DraftKings Daily Fantasy Baseball Helper: Monday 6/3/19
Every day is unique for daily fantasy baseball, which is both a blessing and a challenge. Although we can’t simply plug and play our favorite studs day in and day out, each slate presents us with a chance for a new gem to vault us up the leaderboards.
Through the use of numberFire’s tools, we can better identify the players primed to succeed each day, making the process of filling out a lineup just that much easier. In addition to our custom optimal lineups, you can check out our batting and pitching heat maps, which show the pieces in the best spot to succeed on that slate. Put on the finishing touches with our games and lineups page to see who's hitting where and what the weather looks like, and you'll have yourself a snazzy looking team to put up some big point totals.
Which names stand out for today on the DraftKings main slate? Let’s check it out, starting with the pitchers.
Pitchers to Target
High-Priced Pitcher
Aaron Nola ($9,600 on DraftKings): There is a pretty sharp difference between the top-three and bottom-three pitchers on this three-game slate. Aaron Nola stands out above the pack as he has the best matchup, a road game versus the San Diego Padres. The Padres strike out at a 27.3 percent clip against righties, the highest mark in baseball. Nola had a 27.0 percent strikeout rate in 2018 with a great 3.40 SIERA, and even though he's been slow out of the gates, he is awfully attractive in just about the best matchup you can have.
Value Pitcher
Eric Lauer ($7,300): On the opposite side of that game, Eric Lauer enters the picture. He has been decent, but he's the only option priced under Walker Buehler who is worth considering, even though it isn't great spot for him. One thing you will not get out of Lauer is upside as his 19.8 percent strikeout rate is pretty bland. He'll take on a Philadelphia Phillies team that has a .323 wOBA against left-handed pitching, which ranks 13th. Lauer is the "best of the worst" for tonight's cheaper pitchers, and he has only had two brutal games in which he could not eclipse 10 DraftKings points. The floor is decent if you're looking to pay down.
Hitters to Target
High-Priced Hitters
Cody Bellinger ($5,800): This is a lefty-lefty matchup, which is typically one we try to avoid. However, Cody Bellinger has been ridiculous this season, and that includes dominance against left-handed pitching. So far in 2019, he has crushed lefties to the tune of a .447 wOBA and .333 ISO in 87 plate appearances. He's taking on Robbie Ray, who had an elite strikeout rate last season, at 31.4 percent, but the lefty hurler struggles in other aspects. A season ago, he gave up a 44.4 percent hard-hit rate and 38.5 percent fly-ball rate, which led to a 17.4 percent home-run-to-fly-ball rate. Ray can get whiffs, especially against lefties, but Bellinger is an enticing play since the masses may shy away from him in this spot.
Jean Segura ($4,500): While we mentioned Lauer as a potential pitcher to use tonight, there are plenty of warts in his game, and targeting right-handed hitter Jean Segura is a spot worth looking at. Segura has smashed lefties this season with a .456 wOBA and .372 ISO in the split. While his numbers weren't as elite last season, with just a .345 wOBA and .129 ISO, he's been a new man in 2019. Lauer gave up a 39.8 percent hard-hit rate and 27.5 percent line-drive in 2018, and he could get into trouble against a quality offense.
Value Hitters
Omar Narvaez ($4,000): Omar Narvaez's time in Seattle has been solid so far as he has had modest success against right-handed pitching (.340 wOBA and .174 ISO). In 2018, his numbers were even better as he owned a .363 and .169 ISO. Tonight he'll take on rookie Corbin Martin, who has made it to the five-inning mark just once this season. In Martin's four starts, he has struggled to keep the ball in the park with a horrendous mark of 3.31 homers per nine, giving up six home runs in just 16.1 innings.
Yulieski Gurriel ($3,500): Yuli Gurriel hasn't been very productive, but at this price tag, it is tough to ignore him. He hits in a lineup with so much talent that sooner or later he has to get things going. His numbers against left-handed pitching have been lackluster (.330 wOBA and .172 ISO), and his numbers against righties have been worse (.296 wOBA and .133 ISO). However, he should get the bulk of his at-bats tonight against Seattle Mariners' southpaw Wade LeBlanc. LeBlanc carried just a 19.6 percent strikeout rate last season in addition to a not-so-great 4.47 xFIP. Allowing identical 41.2 percent clips in hard-hit rate and fly-ball rate, LeBlanc is a guy we can target tonight.
Ryan Sheppard is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Ryan Sheppard also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username donkshow_. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
