FanDuel Pitching Primer: Tuesday 8/11/20
In daily fantasy baseball, success starts with nailing the starting pitcher spot in your lineup.
When compared to hitters, pitching performance tends to be much more predictable and stable throughout the course of the season. You know what you're getting from a top-level ace when you roster him: probably a dominant effort with only one or two implosions per season. In contrast, even the game's best hitters have days at the plate when they go 0-for-4.
As a result, lineup construction should begin with the starting pitcher. Which pitchers should you consider on today's main slate?
High-Priced Option
Zack Wheeler, Philadelphia Phillies
Vs Baltimore Orioles
FanDuel Price: $9,000
On tonight's main slate, there are three pitchers at $9,000 or above, and as much as rostering a guy like Zack Wheeler of the Philadelphia Phillies is about his matchup against the Baltimore Orioles as it is focusing on the top-end options.
Max Scherzer may be taking the ball tonight, but after leaving his last start after only a single inning, I cannot stomach that price point. Next up is the very solid Dylan Bundy who should see high ownership rates, and rightfully so -- he was masterful in his last outing firing a complete game shutout, and Orioles fans are weeping at his departure.
But with Bundy facing a hot Oakland Athletics squad that seems to have turned a corner offensively, and also checks in with a .195 isolated power (ISO) mark and only a 23.1% strikeout rate against right-handed pitching, that pivots us to Wheeler.
And boy is Wheeler's matchup juicy. The Orioles boast only a .305 wOBA against righties this season, including an ugly 33.2% hard-hit rate. Factoring in the worts of the other high-end starters, I'm spending up on Wheeler.
Mid-Priced Play
Mike Minor, Texas Rangers
vs Seattle Mariners
FanDuel Price: $7,500
I'm going to take a stab that the Texas Rangers do not open up their ballpark roof tonight, after the shellacking the Seattle Mariners put on them a night ago.
But truth be told, Mike Minor still makes for a very strong play tonight. The Mariners own a paltry .322 wOBA against southpaws this season, and aren't making a ton of hard contact with a 32.5% hard-hit rate in the split.
While the 23.2% strikeout rate is only middling at best for us to attack, we peg Minor for the highest score on tonight's main slate. If you need to save some bucks, check out Minor.
Low-Priced Play
Brandon Bielak, Houston Astros
vs San Francisco Giants
FanDuel Price: $6,600
After a night of just some silly offensive performances, we get to target a poor San Francisco Giants offense with Brandon Bielak making the first start in a double-tap this week.
Some points to consider about Bielak -- like a guy we recommended yesterday (Randy Dobnak), he does not possess massive swing-and-miss ability in his profile. In peeking at his minor league stops throughout his career, he has posted sub-25% strikeout rates in each of his last three stops. That generally does not portend for massive numbers in the MLB.
What is juicy? The Giants very poor offensive marks against right-handed pitching. They own a putrid .305 wOBA, 24.2% strikeout rate, and only a .166 ISO in this split. That ain't kosher, fam.
If you need to think about a very cheap option, peep Bielak.
Matt Kupferle is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Matt Kupferle also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username MKupferle. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
