MLB Daily Fantasy Dose: Red Sox-Yankees Equals Fantasy, TV Gold

Here's a look at the daily fantasy picture for Friday, May 6:

Stacks of the Day

• Cincinnati Reds (vs. Milwaukee Brewers): Though Cincinnati hitters are rarely a hot commodity, a matchup against the unproven Tyler Cravy marks an intriguing buy low opportunity. The 26 right-hander has just seven career major league starts, with Friday marking his first this season. Furthermore, the Reds have scored 29 runs in their last five games and trounced Milwaukee 9-6 in Thursday's series opener. A Cincinnati stack comes at a manageable price with Brandon Phillips and Adam Duvall representing the best value plays. Duvall has also gone deep in three straight contests.

3-player stack: Joey Votto, Phillips, Jay Bruce
5-player stack: Votto, Phillips, Bruce, Eugenio Suarez, Duvall

• Boston Red Sox (at New York Yankees): The Red Sox are one of the top offensive teams, batting a combined .281 while sporting a .342 OBP. Friday marks their first trip to Yankee Stadium this season where they will look to take advantage of a Michael Pineda and his dismal 6.33 ERA. Particular players of interest are left-handers David Ortiz and Travis Shaw. While Fenway Park's Green Monster hinders their power, the short porch in New York does the exact opposite. Finally, and somewhat surprisingly, Mookie Betts may be a fade candidate as the young outfielder comes with a heavy price tag and is slashing .214/.283/.262 through his last 10.

3-player stack: Xander Bogaerts, Ortiz, Shaw
5-player stack: Dustin Pedroia, Bogaerts, Ortiz, Hanley Ramirez, Shaw

• Detroit Tigers (vs. Texas Rangers): The Detroit offense is starting to show signs of life after a poor start. In eight games since April 27, the Tigers have scored 42 runs and now rank in the top half in home runs, RBIs and hits. This turnaround has been led by the slugging trio of Justin Upton, Miguel Cabrera, and Victor Martinez, who all own averages above .300 over their last 10 games. Texas SP Cole Hamels won't make things easy, but his early-season HR/9 (1.20) and BB/9 (4.50) numbers work in Detroit's favor.

3-player stack: Ian Kinsler, Cabrera, Martinez
5-player stack: Kinsler, Upton, Cabrera, Martinez, Nick Castellanos

Bargain Plays

• SP Tim Adleman, Reds: If the Reds batters aren't going to crack your lineup then Adleman may be worth consideration. The 28-year old will make his second career start after limiting the well-oiled Pittsburgh offense to just three hits through six innings of work in his MLB debut. With only one major-league start to his name, rostering Adleman will require a leap of faith. But as mentioned, Cincinnati has scored 29 runs over its past five, so Adleman should have some offensive support as he searches for his first major league victory.

• 3B Travis Shaw, Red Sox: As mentioned in the Stacks section, Shaw will bring his left-handed bat to New York. Last year, Shaw, a.k.a. The Mayor of Ding Dong City, had two homers in 31 at-bats when visiting Yankee Stadium. This year, Shaw will revisit the Big Apple sporting a .297 average and probably a bit more confidence as Boston's established third baseman. Pineda has given up seven homers on the season, all at Yankee Stadium.

• OF Jackie Bradley Jr, Red Sox: Another Red Sox player fills the list as Bradley is working on an 11-game hit streak. The defensive outfielder is hitting .353 over his last ten with seven extra-base hits in that span. Though batting eighth isn't ideal, the 1-2 hitters of Betts and Bogaerts should minimize the impact his poor batting position. Ultimately, Bradley serves as cheap piece in order to complete a heavy Red Sox stack.

Contrarian Options

• 3B Kyle Seager, Mariners: Seager has a .324 average over his last 10 games to finally push his season average above the .200 mark; his .190 BABIP is starting to correct itself. Astros SP Doug Fister also makes for a nice matchup as the 32-year old sports a 1.53 HR/9. Roster Seager now as many are still be put off by his slow start.

• SP Francisco Liriano, Pirates: If you are willing to exclude St. Louis' 10-3 victory on May 2, the Cardinals have scored only 16 runs over their past seven games. Though their offense ranks highly in many offensive categories, now may be the time to go against them. Liriano is also coming off a nice bounce-back performance against Cincinnati in which he went 6 2/3 innings with six punchouts. Despite a 3.86 ERA, the veteran lefty has given up no more than six hits through his first five starts. With Friday's 15-game slate, Liriano falls well below a plethora of other starting options.

• 2B DJ LeMahieu, Rockies: The Rockies will be in tough against San Francisco left-handed ace Madison Bumgarner. Ownership will definitely be down as park factors and a pitching matchup work against them. But on a more positive note, the Colorado offense owns the third best team average in the majors at .277, while LeMahieu himself owns a .309 average. Hitting aside, LeMahieu's speed is another positive. With five stolen bases on the season, he provides a method of return value that is just slightly less tied to the performance of Bumgarner.