DSBC Preview Pt. 2: In-Depth DraftStreet Strategy

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If there’s one tip you could give a struggling player for daily fantasy baseball, it would have to be to pay attention to the strategy used by the guys winning consistently. The strategy of the best players can be taken by smaller fish and used to their advantage. And who better to study than the 40 DSBC qualifiers thus far? These 40 qualifiers have mastered DraftStreet success for daily fantasy baseball and there’s still two months left in the MLB season for you to learn some new tips. So in this article we will answer the FAQ of DraftStreet daily fantasy baseball by studying the ins and outs of each qualifiers victories.

Now let’s take a look at some of the most common dilemmas for a DraftStreet daily fantasy player and give you some concrete answers based on the numbers of the DSBC Finalists. At the end there are a couple of tables breaking down all of the strategy choices for both hitters and pitchers by each DSBC Finalist.

NOTE: Only the first 38 qualifiers were looked at for this strategy study.

DraftStreet Strategy FAQ #1: Should I use 3 SP and 1 RP, or 2 SP and 2 RP?

The answer here actually turns out to be pretty straightforward. Sure there are points to both sides of the argument but in this case the numbers don’t lie. Of the 38 qualifiers reviewed, only 9 used 2 relief pitchers. That means that 76% of DSBC Finalists(29 players) so far have used a 3:1 Starting Pitcher to Relief Pitcher ratio. The answer to this quandary is that you should definitely try to get 3 SP and 1 RP in your lineup.

DraftStreet Strategy FAQ #2: When would using 2 RP be a good idea?

From looking at the percentage of salaries spent on pitchers vs. hitters, you can see that there are qualifiers who spent around 30% of their given salary cap space on pitching and still held 3 starters. Likewise, some of the finalists who chose 2 SP and 2 RP spent that same 30% on pitching overall. This would indicate that if you want to use just 2 starting pitchers, make sure they are two high quality aces and save money with the relievers.

DraftStreet Strategy FAQ #3: How much should I spend on Pitchers vs. Batters?

The numbers show that the average DSBC qualifier spent 67.13% on batters and 32.87% on pitchers overall. With the DS 100K salary cap, that would mean spending around $67,000 on hitters and $33,000 on pitchers. The lowest salary percentage spent on hitters among DSBC qualifiers was JackandSoda with 56.52% of his salary spent on batters but they managed to put up a whopping 86 points thanks to a White Sox stack. JackandSoda likewise spent the most on pitching, allocating 43.38% of his salary to hurlers. Determination spent the highest percentage of his salary on hitters, with 76.22% of his money allocated to batters and just 23.78% of his salary kept for pitching. Of the 9 DSBC qualifiers who chose 2 SP and 2 RP, 7 of them spent over 70% of their salary on hitters. The answer overall would be that you should try to spend between $60-70K on batters and $30-40K on pitchers.

DraftStreet Strategy FAQ #4: How do you define ‘value’ for MLB on DS?

The average DSBC qualifier received 1 fantasy point for each $1,103 spent on hitters and 1 fantasy point for each $1402 spent on pitchers. The average score of all qualifiers batters combined was 63.37 fantasy points and the average score of all pitchers combined for DSBC qualifiers was 25.21. Do a little math and you will find that a batter costing you $10,000 should score 9.07 fantasy points and a pitcher costing you $10,000 should score you 7.13 fantasy points. Likewise, a pitcher costing you $15,000 should score you 10.7 fantasy points and a batter costing you $7500 should score you 6.8 fantasy points to offer value.

DraftStreet Strategy FAQ #5: Should I stack or not on DS?

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but after looking at all of the DSBC qualifiers there is still no true concrete answer to this question. But at the very least I can offer you some pointers on the different stack strategies that can do well on DraftStreet. Of the 38 qualifiers looked at, 10 of them did not use more than 2 players from 2 or more teams. I considered this to be an ‘assorted’ arrangement of hitters with no real stacking strategy. 17 players used the polar opposite strategy by having at least 5 players from one squad in their lineup. Of those 17, 5 players decided to stack at least 8 batters from a single team. Five qualifiers had at least two players from 3 or more teams, which is another popular method of “semi-stacking” and a few guys simply stacked 3-4 hitters from one lineup and used an assorted group to fill out the rest. Overall, the ‘heavy-stack’ of 5 or more players from one team accounted for 44% of the DSBC qualifier victories while the total ‘assorted’ picks accounted for 26% of the DSBC qualifiers. The rest used some sort of semi-stack method.

DraftStreet Strategy FAQ #6: What role does league size play in deciding whether or not to stack?

There have been 9 DSBC events with over 300 entrants and in 6 of those 9 tournaments, a stack of at least 5 players from one team has taken down the event. The other 3 winners were able to take home a victory behind an assorted lineup but for the most part, stacks were key in winning the huge leagues. In the ten events with just 60 entrants, only 5 of the winners have stacked at least 5 players from one team and the rest used a more balanced approach. Of those five finalists, only one used more than 6 players from one team to win these smaller field events. The point being, the bigger the field and the more likely you will need a stack to take first place. Below is a list of the winners along with number of entrants and how much(or how little) they used a stacking strategy.

Assorted implies a wide range of players across multiple teams.
Qualifier Scoreboard(Winner) Entrants Stack Breakdown Qualifier Scoreboard(Winner) Entrants Stack Breakdown
1 Daveinchi1975 200 7 PIT 21 Gelo24 100 Assorted
2 Patricke33 60 Assorted 22 jl9000 60 4 TEX, 3 TBR, 2 COL
3 Incu 500 Assorted 23 ShowMeTheMoney84 365 6 TEX
4 Notorious 100 3 DET, 2 BAL 24 jshilling09 100 4 TOR, 2 LAA
5 Jlowery73 60 5 ATL 25 thatteamfromcle 60 Assorted
6 GPPBeast 200 Assorted 26 Muntradamus 200 6 STL
7 Bab329 500 Assorted 27 Beastin 400 8 WAS, 2 LAA
8 Gopher 100 Assorted 28 Jackandsoda 100 8 CWS, 2 TOR
9 Jshepler12 200 3 NYY 29 dinkpiece 60 3 ATL
10 Determination 60 2 COL, 2 MIL, 2 DET 30 vinegarstrokes 500 9 CWS
11 WahooWarrior 500 7 MIL, 2 DET 31 g123 100 3 MIA
12 Rickmilitar 100 Assorted 32 sprom 200 7 ARI
13 Ronnymor2 60 5 TOR, 3 TEX 33 BeemImaJeep 400 8 TOR
14 Pbarrese13 20 4 CIN 34 UncleLeo 60 7 ARI, 2 CWS
15 Kamakazi 500 6 SEA 35 jshilling09 100 5 MIL
16 Ronnymor2 100 2 COL, 2 TOR, 2 NYY 36 vesneska 200 8 MIN
17 Beermakersfan 200 Assorted 37 leonem 60 5 PIT, 2 NYY
18 Waveswebdesign 60 5 ARI, 2 TEX, 2 LAA 38 rickmilitar 100
19 Dpert002 450 Assorted 39 Muntradamus 400 4 DET, 4 SFG
_. 20 Jackandsoda 200 4 CWS, 2 TOR, 2 NYY _. 40 BeepImaJeep 200 9 BAL

More DSBC Qualifier Tables

Below is a table breaking down all of the statistics I discussed above. There is one table for hitters and one table for pitchers based on the strategy and decision making for each DSBC qualifier.

CLICK ON ANY PLAYER’S NAME TO SEE THEIR SCOREBOARD FROM THEIR WINNING DSBC EVENT

The Pitchers Breakdown

Legend:
  • # of SP/RP – Number of starting pitchers/relief pitchers chosen
  • Total P Points – Total points by all pitchers combined for that qualifiers lineup
  • P Salaries – Total salary spent on all pitchers combined for each qualifier
  • %Salary P – The percentage of total salary spent allocated to just pitchers
  • P-Value($/FP) – Dollars spent to earn 1 Fantasy Point for all pitchers
Qualifier Winner # of SP # of RP Total P Points P Salaries %Salary P P-Value($/FP)
1 Daveinchi1975 3 1 34.9 $43,256 43.37% $1,239.43
2 Patricke33 3 1 22.15 $36,837 36.85% $1,663.07
3 Incu 3 1 32.45 $28,140 28.14% $867.18
4 Notorious 3 1 28.65 $32,198 32.26% $1,123.84
5 Jlowery73 3 1 25.95 $38,152 38.16% $1,470.21
6 GPPBeast 3 1 23.1 $38,382 39.09% $1,661.56
7 Bab329 3 1 24.6 $35,452 35.49% $1,441.14
8 Gopher 3 1 24.1 $29,718 29.74% $1,233.11
9 Jshepler12 3 1 16 $32,737 32.75% $2,046.06
10 Determination 2 2 27.65 $23,742 23.78% $858.66
11 WahooWarrior 3 1 27.9 $37,101 37.17% $1,329.78
12 Rickmilitar 3 1 40.1 $36,393 36.41% $907.56
13 Ronnymor2 2 2 23.25 $23,787 23.79% $1,023.10
14 Pbarrese13 3 1 32.05 $37,613 37.63% $1,173.57
15 Kamakazi 3 1 22.45 $31,773 31.82% $1,415.28
16 Ronnymor2 2 2 20.05 $27,391 27.42% $1,366.13
17 Beermakersfan 3 1 35.9 $29,947 30.03% $834.18
18 Waveswebdesign 2 2 14.65 $27,732 27.75% $1,892.97
19 Dpert002 2 2 7.55 $28,037 28.04% $3,713.51
20 Jackandsoda 2 2 20.4 $29,520 29.53% $1,447.06
21 Gelo24 3 1 19.6 $34,650 34.67% $1,767.86
22 jl9000 2 2 22.8 $31,710 31.75% $1,390.79
23 ShowMeTheMoney84 3 1 31.8 $29,624 29.63% $931.57
24 jshilling09 3 1 27.1 $28,233 28.25% $1,041.81
25 thatteamfromcle 2 2 20.05 $25,677 25.80% $1,280.65
26 Muntradamus 3 1 25.05 $26,436 26.50% $1,055.33
27 Beastin 2 2 20.85 $35,420 35.46% $1,698.80
28 Jackandsoda 3 1 24.4 $43,390 43.48% $1,778.28
29 dinkpiece 3 1 24.65 $40,907 40.94% $1,659.51
30 vinegarstrokes 3 1 25.45 $30,085 30.12% $1,182.12
31 g123 3 1 18.55 $30,455 30.93% $1,641.78
32 sprom 3 1 23.8 $39,924 40.03% $1,677.48
33 BeemImaJeep 3 1 20.5 $34,922 35.12% $1,703.51
34 UncleLeo 3 1 23.25 $27,172 27.32% $1,168.69
35 jshilling09 3 1 34.65 $33,877 33.89% $977.69
36 vesneska 3 1 29.2 $32,457 32.46% $1,111.54
37 leonem 3 1 37.3 $40,732 40.77% $1,092.01
NA AVERAGES 25.21 $32,799 32.87% $1,401.81

The Batters Breakdown

Legend:
  • Stack Breakdown: Assorted=no stack
  • Total H Pts: Total points scored by all hitters on each qualifiers lineup
  • H Salaries: Total salary allocated to just hitters for each qualifiers lineup
  • %Salary H: Percentage of salary allocated to hitters only
  • H-Value($/FP): The average amount spent to score 1 Fantasy Point for each team’s batters only
Qualifier Winner Stack Breakdown(if any) Total H Pts H Salaries %Salary H H-Value($/FP)
1 Daveinchi1975 7 PIT 51.5 $56,491 56.63% $1,096.91
2 Patricke33 Assorted 57.25 $63,130 63.15% $1,102.71
3 Incu Assorted 60 $71,846 71.86% $1,197.43
4 Notorious 3 DET, 2 BAL 58 $67,612 67.74% $1,165.72
5 Jlowery73 5 ATL 58.5 $61,829 61.84% $1,056.91
6 GPPBeast Assorted 82.75 $59,802 60.91% $722.68
7 Bab329 Assorted 70.5 $64,427 64.51% $913.86
8 Gopher Assorted 48.75 $70,212 70.26% $1,440.25
9 Jshepler12 3 NYY 55.75 $67,232 67.25% $1,205.96
10 Determination 2 COL, 2 MIL, 2 DET 44.25 $76,116 76.22% $1,720.14
11 WahooWarrior 7 MIL, 2 DET 81 $62,703 62.83% $774.11
12 Rickmilitar Assorted 50 $63,572 63.59% $1,271.44
13 Ronnymor2 5 TOR, 3 TEX 64.5 $76,183 76.21% $1,181.13
14 Pbarrese13 4 CIN 71.5 $62,332 62.37% $871.78
15 Kamakazi 6 SEA 74.5 $68,068 68.18% $913.66
16 Ronnymor2 2 COL, 2 TOR, 2 NYY 63.75 $72,513 72.58% $1,137.46
17 Beermakersfan Assorted 44.25 $69,783 69.97% $1,577.02
18 Waveswebdesign 5 ARI, 2 TEX, 2 LAA 67.75 $72,192 72.25% $1,065.56
19 Dpert002 Assorted 87.5 $71,945 71.96% $822.23
20 Jackandsoda 4 CWS, 2 TOR, 2 NYY 74.5 $70,461 70.47% $945.79
21 Gelo24 Assorted 55.5 $65,290 65.33% $1,176.40
22 jl9000 4 TEX, 3 TBR, 2 COL 69.75 $68,156 68.25% $977.15
23 ShowMeTheMoney84 6 TEX 72.75 $70,349 70.37% $967.00
24 jshilling09 4 TOR, 2 LAA 77.25 $71,720 71.75% $928.41
25 thatteamfromcle Assorted 44.25 $73,854 74.20% $1,669.02
26 Muntradamus 6 STL 64 $73,325 73.50% $1,145.70
27 Beastin 8 WAS, 2 LAA 84.75 $64,472 64.54% $760.73
28 Jackandsoda 8 CWS, 2 TOR 86 $56,407 56.52% $655.90
29 dinkpiece 3 ATL 59 $59,008 59.06% $1,000.14
30 vinegarstrokes 9 CWS 60.5 $69,787 69.88% $1,153.50
31 g123 3 MIA 54.75 $67,995 69.07% $1,241.92
32 sprom 7 ARI 70.25 $59,814 59.97% $851.44
33 BeemImaJeep 8 TOR 76.5 $64,526 64.88% $843.48
34 UncleLeo 7 ARI, 2 CWS 50 $72,272 72.68% $1,445.44
35 jshilling09 5 MIL 52.75 $66,075 66.11% $1,252.61
36 vesneska 8 MIN 49 $67,540 67.54% $1,378.37
37 leonem 5 PIT, 2 NYY 50 $59,180 59.23% $1,183.60
38 AVERAGES 63.34 $66,979 67.13% $1,103.07

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