With production being highly variable on a night-to-night basis, daily fantasy baseball plays a bit differently than other sports.
An 0-for-4 dud from a chalky high-salaried slugger is a lot more common than a total dud from a top-salaried NBA player or even than a stinker from a top quarterback or running back.
That means that it's not uncommon for value plays to end up doing the heavy lifting in carrying your lineup. The fact that they can be the difference between a good and a great lineup isn't much different than other sports, but value plays being able to make up for a whiff on a high-salaried play completely is somewhat unique.
Let's get right into it and take a look at the top value options on today's full 15-game main slate.
Luis Patino, SP, Tampa Bay Rays
FanDuel Salary: $6,800
We have a full 15-game main slate tonight, and with it comes viable pitching options at every salary level. There are even a handful of intriguing options with salaries lower than $8,000, none more so than Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Luis Patino.
Patino entered the season as the 19th-best prospect in all of baseball and 5th overall at pitcher. The results for the 21-year-old have been a mixed bag so far, but he is very clearly oozing with potential. According to Statcast, Patino ranks in the 68th percentile or better in xERA, strikeout percentage, chase rate, expected batting average, expected wOBA, hard-hit percentage, and fastball velocity. Not too shabby.
It's only recently that Tampa has taken their young prospect off his leash, as he has thrown 94, 98, and 97 pitches in his three starts since getting recalled from the minors in early July. That all culminated in an excellent start his last time out, as he racked up six shutout innings while punching out eight batters against the New York Yankees. That was good for 52 FanDuel points.
Tonight, Patino gets to face an offense anything but potent in the Seattle Mariners. On the season, the M's have posted the fourth-lowest team wOBA, fourth-lowest OPS, and second-highest strikeout percentage, according to FanGraphs. That'll play.
Other Option to Consider: Kyle Freeland ($6,400) has garnered a 1.98 ERA, 2.79 FIP, and 21.3% K rate over his last seven starts. He's topped 30 FanDuel points in five of those outings, including 40-plus three times. He'll face a Chicago Cubs team that just traded away their entire offense.
Alex Verdugo, OF, Boston Red Sox
FanDuel Salary: $2,700
It's fair to say that the honeymoon period between Wily Peralta and the Detroit Tigers has ended.
After ceding just 1 earned run in 24 innings spanning four starts, Peralta has been hammered for 11 runs, 4 homers, 5 walks, and just 4 strikeouts over his last 9 innings (two starts). Yikes. Five of the seven long balls Wily has surrendered this season have come to opposite-handed hitters, which matches up well with his career splits (0.87 HR/9 to righties, 1.41 HR/9 to lefties).
The Boston Red Sox will look to be the next team to tee off against the 32-year-old, and Alex Verdugo looks like a fantastic play.
Since the start of 2020, Verdugo has amassed a .311 average, .903 OPS, .210 ISO, .383 wOBA, and 141 wRC+ against right-handed pitching. Sign me up.
Alec Bohm, 1B/3B, Philadelphia Phillies
FanDuel Salary: $2,400
Washington Nationals southpaw Patrick Corbin enters tonight's bout with the Philadelphia Phillies sporting a 5.78 ERA and 5.82 xERA. He's also surrendering 1.82 dongs per nine frames.
The 32-year-old has essentially been a batting practice pitcher to right-handers, as they've tagged him for a .301 average, .890 OPS, .379 wOBA, and 2.16 homers per nine. Sheesh.
As he's already done twice in 10 at-bats against Corbin, Alec Bohm is very capable of reaching the seats tonight. In 159 career plate appearances with the platoon advantage, Bohm has garnered a .302 average, .867 OPS, .194 ISO, .370 wOBA, and 132 wRC+. The 25-year-old has also been on a mini hot streak, as he's put up a .339 average, .940 OPS, and 11 RBI over his last 17 games.