Fantasy Spin: Scherzer In A Class (And Salary Bracket) By Himself

We’re back after a rare day off. The experiment of making DFS baseball picks on a basketball site will continue through the summer. Thursday is getaway day in MLB, with four very early games and one (Brewers at Phillies) “off the board” at the unusual time of 6:35 Eastern.

DraftKings contests closing at 12:10 ET features some terrific pitchers, three of whom are making a welcome return from injury. Marlins’ ace Jose Fernandez $9900 and Rays’ lefty Matt Moore $7600 are back from Tommy John surgery and might be on pitch counts. Matt Cain $7300 has also missed a year with a strained flexor tendon but did not opt for surgery, making him a bit riskier proposition to remain healthy.

Corey Kluber $10900 and Francisco Liriano $9200 are the safest bets to go deep into their ballgames and emerge with a W. The duel between Jake Arrieta $10600 and Jacob DeGrom $10300 should be a dandy, it’s just difficult to predict a winner. For hitters, it’s either the Pirates against Detroit lefty Kyle Ryan $4200 or taking a chance that one of the returnees (Cain?) may not be 100% recovered.

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The 7-game evening slate begins at 7:05 and the critical decision involves the great Max Scherzer $14,500 — can you afford him? Can you afford to leave him out? It’s possible that Manny Banuelos $4600 will rise to the challenge against Mad Max and pitch a gem in his first career start, or rookie Matt Boyd $4400 might beat the Red Sox, but there aren’t many other inexpensive SP to couple with the Nationals’ ace. Picking two of Tyson Ross $9700, Scott Kazmir $9200 and Yovani Gallardo $7700 is more affordable, although none of them is likely to match Scherzer in points.

One way or another, we have to spend on pitching and be frugal on offense. I like the Jays’ hitters at home vs. Wade Miley $6900 and will be stacking their platoon specialists as well as stars like C Russell Martin $3900. The Cardinals are giving a spot start to lefty Tim Cooney $4400, so Derek Norris $3400 and other Padres who bat RH are playable.

Paul Goldschmidt $6000 towers above other 1B — assuming you can afford him. Prince Fielder $4500 and Edwin Encarnacion $4400 are easier on the budget. I very seldom recommend going cheap at this position.

At 2B, Brian Dozier $4900 is worth the money and Jimmy Paredes $4100 is my second choice, but 2B/3B Jedd Gyorko $2900 is back in the Show and has a good matchup.

While 3B Josh Donaldson $5200 should score big points, teammate Danny Valencia $3400 is always playable vs. southpaws at third or in the outfield. Using both of them is possible and not the worst idea. Super-prospect 3B/SS Miguel Sano $3900 makes his debut tonight for the Twins and the 22-year-old has massive power.

At SS, Troy Tulowitzki $5400 stands out if money is no object. Xander Bogaerts $4300 is decent value and Clint Barmes $2500 the bargain-basement choice.

In the outfield, Bryce Harper $5800 might be worth it against a raw rookie, Jose Bautista $5100 makes the Short List and two Padres are attractively priced — Justin Upton $4200 and Matt Kemp $4100 are both capable of big games. Unfortunately, my resources are allocated elsewhere. Chris Colabello $3300 and Valencia are both great against LHP. Healthy again and happy to be back with the Rangers, Josh Hamilton $3600 might go on a tear at a sweet price.

Pos	Premium	Bargain
SP1	Max Scherzer $14,500	Yovani Gallardo $7700
SP2	Scott Kazmir $9200	Manny Banuelos $4600
C	Russell Martin $3900	Derek Norris $3400
1B	Paul Goldschmidt $6000	Edwin Encarnacion $4400
2B	Brian Dozier $4900	Jedd Gyorko $2900
3B	Josh Donaldson $4800	Miguel Sano $3900
SS	Troy Tulowitzki $5400	Xander Bogaerts $4300
OF1	Jose Bautista $51200	Josh Hamilton $3600
OF2	Bryce Harper $5800	Chris Colabello $3300
OF3	Justin Upton $4200	Danny Valencia $3400

The Fantasy Spin features DFS advice every day of the NBA season and we’re turning out attention to baseball for the summer. Follow Kent Williams @SheridanFantasy for updates.