Home Run Derby - MLB DFS Community Contest: Friday, August 5th
Happy Friday, Grinders! As the NFL approaches, Friday MLB slates come with the greatest opportunity to get in big fields before the start of the NFL season. Tonight, the slate spans nearly the entire league with only one early game and the Giants and Athletics not playing today. Tuesday didn’t bring that many fireworks so, here’s hoping the Friday slate brings the firepower.
Who had Jorge Mateo as the only multi-homer game on Tuesday? Anyone? No?
The MLB brought us 33 home runs on Tuesday night with many of the likeliest picks failing to leave the yard. Rowdy Tellez was a popular selection in our mid-range. So, the smattering of 1’s you see on our leaderboard came courtesy of the slugging Brewer. Otherwise, we are in the home stretch — looking to crown one more set of monthly winners and an overall set of leaders. Let’s get to Friday’s slate and picks.
Reminder! Prizes were doubled for each month. Spread the word!
Rules, Tiers, and Prizes
Here are the cliff notes from the introductory rules and guidelines set forth in our opening article. If you want a bit more clarification, here is the first article with a more developed explanation for the contest.
In short, pick three players in the comments for tonight’s DraftKings Main MLB slate. You may pick one player from each of the tiers below.
Luxury Box – $5,000 and above
Promenade – $3,500 – $4,900
Bleachers – Below $3,500
You will collect home runs for every home run your batters hit that night. Selections must be made prior to lock time in the comments section. At the end of each month, prizes will be awarded to the community members with the most home runs. At the end of the season, additional prizes will be awarded to those members who put together the best totals for the entire season (ending in August).
The following prizes will be awarded to players based on their home run total for the month (April, May, June, July, August)
First Place – 2 months of RotoGrinders MLB Premium
Second Place – RotoGrinders T-shirt and hat
Third Place – 2 weeks of SAO Premium
The following prizes will be awarded to players based on their home run total for the entire baseball season (April – August)
First Place – One month of RotoGrinders Combo Premium
Second Place – RotoGrinders Swag Pack
Third Place – One month of SAO Premium
If you have any questions, please feel free to leave them in the comments or send me a message on Twitter.
Friday, August 5th MLB DFS Slate Notes
The DraftKings main slate features 13 games tonight. The Cubs and Marlins play the customary Wrigley Field afternoon game while the Athletics and Giants start their series tomorrow. Odd. In any event, with the weather being a concern, we might want to consider one of the four dome games on the slate. The Eastern seaboard looks to be primed for some rain.
Speaking of our weather, keep your eyes on this report all day long as Kevin Roth will surely update and then hop on CrunchTime for the final report before lock. Baltimore, New York, Cleveland, and Philadelphia will need another look.
Here is our HR/9 list for tonight’s slate:
Josiah Gray, WSN, 2.12
Jose Berrios, TOR, 1.73
Eric Lauer, MIL, 1.70
Robbie Ray, SEA, 1.54
German Marquez, COL, 1.48
Unlike Tuesday’s slate, we have a handful of targets on Friday. Josiah Gray can’t help himself but give up bombs while German Marquez, Jose Berrios, and Robbie Ray remain fixtures on this list. If the weather holds up we have some options.
The Phillies seem to be in quite the spot for power if we can somehow avoid the rain. Yesterday’s game was suspended and at the time of this writing, the rain seems to be headed for later at night. I will be tuned in to CrunchTime hoping to target some of these bats in the Philly Bandbox.
The Yankees travel to St. Louis for a pretty cool series between two of this season’s World Series contenders. Will Aaron Judge light the midwest on fire? Can the Cardinals’ offense keep pace with the Bronx Bombers. I will be tuned in after the wee ones are tucked in to bed.
Finally, we get a look at the Padres and Dodgers with the retooled San Diego team. Soto, Bell, Drury, Hader and company will take aim at their division rival. The division might be a bit out of the question but the Padres surely want to secure a playoff berth. Will this be a preview of what’s to come in the playoffs?
Let’s make some picks.
Friday, August 5th MLB Home Run Picks
Luxury Box – Kyle Schwarber – OF – $5,400
I am here… on this website… because I enjoy gambling. That said, why wouldn’t I take a crack on Schwarbs against Josiah Gray in Philadelphia? I will do my reverse rain dance all day hoping to be rewarded with a multi-homer day from the Phillies’ slugger.
In 198 plate appearances against lefties this season, Gray posts a 54.2 FB%. Consequently, Schwarber brings a 51.9 FB% against righties. My man doesn’t get cheated when he takes a swing. Schwarber is selling out to hit bombs and we love that here.
At the time of this writing, FanDuel Sportsbook posts a +220 price for Kyle Schwarber to go yard. If you are interested, jump early because that line is likely to get shorter.
Promenade – Matt Carpenter – OF – $4,900
I mean, the tease was there, right? The Yankees trek to St. Louis. Matt Carpenter has added outfield to his resume. A return home?
I don’t need my arm twisted to pick Matt Carpenter for anything baseball or gambling related. His .430 ISO against righties this season exists because Carpenter is literally trying to pull every ball out of the ballpark. Most nights that won’t help us but like Kyle Schwarber, he won’t be cheated.
Extreme flyball hitters normally do well against extreme groundball pitchers. We will get that tonight against Dakota Hudson. Lock Carp in at his DraftKings home run price of +450.
Bleacher Seats – Alek Thomas – OF – $3,400
Alek Thomas is in the right price range and draws a good lineup spot against German Marquez. So, I mean… need I say more?
No. I needn’t. In this range, I feel like I throw darts with every article. At some point, one of these darts needs to hit the board. Marquez continues to give up power and Thomas has just enough pop to run into one.
Good luck, tonight!
Thanks so very much for reading. Give me a follow on Twitter for sports betting banter, golf tidbits, and professional wrestling reactions. We will see you again on Tuesday for a recap, leaderboard, and home run calls.
Player Image Credit: Imagn