It feels so good to be back in the DFS saddle, does it not? I don’t know about you, but I’ve been taking it easy this first week. This week has been full of weird start times, random lineup decisions and even a snow out for Pete’s sake! SNOW! With a near full slate today, though, it’s a fine time to jump on in. It’s appropriate there’s a game at Coors today too, since I’m a big Coors stacker. Today will be no different and for those choosing to play the all day or 4 o’clock start time I would like to turn your attention to Jabari Blash. Blash was in the Mariners system for some time and was left exposed to the Rule 5 draft after bashing 32 HRs across two minor league levels last year. The A’s snagged him, traded him to San Diego and now here we are. You may not have heard of Blash, so here’s the 3 second scouting report. Blash can mash. Need more? Well, he doesn’t hit for average and he strikes out a lot, but that power! A little deeper dive shows us a .305 ISO last year in the minors, part of that was in the PCL, but still, the power is legit. Do you know what scores a lot of points in DraftKings games? Home runs, that’s what. Do you know what doesn’t count against batters in the DraftKings games? Strikeouts. Blash in Coors, even for the elevated price tag of $4,000 is worth a shot. Check the lineup and if he’s in, jump all over the somewhat unknown masher and reap the rewards. Let’s see what other picks we can unearth for the Friday slate.
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Jaime Garcia, SP: $9,400 – Jaime is the NL version of Clay Buchholz, great when healthy, rarely healthy. Luckily, it’s too early in the season for Jaime to be hurt yet, so ride him while you can, especially against the woeful Braves. The Braves at this point are Freddie Freeman and a bunch of guys. They weren’t a team to strike out a lot last season, but I could see that number increasing with this year’s squad. He’s one of the bigger favorites on the night and with Liriano above him and Taijuan Walker below, he could go overlooked.
Yordano Ventura, SP: $9,200 – Yordano is another favorite that could go overlooked. Walker is priced right above him and the much more interesting Marcus Stroman is right below. I like to target these types that could get lost in the fray. Yordano probably should have been KC’s opening day starter. He can chuck it for a string bean and should be good for a half dozen Ks or so. If nothing else he should strikeout Sano 3 times.
Matt Shoemaker, SP: $6,200 – I really wouldn’t recommend the dumpster dive on pitching tonight, it has all the makings of a dumpster fire. If you choose to dip below Stroman/Hammel I’d recommend scrolling all the way down to the Cobbler. I can’t quit this guy, I don’t know why, he’s done me so wrong and yet, I come crawling back. It’s the lack of walks that I’m a sucker for. Pitchers that don’t force trouble on themselves with free passes are great to have around. The upside here is nice; Vegas has him favored against A.J. Griffin and the Rangers. Yes, that A.J. Griffin. I didn’t know either, it’s OK.
Carlos Perez, C: $2,400 – I’m a punter of catchers, it’s what I do. When punting I look cheap and look for any small advantage to elevate one of the bottom dwellers. Something like facing a pitcher that hasn’t pitched in an MLB game since 2013 works. By the way, I’ll just be focusing on the 7 o’clock start time from here on out. If you’re playing the full day slate, you know how to work the Coors advantage.
Albert Pujols, 1B: $4,100 – I feel like Grey after the Y! F&F draft. “Did you see how cheap I got Pujols for tonight”? Oh and can you tell I’m planning on picking on tonight? Sorry A.J., nothing personal, it’s just business.
Matt Adams, 1B: $3,100 – Since I’m planning on paying up for pitching tonight, we might have to dig deep in a couple spots. M(F)atty Adams is just the ticket. I’m still a believer in the big boy, but this is really his last season to pull something decent out of his hat. He should be seeing all or most RHP this year and I’ll take a shot on Wisler being a little nervous pitching the home opener.
Kolten Wong, 2B: $3,600 – See what I said above about Wisler and the same applies here. Wong is another lefty that should be able to get after Wisler and make for a long night for him.
Scooter Gennett, 2B: $3,200 – Scooter is another great way to save some cash. He’s great on gas and can clobber RHP. His .344 career wOBA vs. RHP is about as good as you’ll find at 2B and for this price tag.
Evan Longoria, 3B: $4,000 – Our BvP special of the night. Longoria has hit Tillman to the tune of 16/49 with 6, count ‘em SIX dingers.
Josh Harrison, 2B/3B: $3,800 – Alfredo Simon is still a thing huh? I’m on board with that as it means we get one more year to stack against him on a regular basis. I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see a 2 IP, 7 ER outing here and I want a piece or two of that action.
Carlos Correa, SS: $4,900 – Just give me all the Correa. Boring pick, I know, I just can’t get away from him. I think I’ve provided enough value picks that you can squeeze the stud in. He should be priced up with Trout and gets Chase Anderson in the Brewer band box. Yes please.
Gregory Polanco, OF: $4,300 – Grey’s heartthrob gets to jump on the Alfredo Simon beat down tonight as well. I want as many Pirates as I can squeeze in and Polanco is the cheapest of the three OFs.
Jorge Soler, OF: $4,000 – With Schwarber getting dinged last night and a LHP in Ray going for Arizona, maybe, just maybe, Maddon can find some room for Soler. If so, I’m all aboard the Soler train. The only reason I hopped off was playing time concerns. It was never a matter of talent.
Corey Dickerson, OF: $3,700 – This is a great price range for outfielders tonight. There is solid talent without breaking the bank. Dickerson has shown already that his power stroke wasn’t all Coors related and Chris Tillman is always prone to giving up long balls.
Kevin Pillar, OF: $3,700 – Joe Kelly is a relief pitcher that the Sawx are trying to make into a starter. I don’t see how this flies and I’m ready to pounce on this mistake with all the Blue Jays. Pillar in the leadoff spot of that murder’s row for under $4,000 is an absolute steal. This game features the second highest point total from Vegas and I’m not sure how much of that is coming from the Sawx lineup vs. Stroman.
I’m Only Happy When It Rains
Things are looking surprisingly dry out there right now. The only game of concern is in Cincinnati where it might rain on our Alfredo Simon hit parade.
Doing Lines In Vegas
Marcus Stroman and Taijuan Walker share top favorite honors each with a -170. Taijuan’s game features a half run lower total, though, checking in at 8 runs. The highest over/under of the night belongs to the Houston @ Milwaukee tilt which comes in at 9 runs. On the other side of things, Jaime Garcia and the Cardinals vs. the Braves has the lowest total of the night with just 7 runs.
