Sign-up for Ownersbox here and get two free entries + up to $500 of your first deposit matched.
If you’re unfamiliar with OwnersBox, they offer a unique roster format that includes one pitcher, four IF, three OF, and one Super Flex (OF, IF, and P). Some contests early in the season have had overlay, so if you’re on the fence, there’s no better time to get started than today!
First, the good news- we’re back to a full slate of games after a short stack yesterday. Now for the bad news- it’s April Fools, and the main slate starts early (2:10pm EDT) with weather concerns that could affect a number of games. I’ll try and post any PPD alerts in our #dfs-and-bets Discord channel, but if you want updates from the experts, two Twitter accounts you should be following are @KevinRothWx & Mark Paquette (@DFSMLBWeather). Possible affected games: SF@NYY, BAL@BOS.
Slate Details
Owner’s Box: Full, 15-game (starting 2:09pm EDT) or Main, 12-game (starting 4:04pm EDT)
DraftKings/FanDuel: Main, 12-game (starting at 2:10pm EDT)
Pitchers
Top Tier
Top Pitchers 04-01-23
As it’s the 2nd main day for Aces, there are good options available for a large slate. The top option based on skill vs opposition is Spencer Strider. He’ll be popular, but rightly so. Next top option is Brandon Woodruff (Owner’s Box players note that he is only on the Full slate). It’s looking like a cool day with the wind blowing in at Wrigley which is a pitcher’s best friend this time of year. Still solid but potentially more volatile options are Patrick Sandoval, Zack Wheeler & Kevin Gausman (also only on Owner’s Box Full slate).
Lastly, if you really want to play Clayton Kershaw, you’ll have to take advantage of that Owner’s Box promo and play the Main slate there as the LAD/ARI game is not on the Main slate for DK/FD.
Next Tier (Also Good)
Sonny Gray and Zach Eflin are next in line as solid options in safer parks with safer matchups. With Sonny G, you might as well take advantage of his favorable starts while he’s still healthy. Eflin is at a nice price, getting the Tigers at home. The last two options – Chris Sale and Clarke Schmidt – would normally be easy recommendations at their price and matchup (although this isn’t your father’s Orioles team facing Sale), but with cooler temps and rain in the forecast, you may need to watch for a delay/PPD risk.
Batters
Shintaro Fujinami may someday turn into a solid pitcher- but for now, he’s with the A’s, and he has a tendency to walk batters. Mike Trout will be looking to take advantage of a pitcher still finding his form and put a forgettable opening day behind him (granted, he and most of the Angels still have issues hitting lefties).
In case you missed it on Opening Day, the TOR-STL game was a fantasy bonanza, featuring 19 runs and 34 hits. Granted, there was a bit of luck with bloop shots constantly being just out of reach, but I offer up Jack Flaherty’s PLV chart vs righties as exhibit A for TOR bats:
The duo up top of George Springer and Bo Bichette were on fire on Thursday, and they should continue to feast in STL. They’re also still sub-$5k, which probably won’t be that way for long.
Sticking with the PLV Arms to be Exploited theme, let’s take a look at Josiah Gray and his efforts vs. lefties:
Matt Olson and Michael Harris II had decent opening days vs the lefty Corbin, but Mr. Gray should help them showcase their talents further as two of Atlanta’s powerful lefty weapons.
Lastly, as we at Pitcher List lament the Orioles’ decision to send Grayson Rodriguez back down the minors, we would like to humbly point out that Dean Kremer has some flaws as a starting pitcher currently on the Orioles’ roster. BAL-BOS was the other Opening Day game that had plenty of offense to go around, and again- watch the weather- but if this game plays, wind should be blowing out, and nobody loves playing at Fenway more than Rafael Devers. On the other side, sorry Mr. Sale, but Anthony Santander absolutely crushes lefties. If you like to live on the edge, this might be a game to stack- Masataka Yoshida and Raimel Tapia (if he sees the lineup) are other Red Sox bats to consider.
Rich Hill is still hanging around, but he was absolutely lit up in his last couple spring training games. Jonathan India (when healthy) has been very productive vs lefties and is leading off. As an extreme punt, Stuart Fairchild is an option as well, if he possibly platoons in Will Benson’s spot. The weather may be a bit chilly, but the wind is expected to be blowing out to left-center at Great American tomorrow.
Other notable one-off plays: Jordan Walker, Mike Brosseau, Brandon Lowe