Hey, hey my over the internet degenerates! It’s Sunday so that means your good buddy Honcho is here to bless you with the best DFS suggestions in the free world…..and Canada, of course. Anyway…..How are things on the west coast? I hear you’re moving real fine. At least that’s what Clint Hurdle wants us to believe. That’s why he’s offering up Chad Kuhl for our DraftKings pleasure today. Now, before you click out of this article because you think I’m bat s**t crazy, please hear me out. This is purely a tournament play. I like to really pivot away from the herd when I’m trying to strike it big in a GPP and this play qualifies as a major jab step. Kuhl represents a sizeable discount ($6,600) as far as a 2nd starter is concerned and with that kind of value we can apply the savings to a top tier arm or a couple big bats. In his last start, Kuhl recorded four strikeouts in six innings of work, while giving up just 2 runs. He did a great job of keeping the ball down in the zone – inducing ten ground outs compared to just four fly outs. In fact, Pittsburgh has won all five games that Kuhl has started this season – including games against the Cubs and Nationals. The Pirates’ right-hander isn’t Cy Young worthy, but he can be an effective pitcher in the right spot. Now, it could be my keen intuition or the 15 Zima’s I’ve slammed while writing this, but Sunday afternoon in Chavez Ravine seems to be one of those spots. The Dodgers are striking out at a 21% clip this year and their .313 wOBA ranks just 20th in all of baseball. Kuhl has made just two starts on the road this season, but he carries a 1.50 ERA and 0.67 WHIP away from home, so we have that to lean on. Again, this is a dart that you’ll only want to throw if you’re trying to win some simoleons in a tournament. It’s worth a shot and no matter what happens, I’ll still be the best friend you’ve never met. Here’s a look at my favorite suggestions for today’s slate:
New to DraftKings? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well reserve your spot in the 25 Team Razzball Exclusive League set to run Monday August 15th to wet your DK whistle. Just remember to sign up through us before you do. Wanna know what the best part is about signing up with us? The free subscription for the rest of the season to our DFSBot, that’s what! For details on the how to, please visit our Razzball Subscriptions page.
Chris Sale, SP: $12,000 – Well here’s some chalk for ya…….Sale has thrown four consecutive quality starts and while his 8.9 K/9 might not be up to his usual standards – it should be good enough against a Marlins’ bunch striking out 22.6%of the time vs LHP with a .735 OPS.
Luis Severino, SP: $6,500 – This little gem is brought to you by the best resource in the DFS biz…..The DFSBot. The Bot has Severino listed as the 6th best play today as far as pitchers go and with the friendly price tag, this could be the play of the day. The Rays are a traveling whiff machine as they own a 24.3% K-rate and a .307 OBP.
John Lackey, SP: $10,900 – The Cubs are rolling and more often than not provide excellent run support for their starters. Lackey looks dialed in after inducing 12 swing and miss strikes and tossing 17 first pitch strikes to the 27 batters he faced in his last outing vs the Angels. He’s also thrown four straight quality starts and owns a 23:4 K:BB ratio in 27 IP over that stretch. Usually I try to avoid Narrative Street, especially when the revenge angle is on display, but Lackey should control this game rather easily today. He’ll probably do it by applying The Boston crab on Mike Matheny before the first pitch.
Steven Matz, SP: $8,800 – This match up has “Don’t do it” written all over it. The Padres have had their way with left-handers recently and unless Matz’ has become ambidextrous over the last five days, he’ll be pitching with, you guessed it – his left hand. Have no fear my brave and noble DFSers……The Mets will respond to Terry Collins’ wishes and “sack up” today at Citi Field. Remember, San Diego has produced a 91 wRC+, which ranks 22nd, a bottom third OPS and a 24.4% strikeout rate. Considering his recent struggles, he might be lightly owned and a nice GPP candidate.
Johnny Cueto, SP: $11,100 – This feels dirty. The Orioles are a pretty intimidating bunch, but considering this tilt is in pitcher friendly AT&T Park, my trepidation has waned a bit. Over the last Baltimore has produced a .304 OBP, .714 OPS and 90 wRC+. That’s very pedestrian my friends. Johnny with the good hair should be a safe play today.
Buster Posey, C: $4,400 – A bit pricey, but Posey destroys left-handers to the tune of a .382 wOBA, .214 ISO and a 38% hard contact rate. Posey also owns a career 1.007 OPS vs Wade Miley in 25 career at-bats. Miley will take the hill for the O’s and all he’s done vs right-handers this year is allow 16 HR and a .350 wOBA. Fun.
Carlos Santana, 1B: $4,700 – To say Santana loves seeing Jered Weaver on the bump would be putting it mildly. In 27 career at-bats Santana has produced a .556/.613/.889 slash line, while belting two home runs.
Trea Turner, 2B/OF: $4,700 – Another great call by the DFSBot. Turner has been scorching hot in August, logging four multi-hit games, 3 HR and 7 RBI. Braves starter Tyrell Jenkins has allowed a .451 wOBA to right-handers on the road this season.
Tim Anderson, SS: $3,100 – Here’s where we save that money, kids. Anderson has been on a heater the past week, batting .333 with a .387 OBP over his last 7 games.
Kris Bryant, 3B/OF: $5,100 – This is almost too easy, like low-hanging fruit easy. Bryant has launched 17 HR and owns a .884 OPS against righties this year, while Mike Leake has allowed a .375 wOBA on the road to RHB this season. Boom. Lock it up!
Maikel Franco, 3B: $3,600 – If you’re looking to save some cash at the hot corner, Franco might be your guy. Since the start of the 2015 season, Franco is hitting .272 with a .488 SLG% at Citizens Bank Park.
Billy Hamilton, OF: $5,200 – He’s criminally under-owned most days and I have no idea why. Hamilton has turned in three games of at least three steals this week, bringing his total to 29 since the All-Star break. He’s also scored 8 runs in over his last 7 games.
George Springer, OF: $3,800 – Springer has reached base safely in each of his last 7 games and he owns a .340 wOBA vs RHP.
Kendrys Morales, 1B/OF: $4,200 – He’ll face off vs Hector Santiago, who’s allowed 19 of his 23 home runs this season to right-handers. Morales has racked up a .360 wOBA vs RHP this season.
Mookie Betts, OF: $5,400 – This is obviously a different version of Zack Greinke than we’re used to. Betts’ has been on fire over his last 7 games, hitting .357 with a 971 OPS. He’s also hit 17 of his 23 HR’s this year off of right-handers.
Ryan Braun, OF: $5,300 – Over the last two seasons, Braun has turned in a triple slash of .337/.421/.561 vs LHP. Cody Reed has allowed a .318 batting average and 10 HR to right-handers this year.
I’m Only Happy When It Rains
The weather looks mostly delightful for America’s pastime today, but be mindful of a few spots where a delay could occur. TB@NYY, SD@NYM, ARI@BOS & DET@TEX all carry a slight risk of some showers, but nothing that should compromise the game being completed.
Doing Lines In Vegas
Tanner Roark (-225) and Trevor Bauer (-192), oddly enough, are the biggest favorites on the board at this time. Steven Matz (-177) and Brett Anderson (-160) head up the second tier. Chris Sale (-125) should tell you all you need to know about how the sharks feel about the White Sox chances in South Florida today. If you’re looking for the biggest O/U for the day, here you go: CIN@MIL 9.5 – COL@PHI, KC@MIN, ATL@WAS, SEA@OAK, ARI@BOS, TB@NYY, HOU@TOR & LAA@CLE all carry an O/U of 9 runs. Good luck amigos.
