Pitchers
Gerrit Cole/Jacob deGrom (DK pairing, pick one on FanDuel)- I have a really limited pitcher pool for cash games today, and it comes down to the overall low pricing I have found on DraftKings today. The names Gerrit Cole and Jacob deGrom are obvious, they are two of the best pitchers in the MLB, and without diving deep into their strikeout rates, or fastball movement, we know that every five days we are going to be interested in them in DFS. They both also happen to have elite matchups, with Cole drawing the Orioles and their 83 wRC+ against right-handed pitching, and deGrom getting the Colorado Marlins (yes, that’s how bad they are on the road) at home in Citi Field. On FanDuel, you simply select one of these aces to anchor you in cash games, while on DraftKings we have a rare opportunity to fit in both! deGrom is just $9,400, you know, less than Lance Lynn? For what reason, I don’t know, but I will surely take advantage of it. Locking them both in together leaves you with just over $3,500 left per position, while that may not seem like a lot, there are a plethora of value plays that are viable in cash games tonight. Aside from the ones I have listed below, we also have Yonder Alonso and Rowdy Tellez under $3,500 at first base, Chris Taylor and Robinson Cano following the same pricing at second, and Jeff McNeil at only $3,800 leading off for the Mets. It’s not often we can windmill in two aces on a 14 game slate, and I am most likely going to be implementing that strategy in my personal build tonight.
Brandon Woodruff (SP2, if you want more bats)- If you can’t quite find it in yourself to spend around $20,000 on pitching, Brandon Woodruff makes sense to me as an SP2 candidate given his price of just $7,800. Strikeout upside is not something we generally think of when it comes to Woodruff, but put some respect on his name, he’s been great this season pitching to a 3.64 SIERA with 28.3% strikeouts and 11.8% swinging strikes. I’m not as worried about the amount of lefties in the Pirates lineup tonight given he has maintained 26% strikeouts against them this season, and ultimately his price is just too cheap when factoring in his strikeout upside that I will consider him in cash games if choosing not to double spend up.
Tournament Pool: Domingo German, Clayton Kershaw, Jose Urena, Tyler Mahle
Building Blocks
Mookie Betts- Much has been made of Betts’ seemingly slow start to the season, but I think his price of only $4,400 on DraftKings is a bit of an overreaction. Yonny Chirinos has been good at managing contact, but Betts is one of the premier players in the MLB and he has been much better against righties than lefties this season. So far in 2019, Betts owns a 146 wRC+ with a .225 ISO against right-handers compared to just a 52 wRC+ and a sub-.100 ISO against lefties.
Justin Turner- Justin Turner is the first person into my cash game builds on DraftKings tonight, finding himself at only $4,200 despite his .203 ISO, 57% fly balls and 53% hard hits against left-handed pitching this season. His opposition, Drew Pomeranz, throws his knuckle curve over 40% of the time against righties, a pitch that Turner has owned to the tune of a .438 xwOBA and over 45% hard hits — boosting the matchup even more.
Nick Castellanos- For what feels like the 600th day in a row, Nick Castellanos is too cheap across the industry and will be a fixture in my lineups. Even though he started the season slow, he has picked up recently and while the power isn’t quite as nice against righties, 40%+ hard hits and fly balls with a .180 ISO will play for his price. He also has a strong matchup with Michael Pineda who has allowed over 2 HR/9 to right-handed batters this season.
Stacks
1. Nationals- The Nationals check in as my favorite overall stack tonight, and are one that I don’t think will be overly owned given their sub-5.0 implied run total. They match up with Nick Margevicius, who is by all accounts, one of the worst pitchers in the MLB this season. He’s been underwhelming since making the jump from low A to the big leagues, and has pitched to a 5.09 SIERA with only 16.0% strikeouts. The Nationals have more than a few capable hitters against southpaws, with Anthony Rendon, Juan Soto, Victor Robles, Brian Dozier and Matt Adams all owning a .200 ISO or better in the split this season.
2. Dodgers- I’m really excited about this slate, given that I expect my two favorite stacks to come in much lower-owned than they should be. The Dodgers get a dream matchup with Drew Pomeranz who has been extremely sketchy with his control this season, and you all know I love stacking against guys that can’t stop walking people. More people on base = more runs, pretty simple! They also play in one of the top pitchers parks in the league tonight, which will keep the masses from flocking towards them. I would want to start with the righties for my stack, all of Justin Turner, Chris Taylor, Kike Hernandez and David Freese are cash game playable, with Bellinger/Muncy/Seager checking in for GPPs.
Chalk Stacks: Brewers, Rangers/A’s
Written by Ben Hossler (Follow @BenHossler on Twitter)
