The Texas Rangers will look to avoid a sweep against the Houston Astros on Wedensday. Rangers ace Jacob deGrom will be on the mound against Cristian Javier. There's no sugarcoating this, the Rangers have struggled against Javier, batting just .182 on average in 77 at-bats. However, we are going to highlight the players who have seen some success against Javier in the past.
Here is who to target for the Rangers in daily fantasy:
Pitcher Jacob deGrom ($9,300):
Jacob deGrom has faced the Astros three times this season. The first matchup was in May where deGrom dominated, pitching eight innings, giving up zero runs, striking out seven, as totaling 32.4 fantasy points. The second matchup was in Houston, he was not able to replicate the performance he had at home, but still managed to pitch through six innings, giving up two runs, while striking out eight, giving him a total of 22.5 fantasy points. In his most recent outing against the Astros, he pitched just 5.1 innings, giving up three earned runs, striking out eight, and finishing with 17.8 fantasy points. In 85 at-bats against deGrom, the Astros are averaging .212, managing 18 hits, six home-runs, and eight runs batted in. There are not many better options than deGrom in this slate, so I would take him with confidence that he will produce 20+ fantasy points against the Astros.
Third Baseman Josh Jung ($3,500):
Jung is one of the few Rangers batters who has had success against Javier, facing him five times, managing to get three hits, one of which was a home-run, and two runs batted in. In addition to that success, Jung has had himself a great series thus far, totaling three hits, one home-run, and three runs batted in. He is a good value pick for Wednesday's slate.
First Baseman Rowdy Tellez ($2,700):
Similar to Jung, Tellez has a .600 batting average against Javier, having faced him five times, notching three hits, one home-run, and one run batted in. Batting fourth on Wednesday, he will have opportunities to drive runs in, assuming the top of the order manages to get on base. At that price tag, Tellez is definitely worth taking.
Shortstop Josh Smith ($3,900):
Smith has faced Javier five times and garnered just one hit and one run; however, as mentioned above, the Rangers lineup has historically struggled against Javier. In particular, Adolis Garcia facing him 23 times, and getting just three hits, which equals to an average of .130. Having said that, Smith will be the leadoff for the Rangers and at that price point, him being able to get four, possibly five at-bats, it will give him a few opportunities to get a hit and/or drive in a run.