DFS MLB Hitting Coach: July 4

The two slates couldn’t possibly be more different, though that isn’t surprising considering there are only four night games and the rest are early. There are a lot of good hitters in favorable matchups who didn’t make the list, so if you like someone who didn’t make the cut, I wouldn’t worry too much about playing him. I may prefer Jhonny Peralta or Javier Baez to Yunel Escobar, but it is close.

If you play the late slate, be prepared to play a lot of Blue Jays and, to a lesser extent, Dodgers. Outfielders are extremely hard to come by, so fill those in first, unless you just want to go super-cheap, which is not a bad idea.

I struck out on Evan Gattis Sunday, but  he has a more favorable matchup Monday, so I am doubling down. Gattis is 5-for-11 against Wade Miley, and right-handed batters have a .353 wOBA against Miley.

Cameron Rupp has a nine-game hitting streak, including three straight multi-hit games.

Buster Posey is 8-for-20 with a home run during his five-game hitting streak, and he has a .393 wOBA against left-handed pitchers this season.

Travis d’Arnaud is 6-for-15 against Tom Koehler and 5-for-9 over his last three games.

Yan Gomes appears to have a very favorable matchup, and while that didn’t help him Sunday, the lack of options in the late slate makes him worth a shot Monday.

Russell Martin appears to have finally remembered how to hit, as he is 5-for-15 with a home run in June. If he continues to hit, he won’t be this cheap for long.

Albert Pujols has a .910 OPS against lefties this season and he is 15-for-37 with three home runs during his nine-game hitting streak.

James Shields is a mess, and one of the only Yankees you can count on to take advantage is Mark Teixeira. Teixeira is 7-for-25 with three home runs over the last week.

Freddie Freeman is 4-for-8 with a home run against Jerad Eickhoff and 8-for-16 during his four-game hitting streak.

Edwin Encarnacion is 9-for-24 with three home runs over the last seven days, and if the Blue Jays have a big day like I suspect they will, Encarnacion will likely be in the middle of it.

Adrian Gonzalez won’t cost quite as much as Edwin, but he is just as hot, going 10-for-21 over the last week.

Robinson Cano is 4-for-8 against Lance McCullers and 9-for-23 over his last six games.

Jose Altuve is 10-for-15 with a home run against Wade Miley and he has a .436 wOBA against left-handed pitcher this season.

Brett Lawrie has a .833 OPS against left-handed pitchers and he is 10-for-25 during his current six-game hitting streak.

Cesar Hernandez is 13-for-25 during his current six-game hitting streak.

Grant Green is 6-for-18 in four games since he was called up Thursday. He is worth a shot considering his minimum price.

Darwin Barney is 6-for-18 during his four-game hitting streak, and he is 8-for-15 against Edinson Volquez.

Jonathan Schoop is 5-for-13 over the last three days and 10-for-25 over the last week. He has a .791 OPS against lefties this season.

Kyle Seager is 9-for-21 during his six-game hitting streak, and he has a .412 wOBA against right-handed pitchers this season.

Jhonny Peralta is 6-for-17 against Jon Niese and 6-for-16 with a home run during his current four-game hitting streak.

Javier Baez is 9-for-21 with a home run over his last four games. On the season, he has a 1.009 OPS.

Kris Bryant is 11-for-28 with five home runs over the last week, and he is always a top play against a weak lefty.

Justin Turner is 9-for-23 over the last seven days, and 6-for-15 against Yovani Gallardo.

Like many of his teammates, Josh Donaldson is crushing it lately, going 6-for-eight with seven runs scored over his last two games, with three home runs in his last five.

Andrelton Simmons had his third consecutive multi-hit game Sunday, and he is still awfully cheap. It would help if the Angels moved him up in the order, but at least he will have the platoon advantage against Matt Moore.

Tim Anderson is 10-for-26 with a home run and a stolen base over the last week, and his price seems really low on FantasyAces.

Didi Gregorius is 11-for-30 with three home runs over the last seven days, and he is your best bet if you want some exposure to James Shields.

Aledmys Diaz is 10-for-24 with two home runs during his six-game hitting streak and right-handed batters have a .387 wOBA against Jon Niese this season.

Alcides Escobar has hit safely in 14 consecutive games, and that makes him useful, especially in the shallow night slate.

Troy Tulowitzki appears to finally be coming on, with three home runs and eight RBI during his current five-game hitting streak.

George Springer has at least one run scored in six consecutive games, to go along with a four-game hitting streak. Springer has two home runs in his last four games as well, and a .858 OPS against lefties this season.

Seth Smith has homered in four consecutive games, and he is still reasonably priced considering his .349 wOBA against righties this season.

Mike Trout failed to extend his nine-game hitting streak Sunday, but he still managed two walks, a stolen base and an RBI. Trout has a .862 OPS against lefties this season.

Hanley Ramirez is 3-for-5 with two home runs against Nick Martinez. Over his last two games, Ramirez is 5-for-7.

Melky Cabrera is 4-for-13 with two home runs against CC Sabathia.

Yoenis Cespedes is 5-for-11 against Tom Koehler, and 10-for-28 during his seven-game hitting streak.

Stephen Piscotty is fifth among qualified batters in OPS against lefties, with a 1.126 mark. Piscotty is 7-for-18 during his current four-game hitting streak.

Albert Almora is 7-for-16 over his last seven games, and he has a .933 OPS against left-handed pitchers this season.

Matt Joyce is 4-for-11 over his last three games, and he has a 1.006 OPS against righties this season.

Khris Davis is 5-for-9 over his last two games, and he has six multi-hit games in his last eight contests.

Starling Marte and Gregory Polanco are 10-for-19 and 9-for-16 respective against Carlos Martinez.

Michael Saunders is 6-for-9 in his last two games, and he has an outside shot at three more hits against Edinson Volquez.

Trayce Thompson is 5-for-15 with two home runs over his last four games, and you could do far worse than targeting Yovani Gallardo.

The same goes for Yasiel Puig, who is working on a five-game hitting streak, and we know he has power and speed potential.

Alex Gordon went 2-for-4 with a home run Sunday, and considering his price and track record, I’m willing to take a chance this is the start of a hot streak.

I’m not sure Abraham Almonte is any good, but he could be, and the price is certainly right.