So you’re still fairly new to DraftKings. You have that deer in the headlights look Grey had when moving to Palm Springs 10 years ago when he first entered the Cougar Bar expecting a safari-type experience. I’m here to whisper sweet nothings of winning ways just like those recent divorcees woo-ing that mustached young fantasy writer Mr. Albright.
If you’re still new to DraftKings, our friends over at the leading fantasy sports daily league site hold their weekly RAZZBALL EXCLUSIVE contests every Friday where you get to play against our own resident expert Rudy Gamble. Just click on the link and for only $5.00 you enter in a limited pool where the winner gets entered into their huge $100,000 Punch Out where the top prize is $20,000! Even if you don’t finish first, spots 2-10 get payouts and you get to rub it in Rudy’s face when you take him down (he still hasn’t won yet!).
On the down low – here’s the best strategy to win – it’s all about your pitching. Ok, so a lot of regulars have figured that out, but you gotta spend big on the best matchups or go home. Also, spend on your Ks. At two points a pop, if your pitcher goes deep and racks em up, you’ll be a DraftKings winner. If you’re still a little intimidated by the rules and scoring, DraftKings has a really user-friendly page dedicated to their scoring here, which is easy to follow and project for when making your picks. And as always, you can shoot questions below or tweet me @jbgilpin. Hope to see you this Friday!
Flashback montage to last week’s picks:
SP – Anibal Sanchez W CG 1 H 3 BB 12 Ks (50.9 Pts)
CI – Edwin Encarnacion 2-5 2B (8 Pts)
MI – Kelly Johnson 2-4 3B R (13 Pts)
OF1 – Adam Dunn 0-4 BB (2 Pts)
OF2 – Will Venable 1-4 (3 Pts)
UTIL – Nick Swisher 0-4 (0 Pts)
TOTAL – 76.9 (Previous weeks’ finishes – 68.8, 47.7, 67.3, 92.4, 75, 83, 96)
Well, the proof is in the pudding as they say – that picking the right pitcher makes all the difference. Despite having a pretty crappy hitter turnout, I still had a higher scoring week with that near no-no from Anibal. Despite almost going no-hitter on us, as I mentioned on the Podcast the scoring was still two points less than his 17 K gem, so strikeouts are king. Or DraftKing. If ya know what I mean…
Here’s my picks for Friday’s action:
SP – Hisashi Iwakuma ($9,100) – As I mentioned on the Podcast, Iwakuma should be the hands-down favorite best value for your pitcher Friday night. He’s got great K numbers to boot and can go deep into games.
CI – Adrian Beltre ($5,200) – Since I’m spending fairly low on my other hitters below, I am going to prematurely shoot my wad on what hopes to not be a dry run. Speaking of Tobias quotes, I’ve been really depressed at how bad the new season of Arrested Development has been four episodes through. Anyway, Beltre is 4-8 against opposing pitcher Wade Davis along with a pair of walks, and gets to crush him at home in Arlington.
MI – Jhonny Peralta ($3,100) – Hard to believe the numbers Peralta is putting up this year, hitting .339 with 5 homers and 2 steals. Ok, so the steals aren’t real, but hitting Friday against Orioles’ starter Miguel Gonzalez (who he’s 1-3 against) at Baltimore has me excited for some cheap production at a tough position. Maybe a homer and some good RBI opportunities.
OF1 – Carl Crawford ($4,000) – Another guy I mentioned on Monday’s Pod was Carl Crawford at a great budget hitting at Coors this Friday. The speed is fantastic, with steals worth 5 a pop and triples at 8 points in DraftKings scoring, plus Crawf has some power in that thin air (homers are 14 pts with 10 per and at least 1 RBI and 1 Run). Great value as your first OF.
OF2 – Domonic Brown ($3,800) – Yovani Gallardo is not a very good pitcher, and is uber-prone to homers. So tough to watch as a Brewers fan. Hitting at home in Citizen’s Bank Park, Brown’s 11 homers (kinda quietly piling up to me) could see an additional boost with Gallardo throwing his horrible fastball up there.
UTIL – Raul Ibanez ($3,300) – Hoping to have one last season in his tank, Ibanez has actually been a really hot hitter the past couple of weeks, and will be hitting against human BP Mike Pelfrey on Friday night. You don’t love it’s in Minnesota, where hopefully Iwakuma is blankin’ em, but Ibanez is 11-35 (.314) against Pelfrey with a homer and 8 ribbies. Like him as another cheap option.
As always, if you have any questions about anyone else, or for any other DraftKings contests, shoot them below, thanks for checking our friends out!
