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Wow. Now this is a pitching slate. You’ve got a ton of high-end options with a respectable splash of mid to lower-tiered guys just primed for a spot on your GPP tournament play. For FanDuel, given their scoring for pitching, I’m staying near the top, but for DraftKings and Fantasy Aces, I’m happy to float one top guy and one much lower-priced option. Here’s a look at the data with my thoughts on the more playable hurlers.
| vs L | vs R | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Player | Tm | Hand | H/A | Opp | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | HR/9 | BAA | SwStr% | ERA | xFIP | WHIP | GB% | FB% | GB/FB | wOBA | wOBA | $FD | $DK | $Aces |
| Madison Bumgarner | SF | L | H | BOS | 80.0 | 10.58 | 2.70 | 0.68 | .210 | 13.1% | 1.91 | 3.28 | 1.09 | 43.4% | 36.1% | 1.20 | 0.209 | 0.279 | $11400 | $11600 | $7250 |
| Max Scherzer | WSH | R | A | CWS | 81.1 | 11.18 | 2.55 | 1.77 | .213 | 16.7% | 3.87 | 3.16 | 1.07 | 37.2% | 43.9% | 0.85 | 0.388 | 0.205 | $11200 | $13300 | $7500 |
| Noah Syndergaard | NYM | R | A | PIT | 70.2 | 11.47 | 1.27 | 0.51 | .224 | 16.3% | 1.91 | 2.06 | 0.96 | 58.6% | 21.3% | 2.75 | 0.269 | 0.220 | $10600 | $12400 | $7700 |
| David Price | BOS | L | A | SF | 75.2 | 9.99 | 2.62 | 0.95 | .251 | 13.7% | 4.88 | 3.55 | 1.24 | 44.2% | 30.3% | 1.46 | 0.327 | 0.309 | $10400 | $9400 | $6950 |
| John Lackey | CHC | R | A | PHI | 75.0 | 9.12 | 2.16 | 0.84 | .209 | 13.9% | 2.88 | 3.42 | 0.97 | 43.5% | 32.8% | 1.33 | 0.283 | 0.259 | $10000 | $12900 | $6750 |
| Drew Pomeranz | SD | L | H | ATL | 65.0 | 10.67 | 4.02 | 0.55 | .163 | 12.2% | 2.22 | 3.36 | 1.05 | 51.0% | 34.0% | 1.50 | 0.220 | 0.237 | $9700 | $11700 | $6800 |
| Yu Darvish | TEX | R | H | HOU | 10.2 | 10.13 | 1.69 | 0.00 | .225 | 13.6% | 3.38 | 2.88 | 1.03 | 48.3% | 24.1% | 2.00 | 0.295 | 0.117 | $9600 | $11000 | $6900 |
| Carlos Carrasco | CLE | R | A | SEA | 27.0 | 7.34 | 2.00 | 1.67 | .245 | 11.8% | 3.00 | 3.61 | 1.15 | 52.5% | 27.5% | 1.91 | 0.354 | 0.254 | $9500 | $10300 | $6500 |
| Jordan Zimmermann | DET | R | H | TOR | 66.1 | 5.83 | 1.76 | 0.81 | .245 | 8.2% | 2.58 | 4.23 | 1.15 | 45.5% | 36.2% | 1.26 | 0.251 | 0.301 | $9400 | $9500 | $6500 |
| Vince Velasquez | PHI | R | H | CHC | 61.1 | 10.71 | 3.08 | 1.17 | .243 | 12.9% | 3.67 | 3.52 | 1.27 | 37.2% | 42.3% | 0.88 | 0.308 | 0.307 | $8500 | $8100 | $6550 |
| Chris Tillman | BAL | R | H | KC | 70.1 | 8.44 | 3.71 | 1.15 | .215 | 11.2% | 3.33 | 4.09 | 1.18 | 42.9% | 36.3% | 1.18 | 0.320 | 0.278 | $8300 | $7600 | $6000 |
| Edinson Volquez | KC | R | A | BAL | 73.2 | 7.21 | 3.18 | 0.98 | .266 | 9.6% | 4.03 | 4.14 | 1.41 | 53.1% | 26.1% | 2.03 | 0.293 | 0.336 | $8300 | $6600 | $6200 |
| Jake Odorizzi | TB | R | A | ARI | 67.2 | 7.58 | 2.53 | 1.20 | .224 | 10.0% | 3.33 | 4.10 | 1.12 | 40.5% | 36.4% | 1.11 | 0.223 | 0.332 | $8200 | $9000 | $6250 |
| Julio Teheran | ATL | R | A | SD | 74.0 | 8.39 | 2.55 | 1.22 | .204 | 10.6% | 2.92 | 3.86 | 1.05 | 45.6% | 36.3% | 1.26 | 0.344 | 0.220 | $8200 | $10900 | $6450 |
| Kenta Maeda | LAD | R | H | COL | 63.1 | 7.96 | 2.42 | 0.71 | .211 | 12.4% | 2.84 | 3.83 | 1.07 | 47.9% | 31.4% | 1.53 | 0.260 | 0.259 | $8200 | $7500 | $6500 |
| Nathan Eovaldi | NYY | R | H | LAA | 66.0 | 8.45 | 2.05 | 1.09 | .252 | 10.8% | 4.09 | 3.42 | 1.21 | 52.9% | 28.3% | 1.87 | 0.368 | 0.261 | $8200 | $7700 | $6300 |
| Jaime Garcia | STL | L | A | CIN | 64.2 | 8.07 | 3.20 | 0.42 | .226 | 9.8% | 3.48 | 3.65 | 1.22 | 61.6% | 20.0% | 3.08 | 0.230 | 0.280 | $8100 | $6700 | $6250 |
| Taijuan Walker | SEA | R | H | CLE | 59.1 | 7.88 | 1.97 | 1.82 | .250 | 9.6% | 3.94 | 3.88 | 1.25 | 49.7% | 30.1% | 1.65 | 0.276 | 0.366 | $8000 | $6800 | $6450 |
| Wei-Yin Chen | MIA | L | A | MIN | 65.2 | 7.54 | 2.19 | 1.10 | .256 | 9.6% | 4.25 | 4.02 | 1.22 | 41.8% | 33.2% | 1.26 | 0.242 | 0.316 | $7900 | $7900 | $5900 |
| Doug Fister | HOU | R | A | TEX | 66.2 | 5.27 | 3.24 | 1.22 | .241 | 5.6% | 3.51 | 4.67 | 1.26 | 51.0% | 28.9% | 1.76 | 0.383 | 0.231 | $7400 | $5600 | $5650 |
| James Shields | CWS | R | H | WSH | 67.1 | 7.62 | 3.34 | 1.20 | .272 | 11.3% | 4.28 | 4.24 | 1.43 | 48.2% | 28.4% | 1.70 | 0.348 | 0.326 | $7200 | $6000 | $6250 |
| Jesse Hahn | OAK | R | A | MIL | 31.0 | 4.36 | 3.77 | 1.74 | .309 | 6.5% | 6.10 | 4.84 | 1.65 | 58.3% | 21.4% | 2.73 | 0.439 | 0.328 | $7200 | $5700 | $5600 |
| Jered Weaver | LAA | R | A | NYY | 64.1 | 5.60 | 2.10 | 1.96 | .306 | 9.5% | 5.18 | 5.22 | 1.48 | 31.1% | 41.6% | 0.75 | 0.366 | 0.382 | $7000 | $6400 | $5750 |
| R.A. Dickey | TOR | R | A | DET | 72.2 | 6.44 | 3.47 | 1.11 | .240 | 10.0% | 4.21 | 4.58 | 1.29 | 48.0% | 29.4% | 1.63 | 0.349 | 0.293 | $7000 | $6900 | $5700 |
| Archie Bradley | ARI | R | H | TB | 23.2 | 9.50 | 3.80 | 0.76 | .244 | 9.8% | 4.94 | 3.70 | 1.39 | 53.8% | 27.7% | 1.94 | 0.363 | 0.263 | $6600 | $7,700 | $5800 |
| Ricky Nolasco | MIN | R | H | MIA | 65.2 | 8.23 | 1.64 | 1.23 | .270 | 10.7% | 4.93 | 3.64 | 1.23 | 43.7% | 33.5% | 1.30 | 0.326 | 0.315 | $6600 | $6900 | $5700 |
| Chase Anderson | MIL | R | H | OAK | 59.2 | 7.24 | 2.41 | 1.96 | .260 | 9.1% | 4.68 | 4.34 | 1.27 | 42.3% | 36.8% | 1.15 | 0.273 | 0.410 | $6500 | $7100 | $5850 |
| Alfredo Simon | CIN | R | H | STL | 47.1 | 6.46 | 3.99 | 2.28 | .338 | 8.7% | 8.94 | 5.43 | 1.92 | 50.9% | 28.7% | 1.78 | 0.439 | 0.408 | $6300 | $4000 | $5550 |
| Chris Rusin | COL | L | A | LAD | 48.2 | 6.66 | 2.59 | 0.37 | .283 | 8.7% | 4.62 | 3.94 | 1.42 | 61.7% | 14.9% | 4.13 | 0.340 | 0.316 | $5600 | $5000 | $5450 |
| Jameson Taillon | PIT | R | H | NYM | 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 | N/A | $8900 | $5800 |
Max Scherzer, WAS – While he has the DH to contend with now, he’s still facing a team that has put up just a .299 wOBA against righties all year and has a .278 wOBA over the last seven days. Home runs are always going to be an issue, but with the Sox posting just a .121 ISO over the last week, maybe there’s some hope.
Noah Syndergaard, NYM – There’s no statistical evidence that says the Pirates are going to struggle against him, but he’s Thor and maybe they’re without Starling Marte again. I’m not using him because of all the options out there where the numbers say good thing, but I can’t tell you not to use him given his overall performance and track record this season.
David Price, BOS – Few people realize just how dominant he’s been since he corrected that issue where he was tipping his pitches. Now he faces a Giants team that has a .270 wOBA and has seen its strikeout rate climb from the mid-teens to a 20.4-percent rate.
John Lackey, CHC – Super consistent, strong strikeout rate and now facing a Phillies squad that has a 28th-ranked .291 wOBA against right-handers this year and is sporting a 21.4-percent strikeout rate against them.
Drew Pomeranz, SD – Maybe it’s just me waiting for the bottom to drop out here, but it’s unlikely to happen here against the Braves. Do I even need to quote their numbers? I didn’t think so.
Yu Darvish, TEX – Obviously the Astros are a fairly consistent team with the bats, but that 25-percent strikeout rate just keeps jumping off the page at me. Their .313 wOBA against righties isn’t all that intimidating, so I’m willing to give Darvish a look.
Jordan Zimmermann, DET – The Jays can explode with the bats at any time, but these are not the same guys we saw last season where they couldn’t be stopped. They have a .311 wOBA against righties that drops to .301 on the road and has fallen to an even worse .282 over the past week. With a strikeout rate hovering just over 20-percent, they may not put up too much of a fight against Zim.
Chris Tillman, BAL – The Royals are not the same, scrappy bunch of hitters we are used to seeing either and with a .256 wOBA and 21.3-percent strikeout rate over the past week, Tillman looks like a great secondary option on DraftKings and Aces.
Julio Teheran, ATL – He’ll have to outduel Pomeranz to escape with the win, but it should be a nice battle considering the Padres’ .280 wOBA and 24.1-percent strikeout rate against right-handers this year.
Wei-Yin Chen, MIA – He’s going to continue lacking in run support with the way the Marlins are hitting, but for his own personal match-up, Chen looks like a decent option here. The Twins rank 27th in the league with their .296 wOBA against southpaws this season and they’re posting it alongside a dismal 24.8-percent strikeout rate.
Ricky Nolasco, MIN – You just might be able to flip a coin for the win between him and Chen, but considering the fact that the Marlins are sitting on a .250 wOBA over the last week, even Nolasco could find some success. And just to put it in relative terms, that .250 mark is actually worse than what the Braves have done.
Chris Rusin, COL – He’s nothing more than a dart for GPP lineups, but with the Dodgers posting a .293 wOBA over the last seven days and just a .294 wOBA at home all year, you may as well throw a buck on him with some juicy bats in your lineup.
Oh, and by the way, you are more than welcome to take a shot on Jameson Taillon today. Numerous people are going to, in fact. I’m just not going to recommend putting money on it, even if it is just a dollar. I love the kid for seasonal league, especially keeper and dynasty leagues, but I’m not ready to commit to him in DFS.