I’d like to start off by apologizing. Seriously I’m sorry. The whole ordeal was awful. I came on here waxed poetic about Carlos “F*$?#!G” Frias and what does he do? He goes out and proceeds to Main Street Grand Salami’s, hangs 10 earned, and scores negative 19 points on DraftKings. I repeat NEGATIVE NINETEEN POINTS! That has to go down as the single worst piece of advice ever printed on Razzball. Needless to say Frias is on my donzo list. So if you decide to avoid any players I suggest this week I can’t say I blame you. For everyone else still left, there’s a lesson in my failure. Cheap pitching on DraftKings is risky. Some days you boom and find the gem of the contests other times you get Friased. I’m not sure the stink of that choice will ever truly wash away. Nevertheless I’m dusting myself off and stepping back up to the plate with a whole new list of DraftKings plays. Hey they can’t be any worse than last week’s. Right?!?
New to DraftKings? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well try out this 20 teamer of Razzball writers and friends to wet your DK whistle. Just remember to sign up through us before you do. It’s how we know you care! If you still feel helpless and lonely, be sure to subscribe to the DFSBot for your daily baseball plays.
Madison Bumgarner, SP: $10,300 – This is the best pitching play of the day hands down. Do I need to elaborate? Nope!
Danny Salazar, SP: $8,500 – This is the second best choice of the day according to the Streamonator. Valuing Salazar at $24.2. He faces a Mariners lineup that ranks 6th in K%. In the DraftKings format strikeouts should be your only consideration. Salazar is very affordable at $8,500 and there’s a ton of upside here.
Bartolo Colon, SP: $6,900 – Look I’m no expert I can’t tell you if this Colon is full of shite or not. However I can tell you the Marlins have been awful and Colon hasn’t been much better the past 6 starts. So it’s some garbage on garbage crime. The numbers tell me to gamble on Colon and hope it’s a difference maker in some of the bigger contests.
Tanner Roark, SP: $6,000 – The Streamonator and the price on DraftKings tell me I’m crazy. Sorry but I trust Roark so he’ll probably allow 8 earned runs in 3 innings. Damn you bad luck. If he’s stretched out enough to throw 100 pitches he could be a great play. In his first turn in the rotation he looked good allowing only 1 run and 4 baserunners in 5 innings of work. He threw just 66 pitches so expecting 100 this time out might be expecting too much. The Reds are just a middle of the road offense so I’m not sure where the caution tape is coming from. Hey look a dead body!
Evan Gattis, C: $4,300 – John Danks is awful, that’s the beginning and end of it. Gattis has been bad against LHP all year, but John Danks might be the cure all. I love a catch with a shot at a homer, and I’m willing to pay for it.
Anthony Rizzo, 1B: $5,000 – Does anybody else hear the name Rizzo and immediately think about the Jerky Boys? Unfortunately due to yesterday’s rainout we’ll miss the home run fest that was sure to ensue with Jeremy Guthrie on the mound. Just knowing how homer prone Guthrie is would have been enough to convince anyone to invest heavily in Cubs power hitters. So with Yordano Ventura on the mound where do we go now? All the Cubs were priced for a matchup with Guthrie. Does a date with Ventura kill all of their upside? The answer is simple, for right handed bats yes most of the value is gone. This means I’d probably avoid Kris Bryant ($4,700) and Addison Russell ($3,800). But the left-handed Rizzo’s value remains, Ventura’s allowing 1.78 HR per 9 to LHB. So there’s a good chance at least one of the Cubs lefthanded bats goes yard. I’d consider Miguel Montero at catcher too.
Logan Forsythe, 2B/3B: $3,100 – This is so low it feels criminal. Forsythe has been consistently been underpriced on DraftKings. I do have to acknowledge that Forsythe is 1/11 lifetime vs Orioles starter Chris Tillman. But here’s the funny thing about BvP, two extra base hits and his lifetime numbers don’t look so bad.
Pedro Alvarez, 1B/3B: $3,600 – In the month of May, Alvarez is a top 10 3rd baseman on DraftKings. Combine that with his .369 wOBA and .878 OPS vs RHP and you have yourself a great buy. One homer is all you need and that’s what Pedro can give ya.
Evan Longoria, 3b: $4,200 – Whenever Chris Tillman is on the mound I use Longo in a few of my lineups. The numbers are great and it’s a big sample size (obligatory that’s what she said). He has a 1.400 OPS against Tillman in 38 at bats. 9 of his 15 hits all time against the O’s righty have gone for extra bases including 6 homers.
Preston Tucker, OF: $3,800 – Anyone else want to go cheap in the outfield? All three of the outfielders I’m going to feature cost less than $3,800 and will help you spend your dollars on big bats and pitching. Tucker has hit 3rd in the Astros order for the past four games and the results have been solid. In 20 big league plate appearances vs LHP Tucker is hitting .389. Multiply that by John Danks and you’ll have a very odd math problem. They never taught me how to represent garbage lefties numerically.
Nori Aoki, OF: $3,800 – Over the last week only Andrew McCutchen and Michael Cuddyer have been hotter than Aoki. I’m more than happy to take the discount and pair him up against a Julio Teheran that’s been mediocre at best. Small sample size but Aoki is 3/4 lifetime vs Teheran.
Randal Grichuk, OF $3,600 – The last of my penny pinching outfield suggestions. He’s hitting .333 since returning to the lineup in Mid-May and is another cheap option with good upside and a high floor. 3 of his 5 career homers have come vs. LHP and he just so happens to see one today in Brett Anderson.
I’m Only Happy When It Rains
With the Cubs and Royals affair being rained out yesterday I’m happy to say it looks as though we’ll avoid any rainouts for today’s slate. The only game with any threat of precipitation is the Mets – Marlins affair at Citi.
We have strong winds blowing out to right (12 mph) in the Yankees – A’s game, and to center (13 mph) in the Braves – Giants contest. Winds are always worth paying attention to when they reach double digit.
Doing Lines In Vegas
Not surprisingly Madison Bumgarner and the Giants are the biggest favorites of the day at -195 with the under over listed at 6.5.
The Pirates are an underdog at San Diego but I like their chances at +100. Then again I’m putting my faith in Jeff Locke, and that’s scary.
Tampa Bay is another dog I like at +110 with Odorizzi taking on Tillman.
Follow me on Twitter @ralphlifshitzbb or challenge me on DraftKings @ Puigroast
