Apologies for the late start today, so in the interest of saving time, I will post the pitchers for the early slate now and then follow up with the late slate shortly thereafter. Shouldn’t be much longer after but wanted to give all you folks playing the early games the opportunity to take your time here.
Early Slate
| vs L | vs R | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Name | Team | Hand | H/A | Opp | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | HR/9 | AVG | ERA | xFIP | WHIP | BABIP | GB% | FB% | GB/FB | wOBA | wOBA | FD | DK | Aces |
| Jacob deGrom | NYM | R | H | PHI | 191.0 | 9.66 | 1.79 | 0.75 | 0.210 | 2.54 | 2.92 | 0.98 | 0.271 | 44.4% | 34.7% | 1.28 | 0.289 | 0.209 | $11,000 | $12,300 | $7,500 |
| Danny Salazar | CLE | R | A | CHW | 185.0 | 9.49 | 2.58 | 1.12 | 0.224 | 3.45 | 3.48 | 1.13 | 0.278 | 43.9% | 37.4% | 1.17 | 0.310 | 0.279 | $9,300 | $10,700 | $6,550 |
| Jordan Zimmermann | DET | R | H | NYY | 201.2 | 7.32 | 1.74 | 1.07 | 0.260 | 3.66 | 3.82 | 1.20 | 0.302 | 42.0% | 36.2% | 1.16 | 0.336 | 0.270 | $8,900 | $9,100 | $6,500 |
| Luis Severino | NYY | R | A | DET | 62.1 | 8.09 | 3.18 | 1.30 | 0.229 | 2.89 | 3.72 | 1.20 | 0.265 | 50.3% | 29.7% | 1.69 | 0.314 | 0.303 | $8,500 | $8,700 | $6,000 |
| Jerad Eickhoff | PHI | R | A | NYM | 51.0 | 8.65 | 2.29 | 0.88 | 0.211 | 2.65 | 3.60 | 1.04 | 0.257 | 37.9% | 40.0% | 0.95 | 0.353 | 0.203 | $6,400 | $8,500 | $5,350 |
| John Danks | CHW | L | H | CLE | 177.2 | 6.28 | 2.84 | 1.22 | 0.275 | 4.71 | 4.65 | 1.41 | 0.305 | 38.2% | 40.7% | 0.94 | 0.315 | 0.353 | $6,300 | $7,000 | $5,600 |
| Jordan Lyles | COL | R | H | SD | 49.0 | 5.51 | 3.49 | 0.37 | 0.284 | 5.14 | 4.40 | 1.49 | 0.329 | 49.7% | 24.5% | 2.03 | 0.353 | 0.306 | $5,000 | $5,600 | $5,200 |
| Colin Rea | SD | R | A | COL | 31.2 | 7.39 | 3.13 | 0.57 | 0.240 | 4.26 | 3.93 | 1.26 | 0.290 | 46.2% | 30.1% | 1.54 | 0.289 | 0.331 | $4,900 | $6,000 | $5,350 |
Jacob deGrom, NYM – As great as deGrom is, there’s a bit of risk here as his wife is about to give birth and there are reports that he will leave the home opener if she should go into labor while he’s on the mound. Everything else about this match-up is outstanding and he’s easily worth the investment against a weak Phillies lineup. The question is, how much risk do you like when you pay up for pitching? I don’t like much, but in this case, I’m taking the leap.
Danny Salazar, CLE – I’ve made no secret of my love for Salazar this season and his expected year of greatness starts right now against a White Sox team that’s rocking a .238 wOBA over 127 plate appearances against right-handers already this season. Salazar tore them up in his two starts against them last year and while some of the personnel has changed, I don’t anticipate the outcome as being any different. Not to mention, the strikeout potential is always high when Salazar is on the hill.
Jordan Lyles, COL – Looking for a low-cost, potential high reward starter? Well here you go. Yes, a Rockies pitcher in Colorado. The sample size from last year is small, but Lyles did pitch better at Coors than he did on the road and now he gets the benefit of facing a Padres team that ranks at or near the bottom in every offensive category. They’re fanning at a 28.6-percent clip versus right-handers, have a .183 wOBA against them and have shown absolutely no plate discipline thus far. And if you’re concerned over Lyles’ wOBA splits versus lefties, enjoy the fact that the Friars are a predominately right-handed team. For an early GPP, I love this match-up.
Late Slate
| vs L | vs R | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Name | Team | Hand | H/A | Opp | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | HR/9 | AVG | ERA | xFIP | WHIP | BABIP | GB% | FB% | GB/FB | wOBA | wOBA | FD | DK | Aces |
| Chris Archer | TB | R | A | BAL | 212.0 | 10.70 | 2.80 | 0.81 | 0.219 | 3.23 | 3.01 | 1.14 | 0.295 | 46.1% | 33.9% | 1.36 | 0.267 | 0.278 | $11,100 | $10,700 | $7,000 |
| Francisco Liriano | PIT | L | A | CIN | 186.2 | 9.88 | 3.38 | 0.72 | 0.222 | 3.38 | 3.16 | 1.21 | 0.293 | 51.2% | 26.3% | 1.95 | 0.269 | 0.285 | $9,900 | $10,300 | $6,750 |
| Marcus Stroman | TOR | R | H | BOS | 27.0 | 6.00 | 2.00 | 0.67 | 0.208 | 1.67 | 3.34 | 0.96 | 0.237 | 64.1% | 17.9% | 3.57 | 0.235 | 0.280 | $8,100 | $9,100 | $6,250 |
| Chris Tillman | BAL | R | H | TB | 173.0 | 6.24 | 3.33 | 1.04 | 0.262 | 4.99 | 4.58 | 1.39 | 0.293 | 43.5% | 35.4% | 1.23 | 0.309 | 0.353 | $7,000 | $6,800 | $6,150 |
| Yordano Ventura | KC | R | H | MIN | 163.1 | 8.60 | 3.20 | 0.77 | 0.246 | 4.08 | 3.60 | 1.30 | 0.307 | 52.2% | 27.2% | 1.92 | 0.319 | 0.295 | $8,700 | $9,200 | $6,100 |
| Taijuan Walker | SEA | R | H | OAK | 169.2 | 8.33 | 2.12 | 1.33 | 0.248 | 4.56 | 3.82 | 1.20 | 0.291 | 38.6% | 39.0% | 0.99 | 0.310 | 0.312 | $7,600 | $9,300 | $6,100 |
| Jason Hammel | CHC | R | A | ARI | 170.2 | 9.07 | 2.11 | 1.21 | 0.238 | 3.74 | 3.47 | 1.16 | 0.288 | 38.3% | 37.2% | 1.03 | 0.301 | 0.309 | $7,900 | $8,000 | $6,000 |
| Ervin Santana | MIN | R | A | KC | 108.0 | 6.83 | 3.00 | 1.00 | 0.249 | 4.00 | 4.42 | 1.30 | 0.285 | 40.9% | 37.6% | 1.09 | 0.346 | 0.286 | $6,900 | $7,800 | $6,000 |
| Matt Shoemaker | LAA | R | H | TEX | 135.1 | 7.71 | 2.33 | 1.60 | 0.255 | 4.46 | 4.16 | 1.26 | 0.285 | 39.2% | 42.4% | 0.92 | 0.316 | 0.337 | $7,700 | $6,200 | $5,900 |
| Jaime Garcia | STL | L | A | ATL | 129.2 | 6.73 | 2.08 | 0.42 | 0.222 | 2.43 | 3.36 | 1.05 | 0.267 | 61.2% | 22.3% | 2.74 | 0.282 | 0.248 | $8,900 | $9,400 | $5,800 |
| Scott Feldman | HOU | R | A | MIL | 108.1 | 5.07 | 2.24 | 1.08 | 0.271 | 3.90 | 4.09 | 1.31 | 0.291 | 48.9% | 27.5% | 1.78 | 0.287 | 0.354 | $7,500 | $6,400 | $5,550 |
| Matt Wisler | ATL | R | H | STL | 109.0 | 5.94 | 3.30 | 1.32 | 0.274 | 4.71 | 5.10 | 1.46 | 0.298 | 33.6% | 43.2% | 0.78 | 0.419 | 0.284 | $5,200 | $7,400 | $5,500 |
| Matt Cain | SF | R | H | LAD | 60.2 | 6.08 | 2.97 | 1.78 | 0.287 | 5.79 | 4.94 | 1.50 | 0.304 | 35.8% | 40.3% | 0.89 | 0.404 | 0.357 | $5,900 | $7,200 | $5,450 |
| Robbie Ray | ARI | L | H | CHC | 127.2 | 8.39 | 3.45 | 0.63 | 0.248 | 3.52 | 4.03 | 1.33 | 0.311 | 43.3% | 34.6% | 1.25 | 0.309 | 0.321 | $6,300 | $7,600 | $5,350 |
| Joe Kelly | BOS | R | A | TOR | 134.1 | 7.37 | 3.28 | 1.00 | 0.273 | 4.82 | 4.08 | 1.44 | 0.320 | 45.6% | 29.4% | 1.55 | 0.305 | 0.365 | $7,800 | $6,200 | $5,350 |
| Chase Anderson | MIL | R | H | HOU | 152.2 | 6.54 | 2.36 | 1.06 | 0.266 | 4.30 | 4.17 | 1.30 | 0.302 | 42.0% | 34.4% | 1.22 | 0.325 | 0.325 | $5,400 | $7,000 | $5,300 |
| Alfredo Simon | CIN | R | H | PIT | 187.0 | 5.63 | 3.27 | 1.16 | 0.270 | 5.05 | 4.78 | 1.44 | 0.294 | 43.6% | 34.6% | 1.26 | 0.369 | 0.320 | $7,600 | $5,800 | $5,250 |
| Ross Stripling | LAD | R | A | SF | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | $6,100 | $5,400 | $5,000 |
| A.J. Griffin | TEX | R | A | LAA | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | $5,700 | $8,200 | N/A |
| Eric Surkamp | OAK | L | A | SEA | 3.1 | 10.80 | 2.70 | 5.40 | 0.308 | 10.80 | 4.32 | 1.50 | 0.286 | 37.5% | 25.0% | 1.50 | 0.795 | 0.272 | $4,800 | $6,000 | N/A |
Chris Archer, TB – After watching his fan 12 guys in five innings on Opening Day and seeing the Orioles fan 21.8-percent of the time against righties already this season, I’ll be less concerned about the runs he allowed to Toronto or the O’s lineup right now. He’s an elite talent and should offer you up killer daily points in strikeouts while maintaining solid ratios.
Francisco Liriano, PIT – In truth, I’m a little on the fence here. I like Liriano as his strikeout rate is strong and the Reds are a team he should be able to dominate…for the most part. What concerns me is the fact that the Reds have a .490 wOBA versus southpaws this season. Now granted, we’re only talking about 21 plate appearances and yesterday seemed like a bit of an exception to the way the Reds have looked and are expected to look this season. So I can understand you dismissing the concern and just going for the strikeouts. With Alfredo Simon in the hill for the Reds, Liriano could/should be able to secure the win.
Yordano Ventura, KC – While the young right-hander has been known to be a bit of a headcase, I had a chance to talk with Ben Heisler of 610 The Ticket in Kansas City and he spoke quite a bit about Ventura’s maturity and how the coaching staff has approached him with regard to it. If that truly is the case, then he could be in line to take another step forward in his career. The Twins have just a .271 wOBA against righties through the first few games, but, more importantly, they are posting a 32.3-percent strikeout rate. If they remain impatient at the plate and continue to swing through a lot of pitches, Ventura should be a strong daily play for Friday.
Taijuan Walker, SEA – Again, I know it’s early, but when a team like the A’s is sitting on a .178 wOBA against right-handers and has a .344 OPS, you know the advantage tilts towards the pitcher. They’re also sitting on a 20.7-percent strikeout rate, so if Walker keeps his focus, he should be able to dispatch of them handily.
Matt Shoemaker, LAA – More of a GPP play here as the Rangers do have the ability to power up at a moment’s notice. However, they have yet to do so thus far, they’ve got a .214 wOBA versus righties and they are fanning almost 29-percent of the time. Shoemaker looked good in the second half last year and certainly has the ability to keep a good amount of that momentum going.
Jaime Garcia, STL – When he’s healthy, he’s an effective starter and should have no problem with this Braves team, a squad that hasn’t faced a lot of southpaws this season but when they do, they’re atrocious. This should be an easy game for the veteran and is going to be a nice second starter for those playing on Draft Kings and Fantasy Aces.
Player News
{{item.text}}
{{analysis.analysis}}