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Daily Dime: Royalty payouts for Thursday

Eric Hosmer, a royal pain for right-handed pitchers.  (Getty)
Eric Hosmer, a royal pain for right-handed pitchers. (Getty)

Here are 10 DFS recommendations for Thursday's slate on Yahoo, but be sure to double-check the weather and lineups before first pitch approaches.

Eric Hosmer, 1B, at StL (Lackey), $14: Hosmer comes $2-$3 cheaper than the top-shelf 1B options for Thursday, so you're getting MLB's leader in hits (20 in his past 11 games) over the past couple weeks at a nice discount. Hosmer owns a .322 batting average against RHP, and will face Cards righty John Lackey, who he went 1-for-3 against with a double and a run scored in an earlier meeting this season.

Tyson Ross, SP, vs Mia (Koehler), $48:  Clayton Kershaw sure would be nice to slide into your Thursday lineup, but a $70 tag makes him tough to work with. Among the cheaper options, Ross definitely stands out. He hasn't been great at home this season (4.44), but we can probably dismiss that as mostly small sample size meaninglessness (he's combined for a sub-2 ERA at home the past two seasons). Ross is 3-0 with a 2.23 ERA in his past six starts, and he's managed to avert major disaster all season - he has yet to allow more than four earned runs in an outing. And he'll host a Quad-A Marlins lineup that has scored three runs or less 13 times in the 20 games without injured slugger Giancarlo Stanton.

Lance McCullers, SP, vs Bos (Miley), $46: McCullers gets a home date against the reeling Red Sox, losers of seven straight. In the past six games, Boston is averaging a mere 1.5 runs. Vegas likes the odds of an eighth straight loss coming Boston's way against the Houston rookie, who is 3-0 with a 1.20 ERA (30 IP) at home this season. McCullers did get pinned with a loss in his one meeting against Boston this season, but it was on the road, and he allowed just one run over five innings.

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Jonathan Lucroy, C, at Ari (Godley), $11: Up until late June, Lucroy's season had been defined by slump and injury. But he's tunred things around with a .299 batting average over his past 17 games. And Thursday's contest sets up well for continued success. He'll face Arizona's Zack Godley, making his MLB debut despite just 14 innings pitched above Single-A in his career. And Lucroy owns a 1.160 OPS mark in 12 games at Chase Field.

Neil Walker, 2B, vs. Was (Fister), $16: Walker has been a top 10 roto bat in July, hitting .316 with three home runs, 13 RBIs and 13 Runs in 18 games. And he'll face Washington starter Doug Fister, who he's 4-for-11 (.364) against in his career.

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Aramis Ramirez, 3B, at Ari (Godley), $10: The opening line Over/Under for Thursday's Mil/Ari matchup was at 8.5 runs, the highest on the board. It's fair to say that the MLB debut of Arizona starter Zack Godley has a lot to do with that inflated number, as Milwaukee is the favorite to win the game. We've already tabbed Brewers backstop Lucroy to fill our catcher spot here, and Ramirez is another cheap way to buy into this potentially lucrative situation. Ramirez has a long history of waking up in the summer after a spring slumber, and this season has been no exception. Ramirez posted a .674 OPS through the first three months of the season, but has busted out with a .922 July, including multiple hits in three of his past four games.

Carlos Correa SS,vs. Bos (Miley), $18: Here's another Houston rookie worth backing against Boston on Thursday, even at this premium price. Correa is riding a seven-game hitting streak and owns a .992 OPS against southpaws this season.

Andre Ethier, OF, at NYM (Colon), $13: There's a lot to like for the low $13 price tag on Ethier. He has hit all 10 of his home runs this season against right-handed pitchers, and he'll face Mets veteran righty Bartolo Colon, who Ethier is 3-for-6 against for his career, including a double and a home run.

Alex Rios, OF, at StL (Lackey), $13: Rios has it rolling in July, hitting .339 this month, including 15 hits in his past 11 games. He's also putting in some work on the base paths, as his four July steals is one more than his total for the previous three months combined. And Rios has a long history card against Cardinals starter John Lackey (10-for-30) that should inspire confidence.

Ichiro Suzuki, OF, at SD (Ross), $10: Old man Ichiro is a worthwhile gamble from the discount rack, as he's hitting .333 (11-for-33) in his past nine games with two steals. Facing San Diego starter Tyson Ross, Ichiro has a good chance to further pad his stolen base tally as Ross has allowed an MLB-high 25 steals this season.

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