Spotlight Pitchers: Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks for DraftKings & FanDuel with Ian Anderson | Today, 4/10/21

MLB’s 2021 regular season is in full swing, and the Awesemo.com Spotlight Pitchers article is here to help guide the slate of pitching decisions for both DraftKings and FanDuel. Each day will feature breakdowns of starting pitchers using Awesemo’s MLB Top Pitchers Tool by identifying some of the best daily fantasy baseball starting pitching plays on each slate based on Awesemo’s top value and top-scoring projections for the slate, relative to their projected ownership.

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Top Daily Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitchers | April 10

Julio Urias: LAD vs. WAS — DraftKings $9,500, FanDuel $10,000

It wasn’t long ago that Julio Urias was under a tight leash as the up-and-coming starting pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, typically going no more than five innings and granted little wiggle room for error. Fast-forward to 2021: fresh off a World Series Championship save in Game 6, Urias posted seven innings, earning just one run on three hits (in Coors Field, mind you) while searing six batters off the plate by strikeout en route to 27.4 DraftKings Fantasy Points and 46 FanDuel Fantasy Points. Through the pandemic season, Urias hung up a 3.27 ERA, .218 average-against, 20.1% strikeout rate, and 1.15 WHIP. Welcoming the Washington Nationals to Dodgers Stadium for the second of a three-game series, Urias has the potential to be among the top pitchers for Saturday’s six-game main slate.

Awesemo’s fantasy point projections of 15.41 DraftKings Fantasy Points and 27.45 FanDuel Fantasy Points for Urias make him among the top-four projected pitchers for Saturday’s main slate. Awesemo’s ownership projections also forecast Urias for field ownership of 25% on DraftKings and 12.6% on FanDuel, right in line with his projection ranks as the third and fourth-most owned on each respective site. With a 1.6 projected value score on DraftKings and a 2.7 value score on FanDuel, Urias’s steep salary cost becomes glaring by comparison to his point projections and ownership.

Facing a Nationals team with an early projection of seven right-handed hitters and two lefties, Urias has some turbulent tides to navigate from the mound today. Last season the Nationals proved lethal against left-handed pitchers with just an 18.5% strikeout rate, 121 wRC+, and .357 wOBA. Yet looking at his 2020 season against opposite-handed hitters, Urias posted a moderate 1.29 WHIP while striking out 18.5% and stranding 81.6% on-base and just an 0.67 HR/9. While the matchup isn’t necessarily the best on paper, Urias appears to be going the distance and makes for a spend-up pivot option worth considering on Saturday’s main slate.

Awesemo’s FanDuel Grades: Points NA, Value NA

Awesemo’s DraftKings Grades: Points NA, Value NA

[DUSTINGRAPHICAD]

Ian Anderson: ATL vs. PHI — DraftKings $8,900, FanDuel $8,600

The Atlanta Braves blazed back onto the scene with an 8-1 victory over Zack Wheeler (as I walked back a few words from yesterday) and assign young starting pitcher Ian Anderson to the mound for Saturday to carry the momentum. In his 2021 debut against the Philadelphia Phillies, Anderson notched a seven-strikeout, four-hit performance earning one run in five innings pitched along with 19.7 DraftKings Fantasy points and 33 FanDuel Fantasy Points. Anderson’s rookie year with the Braves in 2020 was an impressive one as well, achieving a 1.95 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, .172 average-against, and 2.54 FIP. Looking to repeat or best his performance from last Friday, Anderson’s fair price point and projections make him one of the best pitching options for Saturday’s main slate.

Awesemo Top Pitchers Tool forecasts Anderson as the top pitching option on both sites, projected as a 38.5% top-two pitcher on DraftKings and 15.7% top pitcher on FanDuel, coinciding with Awesemo’s fantasy point projections of 18.82 DraftKings Fantasy Points and 32.58 FanDuel Fantasy Points. Given his price point and point projections, Anderson projects as a 26.3% top-two pitching value on DraftKings and an 8.6% top value among pitchers on FanDuel. Awesemo’s ownership projections of 36.1% on DraftKings and 22.5% FanDuel signify Anderson’s popularity on Saturday, as he remains among the two highest owned pitchers on both sites for the main slate.

Squaring off once again with a familiar Phillies foe, Philadelphia has an early projection of six right-handed hitters and three lefties. Regardless of the seesaw of splits he’s facing, Anderson has managed both sides of the plate with command over his short stint in the Majors. Striking out 24.1% of righties and 36.7% of left-handed hitters in his seven career starts, Anderson also touts a .174 average-against when facing lefties and .186 average-against opposing right-handed hitters. The Phillies have posted a moderate 22.2% strikeout rate, .328 wOBA, .164 ISO, .306 BABIP, and 104 wRC+ against right-handed pitchers through last season. All things considered, Anderson’s combination of excellent fantasy point projections, mid-range value, and palatable ownership make him one of Saturday’s better options to take the mound.

Awesemo’s FanDuel Grades: Points B, Value B

Awesemo’s DraftKings Grades: Points B, Value B


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Chris Paddack: SD at TEX — DraftKings $9,200, FanDuel $6,900

Chris Paddack returns to the mound on Saturday to face the Texas Rangers, looking to rebound from his loss against Arizona a week ago. Posting a modest 1.22 WHIP, 4.73 ERA, .262 average-against, and 23.7% strikeout rate last season, Paddack displayed areas of promise as well as those for improvement. Facing a lefty-loaded Ranger roster on Saturday, Paddack draws a more challenging assignment with how they’ve been hitting as of late while coming in entirely too cheap on FanDuel.

Awesemo Top Pitchers Tool projects Paddack for 34.4% chance of being a top-two pitcher on DraftKings, while a 14.4% chance of top-overall pitcher on FanDuel. Awesemo’s fantasy point projections for Paddack also appear favorable, with 17.34 DraftKings Fantasy Points and 30.48 FanDuel Fantasy Points projected for him on Saturday’s main slate. With an insanely cheap price tag, Paddack comes in as a 16% top value pitcher on FanDuel, where his more moderate cost on DraftKings finds him as a 20.2% top-two value pitcher. With Awesemo’s ownership projections of 35.6% on DraftKings and 31.6% on FanDuel, Paddack is in store for some of the highest volumes of ownership among the field across starting pitchers on both sites.

Taking on a Rangers roster projecting for a mixed bag batting order of four righties, four lefties, and one switch-hitter, Paddack will have to be every bit as even-keeled with his command at Globe Life Park, where thankfully, the humidity is down today (around 29%) making a bit less potential for the balls to exit the park. Despite the Rangers’ hot start against right-handed pitchers to start the season (.332 wOBA, .341 BABIP, 114 wRC+ in 153 plate appearances vs. RHP), glancing back to their 2020, we’re reminded of their .263 BABIP, 72 wRC+, and 25.3% strikeout rate against righty pitchers, paving some hope for Paddack’s Saturday start. Considering his standout point projections and chances at being the top pitcher on the slate, Paddack is a great option on both sites while at an extremely affordable salary cost on FanDuel.

Awesemo’s FanDuel Grades: Points B, Value A

Awesemo’s DraftKings Grades: Points B, Value C

Check out more of our experts’ Daily Fantasy Baseball DraftKings picks.


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Once a man of 12-team teaser parlays and an abundance of season-long fantasy leagues, Chris "TopherSquints" Giordani gradually honed his fascination for sports and plus-money wagers toward Daily Fantasy Sports. A homegrown Awesemo student from the early stages of the site's inception, he became infatuated with the contrarian DFS mindset and eventually combined his passion for writing with Daily Fantasy at the Sports Gambling Podcast's website blog. Currently, Chris Giordani resides in Orange County, California, enjoys binging on stand-up comedy, and long strolls through the DraftKings lobby.

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