Each day of the MLB season will bring us some major price differences among starting pitchers on all sites. These price discrepancies and the site's roster differences can alter the way we use pitchers on each site, as well as how the field of opponents will use them. Listed below are five of today's top pitchers, each with their salary listed as well as the cafe value that takes into account both the total salary cap on the site and points-per-dollar. We've also provided some betting info for you reference. The higher the cafe value, the better the points-per-dollar play is.
Jeff Samardzija
On FanDuel, the case can certainly be made for Carlos Martinez as the top option when we factor in price ($1,100 difference), but on DraftKings, you can get "Shark" for $3,600 less, which makes him a much more appealing option for me. Samardzija is coming off a disappointing start against a tough Nationals offense, but has still posted a very solid 2017 campaign thus far (2.99 SIERA, 10.50 K/9, 1.38 BB/9, 1.18 WHIP, 2.84 xFIP). Tonight he faces a Brewers offense that ranks 9th overall this season with a .329 wOBA against RHP, but have really struggled of late, striking out in 29.9% of their at bats, all while posting a poor .294 team wOBA. Shark owns the best SIERA, xFIP, and K rate among tonight's pitchers, and owns a very low BB rate, which increases his ability to pitch deep into games. If this game were being played in San Fransisco, he would likely draw more ownership, but I'm a big fan of his even in Milwaukee. This is a Brewers team that is still missing their best bat in Ryan Braun, and are striking out at an alarming rate over the last 14 days. Domingo Santana, Travis Shaw, Eric Thames, Manny Pina, Keon Broxton, and Jonathan Villar ALL own strikeout rates of at least 28% over that time span.
FanDuel
GPP Ownership: 20-25%
Cash Game Ownership: 25-30%
Verdict: Cash/GPP Option
DraftKings
GPP Ownership: 30-35%
Cash Game Ownership: 35-40%
Verdict: Cash/GPP Option
Yahoo!
GPP Ownership: 30-35%
Cash Game Ownership: 35-40%
Verdict: Cash/GPP Option
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