This article is part of our DraftKings KBO series.
Sunday's KBO slate looked rather pitcher-heavy, but teams went on to score an average of 8.4 runs per game. That didn't mean that quality pitching was impossible to find, however, with Chang Mo Koo allowing just two baserunners over six scoreless innings before the Dinos' relievers went on to allow seven largely meaningless runs in their 18-7 win. Those 18 runs made for plenty of profitable Dinos stacks, with the Wiz and Twins also reaching double digits and providing several stack options over their own. The start of Week 5 means that every team will be playing their ninth series of the season, though that won't mean they will have played all nine other teams, as a balanced schedule evidently doesn't mean an evenly distributed one -- the Dinos, for example, have yet to play the Giants and won't so so until the final day of June. As for Tuesday's slate, the majority of teams will be running out back-end starters, which should make for plenty of possible stacks.
Pitchers
While the Wiz's pitching staff has struggled overall, allowing the second-most runs per game, that doesn't apply to Odrisamer Despaigne ($8,200 DraftKings, $26 FanDuel as "KT Starting P"), who's been right up there with the best starters in the league this season. Through five starts, he owns a stellar 1.69 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP, striking out 22.2 percent of opposing batters while walking just 4.0 percent. He'll face a Bears lineup which has ranked first in scoring at
Sunday's KBO slate looked rather pitcher-heavy, but teams went on to score an average of 8.4 runs per game. That didn't mean that quality pitching was impossible to find, however, with Chang Mo Koo allowing just two baserunners over six scoreless innings before the Dinos' relievers went on to allow seven largely meaningless runs in their 18-7 win. Those 18 runs made for plenty of profitable Dinos stacks, with the Wiz and Twins also reaching double digits and providing several stack options over their own. The start of Week 5 means that every team will be playing their ninth series of the season, though that won't mean they will have played all nine other teams, as a balanced schedule evidently doesn't mean an evenly distributed one -- the Dinos, for example, have yet to play the Giants and won't so so until the final day of June. As for Tuesday's slate, the majority of teams will be running out back-end starters, which should make for plenty of possible stacks.
Pitchers
While the Wiz's pitching staff has struggled overall, allowing the second-most runs per game, that doesn't apply to Odrisamer Despaigne ($8,200 DraftKings, $26 FanDuel as "KT Starting P"), who's been right up there with the best starters in the league this season. Through five starts, he owns a stellar 1.69 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP, striking out 22.2 percent of opposing batters while walking just 4.0 percent. He'll face a Bears lineup which has ranked first in scoring at times this season but which has fallen to fourth after averaging just 3.3 runs over their last seven games.
Jae Hak Lee ($8,700 DraftKings, $27 FanDuel as "NC Starting P") is more expensive than I'd like, but he's a relatively safe option on a slate that's light on reliable arms. He's not nearly as dominant as some of his fellow starters in the excellent Dinos rotation, but he's been steady across the last three campaigns, posting WHIPs of 1.35, 1.36 and 1.32 from 2018 to 2020. His 4.37 ERA this year is nothing special, but he had a 3.75 ERA last season with very similar peripherals. He's most interesting in this one due to the fact that he gets to face the lowly Wyverns, however, a lineup which ranks second-last in scoring.
I wouldn't say I trust Ki Young Im ($7,300 DraftKings, $27 FanDuel), but I'm at least intrigued by what he's doing this year. He's cruised to a 3.86 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP this season, backing those up with a 22.4 percent strikeout rate and a 3.5 percent walk rate. Whether or not he can sustain those numbers remains to be seen, as they're way out of line with his performances from the last two seasons, where he recorded ERAs of 6.26 and 5.73 with WHIPs of 1.70 and 1.77. The Giants won't be the toughest test, however, as they rank eighth in scoring this season.
Top Targets
Mel Rojas Jr.'s ($6,000 DraftKings, $15 FanDuel) two-homer day Sunday gave him six on the season, tying him for third in the league. After posting an OPS between .914 and .980 in each of his first three KBO seasons, he's reached a new level this year, hitting .409/.461/.688 through his first 23 games. His Wiz will face the Bears' veteran lefty Hui Kwan Yu, whose 3.27 ERA isn't supported by his 1.73 WHIP or his 9.9 percent strikeout rate.
Hyun Soo Kim ($5,500 DraftKings, $14 FanDuel) deserves plenty of credit for the Twins' hot start, though he's been somewhat overshadowed by Roberto Ramos, whose 10 homers make him an early MVP favorite. Ramos left Sunday's game against the Tigers following a collision on the basepaths, however, making him something of a risk in this one and leaving Kim as potentially the Twins' top bat. While he's only homered once this season, his 12 doubles and 9:7 BB:K have helped him to an excellent .391/.446/.576 slash line. He'll get the platoon advantage against Lions righty Tae In Won, who owns a fine but forgettable 4.50 ERA and 1.38 WHIP in 138 career innings.
Bargain Bats
The Eagles could have been a stack recommendation against Heroes' righty Hyun Hee Han, who's struggled to a 6.64 ERA and a 1.87 WHIP through four starts, if I could find three Eagles hitters I had any interest in playing, but there's a reason no Eagles hitters costs more than $10 on FanDuel. Jared Hoying ($4,800 DraftKings, $10 FanDuel) is too expensive for me to have much interest in him on DraftKings, but he qualifies as a bargain given the matchup at his cheap FanDuel price. Nothing about his .225/.276/.352 slash line this season is good, but there's reason to expect some improvement, as he recorded a solid .803 OPS last season and a .945 OPS in 2018. If there's ever a time to consider him, it's in this matchup.
The Wiz also could easily have been a stack recommendation for this slate, as Hui Kwan Yu is far less intimidating than his 3.27 ERA would suggest. Jeong Dae Bae ($2,400 DraftKings, $8 FanDuel) is the name to know if you're looking for a cheap option from the league's second-ranked offense. He's settling into the second spot in the lineup, a deserved role given that he's hitting .373/.416/.566 on the season. He didn't have much of a track record prior to this season, never receiving more than 84 plate appearances in a season or posting an OPS higher than .595, but that's baked into his price.
Stacks to Consider
Tigers vs. Se Woong Park: Preston Tucker ($6,300 DraftKings, $17 FanDuel), Hyung Woo Choi ($5,500 DraftKings, $11 FanDuel), Sun Bin Kim ($4,100 DraftKings, $9 FanDuel)
Park may well be better than his 6.50 ERA and 1.83 WHIP last season, as he recorded a respectable 4.20 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP last year, but he'll have to be far better than he's been thus far to not look like someone worth stacking against. There isn't really any good defense for his numbers this season, as his awful ERA is what you'd expect from a pitcher who's struck out just 13.8 percent of opposing batters while walking 12.6 percent. Additionally, his respectable numbers last season (which came in just 60 innings) followed on the heels of an atrocious 2018 campaign in which he posted a 9.92 ERA and a 2.29 WHIP in a 49-inning sample.
Tucker costing $300 more than any other hitter on DraftKings might ordinarily be difficult to justify, but it seems fair given the opposing starter in this one. Tucker roared out of the gate to post a .429/.500/.821 slash line with five homers in his first 15 games, though he's fallen off since then, hitting .179/.238/.308 over his last nine contests while homering just once. Still, that brief slump doesn't change the fact that he's one of the best hitters in the league, and he should get plenty of chances to add to his league-leading 24 RBI against Park.
Choi's high price on DraftKings makes him a more questionable play on that site (though he's still worth a look given the matchup) but he's one of my top recommendations for FanDuel for this slate. His .270/.393/.449 season slash line is more good than great, but he's walked more times (17) than he's struck out (14), something he did in two of the last three seasons. At age 36, it wouldn't be too big a surprise if his bat was starting to slow down, though it hasn't shown signs of doing so in recent seasons, as he's recorded an OPS of .900 or better for seven straight campaigns.
Number five hitter Ji Wan Na ($3,600 DraftKings, $9 FanDuel) also deserves a mention, but number two hitter Kim gets the nod here thanks primarily to his shortstop eligibility, an important factor on DraftKings. Kim may not get the platoon advantage, but occupying a key spot in the order against a weak opposing pitcher is plenty of reason to consider him. Like Choi, he's walking more than he's striking out, something he's done five other times in his 12-year career. That's helped him to a strong .349/.440/.419 slash line through 24 games.
Dinos vs. Seung Won Moon: Sung Bum Na ($5,200 DraftKings, $16 FanDuel), Min Woo Park ($4,500 DraftKings, $13 FanDuel), Myung Gi Lee ($3,000 DraftKings, $9 FanDuel)
Moon is something of an enigma. One the one hand, he's stumbled to a 6.10 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. On the other, he owns an 18.6 percent strikeout rate and a 3.1 percent walk rate this season and cruised to a 3.88 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP last season. Back on the first hand again, his strong results last year came with a modest 16.9 percent strikeout rate and a 1.44 HR/9, more than double the league-average HR/9 of 0.71. On the whole, there's not enough here to conclude that he's a bad pitcher, but there's also not nearly enough to scare me away from loading up on the league's highest-scoring lineup.
The Dinos' lineup is balanced enough to provide both left-handed and right-handed stack options, and it's the lefties who are the ones to play in this one against the right-handed Moon. Na is the best lefty on the team and one of the best hitters in the league, period, as his price on both sites finally reflects. His numbers in his first few games this season weren't quite up to his usual lofty standards, but he's been tearing up the league over his last eight games, hitting .433/.500/.867 with three homers. He now has seven homers on the season, good for second in the league.
Leadoff man Park is extra interesting on DraftKings thanks to his second-base eligibility, though he'd be worth a look even as an outfielder. The excellent contact hitter has struck out in just 3.9 percent of his at-bats this season, helping him on his way to a .322/.390/.478 slash line. He should have plenty of chances to score if the Dinos tee off on Moon in this one.
Lee isn't one of the Dinos' best hitters, but he's interesting against righties as long as he keeps holding down the number two spot in the order. A low walk rate and a lack of power have held his OPS to a low .659, but he does enough to help fantasy owners with a .282 batting average and a pair of steals. It wouldn't be a surprise to see his OPS rise, either, as he owns a solid .771 mark in that category over the course of his career. He's mostly here for his lineup position and price, however.
