The Daily Grind: Ace-tastic Friday

A 90 minute wait at the doctor followed by a 90 second appointment delayed today’s Grind. Sorry folks. Today’s Streaming Wars includes four pitcher picks and a bunch of hitters with either power or speed – not both.

AGENDA

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

1. The Daily Grind Invitational

The potent Phillies stack was unusually popular in our contest. For example, Nick Williams‘ double-dong was owned on 27 percent of our rosters. He was just three percent owned in public GPPs. Leaderboard.

We have the usual parameters on FantasyDraft tonight. The overlays are getting rather large lately. If you played two entries a day for the entire season, you’d be expected to make $150.

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2. Weather Reports

Baltimore has a serious storm risk tonight. Keep an eye on New York and Denver too.

3. Pitchers to Use and Abuse

Main Slate: The pitching slate is incredibly deep. And expensive. Chris Sale ($26,400) and Max Scherzer ($26,400) share top honors. They face the Twins and Marlins respectively. Scherzer hasn’t been himself lately while Sale is absolutely crushing it. The matchups certainly favor using Scherzer.

Beyond the aciest aces lurk four more – Clayton Kershaw ($24,700), Carlos Carrasco ($22,400), Zack Greinke ($20,500), and Chris Archer ($18,500). Kershaw is the only one with a semi-tough matchup. He’ll see the Braves. Carrasco is visiting the Triple-A Tigers, Greinke is hanging around San Diego aka Strikeout City, and Archer is visiting busted veterans alley in Baltimore.

It continues. Madison Bumgarner ($18,100) is more fairly priced. While I anticipate an eventual rebound, it’s worth noting his steep decline in swinging strikes, actual strikeouts, and command (career-high BB/9). Still, MadBum pitches at AT&T Park. It’s also a nice venue to target. Although I’m rather cool on Chase Anderson, I’d roll the dice on him for $11,100 against a weak Giants lineup.

Dallas Keuchel ($17,800) has tossed two gems and a massive dud against the Rangers. He’ll face them for a fourth time tonight. A win should be practically automatic. Speaking of automatic wins, CC Sabathia ($13,900) is even cheaper than Keuchel and has an easier matchup versus the Royals. Both pitchers will contend with excellent hitting conditions.

Marcus Stroman ($14,500) visits the strikeout prone White Sox. He’s been better since returning from the disabled list. Nick Pivetta ($15,800) has struggled a bit over the last month amidst inconsistent usage. He’s used to friendly hitting venues like Great American Ballpark. Others to consider include Andrew Heaney hosting Wade LeBlanc. The latter is probably overpriced at $15,100.

Stack Targets: Luis Perdomo, Jason Vargas, Yovani Gallardo, Lance Lynn, Brad Keller, Andrew Cashner, Anthony DeSclafani, Reynaldo Lopez, Pablo Lopez, Kyle Freeland, Sean Manaea

Between the aces and the scrubs, there’s going to be no shortage of lineup varieties out there tonight. I wouldn’t worry too much about the chalk.

4. SaberSim Says…

Scherzer, Sale, Kershaw, Greinke, and Archer are the guys to own. As if you didn’t know. Playable values include Luke Weaver, Anderson, and Stroman. Mookie Betts, Giancarlo Stanton, Mike Trout, J.D. Martinez, and Khris Davis are the preferred bats. Bargain hunters should note David Fletcher, Francisco Cervelli, Niko Goodrum, Mike Zunino, and Enrique Henrandez.