Let me start by congratulating those of you that successfully navigated the KBO mad dash during the final hour before lock yesterday. From trying to navigate lineups in Korean (some of which didn’t come out until less than an hour before first pitch) to making sure your MME lineup edits in time… Bravo! The DFS Army was like a well-oiled machine throughout and the community came together to make sure, amidst the chaos, everyone was cared for. It. Was. AWESOME!
Every new DFS sport brings an edge and the KBO is no different. The DFS Army saw a bunch of wins including this lineup that turned $376 into $3,550. Congratulations and well done, djprough!
Make sure you don’t miss out on the wins coming tonight and join our community today! Use promo code CLINK for an additional 20% off 👊
Today’s Matchups:
Im Joon-seop vs. Ricardo Pinto
Hanwha Eagles (+130, 3.5 ) vs. SK Wyverns (-180, 4.5)
Ricardo Pinto is making his KBO debut tonight after spending the last few years in the MLB and MiLB. He struggled mightily in 27 total major league games as he posted an 8.44 ERA, 1.94 WHIP and over 5 walks/9 innings. The majority of his work on the mound comes as a reliever. As pointed out below, these dreadful stats are not a death sentence for his KBO career. He’s a salary-saving option (only $4,000 on DK) up against a below-average offense with a low implied total, but even then I would suggest proceeding with caution. He will be popular tonight and that warrants being underweight in GPP.
Im Joon-seop is a KBO veteran that also spent much of last season pitching in relief. Like Pinto, he was slightly stretched out in the preseason but never threw more than 51 pitches in a game. His stats from 2019 don’t necessarily jump off the page. ERA was 4.20, WHIP was 1.70 and he walked more batters (28) than he struck out (26) in 49IP. At $4,000 on DK and $20 on FD he is worth a look if trying to cram in studs on offense but not someone I will be heavily invested in.
Seo Jun-won vs. William Cuevas
Lotte Giants (+115, 3.5) vs. KT Wiz (-165, 5.5)
Seo Jun-won is another reliever turned starter and his price tag ($5,100) reflects that. He is very young and showed some upside in his preseason starts but the overall stats won’t blow anyone away. If looking at a lower cost pick, I do trust him slightly more than Im Joon-seop.
William Cuevas spent 2018 with the Red Sox before making his KBO debut last season. Cuevas has decent stuff and had a nice year last year but the Lotte offense has looked good when you factor in opening day and preseason. At $7,300 on DK and $23 on FD you could do worse but I won’t be overweight.
Mike Wright vs. Ben Lively
NC Dinos (-170, 4.5) vs. Samsung Lions (+125, 3.5)
Mike Wright spent the last 5 seasons in the MLB with BAL and SEA. His 6.00 ERA and 1.56 WHIP weren’t spectacular but he definitely flashed strikeout upside with average SO/9 being >9 since 2017. He’s in a plus matchup against Samsung and is someone I like a considerable amount at his price ($7,700 on DK and $24 on FD). I like his sneaky upside.
Ben Lively is another name MLB fans might recognize. He pitched one inning last season in Kansas City, game up a 💣 and didn’t throw another pitch in the MLB. He eventually made his debut for Samsung towards the end of the 2019 season and pitched well. Lively struck out 58 batters in 57 innings, posted a sub-4 ERA and even had a complete game shutout. At $6,300 on DK he warrants a look. The Dinos offense is solid but Lively has a high ceiling at that price tag. Great GPP option.
Lee Young-ha vs. Song Eun-beom
Doosan Bears (-190, 5.5) vs. LG Twins (+135, 3.5)
Lee Young-ha had a nice year last year with Doosan. 17 wins, a 3.64 ERA and 1.28 WHIP are solid numbers. My issue with him is the strikeouts. At his price ($8,900, $26) his upside is limited. He makes for a solid cash option and has a good chance at securing the W but isn’t someone I would target heavily in GPP.
Song Eun-beom gets to step in for Tyler Wilson who was scratched for the Twins. Yes, this means yet another reliever making a start on this slate. He faces an above-average offense and has the lowest upside of any player at $4,000. I would be surprised if he saw more than 3 innings of work. He is definitely a full-fade candidate and you can feel confident unchecking him if you are using our DraftKings domination station to optimize your lineups. Play at your own risk.
Eric Jokisch vs. Aaron Brooks
Kiwoom Heroes (-190, 4.5) vs. Kia Tigers (+135, 3.5)
Eric Jokisch opens up 2020 hoping to keep momentum rolling from last season. He was very solid across the board, posting a 3.13 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 19 QS. Combine that with a plus matchup against the Tigers and he makes for a great play in all formats. He will come in at high ownership. If looking for a reason to go underweight, the Tigers had the best batting average in the league vs. LHP last season and were second against southpaws of .761. Don’t rule out the Tigers offense doing some damage. I’ll likely run a few stacks against Jokisch – definitely something worth considering if you are building multiple lineups.
Aaron Brooks makes his KBO debut after appearing in 29 MLB games last season (OAK, BAL). His career 6.49 ERA and WHIP over 1.50 are indicative of his mediocre (at best) stats during his MLB tenure. At his price ($7,200, $21) he isn’t your worst option – especially on Fanduel – but isn’t someone that I am very high on. Limited ceiling, bad matchup.
Making sense of League Transitions
We explored this yesterday but it’s important to note with a few guys making their KBO debut again tonight. It is statistically clear that many players transitioning from the MLB to KBO perform better. But what does that actually mean when you are trying to project a performance for your DFS lineups tonight? For a better idea of how to use Mike Wright, Aaron Brooks and Ricardo Pinto in your DraftKings or Fanduel lineups, let’s look at how a few other pitchers have recently transitioned.
Raul Alcantara made his KBO debut last season after playing the 2016/2017 seasons in the MLB. 
Warwick Saupold (pitched extremely well last night) made his KBO debut last season after playing in the MLB for the previous 3 seasons.
Tyler Wilson made his KBO debut in 2018 after playing 3 years in the MLB.
The list goes on and trends remain similar. Lower ERAs, lower WHIPs and more often than not higher SO/9. Is it possible that some of the three new opening day starters flop? Absolutely. And while I’m not in love with any of those three tonight, chances are they will be on the safer side to roster.
Clinks Thinks
Trying to nail down pitching tonight is going to be interesting as there are a lot of intriguing variables at play – first game jitters, empty ballparks and new rosters to name a few. As you begin building your lineups, keep these things in mind:
- Pay attention to names
- There are a lot of players with similar (or even the same) last names. Look things over multiple times and save yourself the heartache of rostering the wrong player.
- Wins and IP are going to matter more
- Hitters don’t strike out as often in the KBO. Be sure you are targeting pitchers who you think will have run support and can pitch deep into a game.
- Do your best to stay up to date with lineups through first pitch.
- It sounds like we may not get final lineups submitted until 1-2 hours before game time. This makes for a late night but will help ensure no dead spots in your lineups.
- Give yourself the best chance to win
- Use all of the tools at your disposal to conduct your research and build lineups. Utilize the MyKBOStats database, follow the KBO reddit and join the amazing DFS Army Community – slack chat with coaches, research articles/data, cheat sheets and a DraftKings lineup optimizer to give you an edge over the competition.
Personally, my favorites are Ben Lively, Mike Wright (GPP) and Eric Jokisch. Song Eun-beom will be a fade for me.
Remember – lock is not until 4:30am CDT. Get that pot of ☕️ brewing and enjoy more baseball being played. Good luck tonight!
