Today’s main slate on both sites features 10 games starting at 1:05. Daytime baseball is hands down my favorite baseball. So, join me in ignoring your family this afternoon as we enjoy some daytime baseball. Once again, there is no Coors on this slate. The Nationals/Braves doubleheader is also not on the slate. Let’s dive in and make some straight cash, homie.
Top SP: Hyun-Jin Ryu, TOR ($7,300 DK, $8,200 FD) at TEX
Usually, I reserve this area for a higher-priced starting pitcher, but I just can’t do it today. I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth (what does that mean??), and I’m going to eat the chalk on an underpriced Hyun-Jin Ryu. The Blue Jay’s ace gets the Rangers, who have not been as bad as I thought they would be. BUT, this is a roster that can be eaten alive by a good left-handed pitcher. The bats you fear in this lineup (Lowe and Gallo) are both lefties, and Ryu has proven that he’s a stud. The cherry on top of this matchup is that the game is being played in Globe Life Park, which played as a pitchers park in 2020. I’m counting on that to continue this year, although it does appear that the roof will be open for this game.
There are a ton of mispriced aces today, so I’m not likely looking to Trevor Bauer, Blake Snell, or Shane Bieber. That being said, they should come in low-rostered, making them good GPP plays.
Honorable Mentions: Shane Bieber, CLE ($9,200 DK, $7,300 FD) vs KC; Blake Snell, SD ($9,900 DK, $9,800 FD) vs SF; Kenta Maeda, MIN ($8,300 DK, $9,000 FD) at DET; Trevor Bauer, LAD ($10,200 DK, $11,000 FD).
Value SP: Jack Flaherty, STL ($7,800 DK, $7,900 FD) at MIA
Pick an under-priced ace, any under-priced ace. My value choice is Jack Flaherty against the Marlins, but you can’t go wrong with any of the cheap options. Flaherty had a rough Opening day allowing six earned to the Reds. In what should’ve been a pitcher’s duel with Luis Castillo, the day spiraled quickly into a slugfest. I think Flaherty gets back on track against the Marlins in a big way.
Honorable Mention: Kyle Hendricks, CHC ($8,100 DK, $7,700 FD) vs MIL; Brandon Woodruff, MIL ($7,200 DK, $7,600 FD) at CHC; Dallas Keuchel, CHW ($7,400 DK, $7,100 FD) at SEA.
C J.T. Realmuto, PHI ($5,000 DK, $3,400 FD) vs NYM
I’m always reticent to recommend J.T. Realmuto because most of the time, I’m punting (or at least paying down) at catcher. However, Realmuto has been hot to open the season and will see lefty David Peterson today. If we look at the surface stats in 2020, Peterson sported a 3.44 ERA over 49 IP. That came with a near 12% walk rate and a sub-20% strikeout rate, which I think will lead to that ERA ballooning. One thing to keep an eye on, though, is sometimes Realmuto will sit on a day game following a night game.
Honorable Mentions: Jose Abreu, 1B ($5,700 DK, $3,800 FD) at SEA; Cavan Biggio, 3B ($4,700 DK, $3,100 FD) at TEX; Brandon Lowe, 2B ($4,800 DK, $3,000 FD).
OF Nelson Cruz, MIN ($5,100 DK, $4,000 FD) at DET
Alright, Nelson Cruz versus a lefty? Cool, cool, cool. Cruz has defied Father Time and continues to mash at an incredible rate. Is the lefty Matt Boyd? Yes. Am I defying my Boyd Boyz religion by picking on him? Maybe. But I don’t care—I like money better! Cruz has mashed three taters in that last two games, and I don’t see any reason for why that should end. Boyd has a knack for bad control, and Cruz hits mistakes a long way.
Honorable Mentions: Austin Meadows, OF ($4,400 DK, $3,700 FD) at BOS; Eddie Rosario, OF ($4,600 DK, $3,300 FD) vs KC.
Value Batter: 1B/2B Jake Cronenworth, SD ($3,800 DK, $3,200 FD) vs SF
With so many aces on the mound, the value is pretty tight. Let’s pour one out for my man Fernando Tatis, Jr. <pauses for a moment of silence> Okay, I wanted to properly respect the King of the Bat Flips before talking about what it does to the Padres. Jake Cronenworth has already been getting regular plate appearances, just at different positions.
He’ll likely do less moving around, but the most important thing to me is that he’s projected to lead off today. Now, the Giants are throwing Kevin Gausman today, who is usually not a pitcher that I look to pick on. But for sub-$4k at the top of a legit lineup, I’ll have a decent amount of Cronenworth in my lineups today.
The player that is even cheaper and going to fill those big empty shoes at shortstop is Ha-Seong Kim. Real talk, I’m not sure what to expect out of Kim’s bat. He batted seventh yesterday and went 1/3 with a walk. But at his sub-$3k price on both sites, he doesn’t have to do a ton to reach value.
Honorable Mentions: Andrew McCutchen, OF ($3,200 DK, $2,900 FD) vs NYM; Adam Eaton, OF ($4,000 DK, $3,400 FD) at SEA; Ha-Seong Kim, 2B/SS ($2,700 DK, $2,400 FD) vs SF.
Top Stack: Blue Jays at TEX (RHP Kyle Gibson)
Offense might be a little tough to predict on today’s slate as just one team is projected with a run total of 5 runs or more – the Blue Jays. On DraftKings, the Blue Jays bats are priced up pretty good, but with so many value pitchers today, I think we’ll be able to afford them. My Blue Jays stack will likely feature 1-5 in Marcus Semien, Cavan Biggio, Bo Bichette, Teoscar Hernandez, and Vlad Guerrero, Jr. If you need to save some cash, though, I don’t hate going down and grabbing Rowdy Tellez or Lourdes Gurriel. The Blue Jays face Kyle Gibson, who was blown up in his first start, but I am a little worried about this game being played in Globe Life Park.
Good luck today!
Honorable Mentions: SD vs SF (Gausman); PHI vs NYM (Peterson); CHW at SEA (Dunn).
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