DFS KBO: Saturday Cheat Sheet

Rain washed away just one of Friday's five KBO games, leaving us with close to a full slate. The Giants provided the most offense, scoring 10 runs in the fourth inning and 12 runs in total against the Lions, with Chi Hong An leading the way by going 3-for-3 with a grand slam. The Dinos scored eight runs off William Cuevas while getting eight strikeouts in a strong outing from Drew Rucinski as they beat the Wiz by a 9-1 score, with Myung Gi Lee hitting a rare homer. In a rather similar result, the Heroes got eight strikeouts from Jake Brigham while scoring four runs against Tyler Wilson in their 8-2 win. Elsewhere, in the battle of the basement dwellers, Tyler White got his first two KBO hits while Seung Won Moon struck out nine Eagles while allowing just one run on three hits in six frames as the Wyverns won 4-3. Saturday's slate, which starts slightly earlier at 4 a.m. ET, should be rain-free and features a fair number of interesting pitchers, though most of the top names come with their fair share of question marks.

Pitchers

Chan Gyu Lim ($8,800) appears to be breaking out in his age-27 season, as his 3.81 ERA and 1.33 WHIP are both career bests. While his walk rate sits at an elevated 10.3 percent, his 21.7 percent strikeout rate (the fifth-best mark among qualified starters) has more than made up for it. He wasn't at his best in early August, but he's bounced back to post a 2.40 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP over his last three starts. His 10:9 K:BB over that stretch is discouraging, but given that he'll face the eighth-ranked Lions' lineup in this one, he should have more than enough to get the job done.

18-year-old rookie Hyeong Jun So ($8,400) didn't look anything close to good in his first nine KBO starts, struggling to a 6.65 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP while striking out just 4.3 batters per nine innings. He's been an entirely different pitcher since the calendar flipped to July, however, posting a 2.17 ERA, a 1.23 WHIP and a 6.3 K/9 over eight starts. That still gives him relatively low strikeout upside, but that comes with quite a high floor given that he's allowed three or fewer runs in each of his last eight outings. That floor should be even higher against the last-ranked Eagles lineup Saturday.

Among the day's cheaper arms, Adrian Sampson ($7,000) appears to be worth a look. That might be a surprise given that he owns a 5.84 ERA on the season, but there's more here other than just the fact that he faces the ninth-ranked Wyverns offense. Sampson was very bad through his first 11 KBO starts, struggling to a 7.20 ERA and a 1.88 WHIP, but he's been far better in his last three, posting a 0.95 ERA and a 0.79 WHIP. That's not a particularly large sample, and he struck out a modest 12 batters in 19 innings over that stretch, but it's still enough to justify his low price given his opponent Saturday.

Top Targets

While Eric Jokisch has been one of the best pitchers in the KBO all season, he recently missed two weeks with shoulder woes and returned to allow four runs (three innings) in just two innings of work in his most recent start. I certainly wouldn't rule out the Bears' top bats against him, with right-handed leadoff man Kun Woo Park ($4,400) looking like the best bet against the southpaw. He's hit a strong .299/.369/.483 on the season, scoring 85 runs, the fourth-highest total in the league.

Similarly, Drew Gagnon has struggled lately, posting a 6.47 ERA, a 1.97 WHIP and a 23:20 K:BB over his last six outings. Those certainly aren't numbers that should scare you away from the Dinos' best hitters. There are quite a few to choose from in that category, though Aaron Altherr ($5,000) could well be the best given his recent performance and surprisingly affordable price. While he won't get the platoon advantage against Gagnon and will likely bat in the bottom third of the order, he's gone 5-for-7 with two homers and eight RBI over his last two games. On the season as a whole, he's hitting .299/.366/.581 while sitting seventh in homers (23) and eighth in steals (16).

Bargain Bats

If not for a pair of more compelling options, the Giants easily could have been one of the recommended stacks here against Wyverns righty Geon Wook Lee, who owns a 5.19 ERA on the season. Jun Woo Jeon ($3,500) could be the Giant to grab if you get just one, as his price tag is far too cheap for someone hitting a solid .296/.360/.490 with 17 homers on the year. He's been seeing the ball quite well lately, too, hitting .429/.517/.653 over his last 13 games.

Chang Gi Hong ($2,800) remains far too cheap for a leadoff man, particularly one who occupies that role for the Twins' third-ranked lineup. While he has next to no power, hitting just three homers all year, he's done just about everything else right at the plate. Through 96 games, he's hitting .284/.416/.444, as his strong contact ability and great eye combine to make him an excellent table-setter. He's currently riding a 14-game hitting streak, posting a 1.013 OPS over that stretch.

Stacks to Consider

Wiz vs. Ee Whan Kim: Mel Rojas Jr. ($5,900), Baek Ho Kang ($5,600), Jae Gyun Hwang ($5,400)

It doesn't take much to incentivize stacking a strong Wiz lineup, but a date with Kim should be more than enough. The 19-year-old has shown very little through his first 69 KBO innings, posting a 5.48 ERA and a 1.78 WHIP. His 6.97 ERA and 1.94 WHIP through 31 frames this season are even worse. There's very little reason to believe he'll be turning things around any time soon, as he's struck out just 14.9 percent of batters while walking 17.6 percent, marking his second straight season with more walks than strikeouts.

Rojas is somewhat inexplicably just the fourth most expensive hitter on this slate despite being the clear MVP favorite. He leads the league in homers with 37 (six more than Roberto Ramos in second place) while also leading in RBI (101), slugging percentage (.692) and OPS (1.098). While he did go hitless Friday, that ended a nine-game hitting streak in which he homered five times while posting a 1.453 OPS.

Kang can't match Rojas' season-long dominance, but he's been nearly as good lately. In his last 18 games, he's hit five homers while posting a .371/.463/.686 slash line and an 11:11 BB:K. The homers in particular are a positive sign after he went through an odd 25-game homer drought from mid-July through mid-August. He now has 18 homers on the season, well above his total of 13 from last year, though he'll need to go on a power surge down the stretch if he's to match his career-high of 29 that he set as an 18-year-old rookie back in 2018.

Adding Hwang here makes this a rather expensive stack, but given the trio's performances of late and Kim's struggles all season, it's worth trying to fit all three hitters in. Like Rojas, Hwang went hitless Friday, ending an 11-game hitting streak. He homered three times over that stretch and scored 17 total runs while hitting .405/.479/.786. He should have the opportunity to score a few more runs Saturday with Rojas and Kang hitting behind him.

Tigers vs. Min Hyuk Shin: Preston Tucker ($5,500), Hyung Woo Choi ($4,700), Ji Wan Na ($3,700)

The back half of the Dinos' rotation has been one of the team's few problems this season, and Shin has done little to solve that. The 21-year-old rookie has made five starts and two relief appearances this season, struggling to a 6.41 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. Things get even worse if you zoom in on just his last four starts. He owns a 9.00 ERA, a 1.94 WHIP and a 5:8 K:BB over that stretch. Even the seventh-ranked Tigers lineup shouldn't have too many problems with him Saturday.

Tucker has had his cold stretches this season, but on the whole it's been a very successful one for him in his second year in Korea. He owns an overall .303/.404/.566 slash line with 24 homers through 100 games. That's a noticeable improvement upon his performance in his debut season in the league, in which he homered just nine times in 95 games while hitting .311/.382/.479. He's been quite hot over his last 16 contests, hitting .306/.427/.597.

The veteran Choi, who typically follows Tucker out of the third spot in the order, has been quite hot over the last month. In 24 games, he owns a .376/.454/.613 slash line with 20 runs and 20 RBI. On the season as a whole, the 36-year-old is hitting .334/.425/.530, giving him an OPS north of .900 for the eighth straight season. His power is no longer elite, but it's still respectable, as he's hit 15 homers, more than enough to justify his second-tier price.

Cleanup man Na won't get the platoon advantage here, unlike Tucker and Choi, but he's been as hot as either of them lately. He's currently riding a 10-game hitting streak, hitting three homers while driving in 12 runs and posting a .385/.467/.667 slash line over that stretch. Over a slightly longer stretch of 22 contests, he's driven in 25 runs, clearly taking advantage of hitting behind the aforementioned pair. His 76 RBI on the season are good for 12th in the league and represent an excellent total given his rather affordable price.