There are eight MLB games on the main slate for Saturday, with the first starting at 4:05 p.m. EST. Here are three value picks for the slate. This article is written before the actual lineups come out, so keep track of updates throughout the day.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $150K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
SP Jake Irvin, Washington Nationals vs. San Francisco Giants, $7,100
Irvin is not the type of pitcher that I usually like to roster, as the strikeout rate is a paltry 16.1% while the hard hit rate is 49.2% on the season. Those are but some of the reasons why he’s so cheap.
That said, he’s gone at least five innings in every start this season and allowed two or fewer earned runs in six starts. He allowed four earned runs in two of his first three starts and allowed six earned runs four starts ago. In the last three starts, though, Irvin has pitched 5.1, 6.0 and 6.1 innings while allowing only two, three and two earned runs.
In this most recent start, Irvin put up 22.7 FPTS. He has two other starts with 29.9 and 29.4 FPTS. He does have four starts with single-digit FPTS and one with negative 1.1 FPTS, so the range of outcomes is extremely wide.
The Giants are 16th in wOBA, but Irvin was able to stymie the 10th, ninth and 24th ranked teams in terms of wOBA in the three most recent starts.
He’s cheap and there is some upside. You don’t even have to squint that hard.
1B Joc Pederson, Texas Rangers at Chicago White Sox, $2,200
It looks like I am going to be recommending Pederson every week until he gets hot.
The matchup isn’t a great one, as Jonathan Cannon has done a good job of keeping the ball in the yard. The HR/9 is 0.98 in 55 innings.
Pederson has been abhorrent to start the season, slashing .134/.270/.244. The BABIP is only .157, though, the walk rate is 14.1% and the strikeout rate is only 19.7%. The ISO is way down at .109, but he’s a career .225 ISO player. It’s only a matter of time before it gets hot, and there’s no doubt that I will be at the front of the train because Pederson is going to be cheap for a while.
OF Mike Tauchman, Chicago White Sox vs. Texas Rangers, $3,000
Tauchman hasn’t played since early April due to a hamstring injury. He’s making his return on Friday as I write this piece. I’m not especially enamored with Tauchman because he has a career .132 ISO, but he’s batting second on Friday and will likely be there on Saturday as well.
This recommendation is more of an indictment against Rangers pitcher Jack Leiter. Leiter has the pedigree and the stuff to dominate, but he hasn’t been able to put it all together yet. Despite the 97.8 mph fastball, the strikeout rate is only 18.5% while the walk rate is a robust 11%. He’s been extremely lucky through 36 innings so far, as the BABIP is only .212.
