Fantasy MLB: August 18, 2020 Yankees vs Tampa Rays CheatSheet

Blake Snell, Masahiro Tanaka, Tampa Rays

UNDERDOG YANKEES LOOKING TO REMAIN UNBEATEN AT HOME

A Grandstand view from Section 418 of Yankee Stadium on August 12, 2009 when the Yankees defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3. The winning pitcher was **A.J. Burnett**, who was helped out by home runs from **Johnny Damon** and **Robinson Cano**. Photo credit: John Dalton.

The Tampa Rays come to the The Bronx on a roll, victors in 9 of their last 11 games. They are keeping the first place Yankees within a 2.5* game reach and plan to leave town with the division lead. (*UPDATE: DEPT. OF CORRECTIONS: We erroneously indicated this would be a 2-game set against Tampa, not 3. Sorry ’bout that).

Masahiro Tanaka ($7,900) will have something to say about that tonight, as the pressure will be notched up slightly given the New York firepower idling on the Injured List — DJ LeMahieu, Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton.

The pitching matchup will be a repeat of the August 7th clash in Tampa, when Tanaka tossed 5 shutout innings en route to a 1-0 Yankees loss. Rays starter Blake Snell ($9,500) was on a pitch count but struck out 5 over 3 innings. Neither Snell nor Tanaka figured in the decision.

DRAFTKINGS CONTEST : Lineup tips and player salaries are for the MLB $15K mini-MAX [150 Entry Max], an 11-game ‘Classic’ rules contest starting at 7:05pm EST, 4:05am PT.

TV / RADIO : TV: YES, Radio: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280; Tampa TV: Fox Sports Sun; Radio: WDAE 620AM/95.3 FM

THE WISE GUYS : The sportsbooks have the pinstripes a home underdog tonight, with a moneyline consensus of Tampa -124, New York +114. The Under/Over opened at 8.5, where it remains.

BALLPARK CONDITIONS : No wet stuff in tonight’s forecast as the temperature in The Bronx will be 81° under mostly sunny skies, with a westerly wind of 6mph. Zero chance of showers!

FAST FACTS : The Rays have some impressive odds numbers against New York, but keep in the most of their damage was done in the Tropicana House of Horrors. Tampa does not play as well in Yankee Stadium, so take this overall data with a grain of salt.

In Tanaka’s last 4 starts when the Yankees are home underdogs, New York is 4-0.
New York is 1-5 in their last 6 games as an underdog.
Tampa is 5-1 straight up in their last 6 games with New York.
The Rays are 1-7 straight up over their last 8 when playing the Yankees in Yankee Stadium.

BLAKE SNELL vs YANKEES : The 27-year-old Seattle, Washington native is in his fourth year of pro ball, and coming off an injury-riddled 2019. Early on he gave the Yankees fits, but the more recent vintage of Snell appears less invincible, especially in Yankee Stadium.

LINEUP NOTES :

C Gary Sanchez ($4,800) is hitting .263, 5-19 against Snell, but 4 of those hit were home runs. Sanchez has been showing signs of snapping out of this early season funk, and some home cookin’ just might help The Kracken get a hold of one tonight.
Not large sample sizes, but SS Gleyber Torres ($4,600) and 3B Gio Urshela ($4,600) are both 2-11 (.183) versus Snell.
OF Clint Frazier ($4,500) has cooled off a tad but still dangerous. Keep him out of your lineup at your own peril.
A below-the-radar draft pick could be 2B/SS Thairo Estrada ($3,400), who was called up on August 14th to take Judge’s roster spot, is swinging the bat well — homering last night in his first start of 2020.

MASAHIRO TANAKA vs TAMPA : Since joining MLB in 2014, Tanaka has made 19 career starts against the Rays, posting a 104 record with a 3.07 ERA over 120.1 innings, including 125 strikeouts. He is still on the mend from a Summer Camp concussion, a line drive off the bat of Giancarlo Stanton. After a 10-day stint on the IL, Tanaka has been steadily regaining his form.

LINEUP NOTES :

C Mike Zunino ($2,500) has taken Tanaka deep twice in 22 ABs, including 6 hits.
2B Brandon Lowe ($4,900), who is red hot at the moment, has trouble seeing Tanaka, with a 2-14 (.143 BA) mark with 4 strikeouts.
On all players on the Rays’ current roster, OF Kevin Kiermaier ($2,400) has the most experience against Tanaka, going 9-35 (.257 BA) with 1 home run and 6 strikeouts.

INJURED LIST : Yankees on the IL include DJ LeMahieu (thumb sprain, day-to-day), Aaron Judge (mild right calf strain, 10-day), Luis Severino (elbow, out for the season), C Kyle Higashioka (right oblique strain, 10-day), Giancarlo Stanton (hamstring, 10-day) and Tommy Kahnle (forearm, out for the season, Tommy John).

TAMPA INJURED LIST : P Charlie Morton (shoulder, out until August 22), P Oliver Drake (Biceps, out until August 24th), P Colin Poche (elbow, out for the season, Tommy John), and P Jose Alvarado (shoulder, out until August 25).

NEW YORK ROSTER MOVES : To make room for Aroldis Chapman, P David Hall was been whacked for the umpteenth time. The unkillable journeyman hurler will no doubt be back in pinstripes before we know it.

IMPORTANT : Check back after the official lineups have been announced (usually by 2pm EST), and definitely double-check your DraftKings MLB fantasy line at least 15-20 minutes prior to gametime (7:05pm EST/4:05pm PT) to make sure all of your picks are starting. Good luck, and Let’s Go Yankees!

FANTASY BASEBALL STRATEGY TIPS If you’re new to daily fantasy baseball or need a quick refresher course in putting an effective lineup together, don’t miss our “How to get your DraftKings MLB groove back in 2020” article. A short but sweet tutorial on proven strategies to help position you to win some dineros!