One way to cure the Monday blues is with money. One way to get some more of that is to win one of Draftstreet‘s daily fantasy baseball leagues. And, if you’d like some help in putting your best team on the field, consider these cheap pitchers.
Best Bet
Rick Porcello – $14,229
This is a bit more than what a “value pitcher” might generally cost, but on a day with so few games on the schedule, he is the best pitcher available toward the bottom of the cost chart. Porcello is enjoying the best year of his career, and has put up very good numbers. In six starts, he has five wins, a 3.49 ERA, and 1.06 WHIP. He has won each of his last four outings, three of which were quality starts. Tonight, he faces the Orioles, who have had a trouble putting runs on the board. Baltimore has scored only 24 runs in the last week, which ties them for the fewest in the American League over that span.
Double Down
Tom Koehler – $13,057
Jose Fernandez is the ace of the Marlins staff, but it turns out that Koehler isn’t far behind. His 1.99 ERA ranks him fourth in the National League, and is better than Fernandez’s by nearly half a run. His 0.99 WHIP is the N.L.’s seventh-best and only 0.04 points behind Fernandez. The only category Koehler lacks a bit is in strikeouts, with 29 over 45.1 innings. But his results have still been great. In seven starts this season, he has given up more than two runs just once. And that game marked the only one in which he failed to go at least six innings. He did not allow a run in his last two starts, during which he went 15 innings and gave up just five hits. Even with a potentially tough matchup against the Dodgers, it’s hard to bench him now.
Roll the Dice
Cesar Ramos – $10,824
The Rays haven’t had much luck in games in which Ramos has appeared, but that’s hardly his fault. For the most part, Ramos has been quite good in his 10 appearances, even though the Rays are just 2-8 in those games. Still, on the season he is 1-1 with a 2.96 ERA and 1.24 WHIP. He has pitched both in the rotation and from the bullpen, and, really, he’s had just one bad outing. Even his last start on Wednesday against Baltimore, he gave up two solo home runs and that was all he allowed over 5.2 innings. He and his Rays will now face the Mariners, who have not hit well in this last week. Their .223 average is the worst in the A.L. over that time.
