The Daily Grind: These Are Not The Puns You’re Looking For

So, you’re here to hear about baseball, eh?

AGENDA

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

1. Sales Pitch

Yep, a bad pun in a baseball article. Who could have anticipated it? Chris Sale recorded his 300th strikeout of the season last night. He’s only the second pitcher to accomplish this feat since 2002 – back when Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling were playing for the Diamondbacks. Barring a complete dud of a final outing, Sale will have the most strikeouts since those halcyon days. Oh, and just try to guess the other pitcher to surpass the 300 strikeout threshold (he finished with 301 Ks).

2. Weather Reports

Thumbs up.

3. Pitchers to Use and Abuse

Main Slate: Two games are early, leaving us with nine in the evening contest. Carlos Martinez and Dallas Keuchel are the sauciest names on the docket. Martinez tends to be slightly inconsistent for an ace. He’s visiting hitter friendly Great American Ballpark. I might prefer Keuchel in what should be a thorough dismantling of the White Sox. That said, Keuchel hasn’t had a truly studly outing for months.

Tanner Roark is in top form, and he just manhandled the Braves last week. He gets a rematch tonight, this time in Atlanta. I expect him to produce very similarly to Keuchel for $2,000 less.

I feel like I should be taking sides in Cole Hamels at James Paxton. Alas, I’m hands off on this one. Someone else can role the dice on these high upside, presently struggling arms.

Jake Arrieta is returning to action. Expect between 60 and 90 pitches. He’s another hands off “ace.” A visit to face the volatile Brewers at Miller Park doesn’t change my inclinations. Zach Davies on the other hand… that’s aguy I could get behind for $7,700. Davies posted a 25 point outing against the Cubs just a couple weeks ago.

Two points in Tyler Anderson’s favor: he just shutout the Padres over six innings, and he’s tossed 10 scoreless frames since returning from injury. Oh, and a third positive point: the Rockies at visiting pitcher friendly Petco Park. And now, time for the “but.” You knew it was coming. Anderson’s velocity was down two mph from his normal range in his most recent start. He may need to rebuild strength after missing so much time. A softer sinker probably won’t help him. Anderson only needed 73 pitches to get through six innings last week. I figure he’s approved for upwards of 90 pitches today.

Stack Targets: Gabriel Ynoa, Jordan Zimmermann, Adalberto Mejia, Matt Andriese, Carson Fulmer, Homer Bailey

4. SaberSim Says…

Paxton, Keuchel, Anderson, Martinez, and J.A. Happ are the top rated pitchers today. SaberSim doesn’t know that Paxton and Anderson will be on pitch counts. Anthony Rizzo, George Springer, Kris Bryant, Jose Altuve, and Josh Donaldson are the big boppers tonight. Values include Lane Adams, Teoscar Hernandez, Corey Dickerson, and Lucas Duda.

5. The Daily Grind Invitational

It’s funny how new participants in the invitational so often enter with a bang. LiMedina13 won again with the help of Brad Peacock, Whit Merrifield, and Matt Carpenter. Elsewhere, nicemamut finished third. Despite joining the Invitational in September, he has a shot at finishing in the top 10. Leaderboard.

Here is a link to DraftKings.