Ross Stripling Daily Fantasy News, Rankings, Projections

The Rockies are not one of the three teams above five implied runs tonight, but they're closest to that mark at 4.96. Rarely are they that low at Coors, but Ross Stripling seemed to be temporarily granted Kershaw-like powers while the latter the big lefty was on the DL. Over his last two starts, Stripling has struck out 11 of 41 batters, but has allowed nine runs and four HRs. In fact, he's allowed 12 HRs over his last 11 starts and has stuck between five and seven strikeouts in nine of his last 10 starts. A quality pitcher, but not someone that needs to be avoided at Coors. He still has an 86.2 mph aEV for the season with a .294 xwOBA and 24.2 K% over the last month. The price drop to $7K makes this feel like a matchup you don't want to much exposure to, but some on either side might be okay. Stripling throws either curveballs or changeups over 30% of the time, which gives him a reverse split, though some pitchers elect to abandon the curve at Coors. The three best hitters for the Rockies by wRC+ and ISO against RHP over the last calendar year are all LHBs. You want to be creative and come up with someone other than Charlie Blackmon (126 wRC+, .255 ISO), but while Nolan Arenado (96 wRC+, .211 ISO), Carlos Gonzalez (137 wRC+, .242 ISO), Trevor Story (104 wRC+, .237 ISO) and David Dahl (150 wRC+, .270 ISO) all seem okay (and boy did Dahl's price shoot up quickly on DK), none feel like they need to be in your lineup tonight, especially if considering high priced pitching.

A few hours ago, the easy (and likely most popular) thing to do was load up on either Jacob deGrom (vs San Diego) and/or Ross Stripling (in Philadelphia) and pair them with a $4K Eric Lauer if playing on DraftKings. Lauer has been scratched and replaced with a pitcher double his price tag (still left-handed though), while these are two of the three spots Kevin has serious concerns about in his forecast. Both are in such high upside spots against offenses that strike out more than 25% of the time vs RHP (only two other teams have a 25+ K% split today, one of them the Mets), deGrom in one of the top parks on the board. Removing the starts before and after his DL stint, he’s struck out fewer than seven in a game just once since April 10th, failing to complete seven innings just twice in that span. Stripling has a decreased 26.1 K% since the beginning of June (eight starts), but that’s still a great mark against a 1.5 BB%. He has allowed seven HRs over that span, but has completed six innings in six of those starts with more than two runs just twice. They are two of the top contact managers on the board as well. No other regular starter on the board has an xwOBA within 30 points of either of them this year. Pay attention to Kevin's update later because these are the two pitchers you want. Additional high end pitchers may all have some issues attached. Corey Kluber has been receiving treatment on an ailing knee and has allowed six runs in two of his last four starts, while facing an offense with just a 19.3 K% vs RHP in one of the most positive run environments on the board. Luis Severino has a 22.3 K% over the last month. His velocity has been up and down over the last couple of months. His hard hit rate has been above 40% in each of his last two starts with his ground ball rate just 39.7% over his last 13. He does get a park upgrade against a marginal Rays offense that's not very dangerous and obviously has the talent to put up some great numbers, but he costs $1K more than any other DK pitcher. Patrick Corbin has struck out just 20 of his last 94 batters, but has a 10.9 SwStr% low over those four starts and has been above 13% in each of the other three. The matchup is a concern for him at Wrigley (Cubs 8.6 K-BB% at home, 11.6 K-BB% vs LHP).

There's so much quality pitching on Thursday night that players don't necessarily have to use a $10K+ arm even though they account for more than one-third of the board. There are also some nice SP2 bargains for DraftKings tonight. Jameson Taillon (22.2 K%, 3.81 SIERA, .292 xwOBA) is one of just two pitchers to reach a 50% ground ball rate tonight (exactly 50%). He manages contact well with a league average strikeout rate and costs an absurd $5.7K on DraftKings against the Brewers tonight (85 wRC+, 25.2 K% vs RHP). Ross Stripling (28.7 K%, 2.78 SIERA, .244 xwOBA) has the lowest aEV (85.8 mph) on the board. While the strikeout rate has come down over the last month, it's still at 25.8% with a 2.84 SIERA that's virtually identical to his season rate. He costs just above $9K against the Padres (81 wRC+, 26.1 K% vs RHP). Tyler Skaggs (26.4 K%, 3.48 SIERA, .305 xwOBA) has increased his strikeout rate over the last month (29.7%) and has not allowed more than a single earned run in five straight starts. He faces a tough opponent in the Mariners (109 wRC+, 21.5 K% vs LHP), but in a favorable park for just $7.7K on DraftKings. Steven Matz (21.4 K%, 4.23 SIERA, .312 xwOBA) may be a pitcher players are looking to attack tonight, but he has a board topping 52 GB% with an 87 mph aEV that's fourth best on the board. The Nationals have a 90 wRC+, 22.9 K%, and 11.7 HR/FB vs LHP (not terrible, but nothing special), while he costs just $5.9K on DraftKings.