DFS MLB Pitching Coach: September 5

"What are you looking at? You're laborers. You're supposed to be laboring. That's what you get for not having an education!"

Happy Labor Day from Dr. Jerry Hathaway

With the holiday pleasantries out of the way, let’s talk DFS starting pitchers. We’ve got a full slate starting nice and early and plenty of options. Well, how about this – some really solid options at multiple pricing tiers for cash games and some interesting GPP darts to consider based on their match-up. Obviously there are some I like more than others, so I’ll keep them all listed and remark where there might be some concerns. Here’s the way the data is lining up:

Max Scherzer, WAS – Right off the bat, I’ll throw caution to the wind here with Scherzer. His numbers against the Braves this year aren’t great and he allowed four runs over six innings when he took them on August 20^th. But since that start, he’s thrown 16 innings, allowed just two earned runs and has a 21:1 K:BB in that span. Despite their recent offensive surge, they still rank 26^th in the league with a .303 against righties this season. We all know what he can do and I’ll certainly set a cash lineup with him in it, but I’m very hesitant to go all-in.

Chris Sale, CHW – His second half has been strong thus far and while he only has a 3.38 ERA in four starts against the Tigers this year, he’s gradually looked better in each outing, culminating with his second-straight eight innings of two-run ball just last week. Sometime you don’t like going with a guy on the second of a back-to-back against a specific team and he’s facing a white-hot Justin Verlander, but my confidence level is still fairly high.

Kyle Hendricks, CHC – He’s thrown at least six innings in each of his last six starts and has allowed just six runs in 42.1 innings during that span. Now give him the Brewers who have just a .310 over the past seven days with an ugly 28.4-percent strikeout rate, and I’m interested even at the high price tag.

Justin Verlander, DET – He’s coming off having just faced the White Sox, holding them to two runs over seven innings, and has a 2.57 ERA over his two starts against them this season. Facing Sale is going to be tough to lock down the win, but the Pale Hose posting just a .307 wOBA against righties and a 22.9-percent strikeout rate over the last seven days, I like him for cash games today.

Drew Pomeranz, BOS – Can you even call this a revenge game as Pomeranz faces his former team? Probably not, since he was likely grinning like the Kool-Aid guy when he heard to where he was being dealt. The Padres have struggled against southpaws since the trade deadline and have a .261 wOBA with a 31.8-percent strikeout rate over the last seven days.

Masahiro Tanaka, NYY – He’s got a 2.45 ERA in two starts against the Blue Jays, but both of those were in the Rogers Centre. If you look at Tanaka’s splits, he definitely pitches better on the road than he does at home, but the Blue Jays offensive numbers at home are significantly better than they are on the road. You see the dilemma? The BvP numbers favor Tanaka this season, but there’s still some concern with the home start.

Ian Kennedy, KC – The Twins have posted a stronger wOBA over the past week than they did the week they faced Kennedy where they were shut out for eight innings (August 20), but they’re still fanning at a 25-percent clip over the last seven days. The head-to-head also looks good as Kennedy has faced them three times this season and has a 1.00 ERA and a 16:2 K:BB over 18 innings.

Jerad Eickhoff, PHI – Run support could be an issue with the way the Phillies have been struggling offensively lately, but the Marlins have looked pretty bad themselves with a .284 wOBA and 23.1-percent strikeout rate over the past week. His numbers against Miami have looked somewhat pedestrian this year, but he did hold them to one run over seven innings in his most recent effort which was the second of a back-to-back match-up with them.

R.A. Dickey, TOR – As I said earlier, Tanaka struggles at home and these Yankees are not only young, but they’ve also posted just a .255 wOBA with a miserable .061 ISO over the past week. If the kids haven’t had too much experience facing a knuckleballer, Dickey could get the better of them today.

Jered Weaver, LAA – I know the wOBA splits look ugly, but not nearly as ugly as the Oakland offense has looked recently. The A’s have posted a .202 wOBA over the last seven days and that comes with a laughable .216 slugging percentage, an embarrassing .054 ISO and a 24.1-percent strikeout rate to boot. Hello GPP lineups. Meet Mr. Weaver.

Jake Esch, MIA – Well, we’ve looked at Eickhoff’s match-up versus the Marlins and that looked good, but you might get a little better going the other way and using Esch. The Phillies have just a .213 wOBA over the past week with a .112 ISO and a 28.4-percent strikeout rate. Might as well throw this dart in a single-entry GPP and get some Coors exposure.

Ryan Weber, ATL – I mean….if we’re throwing darts, we may as well also throw a look Weber’s way as the Nationals have really struggled at the plate lately. There are obvious concerns with the lefty bats in the lineup, but overall, the Nats have posted a .249 wOBA over the past week and while they’re not striking out a ton, they also aren’t hitting for power, as evidenced by the .078 ISO in that span. More Coors exposure and some big bats could help guide the way to a money finish.