Six Picks Strategy

Yesterday, I introduced you to Six Picks and, based on a big jump in the number of entries, it seems like there is some interest in Ottoneu’s free, simple, and fun daily fantasy game. And that means that there is probably some interest in my thoughts on strategy for Six Picks. Plus, I might have mentioned yesterday that I would share thoughts on how I play, so I guess I should do that.

To start, I will note that you do not need to read this article. I know, weird place to start an article, right? But seriously, Six Picks is – as noted above – free, simple and fun. I assure you, you can figure it out without my help. You probably already have ideas that are better than mine.

Second, I’ll warn you that while I like to do well, I don’t always play to win, exactly. Sometimes I challenge myself with weird restrictions, like Wednesday, when I picked only $0.50 players and…did not do well. I have also played where I make myself pick only from one team, or division. Or only take players who cost $18 or more (which means I can’t take anyone over $30). I try to earn achievements – such as spending a ton of money on bad players to try to earn the Los Angeles Angels achievement (coming in last place despite spending big).

Why do I do these things? Why not? It’s fun and it’s interesting. That’s how I use Six Picks: try to do my best while also keeping things light and fun. So my first recommendation is – you should have fun with it, too.

But, when I do decide to play to win (which, honestly, is most days), here is how I do it.

1. I set all my fantasy lineups first. This gives me a chance to check out matchups for the day. Any pitchers I am thrilled to see facing my hitters? Any pitchers with matchups I am salivating over? When I get to Six Picks, I keep those names in mind.
2. I select my SP first and my RP last. On most days, SP will be the toughest choice. There are, at most, 30 of them, often fewer. Some of them are terrible. Some of them are more expensive than I want to spend. Some of them are such obvious choices that I think everyone else might pick them and I like to zig when others zag to create differentiation. So I start there. RP, on the other hand, I can make fit my budget, so I wait until last instead of spending unnecessarily. If I am down to $0.50 when I get to the pen, so be it.
3. Among hitters, I usually start with a relatively low-priced guy with a good matchup whose name I noticed while setting my lineups. Regardless of what position that player is, I pick that position first. After that, I go through the rest of the offense, usually starting with C and MI, followed by OF and CI. I like to hit C first because, like SP, it is relatively thin. Every MLB teams starts multiple CI, MI and OF. They all start just one C. MI is next because the talent pool is shallower.
4. I bargain shop first – I am not taking Will Smith or Adley Rutschman or J.T. Realmuto to be my catcher unless I can’t find a cheaper matchup I am happy with. Same at MI. Once I get to OF, I shop based on my budget left. If I only spent $30 on SP, C and MI combined, I might grab Aaron Judge or Juan Soto. If I spent $30 on those spots each, then I need to go cheaper at OF.
5. Once I get to RP, I ideally try to find someone who did not pitch yesterday. Best case scenario is a guy who didn’t pitch yesterday but other key arms in their bullpen did.

And that is basically it. Let’s walk through my picks for Friday.

1. SP – Aaron Nola is facing the Rockies, outside Coors. That is pretty fun but also expensive ($31.50) and obvious. Maybe less obvious than Shohei Ohtani, but Shoehei is even pricier ($53.25). I want to go a different direction. Graham Ashcraft has a nice matchup and costs just $0.50, but I bet he is a popular choice. So I am going with Tyler Mahle. He hasn’t been great, but the Nationals will cure what ails any opposing pitcher.
2. MI – In #3 above, I mentioned that if I noticed a low-priced guy with a great matchup while setting lineups, I go to that guy first? I saw two MI I really liked for Friday – Thairo Estrada at $2.25 vs. Joey Lucchesi and Bryson Stott at $1.50 vs. Noah Davis. I decided to go with Estrada, mostly because Davis wasn’t terrible in his last start.
3. C – I like going cheap and Mike Zunino is $0.50 and fits the bill. He is facing a LHSP (not that Braxton Garrett is bad, but I don’t hate the matchup). The Guardians had a day off Thursday, so I don’t have to worry that Zunino will get a day off Friday. And he has been hitting well. Sounds like a fit.
4. OF – I have only spent $8 so far, so budget is no longer a concern. Excellent. Mike Trout against the Royals throwing an opener feels good, but sometimes bullpen games are weird. Juan Soto is facing a good SP (Zac Gallen) and I can stay away from good SP. Judge is an option. Mookie Betts, too. But I like Julio Rodriguez today. He is at home and Steven Matz doesn’t scare me. Plus, it is a nice right-on-left matchup for J-Rod.
5. CI – With $80.25 left, I can spend whatever I want here. I don’t love taking Ohtani to hit when he pitches and Freddie Freeman is facing a lefty, so I am choosing between Jose Ramirez and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Ramirez is facing a lefty and has more power vs. righties, so Vlad it is.
6. RP – Finally, Luis Garcia has an ugly ERA, but has been a bit unlucky, and he still leads the Padres with six holds. On Thursday night, the Padres got holds from Tim Hill and Steven Wilson plus a save from Josh Hader, and they also used Brett Honeywell. If they have a lead Friday, Garcia will be in. I’ll take that shot.

Hope you play today, too (but pick other players).