DFS KBO: Sunday Cheat Sheet

Saturday's slate looked like it had quite a few unreliable starters alongside the dominant Chang Mo Koo, though the day ended up quite low-scoring overall, with the 10 teams combining to score just 29 runs. Koo was his usual dominant self, striking out 10 while allowing just two hits and two walks in seven scoreless innings against the Wiz as the Dinos earned a comfortable 6-1 win. Strong pitching performances were available across the slate, however, With Shi Hwan Jang, Woo Chan Cha, Hyun Hee Han and Jong Hoon Park all producing quality starts. On the offensive side, standout performances were hard to find, though a stack which ignored the platoon advantage and grabbed the Heroes' top two right-handed bats, Ha Seong Kim and Byung Ho Park, would have returned a pair of homers. Sunday's slate looks like it could be another low-scoring one, as the pool of pitchers is rather top-heavy, though whether that leads to the expected results remains to be seen. Weather could unfortunately be a factor here, with rain in the forecast for the northwest part of the country, as both the Eagles-Twins game in Seoul and the Heroes-Wyverns game in Incheon appear threatened as of writing.

Pitchers

It's hard to lead this section with anyone other than Dan Straily ($9,400 DraftKings, $24 FanDuel as "Lotte Starting P") whenever he pitches, and that's as true as ever here even with a number of capable alternatives available. The veteran righty has been dominant throughout his first season overseas, ranking fourth among qualified starters in ERA (2.07), third in WHIP (0.97) and second in strikeout rate (25.7 percent). He's been pitching at an even higher level over his last two starts, throwing 15 scoreless innings while allowing just six hits and two walks while striking out 12. The sixth-ranked Lions offense shouldn't prove too tough a test for him Sunday even in the league's most hitter-friendly park.

Jake Brigham ($7,900 DraftKings, $20 FanDuel as "Kiwoom Starting P") looks like the best value play on the slate, as his price is far out of line with his talent. A low price could have made some sense ahead of his previous start, which was his first one back from a nearly two-month absence due to elbow issues, but he looked quite good in that one, holding the league-leading Dinos to just one run on three hits in five innings. He shouldn't face any significant workload concerns ahead of this start, as he was able to throw 82 pitches in his previous outing. Brigham was dominant for the Heroes last season, posting a 2.96 ERA, and a similar level of performance should be expected in this one against the ninth-ranked Wyverns lineup, a unit which is missing its best hitter, Jeong Choi, due to a knee injury.

Casey Kelly ($8,200 DraftKings, $23 FanDuel as "LG Starting P") hasn't lived up to expectations this season, though he hasn't been terrible. His 4.63 ERA and 1.40 WHIP are mediocre at best, but his 17.8 percent strikeout rate and 6.4 percent walk rate are both fine marks and are both within a percentage point of where he finished in those categories last year, a season in which he posted a 2.55 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. He's pitched better of late, recording three straight quality starts while posting a 3.32 ERA and a 16:4 K:BB over that stretch. He'll have a very good chance at making it four quality starts in four games Sunday, as he'll face the Eagles and their league-worst lineup.

A bonus fourth recommendation as rain could limit the available options on this slate: David Buchanan ($7,300 DraftKings, $23 FanDuel as "Samsung Starting P") hasn't been entirely reliable this season, getting blown up and allowing as many as eight and 10 runs in a pair of outings earlier in the year, but he's been quite solid overall, posting a 3.48 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. Those numbers likely slightly overstate how he's pitched thus far, as his 15.9 percent strikeout rate is unimpressive and he's been helped by a .278 BABIP and 77.9 percent strand rate, but there's still not much reason to complain about his overall performance. He's been quite good lately, allowing just two runs over his last three starts, and will have a good chance to extend that strong run against a Giants offense which ranks eighth in scoring this season.

Top Targets

Any of the Bears' top left-handed bats are worth a look against Tigers righty Min Woo Lee, who owns an unimpressive 5.11 ERA this season after posting a 5.43 mark last year. Jose Fernandez ($5,500 DraftKings, $17 FanDuel) has been the best of the bunch for most of the season, hitting .376/.439/.566 with 11 homers, just four shy of his mark from his debut KBO season last year. After leading the league in hits last season, he has a shot to do so again this year, as he's tied with Mel Rojas Jr. for the lead in that category with 97, putting him on pace for 221.7, a number which would smash Keon Chang Seo's record of 201 set back in 2014. Fernandez has been as good as ever over his last 10 games, hitting .405 with three homers.

If not for a pair of more appealing stack targets, the Twins could have been listed as a stack option here against Eagles righty Warwick Saupold. The Australian has been unexciting but effective at best this season, but he's been quite poor lately, allowing 16 earned runs in 17 innings over his last three starts. The Twins' top left-handed bats look quite interesting against him in this one, with Hyun Soo Kim ($4,500 DraftKings, $16 FanDuel) leading the way. While his teammate Roberto Ramos has failed to sustain his early form, Kim has been quite hot lately, hitting .373/.458/.804 with six homers and 21 RBI over his last 13 games. He's now homered 11 times this season, already equaling his total from last year.

Bargain Bats

Sticking with Twins lefties, Ji Hwan Oh ($3,600 DraftKings, $10 FanDuel) is worth a look as long as he's batting second, something he's done in each of the last four games. His .270/.322/.442 slash line is nothing special, though on its own it's probably good enough to render him worth a look given his price, lineup position and matchup. He's hit far better than that over his last 29 games, however, posting a .313/.358/.491 slash line which would seem to very much justify his price. Throw in the fact that he could add to his 10 steals in this one and he looks like a great value.

Han Joon Yoo ($3,100 DraftKings, $9 FanDuel) missed out on the Wiz stack listed below in favor of a trio of stronger bats, but he's a strong option for those looking to save a bit of budget space. The 39-year-old remains quite a capable hitter in the latter stages of his career, hitting .296/.367/.459 on the year. He hasn't finished with an OPS below .800 since back in 2013. He moved up to the cleanup role Saturday, giving him a prime lineup position following some of the best hitters in the league against the struggling Jae Hak Lee (discussed below).

Stacks To Consider

Wiz vs. Jae Hak Lee: Mel Rojas Jr. ($6,300 DraftKings, $18 FanDuel), Baek Ho Kang ($5,500 DraftKings, $14 FanDuel), Jae Gyun Hwang ($5,600 DraftKings, $12 FanDuel)

The Wiz's bats were kept quiet by the incredible Chang Mo Koo on Saturday, but they'll face a far easier task against Lee in the series finale. The 29-year-old righty was a capable mid-rotation arm last season, backing up his 3.75 ERA with a respectable combination of a 16.3 percent strikeout rate and a 7.7 percent walk rate. Both those numbers have trended in the wrong direction this season, as he's struggled to a 14.7 percent strikeout rate and a 9.2 percent walk rate. That's understandably caused his ERA to rise quite a bit, as it now stands at a very poor 5.84. He hasn't shown any signs of turning things around lately, posting a 6.49 ERA, a 1.78 WHIP and an 18:14 K:BB over his last five starts.

While Koo was able to hold Rojas hitless Saturday, that's not something we should expect to happen on a regular basis. Saturday's game was just the fourth time in the outfielder's last 32 games that he'd finished without a hit. He's been on a fantastic run over that stretch, hitting .392/.455/.762 with 12 homers. He has a very real shot at a Triple Crown this season, as he currently leads the league in homers (21), RBI (58) and batting average (.383).

Kang is a rather overqualified second fiddle behind Rojas, as the 20-year-old would be the best hitter on quite a few teams in this league. He produced an excellent .336/.416/.495 slash line last year in his age-19 season, though the de-juiced ball limited him to just 13 homers. He already has 12 bombs in just 47 games this season, pairing that power with excellent contact and a great eye for an overall .310/.393/.571 slash line. The young slugger hasn't been at his best over his last six games, going just 4-for-24 at the plate, but getting the platoon advantage against a struggling righty like Lee should help snap him out of his brief slump.

Hwang rounds out a stack that's rather expensive on DraftKings, though his eligibility at a shallow third-base position helps justify his cost. Hwang's recent performance justifies his price tag as well, as he's hit .377/.422/.584 over his last 17 games. The former San Francisco Giant started the season slowly but now owns an .818 OPS, giving him the chance at an OPS north of .800 for the sixth straight season.

Tigers vs. Young Ha Lee: Preston Tucker ($5,700 DraftKings, $17 FanDuel), Hyung Woo Choi ($4,900 DraftKings, $15 FanDuel), Chang Jin Lee ($3,000 DraftKings, $5 FanDuel)

If the Bears fail to stretch their streak of consecutive Korean Series appearances to six, their starting pitching depth will almost certainly be the primary cause, an issue that's been made worse by the broken foot Chris Flexen suffered in his most recent start. Young Ha Lee is a part of that problem, as his ERA sits at a very poor 5.86 after coming in at 3.64 last year. A .356 BABIP and a 63.6 percent strand rate undoubtedly inflate that number somewhat, though it's not as if either his 13.5 percent strikeout rate or his 10.7 percent walk rate are anything close to good.

An unimposing righty on the mound means Tucker looks very much worth paying up for. He's been rather streaky this season, though his good stretches have far outweighed his bad ones, giving him an overall .309/.399/.593 slash line with 16 homers and 55 RBI, both top-five totals. He's been on a hot streak of late, hitting .350/.447/.825 with five homers in 10 games prior to going hitless Saturday. Batting out of the number two spot, he should be in the middle of most of the Tigers' rallies against Lee in this one.

The 36-year-old Choi has been nearly as good as Tucker this season, hitting .315/.417/.517 while walking (35) more than he's struck out (33) for the third time in the last four seasons. His power has been comparatively modest, though his 10 homers are a perfectly acceptable number. He's swung a hot bat over his last 20 games, hitting .347 with a 1.010 OPS. He'll slot right behind Tucker in the number three spot, giving the Tigers one of the more potent left-handed duos in the league.

The Tigers lack a particularly compelling third left-handed option (though Min Sang Yoo is at least worth consideration), but right-handed leadoff man Chang Jin Lee looks like a fine way to round out this stack. He's inexpensive on DraftKings and costs the minimum on FanDuel, presumably a reflection of the fact that he's only played in 10 games this season. That was due to injury rather than talent, however, as a back issue prevented him from debuting until the start of last week. He's hit a strong .350/.422/.425 thus far this season, though even his modest .270/.363/.383 line from last season should be enough to justify his price in this matchup.