MLB DFS Value Vault October 1: Saving Big With Michael Grove Against The Rockies
It is a busy sports weekend, but there is no reason why we should not carve out some time to bring home some cash via MLB DFS. For our purposes, we have a nice seven game MLB DFS main slate to work with plenty of viable options at all spectrums of the pricing tiers. Remember to stay on top of the latest MLB news, MLB lineups, and MLB weather while building those lineups. Now, let us take a look at some MLB DFS value picks for today.
DFS Value Pitchers
Michael Grove (LAD); DraftKings - $5,300; FanDuel - $7,100; Yahoo - $35
Targeting the Rockies outside of Coors Field is always going to be something I look to do, and they have an implied run total tonight of around 3.2 which puts Grove right on my radar. We know that we will not have to worry about run support here and Grove has four straight starts of double-digit DK points. There have been issues with the longball and Grove has a WHIP of 1.40 along with a 4.07 ERA, but this is a soft-landing spot and he is a good value for the price considering we should get around a strikeout per inning.
José Suarez (LAA); DraftKings - $7,400; FanDuel - $8,100; Yahoo - $36
The overall body of work from Suarez has been pretty strong this season, 4.06 ERA and 3.81 xERA in 102 innings, but things have really picked up steam for the left-hander in the second half of the season. In that stretch, Suarez has a 2.84 ERA in 57 innings of work and he has generally been a dependable option. It should be a solid matchup for Suarez against Texas tonight and he is a fair price for a second pitcher to pair with an ace.
DFS Value Hitters
Miguel Andújar, OF/3B (PIT); DraftKings - $2,300; FanDuel - $3,000; Yahoo - $9
Granted it was against the Dodgers, but Jordan Montgomery’s last start did not go according to plan. The landing spot for the southpaw is a lot softer tonight against the Pirates, but there are interesting young bats such as his former teammate, that are priced quite favorably. The former Rookie of the Year winner has, or at least previously showed, a fair amount of ability at the plate, and playing time and health have been his biggest issues as of late. Andujar has hits in three of his last four games and while we are not going with a Pittsburgh stack, there is value here to close out a GPP lineup.
Daniel Vogelbach, 1B (NYM); DraftKings - $3,500; FanDuel - $2,500; Yahoo - $11
The price is quite reasonable here for a player who has a strong chance of going deep that also bats in prime RBI territory for the Mets. In 300 at bats against right-handed pitching this season, Vogelbach is hitting .257 with 17 home runs and 50 RBI and that projects quite nicely over 600 at bat season.
Matt Duffy, 3B/1B/2B (LAA); DraftKings – $2,200; FanDuel - $2,300; Yahoo - $9
Duffy may be an unlikely middle of the order hitter, but that does not matter as we have to play based on the lineups presented to us. It is a solid matchup for Duffy against a southpaw in Cole Ragans and his 5.40 ERA. The infielder is hitting .313 over his last 10 games with a home run and five runs scored which continues to earn him regular playing time.
Trayce Thompson, Of (LAD); DraftKings - $2,400; FanDuel - $2,400; Yahoo - $12
With the Dodgers implied run total over five, it only serves to reason that we are going to want to target their offense against Kyle Freeland. Thompson provides us low-cost exposure, and a nice value piece of any stack, as the outfielder has the platoon advantage against Colorado’s left-handed starter. With 12 home runs and 40 RBI in 276 plate appearances, there is some pop in Thompson’s bat which he should put to use tonight.
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Player News
Cubs re-signed RHP Caleb Kilian to a minor league contract.
The 27-year-old hurler was released last weekend after being designated for assignment, but after exploring the open market he has decided that a reunion with the Cubs made the most sense. Kilian will continue to function as extra rotation depth at Triple-A Iowa for the time being.
Corey Seager went 2-for-3 with a homer and a walk to help the Rangers take down the Angels 5-3 on Thursday.
Seager had a bad first week and a half while dealing with a calf strain, but he’s collected 14 hits, including three homers, in his last eight games, putting him at .306/.368/.516 overall. Alas, it’s produced just six RBI, mostly because the Rangers are getting terrible production from the ninth and first spots in the order.
Kumar Rocker recorded his first MLB victory after pitching seven innings of three-run ball and striking out eight Thursday against the Angels.
Rocker walked none and surrendered just one double and four singles. Unfortunately, all five hits came in the first and fifth innings, resulting in three runs between them. Still, Rocker was terrific in needing just 78 pitches to get 21 outs. It’s the kind of performance that suggests he might offer mixed-league value at some point. We just wouldn’t trust him quite yet. His next start will come in Sacramento against the A’s.
Robert Garcia picked up his first save of the year with a perfect ninth against the Angels on Thursday.
Garcia got the call tonight with Luke Jackson having pitched the previous two days and retired the Angels on five pitches. Even though he’s the better reliever of the two, he’ll likely resume taking a backseat to Jackson on Friday.
Jack Kochanowicz gave up four runs and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings against the Rangers on Thursday.
The surprising and misguided decision to pick Kochanowicz over Reid Detmers for a rotation spot at the end of the spring isn’t working out for the Angels. The team might reverse course soon, but Detmers hasn’t been used as a long guy and isn’t stretched out to start right away. Kochanowicz is now 1-2 with a 6.20 ERA, but at least he gets the Pirates next.
Joc Pederson went 0-for-4 with a strikeout Thursday, dropping his average to .060.
It’s mostly been hard grounders and routine flies from Pederson thus far, but given that his bat speed is unchanged from last year, we don’t have big concerns here yet. That said, this might not be the weekend he turns it around, given that the Rangers are set to face the Dodgers.