Meyer taking the ball for the Los Angeles Angels ag

CHICAGO -- Carlos Rodon hopes to wrap up his second big league season no worse than his first as the Chicago White Sox open a season-ending series with the Minnesota Twins on Friday.If the 23-year-old left-hander earns his ninth victory in his 28th and final start of 2016, it would match the win total from his rookie season.It would also complete a successful late-summer rebound from the 2-8 record he owned on July 31 after giving up five runs on eight hits in a 6 1/3-inning outing during Chicagos 6-4 loss to the Twins.Entering Friday, Rodon is 8-10 with a 4.08 ERA. He went 3-0 with a 1.47 ERA in five August starts, and he is 3-2 with a 4.80 ERA over five starts in September. The White Sox (77-82) have won seven of his past 10 starts.In his most recent start, Rodon delayed the Cleveland Indians American League Central clincher with a superlative outing Sunday. He threw eight scoreless innings and struck out a career-best 11 in the White Soxs 3-0 victory. He gave up two hits and walked three.That was the best Ive seen him, White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. Strike one was the biggest thing, and it was with authority. It was placed well. After that, it just seems like he got better as the game moved along. A couple of guys get on, he seems to turn it up in key situations in the middle of the game, late in the game. He just had it all.Rodon is 2-2 with a 3.71 ERA in six career games (five starts) against the Twins, including 2-1 with a 4.32 ERA in four starts against them this season.Minnesota (57-102) snapped a three-game losing streak Thursday with a 7-6 victory over the Kansas City Royals.The Twins, who come into the series with 10 losses in their last 12 games, will send out right-hander Tyler Duffey (9-11, 6.18 ERA) for the 26th and final start of his second big league season.Duffey beat the Seattle Mariners on Saturday, allowing two runs on four hits with no walks and four strikeouts over seven innings.I finally found a good rhythm to keep me composed, to keep from pulling off the ball, Duffey said after the game. I located a lot better today. Got behind a couple times, but defense bailed me out, had some good plays in the outfield and scored enough to win.He is 0-1 with a 4.63 ERA in two career starts against the White Sox. In his lone appearance against them this season, he took the loss on May 8 after allowing three runs in seven innings.Duffey spent most of the season in the Twins rotation before being sent down to Triple-A Rochester in late August. He rejoined Minnesota when rosters expanded earlier this month.The series continues Saturday afternoon as Minnesota left-hander Hector Santiago (12-10, 4.87) meets White Sox righty James Shields (6-18, 5.82 ERA).Shields has the second-most losses in the American League behind Tampa Bays Chris Archer, who beat the White Sox on Thursday go close his season at 9-19.Ventura said Thursday that ace left-hander Chris Sale (17-9, 3.21) would start the season finale Sunday against Twins lefty Jose Berrios (2-7, 8.61).The White Sox have outscored the Twins 88-71 through 16 matchups this year. The teams have split the past 10 games after Chicago won the first six. Custom Baseball Jerseys China . The Dutchmans tenure got off to a poor start when referee Guido Winkmann awarded a penalty within two minutes for Niklas Starks clumsy challenge on Alexandru Maxim. Custom Jerseys Sale . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . http://www.baseballjerseyscustom.com/ .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Wholesale Custom Jerseys . JOHNS, N. Custom Arizona Diamondbacks Jerseys Cheap . LOUIS -- Valtteri Filppula assisted on three of Tampa Bays four goals, and the Lightning beat the St. Its a getaway Wednesday with four early games, including a 12:35 p.m. tilt in Cincinnati, so set your lineups early. The slate features some solid pitchers in very favorable spots which is great for DFS tournament play as that spreads out ownership. Theres even multiple hitting options to Coors Field. Heres what you need to navigate this wide-open docket.PitchingEliteDavid Price checks in with his highest projected Game Score of the season as the Boston Red Sox close out an interleague set in Petco Park. Part of the reason for the gaudy expectation is a solid post-break run fueled by a marked reduction in homers allowed. The lanky lefty is in a great spot to extend his personal five-game winning streak facing a San Diego Padres lineup that has been very weak against southpaws the past month as evidenced by a low .275 weighted on base average (wOBA) in tandem with a bloated 28 percent strikeout rate in that scenario. Price is the top DFS option for all formats.Carlos Carrasco has fanned at least eight hitters for six straight starts, including a rough outing where the Texas Rangers knocked him out after only four frames. The Cleveland Indians righty faces a similarly potent offense as the Houston Astros visit Progressive Field. As has been the case all season, the visitors productive yet strikeout prone offense render the opposing pitcher a risk for cash play but ideal for GPP action, especially if the pitcher is dominant, like Carrasco and his 9.5 K/9.Noah Syndergaard rounds out the elite tier, leading the New York Mets into the Great American Ball Park for a date with the Cincinnati Reds. Be it by design or just happenstance, Syndergaards strikeouts are down lately but hes going deeper into games. After not having tossed seven stanzas since July 3, Thor has done it his last three outings, with one lasting eight. A fourth lengthy outing will be more of a challenge than may be perceived as the hosts have hit right-handers to the tune of a .340 wOBA the past month while fanning at a below average clip in these conditions. In fact, if youre paying up for a cash anchor, the Price is right while Carrasco is a better option for GPPs.SolidYou know the expression not to judge a book by its cover? Well, many may intuit the Baltimore Orioles are to be feared with a lefty on the hill considering their bevy of slugging righty swingers. However, the truth is they carry a wOBA well below average against southpaws, which in fact is the lowest in that situation since the break. This puts Tampa Bays Drew Smyly in a good spot for DFS cash games along with being a GPP candidate. Aiding this is the contest will be played in run-suppressing Tropicana Field.The Los Angeles Dodgers are another club that is surprisingly poor with a lefty on the hill. Their wOBA versus lefties since the mid-season hiatus isnt quite as bad as the Orioles though for the past month, its been the worst in the game. Robbie Ray isnt complaining considering his last start was in Coors Field. The budding ace of the Arizona Diamondbacks takes the ball for the Snakes in a road affair, checking in as a solid candidate for all forms of DFS play.With a strong finish, Danny Duffy had a chance to garner some AL Cy Young award votes, and he still may. However, Duffys extended run of excellence hit a speed bump with tough matchups against the Red Sox and Tigers. The 27-year old southpaw has good a chance to get back on track facing a Minnesota Twins lineup thats mid-pack against left-handers since the All-Star break in terms of wOBA while fanning at a 24 percent pace in that span. Duffy also sets up nicely for all forms of DFS play.Pittsburgh Pirates rookie Jameson Taillon faces a St. Louis Cardinals team punching out at an elevated rate versus righties lately. The Bucs host the Redbirds in pitcher-friendly PNV Park, helping to mitigate some risk. Add Taillon to the growing list of GPP options aided by a favorable matchup.After seeing Stephen Strasburgs projected Game Score of 56, the temptation was to override and bump him up a few spots. However, upon reflection no change was made. The reason is two-fold. First, the Washington Nationals right-hander hasnt taken the hill since an August 17 thrashing in Coors Field, after which he missed time with a sore elbow. Second, he opposes an Atlanta Braves squad that is no longer a pushover, as theyve tattooed righties pretty well lately, recording a .341 wOBA versus righties in the second half. So long as Strasburg is toeing the rubber hes capable of a big game so call him a contrarian option on what lines up to be a slate with a bevy of favorable choices.Wow, Wednesday really is stacked. There are still five pitchers left in the solid tier and an argument can be made for each to be in a DFS lineup. In the interest of saving some bandwidth for the streaming section, Anthony DeSclafani at home against the Mets, Andrew Cashner in Marlins Park against the Phillies and Jose Quintana taking on the Tigers in the Windy City are all options that have the home field advantage and strikeout upside. Dylan Bundy in Tropicana Field and Marcus Stroman in the Bronx are viable contrarian options.dddddddddddd If you would like deeper analysis on these games or anything pertinent to Wednesdays docket, please let me know in the comments or via Twitter to @ToddZola.StreamersMostly to keep his veteran starters fresh for the playoffs, Joe Maddon has opted to keep Mike Montgomery in what is now a six-man rotation. The southpaw hasnt dazzled as a starter but hes in play for those chasing strikeouts and wins as the Chicago Cubs challenge the Milwaukee Brewers in Miller Park.A pair of recently traded rookies square off in O. Co Coliseum with Alex Meyer taking the ball for the Los Angeles Angels against Jharel Cotton and the Oakland Athletics. Both are in play but risky. At least presently, Cotton is the better pitcher, but he faces a more potent offense than Meyer. Forced to choose, Cotton gets the nod, hoping the run-suppressing nature of the venue helps keep Mike Trout and Albert Pujols in the yard.Three walks in an outing may not seem like much but since Jeremy Hellickson hadnt issued more than two free passes since June 15, its worth noting he walked three in each of his last two appearances. Hes also surrendered a homer for three consecutive contests. His opponent, the Miami Marlins, are one of the least patient clubs in the game along with sporting a low home run rate. This sets up the Philadelphia Phillies righty for streaming in South Beach.Injuries have extended Anibal Sanchezs stay in the Detroit Tigers rotation. Hes been typically inconsistent but facing the middling Chicago White Sox, albeit in U.S. Cellular Field, Sanchez is an option.AvoidA quartet of arms fall in the automatic avoid range including New York Yankees Bryan Mitchell. The 25-year old right-hander has only tossed 21 innings so far, all on the farm, losing most of the season due to a fractured toe. Sometimes you can use the unfamiliarity factor advantageously, but facing the Toronto Blue Jays when theyre battling for first place is too risky.Joining the avoid tier are a couple of hurlers that barely register a projected Game Score above 45, which is our cutoff for automatic inclusion. Albert Suarez takes the hill in Coors Field while Doug Fister toes the rubber in Cleveland. Fister historically has issues with lefties and as will be detailed in a bit, the Tribe parade a bunch of left-handed and switch hitters to the dish.HittingAs cited earlier, the Cleveland Indians are especially potent against right-handers with only Mike Napoli and whoever catches hitting from the right side. Doug Fister doesnt miss many bats, which feeds into a deep batting order. Carlos Santana and Jason Kipnis lead things off with perhaps the most underrated player in the league, Francisco Lindor, sitting in the three-hole. Jose Ramirez, Lonnie Chisenhall, Coco Crisp and Tyler Naquin provide some lower priced options to complete a stack.The Indians were purposely listed first as a means to highlight them as the best swerve from the chalk that is Coors Field. Its another night with both teams in play. The right-handed unit of the visiting San Francisco Giants are in the spotlight against Jorge De La Rosa. Eduardo Nunez has been leading off against southpaws with Buster Posey and Hunter Pence the best power threats. The left-handed brethren of the home team stand out against Albert Suarez. Check to see if Charlie Blackmon is active as hes missed several games with back woes. The capable Raimel Tapia has been starting things off in his stead. Carlos Gonzalez, David Dahl, Gerardo Parra and Daniel Descalso round out the top targets.The Chicago Cubs visit Miller Park where power for lefties is among the best in the league. Matt Garza has done a nice job keeping the ball in the yard but that shouldnt stop Anthony Rizzo. While they arent the power threat of their first base teammate, Dexter Fowler, Ben Zobrist and Jason Heyward are set up to take advantage of Garzas penchant for allowing baserunners.As Edwin Jackson demonstrated Monday, the powerful Boston Red Sox offense can be held in check. This is not to say expect a solid effort from Jarred Cosart, only to suggest some exposure to Red Sox as opposed to all your beans in the Boston basket. Cosart displays reverse splits so everyone is in play.Most likely to hit a homer: Kyle SeagerI cant promise three long balls like Mondays Brian Dozier call, but the chances either Robinson Cano or Seager take A.J. Griffin deep are pretty good. Lets give Seager the nod if only to point out hes putting it all together this season, with an outside shot at .300 with 30 homers, which would still lag behind what little brother Corey is doing.Most likely to steal a base: Jose PerazaSyndergaards inability to control the running game is well-documented. Normally this would put Billy Hamilton front and center but hes slowed with injury so instead, look for his teammate Peraza to take advantage. ' ' '