Graham Pauley DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Miami Marlins first baseman Matt Mervis and third baseman Graham Pauley are not in the starting lineup for Sunday's contest against the Washington Nationals as they will face left-hander MacKenzie Gore. Mervis has typically taken a backseat throughout the early part of the campaign. Over his last seven contests, he has been quite productive at the plate, posting a .360/.400/.909 slash line with four long balls. Instead, Eric Wagman will cover first base, which opens up the designated hitter spot for Jonah Bride. Pauley has only made two starts this season against left-handed pitching. He has been in a bit of a slump at the plate, holding a .138 AVG over his last eight games. Instead, Javier Sanoja will get the nod at the hot corner. The Marlins' offense is not worth targeting in DFS facing Gore in this matchup.

With Pittsburgh Pirates left-hander Andrew Heaney starting the series finale on Sunday at loanDepot Park against the hosting Miami Marlins, both third baseman Graham Pauley and outfielder Kyle Stowers will start on the bench. Jonah Bride will make the start at third base and will hit fifth, while Javier Sanoja is starting in left field and batting in the nine-hole for the Fish. Neither Bride nor Sanoja have ever faced Heaney. The 24-year-old Pauley and the 27-year-old Stowers will be regulars in Miami's starting lineup when the team faces right-handed pitchers, but they will often be rested against southpaws. Pauley has started the year 2-for-6 with a double and an RBI in the first two games of the year, while Stowers has gone 4-for-12 with two RBI, a stolen base and a run scored in 14 trips to the plate over three games played.

The Miami Marlins promoted third base prospect Graham Pauley from Triple-A and gave him the starting nod at the hot corner. He will bat eighth and face the reigning NL Rookie of the Year, Paul Skenes. Pauley was recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville in a corresponding move, placing infielder Connor Norby (oblique) on the injured list. During spring training, Pauley posted a .286/.355/.429 slash line across 11 contests. During this stretch, he went deep once and held a 2:8 BB:K. The Duke product made his MLB debut last season with the San Diego Padres and tallied four hits across 13 contests. Fantasy managers in deeper NL-only formats should monitor his performance as he could see consistent time in the lineup with Norby sidelined. However, he should not be started in any format this afternoon facing Skenes, who posted a 1.93 ERA with a 0.95 WHIP as a rookie.