Daily Fantasy Baseball 2015: MLB DraftKings Studs and Duds for June 1

As the calendar turns to June, many seasonal fantasy baseball managers fear doom for their struggling squads. The impatient bunch ready to throw in the towel can now devote more attention to daily leagues.

Or, of course, do both. Daily research will only help seasonal players stay on the ball and better understand matchups and lineup construction. Regular DFS participants know who crushes lefties and who can't hit a southpaw if his life depended on it.

Three veritable aces pitch on Monday, but the third is not yet universally considered among the game's premier studs. Oh well, better for the rest of us. 

Pitching Studs

Gerrit Cole, Pittsburgh Pirates ($9,900) at SF

Justin K. Aller/Getty Images

On a Monday where Clayton Kershaw and Felix Hernandez take the mound, Gerrit Cole is the most valuable ace.

Hernandez, who costs $11,600, must outduel fellow stud Michael Pineda. Although Kershaw is one starter not to completely ignore inside Coors Field, he's not the safest bet at only a slightly discounted $10,700. Besides, Gerrit Cole has a better fielding independent pitching (FIP) than both Cy Young Award winners:

Player	FIP	DK Price
Gerrit Cole	2.53	$9,900
Clayton Kershaw	2.59	$10,700
Jacob deGrom	3.06	$9,700
Felix Hernandez	3.19	$11,600
Garrett Richards	3.59	$9,500

Cole gets a tough matchup in the underrated San Francisco Giants, a top-10 offense against righties, but the blossoming ace boasts a 2.11 ERA alongside 9.84 strikeouts and 1.97 walks per nine innings. He's a front-line stud not yet priced like one.

Jason Hammel, Chicago Cubs ($7,800) at MIA

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Speaking of bargains, Jason Hammel, whose 2.98 FIP ranks No. 14 among qualified starters between Matt Harvey and Chris Sale, costs $7,800. 

The 32-year-old has issued only seven walks through nine starts, adding 58 strikeouts during those 60.1 innings. During the last eight games, the Miami Marlins have mustered 27 runs, and the Chicago Cubs should offer plenty of run support against Jose Urena. It helps that Hammel has gone at least seven innings in each of his last four outings.

Other SP Plays: Andrew Cashner vs. NYM ($8,000); Clay Buchholz vs. MIN ($7,000)

Pitching Duds

Jacob deGrom, New York Mets ($9,700) at SD

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No, the "dud" header was not a typo. As taboo as it seems to reject a top option pitching at Petco Park, Jacob deGrom has bloated his price with Citi Field success.

Away from home, the young righty possesses a 4.21 career ERA. He has surrendered 12 runs and six homers during 16 road innings this season. If this amounts to more than a small sample size, his current 2.71 ERA will fade after making seven of 10 starts at Citi Field.

His opponent, Andrew Cashner, also wields extreme home-road splits that bode well for him against a sluggish New York Mets lineup. While deGrom won't get bombed by the San Diego Padres, he's not as appetizing an ace as Cole.

Garrett Richards, Los Angeles ($9,500) vs. TB

Simply put, Garrett Richards needs to improve his 3.59 FIP, 7.44 K/9 and 3.63 BB/9 rates before earning consideration at $9,500. 

Hitting Studs

Obvious Stack of the Day: Los Angeles Dodgers at COL (RHP Kyle Kendrick)

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Gamers opposed to conformity will have no interest in playing one of the most obvious stacks ever. The Los Angeles Dodgers, the best offense against right-handed pitching, gets righty Kyle Kendrick, who owns a 6.38 ERA. Oh yeah, and it's happening at Coors Field.

DraftKings hiked their cost, but Adrian Gonzalez ($5,000) and Joc Pederson ($4,900) will still draw mass appeal. The duo have already belted nine and 12 homers, respectively, against righties, and they get an awful one inside a power-conducive park.

Keep a close eye on Los Angeles' lineup card. If starting, Andre Ethier ($3,800) and Alex Guerrero ($3,700) are well worth the money. Although his $4,300 price tag reflects the circumstances, Justin Turner (.923 OPS against righties) is still a justifiable play. The most expensive second baseman at $5,000, Howie Kendrick is one Dodger DraftKings stripped of any value.

Cheaper Stack of the Day: Arizona Diamondbacks vs. ATL (LHP Alex Wood)

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A more interesting stack, or a cheaper choice or two to augment all the expensive Dodgers, the Arizona Diamondbacks sport a .328 weighted on-base average (wOBA) against lefties, a top-10 rate entering the new week.

Paul Goldschmidt destroys everyone, but he's certainly not cheap ($5,300) against southpaw Alex Wood. Gonzalez is probably the better bet on this particular evening. Arizona also offers a high-level, mid-tier and bargain-bin option against Wood, who registers a .788 OPS versus righties:

Player	PA	AVG	OBP	SLG	HR
OF A.J. Pollock	46	.390	.457	.610	1
OF Mark Trumbo	42	.316	.381	.711	4
SS Nick Ahmed	35	.379	.486	.586	2

Mark Trumbo, a notorious lefty-killer, is the most intriguing choice to take Wood deep. For those using a premier ace and/or the Dodgers' premier bats, Nick Ahmed is a great way to save cash.

2B Kolten Wong ($3,900) and SS Jhonny Peralta ($4,200), St. Louis Cardinals (vs. MIL)

Despite hitting .316/.375/.500 against righties this season, Kolten Wong is not priced as an upper-echelon second baseman. He's more than reasonably priced against Mike Fiers, who enters Monday with a 4.53 ERA and MLB-high 41.5 hard-hit percentage.

While batter vs. pitcher data is rarely a useful tool, Jhonny Peralta was originally touted because of his career 17-for-37 with two doubles and two homers against Matt Garza. Then the Milwaukee Brewers' scheduled starter pitched from the bullpen on Sunday, a sign from above not to use small sample sizes.

Either way, the shortstop is raking with a .310/.373/.519 slash line and eight long balls.

POS	Player	OPP	DK Price	Note
C	Wilin Rosario	LAD (Kershaw)	$3,100	Risky against Kershaw, but Rosario destroys lefties at home.
1B	Chris Davis	@ HOU (Oberholtzer)	$3,600	Davis has crushed lefties this year and hit four homers last week.
2B/3B	Logan Forsythe	@LAA (Richards)	$2,700	Despite hitting .291/.369/.465, Forsythe remains dirt cheap.
OF	Bryce Harper	@ WAS (Dickey)	$4,800	Harper has a 1.193 OPS and costs below $5,000.

Hitting Duds

C/OF Evan Gattis, Houston Astros ($4,900) vs. BAL

Bob Levey/Getty Images

Evan Gattis is, oddly, far and away the most expensive catcher despite his .261 on-base percentage. Although he has clubbed eight of his 11 home runs against right-handed pitchers, he has displayed slightly superior power versus southpaws over his boom-or-bust career.

He homered against Ubaldo Jimenez on May 27, so DraftKings is daring gamers to bet on a repeat during Monday's rematch. An all-or-nothing slugger, a dinger is the only way Gattis pays off while laughably costing more than Josh Donaldson, Nelson Cruz and Bryce Harper. 

3B/OF Josh Harrison, Pittsburgh Pirates ($4,100) at SF

Josh Harrison and regression have become well acquainted this season. Following a breakout season drenched in red flags—particularly a .353 batting average on balls in play (BABIP)—he's hitting a mediocre .270/.303/.410 with four home runs and six walks.

Although he has fared slightly better against righties, he's an undisciplined batter with middling power regardless of the opponent. That makes a suboptimal daily option, even against soft-tossing Ryan Vogelsong. Anyone intrigued by Harrison's matchup should instead plug in Pedro Alvarez at the same price.

Advanced stats are courtesy of FanGraphs.

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