2019 Draft Kit
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The best daily/weekly Player projections (hitters, starters, and relievers) for each of the next 7-10 days + next calendar week starting Friday. Kick-ass DFS lineup optimizer and projections for DraftKings, FanDuel, and Yahoo!.
The only reason Junis has the lede is because his name enabled the title. His points per start is piss poor at 10.25 points and it seems he must have eaten some stale matzah before Friday night’s start in New York because it was terrible. Here are my four questions. Why is this night different from all nights? It’s not. Jakob’s performance really put a damper on seders throughout the fantasy community. However… I am still a believer. In Junis that is. After all it has only been four starts. My preseason estimations had him at about 13 and change points per start, but I was/am optimistic that he’d outperform those numbers. I still think he gets there, but he has some work to do. In 22 innings he does have 24 strikeout. So there’s that. Like I said, it’s only been four starts. Look at Jameson Taillon, he’s averaging 8.75 points per start. Anyone ready to throw in the towel on him yet? I do realize that we are talking about pitchers of differing pedigree, but the point is four starts a season does not make. Instead of Junis, let’s take a look at a few starting pitchers that are off to an excellent start (pun intended).
Please, blog, may I have some more?
Lyles Got Styles You Don’t Wanna Passover
April 20, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 45 Commentsby: Dan Pants
Jordan Lyles was exceptional Friday night capturing his second win of the year going six strong innings allowing just four hits, a walk and striking out six. He now leads the league with a 0.53 ERA. Mazel tov, Jordan, and happy Pesach! Well, someone clearly did not observe the High Sabbath last night. He had better things to do, busy mowing down the San Francisco hitters. So is the Bucs pitching coach Ray Searage is a miracle worker or a Three Eyed Raven or some kind of warg magic man?? The Pirates pitching staff now boasts a league best 2.54 ERA. But back to Jordan. Lyles has now struck out 16 over his past two starts and holds some real pretty ratios like that league leading 0.53 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP with an 19/5 K/BB. Yes, more please. Put that on your seder plate. After the all star break last year, Lyles started relying more on a combination of his curve ball and 4-seam fastball and benefited from this greatly posting a 3.00 ERA with hitters batting just .213 against him. His curve ball, in particular, can be pretty nasty when its on and when he’s mixing in the 4-seamer effectively Jordan has looked like a dominant pitcher. Seems like he’s brought this strategy with him to Pittsburgh and things with Searage have clicked. He had his outing shortened Friday after taking a line drive off the hand but the injury does not appear to be serious and he is expected to make his next start Wednesday versus Arizona. Lyles is available in over 75% of fantasy leagues and worth your streaming consideration at the very least. He’s starting to look like a steal for Pittsburgh, and he seems like a real mensch you may not want to Pass over!
Here’s what else I saw in fantasy baseball Friday night:
Please, blog, may I have some more?
FanDuel: Lauer-ing The Boom
April 20, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, 2019 Fantasy Baseball DFS, DFS, FanDuel | 5 Commentsby: MattTruss
Happy Easter Eve to you all, I wish you all the best of luck tomorrow in your adult Easter egg hunts. Yes, that is actually a thing and yes, I’m just as surprised as you to learn about them. We’ve got a very odd slate scheduled for this Saturday. There are several games in the 4-6 o’clock hour that FanDuel is choosing to ignore unless you spring for the “All Day” slate. The rainouts yesterday have wreaked havoc as well. There is also a 4 game early slate, but we’ll be focusing on the Main Slate today which is the standard 7 PM ET time slot. We’ve got 5 games to cover here including everyone’s favorite, Coors Field! For my best value starting pitcher on the main slate I’m springing for Eric Lauer ($7,300). We love us some Hodgepadres around these parts and Lauer fits the bill perfectly. Lauer’s 4.51 FIP isn’t the most inspiring thing but his opponent isn’t either. The Reds haven’t exactly been dynamite to start the season, in fact, they have the league’s 6th worst team OPS. I’m banking on the mediocre pitcher here taking down the mediocre offense. On a day with jacked up Coors bat prices, I like the discount at SP that Lauer allows.
New to FanDuel? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well, be sure to read our content and subscribe to the DFSBot for your daily baseball plays. Just remember to sign up through us before jumping into the fray. It’s how we know you care!
Please, blog, may I have some more?
Baseball Podcast: Is This A Baseball Podcast Or What??
April 20, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, All Podcasts | 7 Commentsby: B_Don
The Ditka Pod is once again graced with the presence of Fantasy Master Lothario Albright this week. After an ad nauseam discussion regarding the confusing nature of the podcast name (it’s a play on SNL’s Super Fans by the way), Grey breaks down B_Don & Donkey’s recent blockbuster trade in the RCL Perts League.
Then it’s time for some early season victory laps where Tim Anderson, German Marquez, and Jose Ramirez are examined at length. Other topics of discussion include fantasy strategy in the extra juiced ball era, expectations for Chris Sale & Jacob deGrom moving forward, Hunter Dozier’s ongoing breakout, whether Miguel Cabrera is a pile of sh*t, and the mostly irrelevant Mike Ford. Uncontrollable giggles and sausage will flow when Master Grey comes around.
Please, blog, may I have some more? The number one prerequisite for being in the Buy column is being owned in less than 50% of leagues. Hey, we all need cut-offs, which is why I’m wearing jorts. However, I wanted to write about Hunter Dozier so badly, I didn’t check his ownership numbers. We’ve got a full-on Grey crush! *turns over Trapper Keeper, looks for room between scribblings of Giancarlo and hearts* If I had any room on my Trapper Keeper, I’d add Hunter Dozier’s name. Exit velocity isn’t everything. Heck, it might not be anything, especially this early, but it at least means a hitter is squarely up the ball and putting a charge into it like Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. Some names surrounding Dozier on the Hard Hit charts: Pete Alonso, Gary Sanchez, J.D. Martinez and Joc Pederson. Again, small samples and all, but Dozier has averaged 430 feet on his home run. Hit the ball hard and far? It’s a pretty nice recipe for success. Another thing in his favor is his walks are way up and his Ks are down. He is profiling as a 30-homer, .280 hitter right now. Even though his name sounds like a Cal-King mattress, don’t sleep on Dozier! Anyway, here’s some more players to Buy or Sell this week in fantasy baseball:
Please, blog, may I have some more?
Another week, another round of tweaked hammies (hope you’re as not-really-hurt as you claim, Jean Segura!), nightmare pitching (thanks for nothing, Corbin Burnes!), and various trials and tribulations that cause headaches for any fantasy owner, but are particularly excruciating for those of us in the deepest of leagues, where suitable waiver-wire replacements range from nearly-impossible-to-come-by to completely non-existent. Once again, here’s hoping you’re avoiding as many of those headaches as possible while we take a look at players who may be of some interest to those in NL-only, AL-only, and other deep leagues.
Please, blog, may I have some more?
Bullpen Report, Week 4: Everybody Hurts
April 19, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, Closers, Middle Relievers | 15 Commentsby: Roto-Wan
Raise your hand if the juiced ball isn’t affecting your high priced pitcher yet. Not so fast Blake Snell owners, he’s on the IL with a broken toe via clumsy furniture moving. You’re going to be in the mean streets of relief appearances with the rest of us now. You can throw on some REM and cry in the shower or work at filling some gaps. A well-aimed non-closer can certainly pay dividends. There’s something below for whatever ails you. I don’t include anyone getting regular saves in the ranks.
Please, blog, may I have some more?
FanDuel: Should You PassoVerlander?
April 19, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, DFS, FanDuel | 3 Commentsby: VictoriaB
If one goes purely by Streamonator (SON), Justin Verlander is one’s top man on FanDuel today, for his match-up versus Texas. There will be Ks. There may be a win. But… JV is also the chalk play, and at $10,800 (I just choked on my Easter chocolate), he will cost you a third of your total lineup budget. I think we can do better than that. On this very Good Friday — which is also the first day of Passover and a day upon which I’m well chuffed to be here for the first time this season, pinch-hitting for Richardo — let us explore some ideas beyond the obvious. Some of them might be gambles, but hey, we’re here to gamble, right?
New to FanDuel? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well, be sure to read our content and subscribe to the DFSBot for your daily baseball plays. Just remember to sign up through us before jumping into the fray. It’s how we know you care!
Please, blog, may I have some more?
Circle, Circle, Dot, Dot, Cody With Another Shot
April 19, 2019 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 513 Commentsby: Grey
Due to the light schedule, let’s drill down on Cody Bellinger (2-for-4 and his 10th homer, hitting .432). If man love bothers you, perhaps you should shield your eyes. This could become naughty, and, yes, I need to remove my pants to write the rest of this. Cody is 2 1/2 home runs from being halfway to last year’s homer total. How does one hit a 1/2 of a home run? You hit it out of the park, then pimp with a bat flip so long you get tackled rounding 2nd. Right now, Bellinger’s HR/FB% is absurd. He’s not even hitting that many fly balls. It’s just everything he touches goes bim-bam-zoom to the moon. Can that continue, you ask with your doe eyes and soft lips. You drafted Goodrum on too many teams, because you sound drunk. Of course, it won’t continue. His launch angle last year, when he hit 25 homers, was 16 degrees. This year it’s 13. He is hitting the ball damn hard, though. He’s third in the majors with 96 MPH average exit velocity. I’d be shocked if he hits less than 35 homers, but I also don’t think he’s going to hit more than his career high of 39 homers, if his fly ball rate holds. His strikeout rate has absolutely cratered, in a good way, but, of course, when a guy is hitting well, he’s not striking out. He will go cold, turkey, and cold turkey on power at some point. It’s early, yadda-blabbity-bloo, so don’t panic sell. He’s now a legit top 15 bat vs. the top 40 one we thought he might be in the preseason. Now, I will put back on my linen Tommy Bahama pants and continue. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:
Please, blog, may I have some more?
