The Daily Grind: Faceball

Today’s blast from the past is brought to you by Benny Agbayani. Every broadcaster made sure you knew he is Hawaiian.

AGENDA

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

1. The Daily Grind Invitational

A late swap of Blake Snell and Mookie Betts for Rick Porcello and Robinson Chirinos cost me a third win in three days (and a win in all my other contests). It hurts my soul to use a hitter versus one of my own pitchers, but sometimes it’s a smart play in a tiny slate. Anyway, Kidzero didn’t make the same foolish mistake. Snell, Brandon Nimmo, and George Springer provided most of the firepower. Leaderboard.

We’re doing a 40-user, single-entry contest tonight on FantasyDraft. Buckle up.

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

We’re getting to that time of year when there often isn’t any weather to report.

3. Pitchers to Use and Abuse

Main Slate: It’s a 14 game slate. We’re missing the Giants and Cubs. It’s not a big deal. We still get Max Scherzer ($27,200) at Marlins Stadium. I’m going to call that par value for the obvious top play of the day.

You’ll need a huge bargain in order to roster Scherzer and also land some good bats. How about Joe Musgrove in his return from the disabled list. For $8,000, you don’t need too much production to return value. This is a massive risk, medium reward play. We can assume a pitch count of some sort. I also don’t have any reports on his current velocity, although his strikeout, walk, and swinging strike rates were very healthy during his rehab stint. The game is at PNC Park.

Ok, back to the good stuff. James Paxton is running hot. He’s priced accordingly at $23,200. On his best days, few pitchers are nastier than Paxton – at least until the inevitable injury. He’s opposed by Fernando Romero and the Twins. For $15,700, I expect either a better matchup or a higher likelihood of reaching six innings.

I usually like Andrew Heaney ($13,900) as a bargain play. I’ll take a hard pass opposite Luis Severino ($21,200) at Yankee Stadium. Sevvy is a tad risky too. The LA Trout have some potent power hitters.

Corey Kluber ($21,100) and Dallas Keuchel ($16,100) are also stuck in a tough matchup – a preview of the ALCS? Both the Astros and Cleveland offenses feature star power, although the Houston unit is deeper. Even so, I (obviously) prefer Kluber if you can afford the extra $5,000.

The list goes one. Noah Syndergaard ($20,600) is visiting the strikeout prone Brewers. There’s upside to outperform a typical Scherzer stomp. Personally, I’m almost more interested in Junior Guerra ($13,000) against a not-so-impressive Mets lineup. Too bad he rarely throws six innings (and never more).

I’m running out of steam, but there are so many more names to mention. Patrick Corbin ($18,800) cancels out Sean Manaea ($17,000) in Oakland. I have no qualms with trying either side of that equation. I’m the low man on Reynaldo Lopez ($14,800). I’d still use him against the Detroit Mud Hens. Eduardo Rodriguez ($15,400) is sometimes among the top point scorers. Jon Gray ($14,700) is priced beautifully for what should be an automatic win against the Reds. Alas, the game is at Coors Field. Ross Stripling ($14,500) is stretched out enough to toss six innings and rack up strikeouts against the Padres. Mike Minor ($8,200) costs nothing for a start against the Royals.

Stack Targets: Musgrove, Ryan Yarbrough (via Sergio Romo), Sal Romano, Minor, Eric Skoglund, John Gant, David Hess, Jose Urena, Sam Gaviglio, Mike Fiers, Julio Teheran

With the possible exception of Romano, none of these stack targets are completely destined for failure. I just can’t see Romano accomplishing good things at Coors.

4. SaberSim Says…

Scherzer, Paxton, Stripling, Syndergaard, and Kluber are the top rated pitchers. Stripling is projected to throw 6.75 innings which is patently incorrect. Musgrove, Minor, and Stripling are the top values. I can get on board with that.

Charlie Blackmon, Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, Nolan Arenado, and Joey Votto are the premium bats du jour. Did I mention there’s a Coors game? Bargains include Curtis Granderson, Ryan Rua, Yolmer Sanchez, and Nick Williams.

5. Faceball

It’s not Baseball. It’s not Facebook. It’s Faceball. Totally a different thing. This reminds me of the time Russell Martin threw the ball into Shin-Soo Choo’s bat. Guess who stars in this clip?

It’s important to hit your spots against Mike Trout. Like this…

Or not.