DFS KBO: Friday Cheat Sheet

Thursday's top pitchers produced very different performances, with Casey Kelly striking out 10 in six scoreless innings while Hyun Jong Yang gave up six runs and 11 hits in his five. The victory for Kelly's Twins kept them within three games of the streaking Dinos, whose nine runs in a win over the Heroes led a fairly low-scoring day. The Dinos got production up and down their lineup but were led as usual by Sung Bum Na, who homered twice. Friday's slate is another one with a healthy mix of aces and back-end starters, which should give us plenty of pitchers to target and plenty to stack against.

Pitchers

Drew Rucinski ($9,300 DraftKings, $28 FanDuel as "NC Starting P") is the most expensive player on both sites, but it's hard to argue that he's overpriced. Through four starts, he owns an excellent 2.49 ERA and 1.26 WHIP, backing those numbers up with a 21.9 percent strikeout rate and 6.7 percent walk rate. He'll have to travel to the league's most hitter-friendly park, Daegu Samsung Lions Park, but that didn't seem to hurt him on Opening Day when he held the Lions to three hits in six scoreless innings.

Eric Jokisch ($9,000 DraftKings, $24 FanDuel as "Kiwoom Starting P") is strangely affordable on FanDuel but could be worth his steep DraftKings price as well. He'll face the top-ranked Wiz offense Friday, though that unit is considerably less intimidating without Baek Ho Kang, who's out with a left wrist injury. Jokisch has been on an incredible run to start the season, allowing just three earned runs across four starts to give him a 1.17 ERA and 0.87 WHIP. His underlying numbers are strong as well, as he h a 20.9 percent strikeout rate and a 4.7 percent walk rate.

For a cheaper option on DraftKings, consider Tae Hoon Kim ($7,400 DraftKings, $25 FanDuel). The lefty pitched almost exclusively out of the bullpen in the previous two seasons, recording a 3.85 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 24.5 percent strikeout rate. His strikeout rate has dipped to a modest 18.3 percent upon his conversion to a starting role this season, but the results have been good nonetheless, as he's cruised to a 2.84 ERA and 0.95 WHIP. A .167 BABIP screams that regression is coming, but it may not come Friday against the Eagles, who have scored the fewest runs per game this season.

Top Targets

I left Sung Bum Na ($4,900 DraftKings, $15 FanDuel) out of my recommended Dinos stack Thursday with a lefty on the mound for the Heroes, and he proceeded to hit a pair of homers. He's back in the column this time around as the Dinos head to hitter-friendly Daegu Samsung Lions Park. The Dinos easily could have been a stack recommendation again with righty Dae Woo Kim on the mound for the Lions. Kim's 4.09 ERA in 11 innings this season is decent enough, but his 7:7 K:BB is very unimpressive. Na has produced multi-hit performances in five straight contests, bringing his season line up to .333/.435/.603.

Sticking with the Dinos, leadoff hitter Min Woo Park ($4,600 DraftKings, $13 FanDuel) deserves a mention as another strong option against an unimpressive righty at a hitter-friendly park. The contact machine has struck out in just 4.3 percent of his plate appearances this season, helping him to a .333/.400/.469 slash line. He doesn't hit for power, but he should have plenty of chances to score in this one, as he's done 16 times in 20 games this year.

Bargain Bats

With lefty Woo Chan Cha on the mound for the Twins, I'm not particularly interested in the Tigers' Preston Tucker ($6,100 DraftKings, $16 FanDuel) in this one. Right-handed Ji Wan Na ($3,400 DraftKings, $7 FanDuel), who's hit cleanup the last two games, is a worthwhile budget option, however. The 35-year-old has bounced back from a poor 2019 campaign to hit .329/.412/.571 with four homers through 20 games. Cha posted a respectable 4.12 ERA last season, but he's looked quite beatable this year, struggling to a 6.00 ERA and 1.52 WHIP.

The Bears stack listed below is, as usual, a very expensive one. For a cheaper way to grab a piece of one of the best lineups in the league against the unimposing Kyung Eun Noh, consider Soo Bin Jung ($2,000 DraftKings, $7 FanDuel), who costs the minimum on DraftKings and barely more than the minimum on FanDuel. He's by no means an elite bat, but he'll have the platoon advantage and has moved up to the top spot in the Bears' order for the last three games, thanks in part to his solid .280 batting average. Whenever he gets on base in this one, he'll have a great chance to score thanks to the Bears' trio of elite bats hitting behind him.

Stacks to Consider

Heroes vs. Min Kim: Jung Hoo Lee ($5,400 DraftKings, $14 FanDuel), Keon Chang Seo ($3,800 DraftKings, $11 FanDuel), Dong Won Park ($4,600 DraftKings, $9 FanDuel)

The Heroes have been in a bit of a funk of late, losing four straight while scoring a total of 11 runs. A date with Kim could be what they need to get back on track, however. The 21-year-old righty's 4.96 ERA and 1.59 WHIP last season were both poor, as was his 13.5 percent strikeout rate. This year, that strikeout rate has slipped slightly to 12.7 percent, while his walk rate has soared to 15.5 percent after he walked seven Twins in his most recent start. As expected, walking more batters than you strike out doesn't lead to good results, as Kim is sitting on a 6.32 ERA and 1.72 WHIP through his first three outings.

At just 21 years old, Lee is already the Heroes' most exciting hitter. After hitting .324 or better but managing no more than six homers in each of his first three KBO campaigns, he's reached another level this year, hitting .354/.433/.620 with four homers through just 21 games. For a young player with his contact ability and eye for the zone (he walked more than he struck out last season and has a 10:6 BB:K this year already), seeing him add power shouldn't be a huge surprise. He's worth a look against most righties and is a very strong option in this one.

Leadoff man Seo is the only other lefty who hits near the top of the Heroes' lineup, and he's quite affordable on both platforms. A contact hitter with good speed, Seo hasn't hit below .298 since all the way back in 2013. Like Lee, he has great strike-zone control, walking 40 more times than he's struck out over the course of his career. He's performed up to expectations so far this season, hitting .317 with an 8:5 BB:K and four steals.

MLB hopeful Ha Seong Kim ($6,200 DraftKings, $14 FanDuel) is a bit pricey for my tastes, especially on DraftKings, so we'll go with Park to complete the stack. Park is interesting on DraftKings because he's a catcher and interesting on FanDuel because he's quite cheap. Batting out of the fifth spot, Park has been excellent this campaign, hitting .328/.375/.642 with five homers, elite numbers at any position, not just catcher. That output is probably higher than we should expect going forward, but there's nothing wrong with a backstop who hits .297/.368/.445 like he did last season.

Bears vs. Kyung Eun Noh: Jose Fernandez ($6,000 DraftKings, $18 FanDuel) Jae Hwan Kim ($5,500 DraftKings, $17 FanDuel), Jae Il Oh ($3,700 DraftKings, $16 FanDuel)

After struggling to a 5.94 ERA from 2014 to 2018, Noh was out of the KBO entirely last season, pitching in the Australian Baseball League. He's back in his home country for his age-36 season, but he hasn't been making a very good case for a starting role. Through three starts, he's struggled to a 6.00 ERA and 1.73 WHIP while striking out just 14.5 percent of opposing batters. The third-ranked Bears lineup should be able to produce plenty of fireworks in this one.

A Bears stack will almost inevitably be an expensive one, but it's likely worth the effort to fit in as many of their top bats as you can given their very friendly matchup. Fernandez leads the way as usual. He's reached base more often than not this season, hitting .470/.511/.711 through 20 games. The designated hitter (who's eligible at second base on DraftKings) has scored 20 times and driven in 21 runs in just 20 games, and he already has four homers after hitting a modest 15 last season.

Kim is nearly as expensive, but it's difficult to argue with his price. The 2018 MVP is rebounding from a down season last year, hitting .306/.398/.542 in 19 games. His 30.6 percent strikeout rate is something of a worry, but that number is likely to fall in the near future, as he's never been a particularly high strikeout guy, whiffing in 20.0 percent of his plate appearances from 2016 to 2019. A drop in his strikeout rate should help offset a presumed drop in his .409 BABIP, keeping his overall offensive output at a very high level.

Oh returned from the injured list Thursday after recovering from a side injury, though he only appeared as a pinch hitter, so you'll want to be sure he's starting before committing to him. If he is indeed starting, he'll be a great value on DraftKings, where his absence has caused his price to drop to a very affordable level. Even his expensive price on FanDuel seems quite reasonable, as he's the No. 3 hitter in one of the league's best lineups and has a .377/.441/.679 season slash line.