This article is part of our DraftKings KBO series.
One of the nice things about the KBO, at least from the perspective of someone who covers the league, is the league-wide Monday off day. While it's undeniably enjoyable as an MLB fan to know that there will be a game on every night for six straight months (in a pandemic-free world, at least), the universal day off in Korea breaks the season into discrete, easily digestible pieces and offers a chance to pause and reflect on the league as a whole. That won't be happening this week, though, as we'll have a full slate of five games after rain washed away the entirety of Monday's slate. Four of the five games got canceled before they began, but the Dinos and Twins managed to get into the third inning before deciding to scrap their game as well. That means Chang Mo Koo's turn in the rotation will be wasted, though he might not mind too much, as he was en route to one of his worst outings of the year, having already given up two runs in two innings of work. The early cancellations mean that the majority of Sunday's scheduled starters will be pitching on this slate instead, though the Dinos and Twins will of course trot out a new pair of arms while the Wiz will skip Min Soo Kim in favor of Odrisamer Despaigne. With seven starters remaining the same, the majority of the recommendations from Sunday's cheat sheet will still apply, as will the
One of the nice things about the KBO, at least from the perspective of someone who covers the league, is the league-wide Monday off day. While it's undeniably enjoyable as an MLB fan to know that there will be a game on every night for six straight months (in a pandemic-free world, at least), the universal day off in Korea breaks the season into discrete, easily digestible pieces and offers a chance to pause and reflect on the league as a whole. That won't be happening this week, though, as we'll have a full slate of five games after rain washed away the entirety of Monday's slate. Four of the five games got canceled before they began, but the Dinos and Twins managed to get into the third inning before deciding to scrap their game as well. That means Chang Mo Koo's turn in the rotation will be wasted, though he might not mind too much, as he was en route to one of his worst outings of the year, having already given up two runs in two innings of work. The early cancellations mean that the majority of Sunday's scheduled starters will be pitching on this slate instead, though the Dinos and Twins will of course trot out a new pair of arms while the Wiz will skip Min Soo Kim in favor of Odrisamer Despaigne. With seven starters remaining the same, the majority of the recommendations from Sunday's cheat sheet will still apply, as will the caveat that rain could be a factor again. Just as with Sunday's article, there are three games that appear to be in some doubt as of writing—Bears-Giants in Busan, Lions-Wiz in Suwon and Dinos-Twins in Seoul—though three became five on Sunday, so it remains to be seen how many will go forward Monday.
Pitchers
Seung Won Moon ($8,000 DraftKings, $22 FanDuel as "SK Starting P") already looked like one of the best options Sunday, and that's doubly true Monday with his price dropping on both sites, including a confusingly large drop on FanDuel that sees him listed as the cheapest pitcher on the slate. Moon has been quite strong all season, posting a 3.18 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP and backing those numbers up with a 23.2 percent strikeout rate and a 6.0 percent walk rate. Add in the fact that he's facing the league-worst Eagles offense and there's unlikely to be a stronger play in this slate.
On the opposite side of that same contest, Shi Hwan Jang ($7,300 DraftKings, $24 FanDuel as "Hanwha Starting P") sees his price rise slightly on DraftKings but drop on FanDuel, making him the third-cheapest option on that site. That low price reflects the risk that comes with Jang's 5.07 ERA and 1.83 WHIP, but there are reasons to consider him as a cheap option with upside. His ERA and WHIP should improve going forward, as his BABIP is unlikely to remain as high as .404. His 23.4 percent strikeout rate, the fourth-best mark among qualified starters, could help him post a high point total Monday, especially against a Wyverns team that ranks second-last in scoring.
Odrisamer Despaigne ($8,500 DraftKings, $26 FanDuel as "KT Starting P") joins the slate as one of the premier options, with the Wiz skipping ahead to their ace following Sunday's canceled contest. The Cuban righty has had somewhat of a rocky start to his first season in Korea, following up a 1.80 ERA in his first four starts with a 7.41 mark over his next six outings. He seems to be turning things around lately, though, as he's allowed just four runs over his last two starts, striking out 13 while walking two. He'll face an easy enough test against a Lions lineup which ranks a modest sixth in scoring this season.
Top Targets
Preston Tucker ($5,800 DraftKings, $16 FanDuel) has seen his price tag rise slightly on DraftKings, but he remains a strong play on both sites Monday. His slumps this season have been quite significant, as he went 2-for-30 at the plate during an eight-game stretch in late June and early July, but he's since gone on to grab at least one hit in six of his last seven games, hitting .370 with three homers over that stretch. On the season overall, he sits sixth in the league with 14 home runs and fourth with 49 RBI. He'll have a good chance to add to both of those numbers against Heroes righty Hyun Hee Han, who owns a poor 5.94 ERA after getting blown up for 10 runs in less than two innings by the Bears his last time out.
Mel Rojas Jr. ($6,200 DraftKings, $17 FanDuel), whose priced dropped by $100 on DraftKings, remains an excellent play as well. The outfielder continued his absurd hot streak Saturday, homering for the second game in a row and grabbing multiple hits for the fourth straight night. He has a very strong claim as the best hitter in the league this year, as he leads in homers (21), runs (54), hits (90), batting average (.383), on-base percentage (.438), slugging percentage (.728) and OPS (1.166). He'll face David Buchanan in this one, who's coming off a pair of strong starts but whose solid 3.82 ERA isn't backed up by his mediocre 16.2 percent strikeout rate.
Bargain Bats
Perhaps the biggest change between Monday's slate and Sunday's is that the Twins' hitters are suddenly viable, as the gap between Chang Mo Koo's 1.48 ERA and his replacement Jae Hak Lee's 5.59 mark could hardly be larger. Stacking the Twins' top left-handed bats should certainly be on the table, though it's the right-handed Hyung Jong Lee ($3,500 DraftKings, $6 FanDuel) who could be the strongest play. His price, especially on FanDuel, reflects the fact that he's only played two games this season, though that was due to a broken hand he suffered back in spring training rather than due to his talent. The right fielder, who's slotted into the number three spot between Hyun Soo Kim and Roberto Ramos in each game since his return, posted an OPS of .844 in 2018 and .799 last year.
While Shi Hwan Jang was mentioned above as an affordable option with upside, his 5.07 ERA and 1.83 WHIP indicate that he has significant downside as well. Tae In Chae ($2,600 DraftKings, $5 FanDuel) represents a cheap way to bet against him, especially on FanDuel, where he costs the absolute minimum. The 37-year-old has been quite effective in a small sample of 18 games this season, hitting .351/.429/.514 with a pair of homers. He missed most of the year with an intercostal injury, but he's been quite hot over his last nine contests, hitting .480/.536/.720. He'll likely bat fifth and will get the platoon advantage against Jang.
Stacks To Consider
Note: With the league-leading Dinos lineup facing another weak southpaw and the Bears, who rank second in scoring, set to face the same pitcher they were tasked with facing Sunday, these two stacks are in large part copied over from Sunday's cheat sheet, with one change for the Bears due to Kyoung Min Hur's return to action.
Dinos vs. Woo Chan Lee: Aaron Altherr ($5,300 DraftKings, $15 FanDuel), Eui Ji Yang ($5,600 DraftKings, $13 FanDuel), Hee Dong Kwon ($2,900 DraftKings, $9 FanDuel)
The Dinos managed a pair of runs in the first three innings against Yun Sik Kim before Sunday's game was rained out, and they could be set for similar success Monday against another shaky southpaw. The 27-year-old Lee has made just a single appearance this year and has thrown more than an inning in a season just once in his KBO career. His lone campaign in which he spent any meaningful amount of time in the league was last year, when he made 13 starts and 17 relief appearances. His 4.85 ERA and 1.58 WHIP weren't good but weren't terrible, though his combination of a 14.6 percent strikeout rate and a 16.6 percent walk rate was very poor. That doesn't bode at all well for his ability to shut down the league's best lineup in this one.
Lee isn't an intimidating enough southpaw that I'd avoid the Dinos' left-handed bats completely, but the visitors' lineup is deep enough that we can make several compelling stacks using just right-handed hitters. Altherr seems like a great place to start. His early-season struggles, which were seemingly related to a nagging hand injury and didn't extend beyond the first two weeks of the campaign, are fading further and further into the rearview mirror. Even with his early slump factored in, he's now hitting .308/.379/.617 on the season while leading the league in RBI (55) and sitting tied for second in homers (16) and tied for third in steals (11).
The Dinos shake up their lineup on a regular basis, though Yang and Altherr have hit back-to-back out of the fourth and fifth spots three times this week. Yang hasn't been in his best form of late, going hitless in four of his last six games, but that's a small blip on his otherwise excellent resume. His season-long .293/.374/.535 slash line would be quite good at any position, let alone catcher, though he's capable of even more. The 33-year-old posted an OPS north of 1.000 in each of the last two seasons and finished second in MVP voting last year.
Kwon has emerged as the Dinos' number two hitter during a breakout age-29 season and is the key to keeping this stack affordable. He'd been a decent enough hitter in the past, posting an OPS north of .800 in two of his first six seasons in the league, but his .957 mark this year, the product of a .307/.423/.533 slash line, is 128 points better than his previous career high. His 16.2 percent walk rate may be his greatest skill, giving him plenty of chances to get knocked in by the likes of Altherr and Kwon, though he has respectable pop as well, hitting nine homers.
Bears vs. Won Sam Jang: Kun Woo Park ($4,900 DraftKings, $14 FanDuel), Kyoung Min Hur ($4,700 DraftKings, $10 FanDuel), Jose Fernandez ($6,000 DraftKings, $17 FanDuel)
Jang has made just three starts this season, and things haven't gone at all the way he'd like. He's allowed 12 runs in 15 innings, good for a 7.20 ERA to go along with his 1.60 WHIP. He's only walked four batters, but he's only struck out four as well, good for an anemic 5.9 strikeout rate. The 37-year-old southpaw had some strong seasons early in his career, but he's been well past his peak for quite some time. His last season with an ERA below 5.50 came all the way back in 2014. The second-ranked Bears lineup looks set for a big day here.
Just as with the Dinos stack above, the Bears will face a southpaw who isn't intimidating enough to make me completely avoid the team's left-handed bats, but it makes sense to start with their righties nonetheless. Alongside Hur, Park is one of just two right-handers who regularly hit anywhere near the top of the order for the Bears. The right fielder struggled for most of May, but his bat came alive on the final day of the month, and he's stayed hot since, hitting .382/.436/.537 over his last 31 games. He doesn't have a ton of power, hitting just five homers on the year, though two of those have come in his last six games.
Hur wasn't listed as part of this stack Sunday, as he'd missed Saturday's game while on paternity leave, but he's since returned to the team. He frequently bats leadoff against lefties, bumping Park back to third. Hur enters this game on a nine-game hitting streak and has been on fire since returning from a finger injury in late June. He has 10 multi-hit contests in his 16 games since returning to the lineup, hitting .431/.471/.569 over that stretch.
Given the matchup, Fernandez is very much worth a look here even with the platoon disadvantage. While just one of his 10 homers this season have come against a southpaw, it's not as if he's had significant issues with same-sided pitching, as he's hitting .391 against lefties in 64 at-bats. Fernandez has been excellent all year, hitting .372/.434/.577 overall, and he's been particularly hot over his last five games, hitting .391 with three homers.
