Kansas City Royals DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. continued his strong season with a big performance in Tuesday's victory against the division-rival Detroit Tigers. Witt went 3-for-4 with three runs scored, two homers and six RBI. He also stole his 16th base of the season in the contest. His first home run was a big three-run blast in the bottom of the second inning, and he then followed that up with a solo shot in the bottom of the sixth inning for good measure. The superstar shortstop now has a mini five-game hitting streak going and continues to be one of the top fantasy producers across the board. For the season, Witt is hitting .304 with seven homers and 31 RBI.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of the game against the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday. Fantasy managers don't have anything to worry about as this appears to be a routine rest day for Smith. In his absence, Austin Barnes will handle behind the plate and bat ninth on Sunday. Fantasy managers should be able to find a better streaming option considering Barnes isn't known for his ability with the bat.

Kansas City Royals closerJames McArthurpicked up his 11th save of the season in Saturday's 5-3 win over the Oakland A's. Despite allowing two hits, McArthur fanned two batters for his first scoreless outing since May 8. Hope springs eternal that McArthur may have cured his penchant for allowing homers after giving up one in four of his previous five outings, which has taken his ERA to 4.35 this season. He's on pace to exceed 30 saves, making him a solid foundation for fantasy managers who correctly rolled the dice on his gaining the closer's role in March.

Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Seth Lugo will look to notch his fifth straight quality start on Saturday when the leads the Royals at home against the Oakland A's. Lugo has been one of the bigger surprises this season, posting up a miniscule 1.66 ERA. In his last outing he struck out a career high 12 batters in eight innings against the Los Angeles Angels. Lugo may not be able to replicate that against the Oakland A's, though, as current A's batters have hit him for a .379 wOBA in 25 PA, though they are striking out against him at a 24% clip. Fantasy managers should keep Lugo in their lineups and DFS managers should look to target Lugo against the A's, who are hitting for just a .573 OPS over the last seven days.

Los Angeles Dodgers backstop Will Smith will be getting the day off on Thursday as the Dodgers open a four-game set against the Cincinnati Reds. Smith has started each of the past six games and holds an overall .315/.381/.479 line with four home runs. Instead, Austin Barnes will serve as the catcher for Tyler Glasnow and will bat in the nine-hole. The 34-year-old is best to fade in DFS as he enters Thursday with a .219/.359/.250 slash line with no home runs and has only appeared in 13 games this season.