Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 6/6/15
Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster 6/6/15 Full disclaimer - this is a massive slate, and there's no way I could ever possibly list every decent play today. So, I'll do my best in highlighting whom I believe to be the elite plays. If you want the rest? Go ahead and get access to the exclusive projection system that produces these picks. Sign up now and get a free 3 day trial to our lineup construction tool for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster. Pitchers Early Slate Madison Bumgarner - FD 10200 DK 10500 It's a little odd to take Bumgarner here, because Philly really isn't a spectacular matchup. They're tough to strike out, and are just about league average in terms of wOBA against left handed pitching. But there are some guys, like Bumgarner, who can weather a so-so match-up in a not great park - especially when the opposing pitcher is just right. Severino Gonzalez qualifies. He's made it through 5.0 innings twice in his 4 starts, and gotten bounced early in the other two. Bumgarner's peripherals are stellar once again, and he's the ace he's been for a while now. Bumgarner will be a heavy favorite for a win, and he represents the best cash game play on the board. Drew Hutchison - FD 8000 DK 7000 Hutchison's ERA is far from pretty, here, but there's actually a lot to like peripherally. His xFIP is 1.50 runs better than his ERA, and he is some bad BABIP and LOB% away from being more than respectable this year. In this game he'll be up against the Astros, who have struck out in more than a quarter of their at bats against right handed pitching (good for 2nd worst in the league) this season. Now, they haven't been awful in terms of actually hurting opposing pitching, but what you're going for in playing Hutchison is pure upside. Hutch should also be in a good position to get the win against Oberholtzer as well. I like this as a large tournament play. Late Slate Clayton Kershaw - FD 11700 DK 12400 It's obviously quite the hefty price, but Kershaw has above even his normal amount of upside here. First of all - I'm ignoring the high ERA for Kershaw. There are some odd bounces here and there, and the K rate is still transcendent. Jaime Garcia doesn't look like quite the pitcher he used to be, and his 2.70 ERA will bubble as soon as his mediocre/bad peripherals come calling. And St. Louis has struck out at the 8th highest rate (23%) of any team in the majors against left handed pitching this season. On a...
Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 6/5/15
Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings 6/5/15 Full disclaimer - this is a massive slate, and there's no way I could ever possibly list every decent play today. So, I'll do my best in highlighting whom I believe to be the elite plays. If you want the rest? Go ahead and get access to the exclusive projection system that produces these picks. Sign up now and get a free 3 day trial to our lineup construction tool for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster. Pitchers Yikes - pitching is pretty darn brutal tonight. No true ace on the board, and most of the middling guys have big question marks. It might be a day to just spread your exposure and go cheap. Here are my thoughts. Jake Odorizzi - FD 8600 DK 8600 The case for Odorizzi is rather straightforward. He'll be pitching in one of the league's very best pitcher's parks against the Mariners, who have the 3rd highest K% against right handed pitching in the league to pair with the league's 5th lowest wOBA. He's facing a guy who has nearly a clone of his peripheral stats, but Odirizzi's Rays have had the league's 5th best wOBA against left handed pitching this season. Odorizzi isn't a huge strike out guy at this point in his career, but the low walks and the nice pitcher's park make this look like a play that a lot of people are going to put atop their cash game (and even big tournament) lineups today. Tyson Ross - FD 9000 DK 9400 I know what you're thinking: Tyson Ross? On the road? Against the team with the 6th lowest K rate against RHP in all of baseball? I don't know what to tell you - this is what our projection system is spitting out. It's an awful day for pitching. If you'd like a case, I'll do my best. Ross has struck out more than a batter per inning this year, and had 10 games in a row with 10 or better fantasy points on FanDuel before last outing's stinker. The big sell here is the overmatched Raisel Iglesias. If the Dads can get to him, Ross should be in a decent line for a win - which separates him from most of the rest of the pitchers going today. The thing to remember about Ross is that he's one of the more extreme groundball pitchers in the league. His 63.5% GB rate is peak Brandon Webb territory. So he can erase those walks in a hurry, and tends not to get as crushed by homer friendly parks like Cinci. I'm not overly enthused here, but this still looks like...
DraftKings Bargain MLB Plays 6/2/15
DraftKings Bargain MLB Plays 6/2/15 Every once in a while we’ll bring you some plays you can make on DraftKings that really help you save some cash towards those salary caps. These aren’t the safest plays in the world as the best players aren’t going to be priced in the bargain basement. But if these dudes hit the lineups tonight, I think they are worth a look. And if you want the rest of our plays, check out Tuesday’s MLB picks New to DraftKings? Click the banner below to sign up and get the best deposit bonus available. Josh Collmenter - DK 5600 I need to reiterate that this is a “Bargain Bin” piece. I am in no way advocating you play these guys in safer situations. That being said, there is something to like about Collmenter today. If you are looking to stack some Dodgers’ bats in Coors Field then you will have to hit lightning in a bottle with a cheap pitcher. Collmenter could be the guy. He is coming as cheap as you’ll basically ever see an arm. The xFIP is in the mid 4’s and he is facing a Braves team ranked around the middle of the pack against righty hitters. The big piece about Collmenter, like I said, is the cost. You can roster him, along with a bigger ace and have enough in the budget left over for some star bats in that Mile High air. Curtis Granderson - DK 3400 Something interesting is happening with Petco Park this year. Last season it ranked near the bottom of the league in home runs. This season? It’s tenth. More balls are traveling out which could be because of the Padres’ offensive upgrade, but there’s also a chance of a new wind stream heading out toward the outfield. Ian Kennedy is a flyball pitcher and Granderson is a three-true-outcomes type of hitter. He K’s a fair amount, but that walk rate is up over 13%, he hits leadoff and there is a little pop in the bat. Rickie Weeks - DK 3100 Very much in play if he is hitting at or near the top of the order against the lefty Sabathia. Don’t love the ballpark (and I think C.C. has run bad this season. But Weeks is a guy who’s been running a fair bit of awful himself this season with a .229 Babip. He’s a much better platoon against lefties for his career. If he’s near the top of the order I’d almost consider him a safe play on this slate. Norichika Aoki - DK 3400 Really like him in cash games today against A.J. Burnett. Aoki doesn’t hit for much power but...
Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster 5/31/15
Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster 6/1/15 Full disclaimer - this is a massive slate, and there's no way I could ever possibly list every decent play today. So, I'll do my best in highlighting whom I believe to be the elite plays. If you want the rest? Go ahead and get access to the exclusive projection system that produces these picks. Sign up now and get a free 3 day trial to our lineup construction tool for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster. Pitchers Madison Bumgarner - FD 10000 DK 10300 The Braves have the 2nd worst wOBA against left handed pitching, and are pairing it with the 5th highest strike out rate. As you can probably intuit by now, this makes it a dream spot for the Giants' left-handed ace. While Bumgarner hasn't put up the same lofty K totals he put together last season, the dream spot against the Braves more than makes up for it. Throw in a shaky Julio Teheran, and you have yourself an awfully safe match-up for cash game play. Danny Salazar - FD 9300 DK 8500 Salazar is a step down in safety from Bumgarner, but arguable a considerable step up in upside. The diminutive right hander has 10.69 K/9 for his young career, including a 12.60 number so far in 2015. For a frame of reference, Clayton Kershaw has a 9.53 career K/9. Randy Johnson had a 10.61 career K/9. The bottom line is this - Salazar can flat K a brother. In this game, he'll go up against the Mariners, who have compiled the league's 3rd highest K% against right handed pitching to go with the league's 9th worst wOBA. Happ has been pretty decent for the Mariners, so a win is far from guaranteed, but Salazar could really put up a huge game here. Drew Hutchison - FD 8100 DK 7500 The riskiest play of the bunch at first glance, but when you look a little deeper it looks a lot like a decent GPP gamble. The 24 year old Hutchison is on his second season in a row with a sub 4 xFIP, and while he hasn't been able to match the peripherals to the ERA just yet, he's shown flashes of putting it together recently - most notably his complete game 8 K shut out his last time out. With the league's 6th worst wOBA and 5th highest strike out rate against right handed pitching, the Twins make a fantastic spot for a repeat performance. Throw in what's left of poor Ricky Nolasco, and Hutchison should also have a pretty good shot at a win. All in all, I like this as an...
Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster 5/30/15
Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster 5/30/15 Full disclaimer - this is a massive slate, and there's no way I could ever possibly list every decent play today. So, I'll do my best in highlighting whom I believe to be the elite plays. If you want the rest? Go ahead and get access to the exclusive projection system that produces these picks. Sign up now and get a free 3 day trial to our lineup construction tool for FanDuel and DraftKings. Pitchers Early Slate Dallas Keuchel - FD 9400 DK 8700 Keuchel makes for an interesting big money play today, because he's not a guy we normally recommend. His ERA is dramatically outperforming his peripherals, and it looks like his price bubble is fit to bursting. So what gives? The White Sox of Chicago, that's what. They've put together an utterly pathetic .246 wOBA against left handed pitching this season. If you're not big into wOBA, let me give you a frame of reference. Yovani Gallardo has a career .241 wOBA as a batter. CC Sabathia has a .246 wOBA. They are horrible against lefties. In light of this, I think Keuchel makes a fine play in any format, but I'll really play him a ton in cash games. Also considered Jon Niese. Late Slate Tyson Ross - FD 9000 DK 9400 Ross has a sparkling 2.74 xFIP at home this year, and a ridiculous 12+ K/9. He's priced as less than an ace, but can absolutely put up ace level performances in the right circumstances. The Pirates have been almost exactly league average against right handers this season, so there's nothing to fear there. And while Charlie Morton escaped his first start with a win, his 3 Ks in 7 innings pitched are more indicative of his true talent level than his 2.57 ERA. I like Ross in all formats here, as playing him still allows you to pay up a bit for good hitting elsewhere. Yordano Ventura - FD 8300 DK 7500 If you want a cheaper home run play, consider Yordano Ventura. His ERA is a full run worse than his xFIP, and while his xFIP (3.73) isn't anything to write home about, that's not while he's getting recommended here. That would be the Chicago Cubs. The North-Siders have a .303 wOBA, good for the 12th worst in the majors. "But James," you begin, "that really doesn't sound too terrible." Well, hypothetical objector - what about this? The Cubs are striking out in more than a quarter of their plate appearances against RHP this season. Their 25.9% figure is good for worst in the league. Lots of upside here, even if...