The Yankees play eight games this week while the Rockies return home to Coors Field. They're among my teams with the best hitter matchups this week.
You'll find the full list of best and worst matchups at the bottom of the article, but first, let's look at my 10 favorite sleeper hitters for Week 21 (Aug. 16-22), all rostered in less than 80 percent of CBS Sports leagues.
Mookie Betts' return to the IL means more assured playing time for A.J. Pollock, who has quietly been one of the hottest hitters since the All-Star break, batting .370 with a .922 OPS. And hey, the Dodgers have the second-best matchups this week.
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At some point, Anthony Rizzo may come off the COVID-19 IL and bring disharmony, but with eight games on the schedule this week, I'm guessing Luke Voit gets his at-bats anyway. The Yankees have the most favorable matchups of any team.
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The Rockies are back home at Coors Field this week, which is where C.J. Cron has done virtually all his damage. When they were there in Week 19, he hit four home runs.
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The longtime minor-leaguer has been living it up as the Cubs new leadoff hitter, furthering his 2019 power breakthrough. It had been the big weakness holding him back in the minors, so now that it's looking legit, he becomes pretty interesting.
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One of the big surprises of 2020 has been swinging the bat that way again in August, making contact at an exceptionally high rate and driving the ball out of the park more regularly. These matchups aren't the kind that should slow him down.
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Another two-faced hitter for the Rockies is headed back to where he does all his damage, which has been particularly true since the start of the summer. This recommendation is only useful to those who need a catcher, of course.
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He's been picking up the pace again after a sluggish July and still has strong enough numbers overall to justify starting regardless of the matchups. But it helps to have three lefties on the schedule this week.
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Getting a chance to handle third base duties since the Abraham Toro-Hernandez trade, Aledmys Diaz has done so with aplomb. His splits against left-handers are particularly lopsided, which works out nicely with four of them on the schedule.
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Here's yet another case of a lefty-masher facing a bunch of left-handers this week. Austin Hays' overall numbers are lacking, but against the four lefties on the schedule, he brings a .305 batting average and .895 OPS to the plate.
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Kyle Farmer's pace has slowed over the past week after an impossibly hot start to the second half, and it may turn out that he's simply not that good. But in a seven-game week against some of the Cubs' and Marlins' bottom-feeders, he could come roaring back.
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Best hitter matchups for Week 21
1. Yankees LAA1, BOS3, MIN4
2. Dodgers PIT3, NYM4
3. Rockies SD3, ARI3
4. Angels @NYY1, @DET3, @CLE3
5. Twins CLE3, @NYY4
Worst hitter matchups for Week 21
1. Nationals TOR2, @MIL3
2. Mets @SF3, @LAD4
3. Tigers LAA3, @TOR3
4. Blue Jays @WAS2, DET3
5. Giants NYM3, @OAK3
