the trade deadline, highly touted prospect Luis Severino has gotten the call and will be making his MLB debut on Wednesday against the Boston Red Sox.
His major league profile is that of a pitcher that attacks hitters. He’s ranked as NY’s No. 1 prospect and there is no book on him right now at this level. Look for him to impress in his debut after going 7-0 with a 1.91 ERA in 11 Triple-A starts this season. Stockpiling impressive showings could see him stick in the rotation the remainder of the season.
Kevin Gausman SP – Gausman hasn’t had the most stable of careers in Baltimore having been called up and sent down a number of times throughout his two year professional career. However, it finally looks like Buck Showalter is going to stick with the kid after he picked up wins and tossed quality efforts in his last two starts against the Braves and Tigers.
His salary is very reasonable, often times half the price of a perceived stud, and he’s shown the ability to get outs via the strikeout and limit walks having racked up a 40:12 K/BB ratio through 47.2 innings of work.
He has more trouble against left-handed bats, but don’t second guess yourself when faced against a righty heavy lineup. He’s more a GPP commodity than a cash game, but things are looking up for the young righty.
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