Short schedules always make for an interesting night of daily fantasy baseball.

Last night saw (as expected) Cliff Lee dominate through eight innings, losing the win (and the points for owners) in the ninth inning as a result of a bullpen meltdown. No doubt many a heart was broken as victory was snatched away at the last second. Luckily Lee’s daily fantasy baseball points were enough to keep me in contention in my head-to-head and double up games, although I finished well out of the money in all large-field tournaments. Another trademark characteristic of short daily fantasy baseball nights is that the presence of one or two cheap overperformers is generally what separates the field. Kyle Blanks had a man’s evening, and when the dust had settled propelled his owners to the top of the standings in the large daily fantasy baseball tournaments.

Try and take me out with your best daily fantasy baseball roster in one of the $1 +.10 Head to Head games I’m sitting in. I’m also geared up for some exhilarating large field daily fantasy baseball tourney action in the $5 THROWDOWN, $11 Frozen Rope, and $22 Double Play! Don’t forget to join the MLB Freeroll, it’s free money! I’ll be on Twitter as the action unfolds so shoot me a tweet and talk some smack!

Daily Fantasy Baseball Weather Alert

Indians @ Orioles - 30% chance of storms.     Rangers @ Yankees - 30% chance of storms.

Angels @ Tigers - 30% chance of storms.     Diamondbacks @ Nationals - 30% chance of storms.

Braves @ Royals - 20-25 mph wind blowing out.     Mets @ White Sox - 40% chance of storms.

Pitcher

Yu Darvish - $12700 - The lone true ace hurling tonight, and the Yankees are no longer an offensive juggernaut.

Kris Medlen - $10700 - Has been extremely solid the past month, and the question as always will be whether or not the Braves hitters can provide him adequate run support. Against a Royals squad whose offense has been equally terrible I say yes.

Catcher

J.P. Arencibia - $6000 - His stock is always pointing up when facing lefties. Boom/bust potential for multiple home runs every time he matches up with a southpaw.

Joe Mauer - $7000 - The perennial all-star is always in play when facing a right-hander.

First Base

Nick Swisher - $4800 - His price tag coupled with recent play make him worthy of consideration in all but the toughest of matchups.

Edwin Encarnacion - $9900 - If you can afford a maximum salary tonight this is where I would sink it. Encarnacion (and by extension the entire Jays lineup) is on fire right now and faces a version of Matt Moore that’s seen better days.

Second Base

Maicer Izturis - $4600 - Continues to provide solid value for a low price as his production flourishes in one of baseball’s best offenses.

Third Base

Juan Uribe - $4600 - I’m in love with all the Dodgers righty bats this evening.

Evan Longoria - $9000 - Crushing left-handed pitching with a .350 average this season.

Shortstop

Hanley Ramirez - $6000 - Another right-handed bat for the Dodgers, HanRam also happens to be heating up after starting slow on his return from injury.

Alexi Casilla - $4700 - This is a risky play, but I think Casilla for this price is worth a look and could easily be a difference-maker in a large-field tournament.

Outfield

Yasiel Puig - $7100 - Take him until his price reaches maximum salary. Then continue taking him. It’s that simple.

Ben Revere - $6000 - Has been one of Philadelphia’s most consistent bats of late and gets a nice righty matchup this evening.

Jose Bautista - $8800 - As with Encarnacion above, if you can afford the salary it’s a solid gamble to place your bets on right-handed Blue Jays bats tonight.

Brandon Moss - $5800 - Continues to fly under the radar, and is absolutely crushing right-handed pitching.

Mike Carp - $6800 - Has been mashing right-handed pitching all year, and should be in the lineup tonight.

Ryan Sweeney - $4100 - Has been quietly producing since being forced into the starting lineup. A nice matchup against a weak righty in Kyle Lohse is tantalizing.

It’s always fun with a full slate of night game action to keep the scoring updates flying in fast and furious. The most obvious game to target for a mini-stack is the Dodgers right-handed hitters. Michael Kickham has been recalled for a spot start tonight and was dreadful in his lone appearance this season. Facing the hottest thing since sliced bread in Yasiel Puig doesn’t help matters for the young hurler. I’d honestly say you can vary your Los Angeles players, with even the lefties being viable options, but I’ll be specifically targeting the righty bats as you’ve seen above. The Blue Jays are another team that has been as hot as anyone, proving they can rack up runs in bunches. It’s a safe bet to mini-stack their right-handed bats and hope for another offensive explosion. As a final note, due to his price I don’t believe Chris Sale will be highly owned tonight. He can pile on the strikeouts as well as anyone and is facing down the Mets anemic offense. For the same salary most folks will likely choose Darvish, which means a gem from Sale could give you an edge in a large-field tournament.

You have 17 daily fantasy baseball picks to build your lineup, why aren’t you in the action? Click here to play now!

Think I’m a genius? A crazy old fool? Let me know with a comment below and I’ll be sure to respond!

Remember to visit tomorrow, we’ll break down tonight’s lineup and discuss Wednesday’s top daily fantasy baseball options.