Welcome to OwnersBox MLB, RotoBallers! If you haven't had a chance to check out the weekly fantasy offerings over at OwnersBox, now is the time!
OwnersBox is a new weekly fantasy sports platform that offers plenty of game setups to fulfill your desire to draft throughout the season. Over at OwnersBox, you can participate in snake drafts and for the first time ever you can select tournament-style salary cap contests.
We're running an awesome freeroll contest this week with a $500 prize pool so be sure to check that out below - it's completely free to enter with code BALLER5!
In this article, I will be providing you with my weekly fantasy baseball lineup picks on OwnersBox for this contest which runs for one week (Friday June 25th through Thursday July 1st). If you sign up for OwnersBox this week, you'll get up to a $500 deposit match in OwnersBucks, which can be redeemed to play in real money games AND a free season of RotoBaller Premium Access.
Friday Freeroll Contest!
Be sure to join our freeroll on OwnersBox - the contest is completely free to enter with code BALLER5, and there's a $500 cash guaranteed prize pool. The winner also gets a free year of RotoBaller's Premium Pass ($350 value)! All new users who make a deposit get up to a $500 deposit match bonus and a free premium pass. Whoa!
You can enter up until Friday June 25th at 7 pm ET, and the week-long contest runs from June 25 through July 1.
OwnersBox is hooking up RotoBaller readers to celebrate the launch of their new salary-cap style contests, so be sure to take advantage of these promo offers!
OwnersBox Pitchers
On OwnersBox, you select two Pitchers, and need three games from these two pitchers. My typical strategy is to find my favorite "affordable" two-start pitcher, and pair him with my top one-start pitcher. You don't necessarily need to worry about going over the three games, aka two x two-start pitchers, because a two-start mid-tier guy will cost the same as a one-start Jacob deGrom. So even though having the lowest score dropped from those four starts seems enticing, what are the odds one of those mid-tier starts is going to match a one-start ace? Very low.
Chris Paddack, SDP ($24,000) - vs ARI, at CIN
If there is one solid bet in baseball right now, its pitching against the poor Diamondbacks. At an affordable $12,000 per game, Chris Paddack is a great fit for the two-start pitcher you need to anchor your pitching this week. Arizona owns a 61 wRC+ and 26.8 K% over the L14 against RHP, while the Reds are cooling off quickly themselves. Paddack actually just faced the Redlegs in his last outing, and struck out 11 batters in just five innings. Across 17 innings in June this year, he boasts a 1.60 xFIP, 37.7 K%, and just a 2.9 BB%. I like the floor, I like the ceiling, I like the price.
Yu Darvish, SDP ($17,800) - vs ARI
I don't think this one needs much explanation, as we continue our trend of picking on the DBacks. Darvish has averaged 54.6 FP on OB, and owns a 2.18 ERA and 33.9 K% at PetCo Park this season. Once again, before you look at pairing a cheap two-start pitcher with Paddack in order to get the Best Ball flexibility.... what is the actual reasonable probability one of those two starts bests Yu Darvish against the DBacks?
OwnersBox Infielders
The Infield is my favorite portion on Ownersbox. You only need 28 games from the five players. Simple math tells you if you average six games per infielder, you are already at two lowest scores dropped from the lot. That way you can utilize five-game studs as long as you pair them eventually with a seven-game player also to maintain that 30 total games. The Outfield is much more difficult to take advantage this way, so don't waste the opportunity with your infielders!
Cavan Biggio, TOR ($14,400) - 6 Games
Over the last 14 days, Baltimore pitchers are giving up a 5.54 xFIP to LHH. Guess who gets to play a three game series against BAL at home this week? Biggio and the Blue Jays. Following that series, the Jays then host the Mariners for a three game series. Sahlen Field in Buffalo is a great hitters park, and this price tag is a fantastic value for a hitter with a .316 ISO over the last two weeks.
Yordan Alvarez, HOU ($23,800) - 7 Games
No team is hotter than the Astros right now, and to be able to get their cleanup hitter for seven games at an affordable price is something to celebrate. The Stros have a juicy schedule this week as they get three games in Detroit, three games at home versus Baltimore who they just whooped, and then one game at Cleveland. Remember that tidbit about Baltimore pitchers and opposing left handed hitters? Yordan is about as safe as it gets as he is destroying LH and RH pitching, and both at home and on the road this season. *Abraham Toro is another Astros hitter I am grabbing this week as he continues to fill in for Alex Bregman and Aledmys Diaz and is only $16,100 this week.
OwnersBox Outfielders
As I mentioned previously, filling the three Outfield slots is more difficult than the five Infielders on OwnersBox. You need 17 games from the three hitters, so that means you mostly want to stay away from five-game hitters. I try to get at least one seven-gamer if possible and aim for 19 total games for two lowest score drops. For this reason, I typically spend more per hitter at this position as with fewer low-score drops, you want the high-floor guys.
Trent Grisham, SDP ($22,800) - 6 Games
Cleary I love the Padres this week. Not only has their hitting been atrocious, but their pitching has been equally as bad. I like Grisham this week because his recent lack of production has suppressed the price tag (relative to say Machado or Tatis). But if there's one thing that can turn your month at the plate around REAL quick - its a dose of Arizona pitching followed by a dose of Great American Ballpark.
Kyle Schwarber, WAS and Bryan Reynolds, PIT ($23,800) - 7 Games Each
Like I said, being able to get seven games from your OF is big, and these two guys are reasonably priced ways to get there. Schwarber has been a man possessed lately, with a .638(!!!) ISO over the last two weeks, while Bryan Reynolds and the Pirates get a three game series in Coors Field.