The following Spotlight Pitchers were selected by Awesemo.com writer Jake Hari. For more analysis on the slate, check out Awesemo’s Rankings and Ownership Projections.
Chris Sale ($13,000 DK/$12,000 FD)
It’s never easy going into Yankee Stadium as a lefty, but Sale has already had a solid outing against this Yankee team this year, going 6 innings with 8 strikeouts in his 3rd start of the year. In that start, he had a 24.1% Swinging-Strike rate, which he has only topped once (in his most recent start versus Seattle). The Yankees strikeout at the 9th-highest rate against lefties this year and Sale will even get a couple lefties in the lineup tonight, making him the highest upside play on the night, and well worth the $13,000 on DraftKings.
Felix Hernandez ($8,100 DK/$7,800 FD)
The Felix play doesn’t have as much to do with him as it does with how bad the Royals have been lately. Over the last month against righties, Kansas City has a 53 wRC+ (worst in MLB), .120 ISO (3rd-worst), .255 OBP (worst), and they’re even striking out more (22.9% K-rate). Hernandez has pitched much better at home this year, posting a 21.2% K-rate, 48.5% Ground Ball rate, and just a 1.18 WHIP in Safeco. The projected ownership is worrisome, but his matchup is about as good as it gets, making him a solid option on either site.
Joey Lucchesi ($7,400 DK/$7,000 FD)
The Pirates broke out against a lefty last night for the first time in a while, but over the last month, they have still been one of the worst teams in the MLB versus southpaws, posting a 24.2% K-rate, .091 ISO, and 79 wRC+ in that time. Lucchesi ranks inside the top-30 in Whiffs/Swing% on the year, and even a lineup that features 7 righties shouldn’t scare you off, as he’s striking out 24% of them with a 1.29 WHIP this year. In a huge park at an affordable price on both sites, Lucchesi makes for a fun GPP option as a pivot from the other pitchers in his price range.