This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.
The majority of Thursday's games take place during the day, so my lineup encompasses both early and late slates. For pitching, there aren't many value plays to consider and I went all-in with a couple high-end arms.
PITCHER
Patrick Corbin, ARI vs. LAD ($55): I know I'm breaking the bank, but this matchup makes sense for him. The Dodgers are near the bottom of MLB with a .130 ISO and .295 wOBA against lefties. Plus, Corbin already carved the Dodgers for 12 strikeouts in a 3-0 win a month ago. Los Angeles is a slight road favorite, but I'm not buying into that behind Alex Wood, who faces a tougher lineup and has less strikeout upside.
Masahiro Tanaka, NYY at HOU ($45): According to the odds, there aren't many places to go with pitching, as most games have over/unders of at least 8.5 runs (this game is at 8). Tanaka has pitched well with 14 Ks in his last two against solid lineups (Angels, Twins) and I'm betting on that to continue. The Astros have struck out a decent amount against righties with a 23.0 K percentage to go with surprisingly little power in a .132 ISO. They're also in a team funk with only three runs in their last four games (three vs. NYY).
CATCHER
James McCann, DET at KC ($11): McCann has been fairly reliable as a cheap catcher in the first month of the season, especially against southpaws. He hasn't faced many this year, but sported top numbers in 2017 against them with a .260 ISO and .391 wOBA. Eric Skoglund had a nice outing last time out, although he gave up four runs to the Tigers before that and has a career .388 wOBA allowed against righties.
FIRST BASE
Mark Canha, OAK at SEA ($18): Canha has been great in the early season, providing power to go with consistency, hitting safely in 12 of his last 13 games. His career numbers aren't great, but a matchup against Wade LeBlanc, who is getting his first start since 2016, should help. As a reliever, LeBlanc's numbers have been fine, with last year's 4.18 xFIP against righties (as a reliever) being slightly better than his career rate at 4.51.
SECOND BASE
Eduardo Nunez, BOS at TEX ($13): Nunez has struggled against lefty arms this season and that's part of the reason why he's so cheap. I think he's worth a gamble after last year's .321 wOBA, especially with Mike Minor on the mound. Minor is struggling to find 2017's form, having allowed 10 runs in his last three starts. His K rate is also down to 19.6 against righties, and last year's 4.13 xFIP as a reliever isn't translating to a starting role.
THIRD BASE
Luis Valbuena, LAA vs. BAL ($13): It'd be nicer if the Angels had a few more lefty bats to use against Chris Tillman, but Valbuena will do at a discount. At the least, Valbuena had a nice .249 ISO and .324 wOBA against righties last season. Tillman has given up four runs in four of five starts and had a miserable 7.12 xFIP against lefty bats last year.
SHORTSTOP
Johan Camargo, ATL at NYM ($13): This may be my favorite play since Camargo should be a lock to start after Dansby Swanson left Wednesday's game with a sore wrist. Camargo still is working to get more playing time after missing the first three weeks of the season, but he worked southpaws for a .292 ISO and .464 wOBA in 76 plate appearances last season. That should work well against Jason Vargas, who was smashed in his only start, allowing nine runs to the Padres. Vargas actually had better numbers against righty bats last season but still had a poor 4.79 xFIP.
OUTFIELD
Chad Pinder, OAK at SEA ($16): Pinder has destroyed southpaws in the early season with six of his 10 hits going for extra bases. That could continue since he has a career .204 ISO and .356 wOBA against lefties. If you don't trust LeBlanc (in his first start) and his career 4.52 xFIP against righties, the A's have multiple bats to use.
JaCoby Jones, DET at KC ($11): Jones has been a nice surprise for the Tigers already with seven extra-base hits, which is a better rate than he's ever had in the majors. His ridiculously high 45.3 K percentage against lefties shouldn't be as big of a deal against Skoglund, who isn't a huge strikeout guy with a career 18.5 K percentage against righty bats.
Delino DeShields, TEX vs. BOS ($14): David Price started hot with two matchups against the Rays, but he's fallen off with at least four earned runs in three of his last four starts and that's about in line with last year's 4.39 xFIP against righties. Better for DeShields is that his price has surprisingly gone down even with nine hits in the last six games. Add in last year's .328 wOBA against southpaws and DeShields is close to a steal.
