Welcome to the Saturday edition of Ben’s Building Blocks! Each week on Saturday, I will highlight my favorite plays specifically for Super Draft. If you haven’t already signed up for SuperDraft, promo code KARMA will get you a $10 deposit bonus on your first deposit.
Pitcher
Triston McKenzie (1.85x multiplier)- McKenzie is set to make his MLB debut tonight against the Detroit Tigers. There’s a lot of unknowns surrounding him seeing as he has barely pitched since 2018, and I expect this to keep ownership away. This is one of the best pitching prospects in baseball before injuries derailed his young career. It’s important to remember that he is still just 23 years old. The last time we saw him be punched out 24% of batters faced in double A. He’s armed with a lively fastball that sits mid-90’s and a nasty curveball, in addition to a slider. His curve might be his best pitch, and is one that the Tigers lineup as struggled with. Only Willi Castro (small sample) owns an ISO above .200 against the pitch over the last three seasons. This is a positive matchup for strikeouts, and I think the Tigers could really struggle here having never seen McKenzie before. He is my favorite partner with Zac Gallen (1.6x multiplier).
Building Blocks
Francisco Lindor (1.35x multiplier)- The Indians are in one of the best spots on the slate against Matt Boyd, and it’s fitting we get Lindor at the tastiest multiplier. Matt Boyd has always been someone that allows homeruns, but things have gone south in 2020. His strikeouts have dipped from 30% to 23% and his xFIP has spiked above 5.00. Lindor doesn’t profile for quite as much pop vs lefties as his teammate, Jose Ramirez, but he still hits the ball hard with almost 40% hard-contact. Whenever I can get one of the best hitters in the MLB at a multiplier like this, I take it.
Kyle Lewis (1.85x multiplier)- I was pretty shocked to see 1.85x given how well Lewis has hit this season, and how bad Jordan Lyles has looked. So far in 2020, Lyles boasts an xFIP of 7.32 with only one more strikeout than walk. Lewis has by far the best numbers on this Mariners team with a .414 wOBA and .264 ISO. Lyles relies heavily on his curveball, a pitch that Lewis has crushed (.260 ISO) so far in his career.
Ryan Mountcastle (2x multiplier)- Mountcastle was brought up by the Orioles yesterday, and gets the gift of facing Martin Perez tonight. This is one of the Orioles best prospects, and someone that thrived against left-handed pitching in the minors. Last season, he batted .349 with nine homeruns vs southpaws. I think he is a better hitter than someone that’s at the 2x threshold, and there is good hitting weather in Baltimore tonight as well.
Written by Ben Hossler (Follow @BenHossler on Twitter)
