DFS KBO: Saturday Cheat Sheet

Four of the five two-game mid-week series wound up being split evenly, with the Dinos' sweep of the Tigers being the only exception. They won Friday's game handily by a 10-4 score, though the game was scoreless through five innings thanks to strong performances from both Myung Gi Song and Ki Young Im, with a six-run ninth inning from the league leaders eventually sealing the victory. The Twins remained within three games of the top of the standings, beating the Heroes 7-3 as Tyler Wilson allowed just one run on four hits over 7.2 innings of work. The day's pitching performances came in the Giants-Bears game, however, which turned into a surprising pitchers' duel between Kyung Eun Noh and Seung Jin Lee, who both threw six scoreless innings before the Bears eventually emerged 1-0 victors on Yong Jae Choi's two-out walkoff single. Elsewhere, Kwang Min Song's three-run homer helped the Eagles past the Wiz by a 5-1 score as Mel Rojas Jr. again went hitless, while a five-hit day from Hae Min Park wasn't enough for the Lions as they fell to the Wyverns 8-6. 

Saturday's slate could spoil our extended run of rain-free games, with the Eagles-Twins, Dinos-Wiz and Bears-Wyverns games all looking potentially threatened as of writing.

Pitchers

Hyun Jong Yang ($8,900) isn't nearly the pitcher he was last season, though his price reflects that. The 32-year-old lefty cruised to a 2.29 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP in 2019, numbers that earned him a third-place finish in the MVP race. His 5.57 ERA and 1.46 WHIP this season would be disappointing numbers for most pitchers, let alone one who's capable of such heights. Still, he's pitched considerably better over his last five starts, posting a 3.81 ER and a 1.34 WHIP while striking out 34 batters in 28.1 innings. That's enough to make him one of the day's better options, even against a decent Heroes offense which ranks fifth in scoring this season.

If weather permits, Chan Heon Jung ($9,300) looks like a strong option. He's primarily interesting because he's facing the Eagles, who sit last in scoring by a margin of 0.9 runs per game. He's also somewhat interesting in his own right, however, as he owns a 3.67 ERA this season, backing that number up with a strong combination of a 20.5 percent strikeout rate and a 7.0 percent walk rate. There's cause for at least minor concern in his recent outings, as he allowed five earned runs in a pair of starts before posting a 2:4 K:BB in his most recent trip to the mound, but a date with the Eagles provides an excellent opportunity for him to get back on track.

Among the day's cheaper arms, Hyeong Jun So ($7,700) is worth a look, though he comes with plenty of risk against the league-leading Dinos, who have rebounded from a slump to score 24 runs in their last two games. There's plenty of potential for So to get blown up here, but the presumed low ownership rates given the tough matchup could make him an interesting flyer for larger tournaments. The 18-year-old rookie owns a generally unimpressive 4.64 ERA through his first 14 KBO starts, but he's been getting better as the year has progressed. He's allowed just a single earned run in his last three starts and has allowed just five in his last five outings (including one against the Dinos), posting a 1.52 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP over that stretch.

Top Targets

Roberto Ramos ($5,000) is back. After bursting out of the gate to the tune of a .380/.448/.796 slash line and 13 homers in his first 31 games, he landed on the injured list with ankle and back issues and wasn't the same for quite some time. In his next 41 contests, he hit a rather unremarkable .227/.309/.422 with a modest eight homers. Suddenly, over his last nine games, he's been as good as ever, hitting .333/.421/.879 with six home runs. He could add another with the platoon advantage against Eagles righty Warwick Saupold, who's struggled to a 5.00 ERA this season.

The Wyverns easily could have been one of the stack recommendations on this contest against Bears righty Min Gyu Kim, who looks like little more than an opener and who has allowed 13 earned runs in 11.2 innings this season. Jeong Choi ($5,300) looks like a great option regardless of whether or not you include a handful of his teammates. The 33-year-old is one of the best sluggers in the history of the KBO, as his 357 career homers rank second all time. Three of those homers have come in his last three games, while four have come in his last nine, a stretch in which he's hitting .313/.455/.719.

Bargain Bats

Sticking with the Wyverns, Dong Min Han ($3,800) offers plenty of power for his mid-tier price and will get the platoon advantage against Kim, unlike Choi. He's been limited to just 47 games this season but has already hit 12 homers. Two of those homers have come in his last four games, a stretch in which he's gone 6-for-11 with six walks. Over a longer 23-game stretch, he's hitting .278/.422/.514.

Hae Min Park ($2,800) is quite cheap for a leadoff man, even one who fills that role for the sixth-ranked Lions lineup. His overall .304/.341/.439 slash line hardly pops off the page but is more than adequate for his cheap price, especially considering that he's added 15 steals. Following his five-hit outburst Friday, he's now hitting .364/.404/.568 over his last 11 games. He'll have a good chance to stay hot in the league's most hitter-friendly park against Giants righty Jun Won Seo, who owns an unimposing 4.92 ERA and 1.51 WHIP.

Stacks to Consider

Bears vs. Ricardo Pinto: Jose Fernandez ($6,000), Jae Hwan Kim ($5,200), Soo Bin Jung ($3,000)

We're somewhat spoiled with the number of strong potential stacks available Saturday, but there may be no pitcher more tempting to stack against than Pinto right now. Pinto owned a respectable 3.66 ERA through his first eight KBO starts, but a 1.65 WHIP and a 26:24 K:BB hinted at incoming regression. That regression has hit hard, as he owns an 8.62 ERA, a 2.25 WHIP and a 30:30 K:BB over his last 10 outings. Zoom in on just his last four outings and he owns a 13.78 ERA and a 3.12 WHIP. That should spell plenty of trouble against the league's third-best lineup.

Fernandez would be a playable option against pitchers far worse than Pinto. With Mel Rojas Jr.'s recent slump, Fernandez has reclaimed the lead atop the hits leaderboard with 128, three ahead of Jung Hoo Lee. He's recorded three or more hits three times in his last nine games, though his .385 batting average over that stretch barely counts as a hot streak considering his season-long .359 average. While he hasn't homered in the month of August, his 14 homers on the season are already just one shy of his total of 15 from last year.

Kim follows Fernandez out of the cleanup spot and has been a steady RBI presence for the Bears throughout the season, driving in a total of 70 runs, tied for fifth in the league with both Fernandez and Aaron Altherr. Even after going hitless Friday, he still owns a strong .313/.476/.531 slash line over his last nine games, homering twice to give him 16 on the season, giving him one more than the 15 he managed with the de-juiced ball last season.

Jung is an unusual inclusion in this stack, as he's spent much of the year deservedly hitting in the bottom part of the order. Through July 10, he was hitting just .247/.299/.330. In the 31 games since that point, however, he's hit .393/.460/.500, moving him up to the second spot in the order and giving him plenty of chances to be driven in by the likes of Fernandez and Kim. Don't expect much power, as he's hit just two homers this season and didn't hit a single one in 2019, but he'll help keep this stack affordable and could score multiple runs.

Wiz vs. Sung Young Choi: Mel Rojas Jr. ($6,500), Han Joon Yoo ($3,300), Jeong Dae Bae ($4,500)

Choi's 4.92 ERA and 1.57 WHIP on the season are both mediocre at best, though both numbers seem to understate his struggles. The young lefty is striking out a pitiful 9.3 percent of opposing batters this season while walking 12.7 percent, with a .250 BABIP helping to keep his ERA somewhat respectable. While he's only allowed four earned runs across his last two starts, that hardly means he's suddenly pitching well, as he owns a 4:10 K:BB over that stretch. That's been a trend for him for an extended period, as he hasn't allowed more than three earned runs in any of his last six starts despite only once striking out more batters than he walked. Without a history of reliably outperforming his peripherals, that looks like a line that screams incoming regression.

Rojas may be a controversial place to start this stack. There's no denying that he's suddenly in a slump, as he's hit a startlingly poor .100/.119/.125 over his last nine games. His price tag is quite high for someone with that recent performance, but that could drive his ownership rate down. Placing a bet on a player who still owns an incredible .359/.420/.700 slash line even after that recent slump doesn't seem like a bad idea, especially since the chance to face Choi several times could help him turn things around.

I've skipped some of the Wiz more expensive bats (Baek Ho Kang and Jae Gyun Hwang) to offer some cheaper alternatives to keep this stack affordable despite the inclusion of Rojas. Yoo's overall .291/.357/.447 slash line on its own would justify his rather inexpensive price, though he's been far better than that lately. In his last nine games, the 39-year-old has hit an excellent .419/.500/.710.

Bae typically follows Yoo out of the sixth spot, though his numbers are quite strong for a player who hits in the bottom half. Over the course of the season, he's hitting .322/.393/.494. That line is undoubtedly propped up by a .409 BABIP, but his 15 steals indicate that he has the speed to consistently run high marks in that category. He's hit a modest nine homers, but that speed has helped him leg out 21 doubles, tying him for 11th in the league in that category.