DFS KBO: Saturday Cheat Sheet

Friday's KBO slate was hit by one rainout, with the Heroes and Twins seeing their game get postponed, but the rest of the league was able to play a full nine innings -- 10 in the case of the Dinos and Wyverns, with the Dinos going to extras for the third time in four games and grabbing their fourth straight win to pull into a two-game lead atop the standings. Elsewhere around the league, a 13-run performance from the Bears and a 14-run showing by the Wiz meant that players who stacked those lineups likely were happy with the results. Saturday's slate is an unusual one, with two games starting at 1:00 a.m. ET and the rest starting at 4:00 a.m. ET. The Heroes and Twins play in both of those slots, with a doubleheader to make up for last night's rainout, but only the first of those two games will be included in the main slate on both sites.

Pitchers

Casey Kelly ($8,000 DraftKings, $20 FanDuel as "LG Starting P") had an awful season debut, allowing six runs (five earned) on eight hits in just two innings against the Dinos. That performance can probably be explained away by the fact that Kelly's preseason preparation was significantly impacted by the mandatory two-week quarantine imposed on those traveling to South Korea from foreign countries, however. Kelly's American teammate, Tyler Wilson, endured a similarly poor first outing, giving up seven runs in 4.1 innings to the Dinos, before holding the Wyverns to just two runs in six innings in his second start. If that pattern repeats for Kelly, who posted a 2.55 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in his first season in the KBO last year, he'll be quite a bargain as the cheapest pitcher on FanDuel and a mid-priced option among a set of very expensive pitchers on DraftKings.

The pitcher opposing Kelly at pitcher-friendly Jamsil Baseball Stadium, Jake Brigham ($8,500 DraftKings, $25 FanDuel as "Kiwoom Starting P"), also looks like one of the better values on the slate. The American has a track record of success in South Korea, posting a 3.84 ERA during the league's high-offense era in 2018 and a 2.96 mark last season, both of which were good for seventh-best among qualified starters. He strikes out an above-average number of batters for the KBO as well, posting a 20.4 percent strikeout rate over the last two seasons.

Tae Hoon Kim ($7,200 DraftKings, $25 FanDuel as "SK Starting P") is certainly a risk, as he's facing a strong Dinos lineup, but he's worth consideration at least on DraftKings, where he's the second-cheapest pitcher on the slate. He recorded strong ERAs of 3.83 and 3.88 in 2018 and 2019, respectively, though all but four of his appearances in those two seasons came in relief. He could offer rare strikeout upside for a KBO starter, as he struck out 24.5 percent of opposing batters over those two seasons. Just how well those strikeouts will translate as he returns to a starting role remains to be seen, but his first start of the season was largely a positive one, as he held the Giants to two hits and two runs over six innings.

TOP TARGETS

Jamie Romak ($6,000 DraftKings, $13 FanDuel) has yet to fully take off this season, but his .273/.333/.485 slash line through nine games is at worst decent. He's only homered once, but the floodgates should open before too long, as he's averaged 34.3 homers over his first three seasons in the KBO. The Canadian faces a relatively easy matchup against Dinos lefty Young Gyu Kim on Saturday, a 20-year-old who's struggled to a 5.30 ERA and 1.70 WHIP in his first 71.1 KBO innings.

Preston Tucker ($5,200 DraftKings, $14 FanDuel) has been on fire at the start of his second KBO campaign, smashing the ball to the tune of a .417/.500/.750 slash line through 10 games. His 12 RBI, a total which represents nearly a third of the 37 runs the Tigers have scored this season, tie him for third in the league. He'll get the platoon advantage against Bears' righty Yong Chan Lee, who recorded a decent but hardly intimidating 4.07 ERA and 1.44 WHIP last season.

Bargain Bats

Dong Yeop Kim ($3,300 DraftKings, $11 FanDuel) didn't do much in his first season with the Lions last year, posting a .606 OPS in 60 games. He's hit in the top three in each of his side's first 10 games this season and has been one of the team's best hitters, posting a .310/.326/.500 slash line with eight RBI and a pair of home runs. While he won't get the platoon advantage Saturday against Wiz righty Min Kim, he'll have a fairly easy matchup nonetheless, as the 21-year-old has struggled to a 5.20 ERA and 1.65 WHIP through the first 192 innings of his KBO career.

Sung Yeol Lee ($2,900 DraftKings, $9 FanDuel) is quite cheap for a player with his recent track record. The veteran designated hitter has recorded an OPS of .810 or better in four straight seasons. While he hasn't hit for power yet this year, managing just one double and zero home runs, he has a solid .282 batting average. The power could come starting Saturday, as he faces one of the easiest matchups on the slate against Giants righty Kyung Eun Noh (discussed below).

Stacks to Consider

Wiz vs. Seong Hwan Yoon: Baek Ho Kang ($5,900 DraftKings, $14 FanDuel), Mel Rojas ($6,200 DraftKings, $15 FanDuel), Woo Jun Sim ($2,500 DraftKings, $11 FanDuel)

The Wiz exploded for 14 runs in Friday's series opener and could be set to put up another crooked number Saturday. Yoon had some strong seasons early in his career, but at age 38, it looks like he's over the hill. While he bounced back somewhat from his awful 6.98 ERA and 1.67 WHIP in 2018, his 4.77 ERA and 1.50 WHIP last season certainly don't inspire much confidence. He simply couldn't put hitters away, posting an anemic 10.1 percent strikeout rate.

20-year-old Kang could be the best hitter in the KBO before too long, and he's not far from that title already. After bursting onto the scene with an .881 OPS as an 18-year-old rookie back in 2018, he followed that up by increasing his OPS to .915 last season even as offense plummeted across the league. The left-handed slugger, who bats third for the Wiz, should be a big part of any rallies his team manages in this contest.

While it would be nice if the switch-hitting Rojas hit higher than fifth in the Wiz's order, something he's done just once this season, he's done more than enough from that spot this season to justify his high price. The outfielder has a strong track record in the KBO, posting an OPS no lower than .914 in his first three seasons in the league. He looks to be on track for another strong season this year, as he has at least one hit in all nine games this season including four straight two-hit performances.

Sim won't get the platoon advantage against Yoon, but he still looks to be a great value, at least on DraftKings. He's quite cheap and plays shortstop, a position typically low on strong options. Sim's .275/.341/.350 line this season hardly jumps off the page, but as the team's leadoff man, he's likely to have plenty of chances to score if the Wiz go off in this one, as he did twice in his side's 14-3 victory in the series opener. On FanDuel, where individual positions don't matter and where Sim isn't quite so cheap, consider left-handed No. 2 hitter Min Hyeok Kim, who comes in $2 cheaper, as a replacement.

Eagles vs. Kyung Eun Noh: Jin Ho Jung ($2,600 DraftKings, $8 FanDuel), Ju Suk Ha ($3,000 DraftKings, $9 FanDuel), Sung Yeol Lee ($2,900 DraftKings, $9 FanDuel)

The Eagles offense has been quite poor this season, ranking second-worst with 3.2 runs per game, and losing slugger Jared Hoying to a back injury certainly doesn't help. What could help, however, is a game against 36-year-old Noh. The veteran had some solid seasons at the beginning of the last decade, but he hasn't been much of a threat for quite some time. Over a five-season stretch from 2014 to 2018, he recorded a 5.94 ERA. He spent the 2019 season in the Australian Baseball League before returning to the Giants this season, but his first start of the season didn't indicate that anything had changed, as he allowed five runs on nine hits in five innings against the Wyverns.

This stack recommendation is a very cheap one that consists of players who are more interesting for their platoon advantage and lineup position than anything else. Leadoff man Jung kicks off that group. The outfielder didn't do much at all in 110 plate appearances for the Bears last season, hitting just .208/.290/.240, but he was installed atop the Eagles' order nonetheless and has had success, hitting .333/.368/.361 through 10 games.

Shortstop Ha has hit second or third in each of the Eagles' last three games. He appeared in just five games last year and struggled to a .664 OPS back in 2018, but the early returns this season have been good. He's hit .361/.361/.444 in 10 games, driving in six runs and stealing a pair of bases.

Rounding out this budget-friendly trio is Lee, who's hit cleanup in all but one of the Eagles' games. He has a much stronger track record than his aforementioned teammates, though you wouldn't know it by looking at his price. The 35-year-old hasn't done much this season, posting a modest .625 OPS with just a single extra-base hit, but he's recorded an OPS of .810 or better in four straight seasons and has averaged 25.3 homers over his last three seasons.