MLB Pitching Primer: Sunday, July 29th
Everything in the sport of baseball comes down to the hitter-versus-pitcher matchup – which makes pitching the most important element of MLB DFS play. Without an understanding of the best pitching plays on the day, your DFS efforts will be sunk! Each day, the Pitching Primer will provide you with some of the top pitching plays on the day – taking a close look at the “why” behind these picks, and helping you to identify pitchers others might overlook.
Sunday, July 29th
Main Slate
Welcome to Sunday! As has been the case most of the season on Sunday, we have one less game on FanDuel compared to DraftKings and FantasyDraft for our Main Slate. FanDuel is running a 10-game main slate, while DraftKings and FantasyDraft start at the same time. Let’s take a look at the top arms going.
Arms To Trust:
Corey Kluber at Detroit Tigers
Kluber is our most expensive pitcher on DraftKings and FantasyDraft, but is actually $100 cheaper than Jose Berrios on FanDuel. Berrios draws a tough matchup against the Red Sox in Boston today as a large underdog, so I have a strong preference for Kluber as the safest arm on the day. Safe is a relative term however, as Kluber has had a rocky few starts as is coming off one of his worst starts of the season, lasting only four innings and allowing three earned runs to Pittsburgh. Still, Kluber holds a 2.88 ERA (3.29 SIERA), 0.95 WHIP, and 8.76 K/9 on the season, and he’s now priced well below his high point for the season for a matchup against the Tigers. Detroit ranks 29th in wOBA and OPS against right-handed pitching this season, and 13th in K%. Kluber and the Indians are -240 favorites to win today, and while there is some concern that Kluber might have a knee issue, I’d have to think if the issue were serious enough the team would either skip his start or the Vegas odds would not be so strong. Kluber gets my nod as the safest pitcher on the day, but with the caveat that he’s just not as safe as he has been in the past.
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