Did you try out the new Pick ‘Em format on DraftKings lats night?
I presented a lineup I submitted for a $4 large-field tournament. I didn’t have a lot of time yesterday to play DFS, so I left the lineup alone not knowing the Cleveland/Minny game had some rough weather. I would’ve pivoted to Judge in that first tier and would’ve had a solid night in that format.
I don’t know how much I will play moving forward, but it will take some getting used to if I do. I am sure this format and arcade mode will carry over into football season, I hope.
Tonight we have a small 5-game slate of action, but there are a few options that stand out tonight that we can use in our lineups.
And I may insert my foot into my mouth for this hot take, but on DraftKings, Edwin Jackson is a laughably ridiculous price of $8,300 dollars against the Padres.
I don’t know how much money you would have to pay me to coerce me into using Jackson tonight. There’s not way. No, just, no. He’s never a viable option and I don’t care if he is facing San Diego. As for the pitchers that are usable on this slate, see today’s picks below.
Jeff Samardzija – SP – San Francisco Giants – $9,300
Analysis: He is called the Shark after all, though I think Samardzija looks a lot more like Jabberjaw than Bruce. Either way, we don’t care about his looks in DFS baseball, we care about his ability to pitch deep into games, rack up Ks and get the win with as little damage done as possible. Well, the Shark gets a guppy to feast on tonight at home against the Phillies, who are 23rd in team wOBA and strike out at a 22% clip.
Aaron Judge – OF – New York Yankees – $5,500
Analysis: Not only has Judge become one of the more popular players in baseball for his hitting displays, he’s only started to become of the more futile players at the plate. He’s has a record of striking out in 30+ straight games and pitchers are starting approach him differently. The great ones find a way though and he’s starting to warm up again, sending a massive bomb out of the park on Wednesday. Today the Yankees get the overrated Steven Matz, a lefty who sometimes looks like a pitcher that can’t record outs in a T-Ball game. Judge is the lefty destroyer on this team, but he comes with a warranted hefty price. For safety purposes, I think Judge will throw his gavel down.
Luis Severino – SP – New York Yankees – $12,500
Analysis: The most expensive pitcher on today’s slate. That sentence did not play out very well for Yu Darvish, so I am hopeful that this price tag for Severino isn’t a jinx because he does has a sweet matchup against the Mets, who are not the Mets of old since trading away pieces this season. The Mets have a few bats that are heating up, but Severino has been very good on the road this season, recording a 2.59 ERA with just 5 home runs, 89 strikeouts in 12 road games. The Mets are not a scary team as they once were and this game is not in Yankee Stadium, the difficult part for tonight with Severino is finding people that will make your lineup work.
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Jose Pirela – OF – San Diego Padres – $3,000
Analysis: Speaking of finding guys to help you squeez in Severino, Judge and Samadzija, we have Jose Pirela, who has been hitting atop the Padres’ order for quite some now. He’s also the top dog in hitting on his team versus right-handed pitching – .373 wOBA, .234 ISO and a 33% hard contact rate. The power is there, but PETCO doesn’t limit that power at times. However, we have a fine punt option that is a reverse-splits pitcher against Edwin Jackson. I mean, come on, it’s Edwin Jackson and he’s in the $8K range???
Nicky Delmonico – OF – Chicago White Sox – $2,500
Analysis: Speaking of punts, we have this guy who has hits in 5 consecutive games against Tyson Ross in a very heavy humid, hot ballpark atmosphere in Texas. Delmonico has been hitting closer to the top of the order of late and is super cheap in a game that has a high implied run total. I don’t know much about the guy, so I am strictly recommending him as a punt option tonight.
Yangervis Solarte – 2B – San Diego Padres – $3,700
Analysis: I think you can go with Carlos Asuaje tonight as a 2B punt, but I like the power that Solarte offers at a weak position. Solarte has a .356 wOBA, a .187 ISO and a 32% hard contact rate against RH pitching this season. It’s not an ideal park for the Padres, they one of my top stacks for the amp.
