Welcome to another edition of Bales’ Top GPP Play. In this article, I will outline my favorite MLB GPP play for today’s games. If you want all of my core plays along with our staff’s Final Thoughts articles with access to our Discord, click here.
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Taijuan Walker
Walker performed well for the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays last season. He posted a 4-3 record with a 2.70 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP over 11 starts. He was due for regression, though, as he owns a 4.82 xFIP and a 4.60 SIERA in 2020. Walker struggled a bit with 22.2% strikeout and 7.8% swinging-strike rates last season. He also held his opponents to a 7.2% barrel rate, though. Walker found more success on the road in 2020, where his xFIP dipped slightly to 4.65. He also recorded a 4.41 xFIP against right-handed batters.
Walker gets a great matchup against the Chicago Cubs tonight. They lead the slate in strikeouts per at-bat while ranking last in team wOBA. Walker is a -123 favorite in this game, although the total hasn’t been set yet. The wind is blowing out to right field at roughly 5 mph, but the temperature is sitting under 40 degrees. In other words, the weather is going to favor the pitching in this game. Walker’s posted 13.9 and 20.2 fantasy points in his starts this season. His advanced metrics back up his success, although it’s still early in the season. Walker is a risky option, but he’s cheap and boasts plenty of strikeout upside in this matchup.
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