2014 Fantasy Baseball: 5 Shrewd Plays For Aug. 14

It's been an outstanding start to August for Peralta as he entered Wednesday's doubleheader sporting an excellent .343 average in nine contests. Look for more of the same on Thursday when the D-backs take on the Miami Marlins. Brad Penny is back in the league and will start this one for the Fish, and though he pitched okay in his first start, he's posted a dreadful 5.42 ERA over his past two seasons of work.

This former MVP is finally starting to look like one again, and has now posted a delicious .364 average over his last 16 starts. He'll look to improve upon his 10 multi-hit performances over that span when the Sox take on Scott Feldman and the Houston Astros. Feldman owns an unimpressive 4.14 ERA on the season, and in 20 career at bats, Pedroia has posted an excellent .400 average against him.

Almost as if he flipped a switch, this slugger has gone from ice-cold to smoldering-hot. After recording just three hits over a 25 at-bat stretch, Gonzalez has posted an exceptional .579 average over his last five starts with two HRs and eight RBIs to his credit. He'll face starter Aaron Harang on Thursday, and although Harang has pitched well this season, Gonzalez has owned him to the tune of a .400 average in 20 bats, including three HRs.

If you listen closely, you can hear the sizzle in Ramirez's bat right now as the veteran is batting a ridiculous .440 over his last 12 games. Eight of those have been multi-hit efforts, and he'll look to make it another on Thursday. The Brewers will face Edwin Jackson and the Chicago Cubs, and if Jackson's 5.61 ERA on the season isn't enticing enough, that number sits at a dreadful 7.25 over his last seven outings.

Since being assaulted by the Kansas City Royals for 10 earned runs in just four innings back in June, Scherzer has been near unhittable. He's posted a dynamic 2.03 ERA in nine starts since, and has fanned an impressive 71 batters over those 62.2 innings of work. The Tigers will host an injury plagued Pittsburgh Pirates team on Thursday, and although the Pirate offense has continued to produce, look for Scherzer to shut it down in this one.