MLB

FanDuel Pitching Primer: Tuesday 6/29/21

Rich Hill has continued to turn back the clock and dominate hitters. Which other pitching options should we consider?

In daily fantasy baseball, success starts with nailing the starting pitcher spot in your lineup.

When compared to hitters, pitching performance tends to be much more predictable and stable throughout the course of the season. You know what you're getting from a top-level ace when you roster him: probably a dominant effort with only one or two implosions per season. In contrast, even the game's best hitters have days at the plate when they go 0-for-4.

As a result, lineup construction should begin with the starting pitcher. Which pitchers should you consider on today's main slate?

High-Salaried Play
Lucas Giolito, Chicago White Sox

Vs. Minnesota Twins
FanDuel Salary: $9,800

Peeking at the season-long numbers for a guy like Lucas Giolito may make you perplexed. One of fantasy's top arms this offseason, why on earth has the righty struggled at times?

Well, listen fam, back-to-back rough starts, including the Patriot's Day game in Boston, had some ugly numbers for Gio. But peep this: since the calendar turned to May, he's been quite impressive. Over 62 1/3 innings pitched, he's rocked a 3.03 ERA with a 31.2% strikeout rate.

The other top-end arms tonight, like Walker Buehler and Kevin Gausman, have indeed been brilliant, but they will square off and have their hands full with two potent offenses. Consider a far cheaper Giolito tonight.

Mid-Salaried Play
James Kaprielian, Oakland Athletics

Vs. Texas Rangers
FanDuel Salary: $8,000

With a monster main slate on Tuesday, there is no shortage of outstanding options to pick from on the day. But if you are looking to roster a pitcher right in that sweet spot, James Kaprielian could be a dynamic play.

Kaprielian has been a major find so far this season for the A's. He's logged a sub-3.00 ERA this season, and that backbone is built on the strength on a gorgeous 25.7% strikeout rate. His 30.4% called-plus-swinging-strike rate (CSW) is above league average, as well.

The Texas Rangers? They are still pretty ugly at the dish. They rank poorly with a 24.5% strikeout rate and .300 wOBA, so expect Kaprielian to be dealing.

Low-Salaried Play
Rich Hill, Tampa Bay Rays

At Washington Nationals
FanDuel Salary: $6,800

It's clear that people think the wheels are going to fall off -- and quickly -- for veteran southpaw Rich Hill. Despite a brilliant season and facing a struggling Washington Nationals offense with a mediocre .314 wOBA and .150 isolated power (ISO), Hill is dirt cheap.

Peeping Hill's stats make this even more perplexing. His 25.3% strikeout rate is more than adequate, and his 42.7% ground-ball rate is well above his career average. If we peer in specifically against the Nationals' marks against southpaws, they remain a team we attack. Their 102 wRC+, per FanGraphs, isn't particularly frightening, and their 24.5% strikeout rate provides that punchout upside we crave.

If you want to play the Coors game, Hill makes for a great pivot.



Matt Kupferle is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Matt Kupferle also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username MKupferle. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.