MLB DFS is right around the corner, 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 Friday is at 5:30 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) | $30 | R | KT | 5.06 | 3.92 | 1.43 | 18.4% | 10.8% | 5.90 | 19.1% | 1012 |
| Aaron Brooks (Kia) | $28 | R | DOO | 3.00 | 2.52 | 1.13 | 21.9% | 4.7% | 6.21 | 14.6% | 1003 |
| Chae-heung Choi (Samsung) | $26 | L | LOT | 5.05 | 4.02 | 1.36 | 17.9% | 10.3% | 4.97 | 15.8% | 1093 |
| Chan-gyu Lim (LG) | $25 | R | HAN | 3.88 | 4.47 | 1.34 | 22.4% | 5.9% | 3.55 | 19.1% | 959 |
| Jun-won Seo (Lotte) | $25 | R | @SAM | 5.85 | 4.30 | 1.36 | 11.6% | 6.4% | 5.24 | 18.0% | 1093 |
| Seung-ho Lee (Kiwoom) | $24 | L | @SK | 5.20 | 5.90 | 1.52 | 14.4% | 7.0% | 3.79 | 19.1% | 1038 |
| Hyeong-jun So (KT) | $24 | R | @NC | 5.21 | 6.23 | 1.54 | 10.2% | 6.4% | 6.40 | 16.9% | 1012 |
| Jin-wook Kim (Hanwha) | $23 | R | @LG | 10.27 | 4.15 | 1.62 | 15.0% | 10.0% | 5.43 | 16.4% | 959 |
| Hui-kwan Yu (Doosan) | $23 | L | @KIA | 4.83 | 4.97 | 1.63 | 8.8% | 7.0% | 5.14 | 16.6% | 1003 |
| Joo-han Kim (SK) | $20 | R | KIW | 6.41 | 6.53 | 1.74 | 5.1% | 10.1% | 5.62 | 18.6% | 1038 |
Let's check out which pitchers and stacks stand out on tonight's slate
Pitchers
Chan-gyu Lim ($25; LG Starting P) is our man on Friday, rocking a slate-high 22.4% strikeout rate against the lowly Hanwha Eagles. Despite a 4.47 ERA, his 3.88 FIP is second-best on the board, and he's proved he can take advantage of plus matchups, with FanDuel scores of 55.0, 49.0, and 46.0 points against the Eagles and Wyverns (twice) this year. The Twins' home park is also the KBO's best for pitchers.
Aaron Brooks ($28; Kia Starting P) has the top overall numbers but faces the Doosan Bears, who strike out at the league's lowest clip. I would normally avoid him, but on a slate with limited secondary options, we have to at least consider going here. For what it's worth, Brooks has performed well against low-strikeout teams like the Dinos and Giants in recent starts.
Mike Wright ($30; NC Starting P) is Friday's boom-or-bust choice, sporting the night's third-best strikeout rate but also showing some red flags. A 5.06 FIP and double-digit walk rate doesn't bode well against a tough KT Wiz lineup, but the Wiz also whiff at a high rate. Considering the exorbitant salary, I'd be more inclined to take the better pitcher in Brooks if pivoting away from Lim in tournaments.
Stacks
Moving onto stacks, the Kiwoom Heroes check all the boxes tonight. They're a top offense, face a weak pitcher in Joo-han Kim, and are playing in a hitter-friendly venue. Kim has only logged 20.2 innings this year, but his numbers are lousy across the board, and he's been ineffective for the majority of his career, with a 5.64 ERA and 1.55 WHIP dating back to 2016. Note that Dong-Won Park is out with an abdominal injury, removing one of our better Kiwoom value options. Hye-Sung Kim ($9) bats low in the order, but he's been roughly league average at the plate (102 wRC+) with some power/speed upside (5 homers, 7 stolen bases).
The Kia Tigers get a favorable matchup versus Hui-kwan Yu, who owns a minuscule 8.8% strikeout rate and has never shown much firepower. Yu is a southpaw, but we shouldn't be too concerned about using the Tigers' star lefties against someone who allows so much contact. Furthermore, for as good as Doosan is, their bullpen has the fourth-worst ERA in the KBO (5.65). Ji-Wan Na ($10) is still affordable, and Chang-Jin Lee ($5) and Joo-Hwan Na ($6) give us some punts. Chang-Jin continues to bat leadoff, and Joo-Hwan offers solid pop (.172 ISO).
Hopefully the Samsung Lions fly under the radar in a potential plus spot at home against Jun-won Seo. We have another low-strikeout pitcher in Seo, and he has one of the worst FIPs on the slate despite a seemingly decent 4.30 ERA. The 19-year-old wasn't particularly good in 2019, either, so he may just not be ready for primetime. The great part about stacking the Lions' bats is they're always inexpensive, making them easy to pair with star sluggers on other teams. Tyler Saladino ($12) is day-to-day with a back issue, so be sure he's in the lineup if you roster him.
You can also consider the NC Dinos as usual, and they face an unimpressive Hyeong-jun So. The LG Twins get the inexperienced Jin-wook Kim (11.0 career innings), who's making just his second 2020 start.