My name is Chris Randone and If you ever watched The Bachelor or The Bachelorette, then you know getting a rose means everything. It symbolized the guy or girl giving them out has an interest in you. When you get a rose, it means you survive to keep fighting for love.
Well in daily fantasy sports it’s no different. We go through a list of players deciding who will survive and make the cut into our lineups. These players fight to help us win. A true definition of love. I’ve learned being on the show that you never give out roses just for fun, there has to be a meaning behind it. We’ll take that same approach here. Tonight’s rose ceremony I’ll give my Top Stack, Top Pitcher, Surprise Pitcher, & Surprise Stack of this main slate.
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Top Stack
Tampa Bay Rays, will you accept this rose?
The Tampa Bay Rays hold the second highest run implied total (5.4) on tonight’s slate. The Rays are projected to have little to no ownership across their lineup. Tampa will face Rick Porcello in Fenway Park. Porcello owns a putrid 18.6 percent strikeout rate this season. The Boston righty has struggled in 2019 giving up 43 runs and 11 home runs in 12 games started. Porcello has struggled with his sinker and his fastball velocity ranks below average compared to the league. Tampa Bay is a top 10 team against right-handed pitching on the road this season. The Rays currently rank sixth in ISO (.207), wRC+ (116), and wOBA (.343). Austin Meadows leads the league with a .538 wOBA and 246 wRC+ against right-handed pitching on the road. Willy Adames .432 wOBA and Brandon Lowe’s .417 wOBA both rank top 25 in the league against right-handed pitching on the road.
Keys to rostering the Rays:
- Current Awesemo projections have the Rays going very low-owned
- Tampa holds the second highest run implied total
- Ballpark upgrade
- Facing Struggling right hander
Top Pitcher
Mike Soroka, will you accept this rose?
It’s fair to say the Marlins hot streak might be over after getting dominated by CY Peralta last game in Milwaukee. The Marlins now come home to face Mike Soroka and the Atlanta Braves. Soroka has been solid this season surrendering a 32.5 hard hit percent and giving up no power to either side of the plate (one home run giving up all season). The Braves ace will face a team that struggles with power and hitting. The Marlins strikeout fifth most in the league at home versus right-handed hitters (25.8%). Miami ranks dead last in ISO (.105) at home against righties. Soroka will have a ballpark upgrade favored in this matchup. Mike Soroka will be low owned, he draws the fifth highest win percentage amongst pitchers, and owns the third highest projection total on tonight’s slate.
Keys to rostering the Soroka:
- Best matchup possible for Soroka
- Low ownership expected
- Facing a team that struggles heavily against righties especially at home
- Owns 2nd highest ceiling on tonight’s slate
Surprise Pitcher
Andrew Heaney, will you accept this rose?
Andrew Heaney just threw a quality six inning start at Seattle where he struck out 10 batters and threw 92 pitches in just his second start of the season. The Seattle Mariners own the third highest strikeout rate (28.1%) against lefties on the road this season. The Mariners currently rank second in home runs with 115 but the majority of their power is against right-handed pitching with 88 home run coming against righties. Seattle has produced only seven home runs on the road this season against left-handed pitching. The Mariners rank bottom of the league in ISO (.139) and wRC (25). Heaney seems to be in line to throw a decent amount of pitchers to give confidence in rostering him. The Angels pitcher is currently projected for single digit ownership and fifth highest projected pitcher.
