DFS KBO: Sunday Cheat Sheet

Saturday's KBO slate saw quite a few excellent pitching performances, with six teams scoring no more than two runs. Ben Lively struck out eight Twins while allowing just one run on two hits over eight innings as the Lions pulled off a 5-1 upset, while Eric Jokisch bounced back from a poor outing to throw seven scoreless innings, allowing just three hits as the Heroes secured a 2-0 win over the Bears. Elsewhere, Hyeong Jun So struck out nine Eagles (smashing his previous career high of six) while allowing just two runs in 6.1 innings as the Wiz earned a 5-2 win, while Geon Wook Lee and Adrian Sampson allowed a combined one earned run on six hits in 12.2 innings as the Wyverns defeated the Giants by a 2-1 score. Finally, Preston Tucker went 4-for-5 with a pair of homers and five RBI while Drew Gagnon allowed just one run in 6.2 innings as the Tigers crushed the Dinos, 11-2. Sunday's slate, which begins bright and early at 1 a.m. ET, should feature more runs, with only a small number of trustworthy pitchers taking the mound.

Pitchers

Aaron Brooks ($10,000) is quite expensive for a pitcher who has to face the league-leading Dinos' lineup, but he's by far the best arm on the slate and is worth consideration against any opponent. He ranks third among qualified starters with a 2.61 ERA and third in the same group with a 1.04 WHIP. He's also third in strikeout rate (21.8 percent) and second in walk rate (4.1 percent), so those numbers look quite well-deserved. He went on a bit of a slump in late August, potentially due to back issues, but he rebounded quite well in his first two September starts, allowing just one run on seven hits over 15 innings while striking out 15 and walking none.

On the opposite side of that same contest, Myung Gi Song ($6,800) could have a tough time earning a win against Brooks but is an interesting budget option nonetheless. The seventh-overall pick in the 2019 draft spent the start of the year in the bullpen, posting a 4.05 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP in 26.2 innings. He joined the Dinos' rotation in late August and has performed well in four starts, posting a 3.26 ERA, though his 12:7 K:BB and 1.40 WHIP aren't particularly good. His overall 7.8 K/9 is a lot better than his 5.6 K/9 as a starter, but there's certainly room for the 20-year-old to continue to grow, as he's made just five career starts. It's not the most compelling profile, and the Tigers' mediocre lineup has been better lately, but there's still enough here to justify his cheap price.

The primary concern for Duk Joo Ham ($5,000) is his pitch count. The former closer, who's saved 53 games over the last three seasons, was very impressive last Sunday in his first start since 2017, allowing just a single hit in six scoreless innings against the Wyverns. It was quite a surprise he lasted that long, however, as he threw just 62 pitches. He should be able to get up near 75 or 80 pitches against the fifth-ranked Heroes lineup this time around, which would put him right on the borderline of being eligible for a win unless he's incredibly efficient again. He should be quite good on a per-inning basis, however, as he's struck out 24.3 percent of batters this season en route to a 3.09 ERA. Even in a shortened outing, he should be great value at his very cheap price.

Top Targets

Selecting Mel Rojas Jr. ($5,700) is almost never a bad idea, and it sure looks good here against Eagles lefty Chad Bell, who pitched better in late August but who owns a 6.75 ERA with just four total strikeouts in his first two September starts. Rojas' MVP case appeared to be under some threat when he went surprisingly cold in late August, posting a .132/.150/.276 slash line over the final 17 games of the month. He's firmly back to his previous form in September, however, hitting .390/.458/.805 with five homers in 11 games.

Jae Il Oh ($4,400) has been the best of the Bears' big bats lately, leading the team in DraftKings points per game over his last 10 contests with 10.5. While his only times on base in his last three games have come via the walk, that followed a 14-game stretch in which he went .333/.426/.627 at the plate, homering four times. He'll be at a platoon disadvantage against Heroes lefty Seung Ho Lee, but Lee has been quite unintimidating this season, posting a 4.98 ERA, so that shouldn't matter too much. Additionally, Oh hasn't struggled against lefties this year, hitting .300 with four homers in 90 at-bats.

Bargain Bats

The Eagles could have been in consideration for a stack recommendation on this slate against Eagles righty Je Seong Bae, who owns a 7.11 ERA and an 18:19 K:BB over his last six starts, but they simply don't have enough reliable hitters for that to be a good idea. Yong Kyu Lee ($3,400) fills this space frequently whenever his team faces a weak righty, and he'll do so again here. He's missed four of the last seven games while battling a calf issue, so you'll want to make sure he's actually playing before including him. If he's available, he should be a useful budget option, as he's hitting .377/.450/.434 over his last 13 games.

Tyler White ($3,400) has accomplished very little in his first five KBO games, going 2-for-17 at the plate, but it's far too early to consider him a bust. Former MLB players deserve the benefit of the doubt when they drop down to the KBO level until they prove otherwise, and five poor games certainly doesn't count as proof. White's price is far too low for a player who has held his own at the highest level of the game, posting a 98 wRC+ (the product of a .235/.316/.409 slash line) over 859 MLB plate appearances. He'll get an easy enough matchup against Giants righty Se Woong Park, who's been better of late but who still owns a 4.49 ERA and a 1.50 ERA on the year.

Stacks to Consider

Giants vs. Ricardo Pinto: Ah Seop Son ($3,700), Jun Woo Jeon ($3,400), Dae Ho Lee ($3,200)

I can't remember the last time Pinto was on the slate and I didn't recommend stacking against him. He's been easily the worst qualified starter in the league this season, as he ranks last among that group with a 6.93 ERA and last with a 1.92 WHIP. He actually owned a fairly decent 4.14 ERA through 12 starts, though a 1.68 WHIP and a 40:35 K:BB indicated that regression was coming. It's come far harder than expected, however, as he owns an awful 10.80 ERA and a 2.26 WHIP over his last 10 outings. It's a mystery why the Wyverns keep running him out there, but even a mediocre lineup like the Giants' sixth-ranked unit should enjoy facing him in this one.

Figuring out the correct Giants stack is often difficult, as their balanced lineup contains seven players with an OPS of at least .750 but just one with an OPS north of .850. Son, who owns a .910 OPS, has been the team's top hitter this season and is also the only lefty who regularly hits near the top of the lineup. He's been out of the lineup fairly often lately due to a hamstring issue, so you'll want to check the lineups before including him, but he's been quite good when available. He's on a 13-game hitting streak, posting a .463/.465/.634 slash line while striking out just twice over that stretch.

Jeon has been one of the best hitters on the team throughout the season, hitting .296/.359/.489. The 34-year-old has produced some of his strongest seasons in recent years, averaging a .901 OPS from 2017 through 2019, and he doesn't look to be losing a step this year. He hasn't fallen off as the season has gone, either, as he's been quite hot at the plate over his last 14 games, hitting .423/.500/.635 over that stretch.

38-year-old Lee may not be the same hitter he was at his peak, though his price greatly exaggerates his decline. He's been a perfectly adequate first baseman this season, hitting .292/.364/.468 with 15 homers, yet he's cheaper than 14 other players at the position on Saturday's slate. That's not the product of a recent slump, either, as he's riding a six-game hitting streak, hitting .360 with six RBI over that stretch.

Lions vs. Yun Sik Kim: Ja Wook Koo ($5,100), Daniel Palka ($3,000), Dong Yeop Kim ($2,700)

Kim, the third-overall pick in this year's draft, may have a bright future ahead of him, but he hasn't done much to indicate that he has a bright present. Through 45.1 innings this season, he's struggled to a 6.55 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP. His 8.1 percent walk rate is perfectly adequate, but he's striking out just 14.8 percent of opposing batters. The majority of his appearances to date have come out of the bullpen, but he's been exclusively a starter since the beginning of August. His 6.44 ERA and 1.50 WHIP in six starts since entering the rotation are nearly identical to his poor season-long numbers.

Koo won't get the platoon advantage against Kim, but that hasn't been an issue for him this year, as he's hitting .400 in 75 at-bats against southpaws. He's having quite a strong year overall, hitting .317/.393/.484, up significantly in all three categories from his .267/.330/.444 line last season. He struggled throughout much of August but has turned things around in September, hitting .359/.405/.692 with three homers, 11 runs and 12 RBI in 10 games.

While Palka won't get the platoon advantage here, either, his price is far too cheap for a former MLB hitter facing an unproven KBO rookie, regardless of their relative handedness. Palka hasn't dominated through his first 16 games in Korea, hitting a lopsided .217/.290/.467, though he does have four homers, giving him plenty of upside on a given day. Three of those homers have come in his last seven games, so he appears to be trending in the right direction.

Kim followed Palka out of the fifth spot in the order Saturday and offers a decent amount of power upside for a cheap price. He's slumped at times this season, getting demoted twice, though his overall .289/.324/.466 slash line is quite good for his cost. He's been hot over his last four games, going 6-for-16 with a homer. Stretching back to the start of August, when he returned following his latest stint in the Futures League, he owns a .357/.389/.595 slash line in 28 games.