KBO DFS: Tuesday Cheat Sheet

It's good to be back on the KBO beat after a one-week vacation--thanks to Juan Carlos Blanco for handling the cheat sheet in my absence--though it appears that I'm dropping back in during a turbulent time. COVID-19 cases have been rising in Korea for some time, although the Korean government has thus far held off on measures that would force the KBO to pause. That could change now, however, as Eagles' minor leaguer Jung Rak Shin tested positive for the virus Monday. As of writing, there's been no indication that the league will cancel anything beyond the Eagles' Futures League games, though a positive test for anyone on the Eagles' active roster would automatically trigger a three-week shutdown. The league continues for now, however, as do KBO daily-fantasy contests on DraftKings, and this column will continue as long as those things remain true. Assuming Tuesday's contests do indeed go forward as planned, we should be in for an interesting slate that includes quite a few pitchers who are worthy of consideration.

Pitchers

Raul Alcantara ($10,600) was making a strong case as the best pitcher in the league during an 11-start stretch from mid-June through early August, posting a 1.82 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP. He's been considerably more pedestrian in his last three outings, however, posting a 5.00 ERA while striking out just 12 batters in 18 innings. He hasn't been poor enough that we should worry too much, however, and his overall body of work, which includes a 3.04 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP, is still rather impressive. Even if he's not at his best, he should still have more than enough to shut down the league-worst Eagles lineup.

Like Alcantara, Aaron Brooks ($9,000) has followed up an extended run of excellent form with three poor starts. After posting a 2.18 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP over a 13-start stretch, he owns a 5.89 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP over his last three outings, though his 20:2 K:BB in those games suggested that not much had gone wrong. It's possible his struggles were related to back soreness, an issue that caused him to be briefly removed from the Tigers' roster. While that does bring with it a bit of risk, he's evidently good to go now, and it's not hard to place plenty of faith in a pitcher who owns a season-long 2.85 ERA, especially against the eighth-ranked Lions lineup.

Se Woong Park ($7,200) is on the opposite trajectory from the aforementioned pair. The 24-year-old righty owned a poor 6.08 ERA and a 1.65 ERA through his first eight starts of the season but has turned things around since then. He's allowed more than three runs in just one of his last 10 starts, posting a 3.09 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP over that stretch. Zooming in on just his last three outings, he owns a 1.04 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. He doesn't have the easiest assignment against the fourth-ranked Wiz lineup, but his upward trend makes him the best of the slate's cheaper options.

Top Targets

Sung Bum Na ($6,400) is capable of getting as hot as anyone in the KBO, and he's on one of those stretches right now. The outfielder is hitting .400/.452/.812 with nine homers over his last 20 games. Zooming in on just his last six contests, he's homered five times while hitting .462/.481/1.154. While he won't get the platoon advantage against Heroes lefty Jae Woong Kim, who owns a 2.63 ERA this season, Kim is likely to be little more than an opener, as he's been primarily a reliever this season and hasn't thrown more than three innings in any of his three starts.

Jamie Romak ($4,300) has had his fair share of slumps this season, though his current price doesn't reflect his current performance. Over his last 16 games, the Canadian slugger is hitting .357/.465/.696 with five homers, 14 runs scored and 20 RBI. Even with his poor stretches factored in, his .879 OPS on the season is a near match for his .881 mark from last season (though that represents a comparative step back given that the league-wide OPS has jumped by 41 points). He'll face Twins starter Chan Heon Jung, who owns a 6.23 ERA and a 1.89 WHIP over his last four starts.

Bargain Bats

Whether or not Ah Seop Son ($4,000) fits into this category may be up for debate, but what isn't debatable is his performance of late. Over his last 12 games, he's hitting .447/488/.658. He's been an excellent contact hitter throughout the season, as his .350 batting average is good for second in the league behind only Jose Fernandez. He should be able to raise that number with the platoon advantage against Wiz right-hander Je Seong Bae, who owns an 8.27 ERA and a 1.84 WHIP over his last four starts.

The Tigers could use another strong bat to make them a true contender, but Ji Wan Na ($3,600) has been a decent third option behind Preston Tucker and Hyung Woo Choi, hitting .292/.379/.453 with 13 homers over the course of the season. He's been even better than that over his last 15 contests, hitting .328/.394/.500. He'll be the only member of the aforementioned trio to get the platoon advantage against Lions lefty Chae Heung Choi, who owns a 6.19 ERA over his last six starts.

Stacks to Consider

Twins vs. Seung Geon Baek: Roberto Ramos ($5,500), Kang Nam Yoo ($5,300), Hyun Jong Lee ($4,700)

Baek's 6.39 ERA and 2.15 WHIP through 24.2 innings this season tell the story of his struggles well enough on their own, but a closer look at his statline doesn't paint any more optimistic of a picture. While his 18.4 percent strikeout rate is decent, his 17.6 percent walk rate isn't close to adequate. He's also given up six homers. He was pulled in the fourth inning of his previous start after walking five batters. There's nothing here to suggest the 19-year-old lefty will be able to slow down the league's third-ranked offense.

While Ramos will get the platoon disadvantage against the young southpaw, he's been so good lately that I'm not sure we have to care, especially since Baek could well not stick around for very long. The first baseman hit .226/.321/.366 with just three homers in his first 25 games since returning from ankle and back issues back in mid-June. The switch suddenly flipped in late July, however, as he's since gone on to hit .279/.353/.639 with 13 homers in his last 33 games. He now sits second in the league with 29 home runs.

While I'm willing to include Ramos against a southpaw, I'll skip fellow lefty Hyun Soo Kim here in favor of a pair of right-handed bats. Yoo is deservedly one of the slate's most expensive backstops, as his season-long .272/.330/.443 slash line is quite strong for the position. He's shown an unexpected burst of power recently, however, with six of his 13 homers coming in his last 15 games. He's just two shy of Eui Ji Yang's position-leading total of 15 in that category and could get the chance to close the gap against a homer-prone lefty in this one.

Lee missed most of the season with a broken hand but has looked quite good since his return, hitting .312/.401/.560 in 39 games. His eight homers over that stretch give him quite a good chance of passing his previous career high of 13 despite missing quite a bit of time. He's been even better over his last 15 contests, hitting .358/.452/.642. He should join Ramos and Yoo somewhere near the middle of the Twins' lineup.

Bears vs. Shi Hwan Jang: Jose Fernandez ($6,100), Jae Hwan Kim ($4,900), Jae Il Oh ($3,900)

Jang is a pitcher I've singled out as a potentially interesting budget option at times this season, but he hasn't been pitching at that level lately. In two of his last three starts, he allowed five runs while failing to pitch more than four innings. Even with a decent outing sandwiched between those two, he still owns a 7.07 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP over his last three starts. Stretching back to his last four outings, he owns a quite poor 10:9 K:BB over 20 innings. His strikeout rate still remains at a high 22.0 percent over the course of the season, but he hasn't been getting those same whiffs lately, leaving him as a rather ordinary arm with a 4.63 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP through 18 starts. The Bears' top left-handed bats should have little issue with him here.

All three members of the Bears' excellent trio of lefties, who occupy spots two through four in the batting order, look worthy of inclusion against Jang. Fernandez headlines the group and has been everything the Bears could have asked for out of their foreign hitter slot for the second straight campaign. He's improved on his .344/.413/.483 line from his KBO debut last year, hitting .365/.429/.543 through 96 games. He's been even better than that over his last 10 games, posting a .434/.475/.604 slash line.

Cleanup man Kim has been a bit streaky this season, but he's been on one of his better streaks over his last 17 games, hitting .311/.447/.607 while driving in 14 runs. His spot in the heart of one of the league's best lineups has helped him drive in 76 runs this season, good for sixth in the league. While his season-long slugging percentage is a comparably more modest .494, he's capable of sustaining this kind of power, as he's slugged above .600 in three straight seasons from 2016 to 2018.

Oh slots in between the pair out of the third spot in the order and is quite a cheap option for a first baseman, coming in cheaper than 10 other players eligible at the position. While his 11 homers are a rather modest total for the position, it's hard to complain about his overall .331/.390/.508 slash line. He hasn't been at his best lately, posting a .707 OPS in eight games since returning from a brief absence with a wrist injury, meaning turning to the similarly cheap Joo Hwan Choi ($3,600) could be the correct move, but a game against Jang could be what he needs to bounce back.