I’ve got serious questions surrounding the top pitching options today. Strasburg could quite possibly be the most overrated pitcher in the National League if not all of baseball. He gets owned by the Braves. James Shields faces the surging Detroit offense who he has a history of having trouble with. Samardzija has a history of really wearing down in September. If I have to go with one of the top salaried guys in DraftKings today, I’m taking Hisashi Iwakuma. His K rate versus the Astros is around 25% and they love to strike out. He still has some matchup issues with them so I’m going to fade all of the top salaried pitchers on DraftKings today.
Taking risks is the name of the game in DFS and I’m rolling the dice with the surging Rockies youngster Tyler Matzek. With a thrifty price tag of only $7,300 and facing a Mets squad who just lost its leading threat against lefties in David Wright for the year, Matzek should be poised to deliver plenty of value for today’s DraftKings contests. Matzek has historically struggled with his control in the minor leagues, but seems to have figured things out the “Rockies way”. They preach pitching to contact and he’s relinquished his obsession with getting punch outs in lieu of letting guys on base. Since joining the senior circuit he’s lowered his WHIP by nearly .2 and his ERA has been cascading downward of late. He’s made 4 consecutive quality starts with a streak of 21 consecutive scoreless innings heading into his matchups against the Mets. Metco suppresses hitting as we all know and the Mets hold the 3rd worst wOBA versus southpaws and the 2nd worst K rate in all of baseball.
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With Matzek at the eye of the Schlurricane today, here’s the rest of the destructive debris to wreak havoc on your opponents.
Matt Shoemaker, P: $8,800: Matzek will save you cash and Shoemaker will make you a set of Jordans FTW. Shit, I promised myself I wouldn’t ever put that in writing. I guess I gotta get with the times ya’ll. “The Cobbler” as I’ll affectionately call him, has a nice matchup versus the Rangers who really have no shits left to give. The Halos are as hot as it gets in baseball right now and should nearly guarantee him 4 points for the win. He’s got a K/9 of 8.65 and besides his last shorty against the Red Hot Twinkie bats – I just got a terrible idea for Hostess – he had posted 22+ scoreless innings. What can I say? He got sole.
Buster Posey, C/1B: $5,200 – The hottest hitter on the planet right now is also today’s best BvP matchup as he’s reached base 10 of 13 times against Josh Collmenter adding in 2 HRs. I did the math for you. That’s a .857 wOBA against Collmenter. You bust believe I got Posey in every lineup combination I made today.
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B: $4,500 – The Dodgers seem to designate one guy to be hot at a time. During that time, nobody else is allowed to hit for power or have a hitting streak. It’s A-Gon’s turn. He’s got a .467 wOBA last 7 days and 5 HR in last 5 games. BvP isn’t great but isn’t bad today either. They need to win and the Dodger’s rocky road to the division crown needs a “Yo Adrian!” to get there.
Adam LaRoche, 1B: $4,500 – One of the best wOBA matchups today with a .391 against righties. He’s also one of the top BvP matchups as well with a .429 wOBA against Aaron Harang including 5 dongs in 44 PAs.
James Loney, 1B: $3,800 – Chris Capuano is atrocious at getting out lefties this year with a .430 wOBA against. Loney is really heating up going 7 for his last 10 with 2 HRs. He’s not been good against lefties per se, but he’s 4 for 7 against Capuano so he clearly sees him well. My top value play today.
Neil Walker, 2B/3B: $4,500 – He ain’t sexy but he’s been the best Bucco to own over the last 10 days. With a .471 wOBA in the last 7 days and an .835 OPS v RHP, facing the abysmal Jerome Williams is sexy. Williams grooves it to lefties with an .855 OPS against.
Aaron Hill, 2B: $3,500 – He hasn’t played regularly recently with the D-Backs completely out of contention and wanting to give playing time to younger players. However, when he’s been in the lineup recently he has produced tremendously going 7 for his last 16 with 2 doubles and a triple. He’s 13-25 career against Ryan Vogelsong with 5 XBH (2 HRs). If he starts today he should be a great value.
Alex Gordon, OF: $4,700 – The Royals love to feast on Rick Porcello who has been beaten up in recent outings and could be wearing down from his career best season. Gordon should lead the charge today as the most prominent power/speed threat the Royals have. In 34 ABs against Porcello he holds a .902 OPS with a swipe and two dongs.
Josh Willingham, OF: $3,700 – Willingham’s presence in the Royals lineup has really helped them out since his arrival. He hasn’t been scorching hot of late, but hasn’t gone ice cold either and his price tag is fantastic right now. He’s got a .670 wOBA against Porcello in the past and this is a great stack today. Look for Eric Hosmer, Billy Butler, and Omar Infante as well.
I’m Only Happy When It Rains
KC @ DET looks like it’s gonna be a weather debacle. Yeah, so I got nothing strong for you in the outfield. I like Kole Calhoun, Mike Trout and Nelson Cruz to replace, although pricier…
Doing Lines in Vegas
Stackables – Angels are the best stack according to the sharps with a 9.5 O/U… that or my Shoemaker pick is crap. I think it means he’s the best bet for a dubbya…
Pitchers of Sharps – TB @ NYY is at 6.5 today meaning Crapuano and/or Jake Odorizzi should be money. Odorizzi gets the K’s so I’d go that route if you trust the bookies.
