FanDuel lineup advice for the weekend of Sept. 18-20

As for what we're going to be doing in this space: The goal here will be to direct your attention toward some players who you might not otherwise consider. If you're here and reading this, then you already know that Mike Trout is really good. But when filling out a roster you can't just pick out stars. You'll blow your cap that way and get stuck praying to the baseball gods that a guy like Ruben Tejada actually gets a few hits. No, if you want to win, you have to take advantage of certain matchups -- and in order to do that you have to know where to look. That's what we're here for. Below are three players to target and three to avoid for Sept. 18-20.

Ryan Raburn, OF, Indians: Raburn has become one of the preeminent platoon players in the game. He's hitting .317/.396/.583 off lefties this season, with seven home runs in 139 at-bats. This weekend Cleveland gets to face a trio of southpaws, two of whom Raburn has crushed in the past. On Friday he gets Chris Sale (10 hits in 33 at-bats with four home runs). On Saturday it will be Carlos Rodon. Sunday will be John Danks (17 hits in 50 at-bats with four home runs). That Raburn will cost less than $3,000 makes him the best play of the weekend.

Drew Smyly, P, Rays: The left-hander has been up and down since returning from an extended stint on the disabled list -- six starts, 32 innings, 35 strikeouts, eight walks, 3.38 ERA -- but he gets to face the Orioles on Friday, a team he dominated just a few weeks ago to the tune of seven shutout innings and 10 strikeouts. Baltimore has whiffed in 23.2 percent of its at-bats against southpaws, the fourth-highest mark in baseball, and the team's .295 wOBA off lefties is the sixth-lowest. Smyly is only going for $7,700 on FanDuel. Slot him into your lineup and use that extra cash to get some big bats.

Darwin Barney, 2B, Blue Jays: Toronto's going to give the home scoreboard keeper a good workout this weekend, as the team welcomes the weak arms of the Boston Red Sox into town. Boston's pitching staff is one of the worst in baseball, and this weekend the team is scheduled to send Rick Porcello (5.06 ERA) out on Friday and Wade Miley (4.41 ERA) on Saturday, while Sunday's starter has yet to be determined. Barney won't be the catalyst for any major scoring barrages. But now that he's seeing playing time in place of the injured Troy Tulowitzki, he certainly can end up being the beneficiary, and a cheap one ($2,400) at that.

Andrew McCutchen, OF, Pirates: There are a few things at play here. For one, McCutchen has been swinging a cold bat of late; he's hitting just .241 in September and has struck out 18 times in 58 games. More worrisome, though, is that he draws the dreaded card of having to face both Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke this weekend.

Miguel Cabrera, 1B, Tigers: The Tigers slugger is in the midst of the worst slump of his career. He's hitting just .189 in September and has gone 20 at-bats without recording a hit. Being forced to face the tough pitching staff of the Kansas City Royals certainly won't help him break out.

Justin Verlander, P, Tigers: Verlander has rediscovered his touch over the last month or so, as he's posted a 2.87 ERA since the All-Star Game. The problem: on Friday he's facing a Royals team that doesn't strike out (their 15.8 percent whiff rate against right-handers is the lowest in baseball) and does a great job of making contact and getting on base (Kansas City's .321 wOBA against righties is the sixth-highest number in MLB). Pass on Verlander for $8,800 and go in a different direction instead.

Carlos Gonzalez is usually a must-play in Coors Field, but on Friday night he'll face Padres pitcher Ian Kennedy, against whom he's recorded just five hits in 35 career at-bats. ... Speaking of the Rockies, second-baseman and speedster DJ LeMahieu should get plenty of opportunities to add to his stolen base total against weak-throwing Padres catcher Derek Norris. ... Beware of all Yankee bats this weekend. The teams "travels" to the pitcher-friendly Citi Field and will face Steven Matz, Noah Syndergaard and Matt Harvey.