This is another solid pitching slate with a bunch of options at various price points on both sites. I’m a big fan of this slate as we’ve got 10 games to choose from, and one pitcher (who will be mentioned below) that lets you pay up for some bats and still get in a stud SP1. If you’re looking for some extra analysis on the slate, check out the MLB Strategy Video from this morning where we talked about every pitcher. Awesemo will start with a quote, and then I (Tommienation1) will follow up with some additional analysis.
Noah Syndergaard ($12,300 DK/$10,800 FD)
“Syndergaard has a great matchup against a Marlins team with a 3.3 team total that hasn’t shown much power.”
The Marlins low total says it all. Syndergaard is a bonafide ace going up against a team with very little pop, posting the league’s lowest ISO in 2018 and is also in the bottom-10 in On-Base Percentage. Almost everyone in their lineup strikes out over 20% of the time against righties, and Syndergaard could see near 100 pitches after throwing 85 and 92 in his first two starts. This is probably the safe option on the board, but worth a spend-up in tournaments as he’s also one of the highest-upside plays.
Max Scherzer ($12,600 DK/$11,100 FD)
“Scherzer will face a Braves team that has a total of 3.4 and has some of the best strikeout stuff of anyone in the MLB, especially against righties.”
It won’t be the easiest matchup for Scherzer tonight as the Braves are lefty-heavy at the beginning of their order, but he does still strike out lefties at a 26.4% clip with an under 27% hard-contact rate. Awesemo has him as a “B” value on FanDuel tonight, and if there’s anyone that can navigate the top of the Braves lineup, it’s a guy with crazy swing-and-miss stuff like Scherzer, who is in the top-10 in the MLB in Whiff/Swing percentage this season.
Garrett Richards ($6,700 DK/$8,300 FD)
“Richards provides some nice value with upside on the road against a Rangers team that has many free-swinging lefties.”
This should be one of the more popular options on DraftKings, as Richards’ sub-$7K salary allows you to fit in a lot of great bats. He’ll face guys like Choo, Gallo, Mazara, Odor, and Drew Robinson, which are all guys that strikeout over 20% (some over 30%) against righties. Richards has a 42.15% Whiff/Swing-rate in his first two starts which puts him above other guys like Noah Syndergaard and Dylan Bundy, so he’s got some of the best stuff, as well as one of the best matchups on the entire slate but you get him at a big discount.
