The Daily Grind: The End

~This is the end, my only friend, the end~

AGENDA

1. Closing Shop
2. Weather Reports
3. Pitchers to Use and Abuse
4. SaberSim Says…
5. TDG Invitational Returns!

1. Closing Shop

I want to offer my gratitude to everybody out in Readerland. Thanks for reading The Daily Grind and participating in the Invitational. It’s people like you who enable my ridiculous life as a fantasy baseball analyst. Thanks especially to those of you who play with me in the comments. And hey! No trolls this year.

Here’s how the offseason shakes out for me. I’ll be taking a mini-sabbatical from baseball writing during the postseason. You can still find me on twitter @BaseballATeam if you want to chat about something. When I return, I’ll be focused on strategy and tactics for various league types – especially formats that are active in the offseason like ottoneu and dynasty. I’ll be doing some player analysis too – the whole RotoGraphs crew chips in for that.

Before long, it’ll be draft season. Following draft season is Grind season. See ya then!

2. Weather Reports

The weather should cooperate today. There’s a very low risk of rain in Colorado.

3. Pitchers to Use and Abuse

Main Slate: The 13 game main slate is headlined by Stephen Strasburg and Zack Greinke. Allow me to offer a word of warning – the Diamondbacks will want Greinke available next Wednesday. That’s normal rest, but I assume they’ll make sure his pitch count is rather tame today. Strasburg won’t be needed for eight days. He may make a full start against a rather poorly performing Pirates lineup.

The next tier includes Trevor Bauer versus the terribad White Sox, Chase Anderson visiting Busch Stadium, and Kyle Gibson opposite baseball’s worst offense – the Tigers. Gibson has supplied at least six innings in his last seven starts. I assume the Twins want Sweet Erv to pitch next Tuesday. Gibson won’t be needed again until Thursday or Friday. He should make a full start. Ditto for Bauer and Anderson.

Charlie Morton has been a DFS star all season long. Despite consistently strong performances against every type of lineup, his price has remained rather tame. He’s just $7,900 for a pairing at Fenway against the Red Sox.

Chris Stratton has a juicy matchup against the Padres. The game is at pitcher friendly AT&T Park. Stratton is rather underwhelming as a pitcher. He looks like a typical number five guy. Unless he improves his command, I expect anywhere from a 4.50 to 5.00 ERA over a full season. Given the opponent and setting today, the projection is much rosier.

I don’t know why Dan Straily cost $7,100 tonight. He hosts a less-than-middling Braves offense. Straily often furnishes 20 DK points for his owners. Sometimes he flops. Alas, that is an accurate description of most non-aces.

Stack Targets: Mike Pelfrey, Wade Miley, John Gant, Chad Bettis, Matt Harvey, Raul Alcantara, Ian Kennedy, Marco Gonzales, Martin Perez, Jordan Lyles, Matt Boyd, Hyun-Jin Ryu

4. SaberSim Says…

Bauer, Strasburg, Jake Odorizzi, Stratton, and Tyler Skaggs are the top rated pitchers. This list seems slightly randomized today… The preferred bats are Nolan Arenado, Justin Turner, Cody Bellinger, Yasiel Puig, and Chris Taylor. See if you can spot what they have in common (hint, they aren’t all Dodgers). Bargains include Asdrubal Cabrera, Taylor, Curtis Granderson, and Turner.

5. The Daily Grind Invitational

I’m cursed to always pick my worst performing lineup for the Invitational. Kylerkelton picked a winner, outscoring second place by a whopping 43.3 points. Big games from Sean Manaea, Carlos Correa, and Alex Bregman delivered the goods. Congrats and leaderboard.

It’s the end of days. Join us on DraftKings for the final TDGI of 2017.