The Daily Grind: Noon Games

I was pretty pumped about the lineup I welded together yesterday. I managed to parlay Jacob deGrom and Hyun-Jin Ryu with seven of the top hitter plays and one patch (Brian Anderson). The pitching spiked, but so did a billion others. Worse, Anderson turned out to be my top bat with just eight points. C’est la vie.

AGENDA

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

1.The Daily Grind Invitational

Congrats to Vincentspicks on a big win. He found the winning combination of Nolan Arenado, some of the good pitchers, and core performing bats. Leaderboard.

We’ve got a weird one tonight on FantasyDraft, a two-game mini-contest. One of the games will be damp. Time to brush off our quirky plays..

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

There’s a 50 percent chance for light rain all throughout the Battle of the Sox. The kind they’ll probably play through.

3. Pitchers to Use and Abuse

Early: Five games are in the early slate which kicks off at noon-ten. Jose Berrios ($19,700) tops the price list. It’s a bizarre choice by whatever algorithm hides behind FDraft’s way-too-white webpage. Berrios (my snazzy staff pick for AL Cy Young), has pitched superbly. He’s also set to face a tough Astros lineup. Brad Peacock ($14,800) is the better value in this one even if he probably won’t quite match Berrios’ point total.

I’d much rather use Noah Syndergaard ($17,900). He’s hosting the Reds. Guy throws hard. Tyler Mahle ($12,000) is both the second worst pitcher in this slate and perhaps the best value. He’s adjusted his breaking ball which seems to have yielded more strikeouts. Mahle remains hit and homer prone. At his best, he’s kind of like Zach Davies – not exactly the pitcher one aspires to be.

Forget it. Why wouldn’t I use a cheaper Charlie Morton ($17,700) against Danny friggin’ Duffy and the Royals. Morton has steamrolled a few difficult opponents and should enjoy an easy day with plentiful run support.

Freddy Peralta ($16,700) has produced the following point totals: -1.25, 42.8, -1.9, 2.7. How’s that for volatility. I’ve never really been on the Peralta bandwagon myself. A nearly all fastballs pitcher with a high strikeout rate just doesn’t sound like a starting pitcher to me. The Rockies have enough ground ball hitters to beat him up. I’d much rather try sea level Jon Gray ($15,000).

Last up is Matt Strahm ($16,300) at Mike Foltynewicz ($15,200). Folty’s heater was down nearly two mph in his 2019 debut last week. At this price, I’d still consider dusting him off as my SP2. Strahm briefly looked like he was on the outs in San Diego. He rebounded with a couple solid outings against the Reds and Nationals. The Braves are a challenging opponent with multiple lefty mashers.

Favorite Plays: Morton, Syndergaard, Folty

Stack Targets: Danny friggin’ Duffy, Mahle, Strahm

Late: David Price ($19,300) is quite obviously the top pitcher on the miniature docket. The veteran southpaw has adjusted his pitch usage to de-emphasize his cutter in exchange for more changeups and four seamers. The rain makes him a risky play. Ditto Lucas Giolito ($12,900). He’s posted a total of 43.4 points in two starts against the Royals compared to 3.6 points in three other outings.

Alternatively, you can pick a side in Tyler Skaggs ($18,100) versus Aaron Sanchez ($15,200). Skaggs is ridiculously priced considering he’ll face a bunch a fly ball mashing righties. As a ground ball inducing southpaw, this is simply a bad matchup. Like Giolito, a goodly chunk of his 2019 production has come against the Royals (and Rangers). Sanchez broke a nail in his most recent appearance. It’s just the latest instance of finger-related woes for the righty. If I were playing a deep GPP, at least one of my lineups would include a dart throw at Sam Gaviglio ($13,600).

Favorite Plays: Price

Stack Targets: Skaggs, Sanchez, Giolito

4. SaberSim Says…

I’ve set the machine to “all day” mode. Price, Syndergaard, Morton, Peralta, and Folty are the preferred arms. Thor, Folty, Price, Peralta, and Morton are also the best values. That’s two days in a row the top five didn’t change between overall and value.

On this hitting side, Mookie Betts, Mike Trout, J.D. Martinez, Ronald Acuna, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. are the putative princes. Vladito, Daniel Robertson, Ian Kinsler, Acuna, and Franmil Reyes are your bargain plays.

5. All the Classics

A glitch in the matrix…

Classic Ken Griffey Jr. Presents Major League Baseball.

The jump throw is flashy but largely unsupported by physics as a reasonable play. Whatever, it worked.