The Daily Grind: A Return From Breaks

Today’s Streaming Wars (i.e. traditional waiver wire picks for Saturday, July 21) features a two or three must-own right-handed pitchers, a couple more arms, and all kinds of bats.

AGENDA

1. TDG Invitational
2. Weather Reports
3. Pitchers to Use and Abuse
4. SaberSim Says…
5. The Burns

1. The Daily Grind Invitational

Back before the break, Mmeiselman took down his first Invitational victory. He squeezed Nick Kingham, Wei-Yin Chen, and a Rockies stack for the gold. Congrats and Leaderboard.

We’ll go with our usual 52 entry contest on FantasyDraft. Remember, you can enter twice. It’s a $2 no rake GPP. An overlay is almost guaranteed.

If you have not signed up for FantasyDraft, please use this referral link for tracking purposes. If I understand properly, by using the referral, you will receive a 10 percent return on any rakes you pay.

2. Weather Reports

Thunder! Chicago, Detroit, and Cincinnati are all postponement risks. The Cubs game isn’t a part of the DFS slate so that isn’t a big deal (for us). We can reevaluate the other two venues closer to game time.

3. Pitchers to Use and Abuse

Main Slate: Trevor Bauer is probably my preferred target tonight versus a strikeout prone Rangers lineup. However, price matters and Bauer will run you $26,700. He’s the only pitcher above $20,000. While I like that Bauer is healthy and has a seemingly easy matchup, I’m not sure he’s definitely better than Stephen Strasburg ($19,500). The $7,000 discount seems… meaningful. In his return from the disabled list, Strasburg will face Anibal Sanchez ($15,500) and the Braves. It could be a pitch count restricted outing.

Beyond the top two names, another ace is returning from injury. Noah Syndergaard ($17,600) receives a steep downgrade in value tonight. He’s visiting Yankee Stadium. Domingo German ($16,100) is on the other side of this one. I figure it’s evenly matched, thus I prefer German for $1,500 less. What Syndergaard offers in superior talent, he loses in matchup and a possible pitch count.

Rich Hill ($16,900) seems like a solid play against Wade Miley. The win bonus feels likely. The Dodgers lineup should supply plenty of run support. Notably, Hill is massively inconsistent this season. He may have the second highest ceiling (Bauer) and one of the lower floors in the slate.

Speaking of volatile, Robbie Ray ($17,200) has a mostly favorable pairing against the Rockies. Just watch out for lefty slayer Nolan Arenado. German Marquez ($14,700) has pitched well both recently and at sea level. This will be the fourth time he’s faced Arizona this season. Thus far, he’s spun a gem, a flop, and something in between.

My heart belongs to Kyle Gibson ($16,700). He’s cheap, he’s facing a bad Royals lineup, and the game is at pitcher friendly Kauffman Stadium. I gotta say, I also don’t hate Danny Duffy for the low-low price of $11,800.

What a day for bargains. Wade LeBlanc has a favorable matchup against the White Sox. He costs $11,800. His usual lack of strikeouts might not be a problem tonight. Jameson Taillon will have to contend with Great American Ballpark. He’s far superior to his $14,400 price tag. There’s very little risk of him underperforming. David Price ($14,900) feels a little more dangerous than Taillon even though he’s opposed by the Triple-A Tigers. That said, he’s one of only a few pitchers who has an outside shot at a complete game.

Last but not least, Nate Eovaldi ($15,800) and Dylan Bundy ($15,800) look playable versus the Marlins and Blue Jays respectively. Oh, I forgot Jake Arrieta against the Padres. He’ll run ya $15,900.

Stack Targets: Martin Perez, Clayton Richard, Wade Miley, Dan Straily, Danny Duffy, Matt Boyd, Edwin Jackson

Despite decent results to date, Action Jackson is probably the worst pitcher on the bump tonight. Everybody else is some kind of usable in a fringy kind of way.

4. SaberSim Says…

The Sim says Strasburg, Ray, Hill, Arrieta, and Bauer tonight. With this list, I feel like we’re pretending 2018 hasn’t happened yet. Values include LeBlanc, Ray, Tyler Mahle, and Miley. I forgot to mention Mahle in a favorable pairing against the P-Rats. J.D Martinez, Mookie Betts, Rhys Hoskins, Jose Ramirez, and Nelson Cruz are early favorites among the bats. Bargain hunters will find Tim Beckham, Chris Davis, Kyle Seager, Hoskins, and Jose Abreu.

5. The Burns

Some professional advice, don’t take assigned work at face value. Make it your own or else you may be forced into an awkward position.

Also, this.

worst umpire call ever pic.twitter.com/feKHA03tzA

— Routine Baseball (@RoutineBaseball) July 19, 2018