Pitchers
For the Pitcher Chart as well as Hitter picks and analysis, click NEXT!
Clayton Kershaw
Kershaw will face the Phillies in Dodger Stadium. It’s a great matchup for Kershaw as the Phillies strike out at the 4th highest rate in the league. Kershaw is a big favorite considering Aaron Nola is pitching for the opposition. Kershaw also has an OTT of 2.5, lowest on the slate (see pitcher chart). The only concern is Dave Roberts has unpredictably managed his pitchers this season, so there is some risk Kershaw gets pulled early in his first start since coming off of the DL. Even with that risk, I’ll play Kershaw at $11,800 on DraftKings in both cash games and tournaments unless we hear he’s on a pitch count.
Lance McCullers
McCullers will face the Red Sox in Minute Maid Park. It’s not a good matchup for McCullerrs, but he’s priced at $8,900. We saw this recently when McCullers faced Cleveland (also a good offense). He scored 34 DK points in one outing, and -5.1 in the other. There’s clear upside with McCullers due to his strikeouts, but there is almost no floor against the Red Sox. I’m fading McCullers in cash games, but I’ll have a few shares in tournaments.
Jose Quintana
Quintana has been very disappointing this season, but I’ll give him one more chance against the Mets. The Mets strike out 27.1% of the time against lefties, second highest rate in the league. They also have the worst wRC+ against lefties. It’s a good park for pitchers, and Quintana has an OTT of just 3.5. For $7,500, I’m ok with Quintana in both cash games and tournaments.
For the Pitcher Chart as well as Hitter picks and analysis, click NEXT!
Pitcher Chart
To see my favorite hitters for today’s slate, click NEXT!
The pitching chart will be updated often. Make sure to check back for the newest information, especially if a column is currently incomplete!
Last Updated: 5/31/2018 – 7:07 AM CT
| Pitcher | Team | L/R | $Line | OTT | K | +/- | K% | IP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J. Quintana | CHC | L | -150 | 3.5 | 6.5 | 3 | 21.9 | 6 1/3 |
| S. Lugo | NYM | L | +138 | 4.5 | 5 | 0.5 | 26.2 | 5 |
| T. Williams | PIT | R | +142 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 0 | 17.1 | 5 2/3 |
| J. Flaherty | STL | R | -154 | 3.5 | 5 | 1.5 | 27.7 | 5 2/3 |
| T. Roark | WAS | R | +111 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 22.5 | 6 1/3 |
| S. Newcomb | ATL | L | -120 | 4 | 5.5 | 1.5 | 26.6 | 5 2/3 |
| A. Nola | PHI | R | +147 | 3.5 | 6.5 | 3 | 24.6 | 6 1/3 |
| C. Kershaw | LAD | L | -160 | 2.5 | 7.5 | 5 | 26.5 | 6 1/3 |
| W. Chen | MIA | L | +125 | 4 | 4.5 | 0.5 | 15.6 | 5 1/3 |
| J. Lyles | SDP | R | -135 | 3.5 | 4.5 | 1 | 8.6 | 5 2/3 |
| A. Heaney | LAA | L | -217 | 3.5 | 5.5 | 2 | 26.7 | 6 |
| R. Carpenter | DET | L | +198 | 5.5 | 3.5 | -2 | 9.5 | 4 2/3 |
| R. Stanek | TBR | R | +126 | 4 | 2 | -2 | 31.4 | 1 1/3 |
| D. Mengden | OAK | R | -137 | 3.5 | 4.5 | 1 | 16.2 | 6 1/3 |
| S. Gray | NYY | R | -174 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 18.6 | 5 2/3 |
| A. Cashner | BAL | R | +160 | 6 | 4 | -2 | 19.7 | 4 1/3 |
| D. Pomeranz | BOS | L | +186 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 20.4 | 5 1/3 |
| L. McCullers | HOU | R | -203 | 3.5 | 6 | 2.5 | 26.4 | 5 1/3 |
| S. Bieber | CLE | R | -123 | 4 | 4.5 | 0.5 | 5 1/3 | |
| J. Odorizzi | MIN | R | +114 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 0 | 23.5 | 5 2/3 |
| M. Minor | TEX | L | +143 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 0 | 21.2 | 5 2/3 |
| W. Leblanc | SEA | L | -155 | 3.5 | 5.5 | 2 | 19.1 | 6 1/3 |
Key
L/R = Lefty or Righty
$Line = Money Line
OTT = Opposing team’s run total
K = Projected Strikeouts
+/- = K-OTT
K% = Strikeout Percentage
IP = Innings Projection
Many factors can change between the time I write this article and the time lineups lock. I’ll do my best to update the article, so checking back frequently is encouraged. You can also ask questions on Twitter or Facebook. I’ll do my best to get to all of them!
To see my favorite hitters for today’s slate, click NEXT!
Hitters
Yankees Bats
The Yankees will face Andrew Cashner in Camden Yards. They have the highest team run total on the slate by a full run. I actually think their run total of six is low. Cashner has given up 1.64 HR/9 this season and has a SIERA of 4.84. He’s not the worst pitcher in the league, but the Yankees should be able to get to him. Giancarlo Stanton and Gary Sanchez are locks in my cash game lineups, while Didi Gregorius is a near lock. Even at a $5,700 price tag, I’ll still attempt to fit Aaron Judge in cash games. If I can’t make it work, he’ll be my favorite tournament play. Finally, Greg Bird is cash game viable at a price of $4,100. I usually don’t want a full stack in cash games, but I’ll make an exception when they’re in a great spot with an extremely high team run total.
Christian Villanueva
Villanueva will face lefty Wei-Yin Chen in Petco Park on Thursday. Villanueva has destroyed lefties to start the year, batting .358 with ten home runs in just 25 games! Chen is a mediocre lefty with a low strikeout rate who has given up 2.15 HR/9 to start the year, so the matchup is near perfect. Unfortunately, Villanueva has a career 57.1% HR/FB rate against lefties which is completely unsustainable, leaving him as a tournament only play for me, but one I’ll have heavy exposure to on today’s slate.
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