Congratulations to Nickvanderlip. This individual was the DraftKings DFS MLB GPP winner of the MLB $200K Knuckleball contest on May 7, 2018. Nickvanderlip won this grand prize pool and its $20000 prize when the lineup scored 243.35 points.
Please note that this isn’t a projections forecasting. This series was created to analyze what may have gone through the minds of those who created the teams. Maybe you’ll pick up on trends that will assist you when constructing your future submissions. What kind of pivots are others making on their teams. What are their strategies? Are there any reoccurring trends?
Let’s analyze the $20000 lineup.
DFS MLB DraftKings $20K Winning Lineup: Nickvanderlip, 5-7-18
This roster used $48200 of its $50000 salary. This slate featured seven matchups.
May 7 featured an MLB slate full of offensive fireworks. Fringe top-50 teams were normally what one would see at the top of a MLB DFS leaderboard. Nickvanderlip needed something extra special on this night to catapult into $20K worth of winnings.
What made the Nickvanderlip roster stand out was that he took hitters from five different games. Three mini-stacks with two solo pieces. His team was centered around hitters on teams that scored 16, 14, 11, 7, and…zero runs. It’s interesting to note that he took a hitter that was facing one of his opposing pitchers.
It wasn’t necessary to diversify among so many teams. This was not a typical winning lineup…but it worked.
SP: Michael Fulmer ($8000, 15.2%)
SP: Zach Eflin ($7300, 6.0%)
Combined Salary: $15300
Points: 45.35
Eflin (32.8) and Fernando Romero (31.3) were possibly the only two worthwhile pitchers on this slate. Pitchers were either getting lit up or not striking out enough batters to meet their costs. Fulmer appeared like a decent-enough option as he was facing a high-strikeout team. Of course, it’s always risky relying on pitchers in games at hitter’s stadiums such as Texas.
C: Wilson Contreras ($4100, 8.2%)
3B: Kris Bryant ($5300, 12.3%)
Combined Salary: $9100
Points: 35
A perfect example for why DFS MLB gamers should exercise sabermetrics. Just looking at gamelogs and standings showcased a 1.09 ERA pitcher facing an offense on a five-game losing streak. A deeper look indicated a pitcher who was ready to implode. Jarlin Garcia entered the game with a .151 BABIP and 4.73 SIERA. The Cubs are built to annihilate left-handed pitchers, especially those with limited strikeout potential.
It’s worth noting that Ian Happ, who was not included in this mini-stack, scored 34 fantasy points with 2.7-percent ownership. It didn’t mean much considering Nickvanderlip’s outfielders scored 41, 38, and 23 points. Happ had a great matchup but wasn’t highly owned because of his batting order position (No. 8) and inconsistent performances.
1B: Adrian Gonzalez ($3500, 9.1%)
OF: Jay Bruce ($3800, 18.8%)
Combined Salary: $7300
Points: 56
A $4600 pitcher due for BABIP and SIERA corrections? Nickvanderlip chose some righty-smashing LHBs to attack Homer Bailey, whose 2017 included a 5.73 xFIP and 1.71 WHIP. Nothing surprising here.
2B: Cesar Hernandez ($4100, 6.7%)
OF: Odubel Herrera ($3700, 8.2%)
Combined Salary: $7800
Points: 63
Not the sexiest picks. Most DFS MLB gamers were focused on attacking Eflin, especially with Giants LHBs. What happened was that Jeff Samardzija’s struggles continued. In his four appearances at Citizens Bank Park, he is 0-2 with a 15.43 ERA. The Giants may have had some wear-and-tear from their East Coast trip.
Keep an eye on pitchers coming off the disabled lists. They’re often not up to speed. It may take them a few games before they’re back to where they left off. Theyr’e candidates to stack against.
SS: Brandon Crawford ($3200, 22.0%)
Points: 3
The Giants had won five consecutive games. That included a three-game sweep of a streaking Atlanta Braves team that had won seven of eight games. Among the hottest players included Crawford, whose previous four games included 12-24-19-8.
His matchup against Zach Eflin looked appealing. Eflin is what many would call a Quad-A pitcher. His career includes massive split differences vs LHB: 5.49 xFIP, 1.42WHIP and a 2.66 HR/9. At $3200, nearly one-quarter of the DFS lineups featured Crawford at shortstop.
OF: George Springer ($5200, 14.0%)
Points: 41
A late April / early May slump turned some players away from the explosive Astros bats. Springer was one hitter whose strong 2017 has carried over into 2018. His 2018 has featured success from both sides of the plates, although his 187wRC+ and .400 ISO vs LHP makes him a lock against suspect LHP. Recent injuries had forced Oakland to promote Brett Anderson into the starting rotation. Springer responded with a team-record six-hit performance.
CLOSING NOTE
Anyone who’d like to discuss winning teams (whether it’s their own or someone else’s) can email me. Below are the most recent installments of the series. Visit my profile to check out the full selection. I started creating these in late April. I’ll do as many of them as time allows.
Previous MLB GPP Winners Study Guides:
Joshua Huffman was born and collegiately edumacated in Middle Tennessee. That said, Huffman spent 13-plus years with the type of Northern Wisconsinites and Yoopers who turn Nashville bars into alcohol wastelands whenever NFC North teams travel to play the Tennessee Titans. This makes him the NoBro of SoBros. He has published content for Yahoo! Sports (via Contributor Network) and Titan Sized, among other venues. At SoBros, he’ll provide Daily Fantasy Sports suggestions and broad sports coverage. Check out more of his musings at his blog, Millennial on Maple Street.
