We have a fairly deep set of pitcher rankings for Friday's daily fantasy baseball contests. While the top three are all studs, the rest of our top nine can put up big numbers, too.
What makes tonight's rankings interesting is that Charlie Morton and Aaron Sanchez will both be coming off the DL to make their first starts a long while -- and they're going head-to-head. Morton had quietly been enjoying a solid year, striking out 65 batters in 57.2 innings, prior to straining a right lat muscle. Sanchez had been a bit of a disappointment, seeing a sharp decline in both K-rate and his normally outstanding ground-ball rate. However, Sanchez's ERA (3.33) is lower than Morton's (4.06), despite advanced metrics saying Morton has pitched considerably better. Don't let ERA fool you when making picks tonight.
Another pitcher who recently came off the DL, Cole Hamels, has also had a disappointing year, with his K-rate plummeting to 4.5. He was much better in his last start, tossing 6.2 innings of two-run, two-hit ball. A favorable matchup against the Angels boosts his stock a little, but beware that you're not necessarily buying the Hamels you're used to.
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Daily Fantasy Baseball Rankings: Pitchers
| Rank | Pitcher | Team | Opp. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Scherzer, RHP | WAS | vs. ATL |
| 2 | Jacob deGrom, RHP | NYM | at STL |
| 3 | Zack Greinke, RHP | ARI | vs. CIN |
| 4 | Carlos Carrasco, RHP | CLE | vs. DET |
| 5 | Carlos Martinez, RHP | STL | vs. NYM |
| 6 | James Paxton, LHP | SEA | vs. OAK |
| 7 | Sean Manaea, LHP | OAK | at SEA |
| 8 | Drew Pomeranz, LHP | BOS | at TB |
| 9 | Charlie Morton, RHP | HOU | at TOR |
| 10 | Jake Odorizzi, RHP | TB | vs. BOS |
| 11 | Dan Straily, RHP | MIA | at SF |
| 12 | Cole Hamels, LHP | TEX | vs. LAA |
| 13 | Aaron Sanchez, RHP | TOR | vs. HOU |
| 14 | Jordan Montgomery, LHP | NYY | vs. MIL |
| 15 | Matt Moore, LHP | SF | vs. MIA |
| 16 | Eddie Butler, RHP | CHC | vs. PIT |
| 17 | Kenta Maeda, RHP | LAD | vs. KC |
| 18 | Jordan Zimmermann, RHP | DET | at CLE |
| 19 | R.A. Dickey, RHP | ATL | at WAS |
| 20 | Kevin Gausman, RHP | BAL | at MIN |
| 21 | German Marquez, RHP | COL | vs. CWS |
| 22 | Clayton Richard, LHP | SD | at PHI |
| 23 | Jason Hammel, RHP | KC | at LAD |
| 24 | Ricky Nolasco, RHP | LAA | at TEX |
| 25 | Trevor Williams, RHP | PIT | at CHC |
| 26 | Nick Pivetta, RHP | PHI | vs. SD |
| 27 | Junior Guerra, RHP | MIL | at NYY |
| 28 | Derek Holland, LHP | CWS | at COL |
| 29 | Tim Adleman, RHP | CIN | at ARI |
| 30 | Felix Jorge, RHP | MIN | vs. BAL |
Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks: Friday, July 7
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We are entering the final weekend of baseball before the All-Star break, and have a nice 13-game slate tonight. There is some weather concern in the Tigers-Indians game, so you should monitor that throughout the day. We have plenty of pitching and hitting targets tonight, both from the top-priced end to the value end. There's also a game at Coors between two struggling teams, and a game in Milwaukee in which the Yankees are projected or over six runs. Good luck, and enjoy your weekend! -- Ben Scherr
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