MLB finally has a timeline for its return at the end of July (yay!), so that means MLB DFS is on the horizon.
But you don't have to wait until then to get your daily fantasy baseball fix! The KBO rolls on with daily contests on FanDuel.
First pitch on Thursday is at 2:00 am ET, and official lineups typically come out an hour before game time at the earliest.
Scoring is identical to what we see in MLB DFS, but FanDuel is condensing the number of starting spots to seven. You start one pitcher as usual, and then only need to roster two infielders, two outfielders, and two utility players to fill out the rest. Your total team salary is also $100 instead of $35,000.
Some websites that can help you get started include MyKBO Stats, FanGraphs, and Baseball-Reference.
Below is an overview of tonight's starting pitchers sorted by FanDuel salary with their 2020 numbers. Opposing team stats are also from this season. Multi-year park factors from the Korean website, Statiz.
Note that on FanDuel these hurlers are listed by their team names (ex: "SK Starting P"), so those are also included.
| Pitcher | Salary | L/R | Opp. | FIP | ERA | WHIP | K% | BB% | Opp. R/G | Opp. K% | Park |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Wright (NC) | $31 | R | @KT | 4.85 | 3.80 | 1.29 | 19.6% | 10.1% | 5.55 | 18.5% | 973 |
| David Buchanan (Samsung) | $28 | R | HAN | 5.08 | 3.62 | 1.21 | 16.4% | 6.3% | 3.36 | 20.2% | 1093 |
| Min-woo Lee (Kia) | $26 | R | @LOT | 4.31 | 5.12 | 1.29 | 15.4% | 7.7% | 4.64 | 16.3% | 1022 |
| Jong-hoon Park (SK) | $26 | R | DOO | 3.94 | 4.40 | 1.31 | 25.3% | 8.9% | 6.29 | 15.2% | 1038 |
| Seung-ho Lee (Kiwoom) | $25 | L | @LG | 5.25 | 5.05 | 1.46 | 13.6% | 9.0% | 5.81 | 16.2% | 959 |
| Tyler Wilson (LG) | $25 | R | KIW | 3.88 | 4.18 | 1.25 | 17.7% | 7.6% | 5.79 | 19.1% | 959 |
| Je-seong Bae (KT) | $24 | R | NC | 5.10 | 4.02 | 1.49 | 13.1% | 9.7% | 6.63 | 17.6% | 973 |
| Dan Straily (Lotte) | $23 | R | KIA | 2.74 | 2.10 | 1.01 | 28.4% | 7.8% | 5.00 | 16.9% | 1022 |
| Hui-kwan Yu (Doosan) | $22 | L | @SK | 5.25 | 3.68 | 1.52 | 7.8% | 8.3% | 3.74 | 19.6% | 1038 |
| Bum-soo Kim (Hanwha) | $20 | L | @SAM | 6.50 | 4.70 | 1.70 | 19.6% | 16.8% | 5.14 | 17.8% | 1093 |
Let's check out which pitchers and stacks stand out on tonight's slate
Pitchers
Wednesday's slate was a total washout, with four out of the five games getting postponed. Welp.
We might not be out of the woods yet, either, as both the Tigers-Giants and Eagles-Lions are potential danger spots, per MyKBO Stats. But those games still have a chance of playing, so this is looking like a much safer slate overall. FanDuel is using the first games of any doubleheaders tonight, so lock is a little earlier at 2:00 am ET.
As one would expect, all those rainouts mean we're seeing most of Wednesday's starters getting pushed to today. The only difference? FanDuel's pricing was likely determined ahead of time, so their salaries have changed dramatically in some cases.
Most notably, that means we can now roster Dan Straily (Lotte Starting P) against the Kia Tigers at just $23 -- a massive $5 decrease. He's been one of the nastiest pitchers in the KBO this year, and while the matchup isn't perfect because of the Tigers' lower strikeout rate, it's hardly one to avoid. Much like when we had Chang Mo Koo mispriced in an identical situation last week, you shouldn't hesitate to go heavy on Straily -- although keep in mind that his game could be one of the trouble spots tonight.
Outside of Straily, David Buchanan (Samsung Starting P; $28) benefits from his matchup against the last place Hanwha Eagles, while Tyler Wilson (LG Starting P; $25) brings solid 2020 marks to combat the Kiwoom Heroes.
Buchanan feels overpriced for his modest 16.4% strikeout rate, but we've seen lesser pitchers put up big scores against Hanwha. Once again, this is another contest where rain could come into play, though.
As for Wilson, the Heroes are dangerous, of course, but they strike out at the league's third-highest clip, and LG's ballpark leans heavily towards pitching. Perhaps just as importantly, there aren't any weather issues expected here.
If rain does take Straily and Buchanan out, then Mike Wright (NC Starting P; $31) enters consideration. His salary is tough to stomach, but there's potential upside in his 19.6% strikeout rate against the KT Wiz, and he gives you another option if you want to avoid going all-in on Wilson.
Stacks
It always feels good to stack the NC Dinos, and they'll surely top the list when they're facing a low-strikeout hurler like Je-seong Bae. The right-hander is paring a middling 13.1% strikeout rate with a 9.7% walk rate through eight starts, and his 5.10 FIP isn't a good sign for his ERA. Fit in the usual Dinos stars where you can, and Myung-gi Lee ($9), Hee-Dong Kwon ($7) and Suk-Min Park ($10) can help get you there.
The Lotte Giants also get a favorable draw in Min-woo Lee, which is the same matchup they were supposed to get on Wednesday, as our own Jim Sannes detailed yesterday. This isn't an overly expensive lineup, so you shouldn't have trouble rostering their top bats. Hoon Jung ($9) has been seeing time out of the leadoff spot since returning from injury.
The LG Twins will face left-hander Seung-ho Lee -- another repeat matchup -- who's showing lackluster numbers across the board. LG could have a more lefty-heavy lineup with Eun-Sung Chae out with an ankle injury, but that shouldn't stop us from rostering the likes of Roberto Ramos ($17) and Hyun-Soo Kim ($15). Kang-Nam Yoo ($10) continues to be a solid value when stacking the Twins.