This article is part of our DraftKings KBO series.
Saturday's KBO action featured the full five games but only three decisive results, something which may become more common going forward with the league electing to end all games after nine innings in the second half. A ninth-inning solo shot secured a 2-2 tie for the Landers against the Tigers in a game in which both Eui Lee Lee and Tae Yang Lee allowed just one run in six innings. Elsewhere, the Dinos and Eagles tied at nine runs apiece, with Eui Ji Yang going 3-for-5 with a homer. Meanwhile, Jared Hoying hit his first homer as a member of the Wiz and William Cuevas struck out seven while allowing just a single run on three hits in six innings of work, helping their side beat the Lions, 8-4, while Ariel Miranda struck out 11 batters but allowed three runs as the Bears fell to the Heroes 5-1.
The weather looks cooperative again Sunday, so we should get another full slate, one that features a very deep group of quality pitching options.
Pitchers
We're spoiled for choice in the pitching department Sunday, but it's hard to turn down Dan Straily ($7,100) when he's priced this cheaply. The veteran righty hasn't been able to recapture the form he demonstrated last year, when his 2.50 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 26.4 percent strikeout rate made him one of the best pitchers in the entire league. He's had far more duds than usual this season, though his 3.97 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 22.4 percent strikeout rate are still well more than enough to justify his low price. He's coming off an outing in which he threw seven scoreless innings against the Dinos and is now facing the eighth-ranked Twins lineup at the league's most pitcher-friendly park, so it's hard to look elsewhere even given the strength of the other options.
Wilmer Font ($8,400) may not be quite the steal that Straily is, but he's a fantastic value as well. He's recorded the most fantasy points per game among pitchers on this slate and faces the league's second-worst lineup (the Tigers), yet he's somehow cheaper than three other options. While he's coming off an unimpressive outing which saw him allow three runs in just four innings of work against the Twins, that's a rare blip in what's otherwise been a very strong first season in Korea. His strong 3.62 ERA could easily be considerably better, as he's combined a 27.9 percent strikeout rate (second-best among qualified starters) with a 7.2 percent walk rate (seventh-best among that same group).
With such a wide variety of strong options available Sunday, you certainly don't have to pay up for Eric Jokisch ($9,100), but he deserves consideration here as always. He had a case as the best starter in the league last season, as he led all qualified starters with a 2.14 ERA and ranked fourth with a 1.06 WHIP. He was good but not great in the early part of this year, posting a 3.73 ERA and 1.41 WHIP through his first seven starts, but he's since returned to vintage form. In his last 11 outings, he owns a 1.77 ERA and 1.00 WHIP, allowing more than two earned runs just once. The fourth-ranked Bears lineup isn't the easiest of assignments, but the lefty has proven he can get it done against anybody.
Top Targets
Shin Soo Choo ($5,700) hasn't been quite as dominant as you might expect in his first professional season in his native country, though few players in the league would be disappointed to match his .256/.405/.458 slash line. His 21.7 percent strikeout rate is worse than average, though that could be partially related to his excellent patience, as his 17.2 percent walk rate ranks fourth among qualified hitters. He's also been one of just two players to reach double digits in both homers (14) and steals (16), the latter standing as a particularly remarkable accomplishment given that he just turned 39 years old last month. He'll get the platoon advantage Sunday against Tigers righty Gi Yeong Im, whose 4.06 ERA is perfectly respectable but stands as one of the worst marks among an excellent group of starters.
Aaron Altherr ($4,300) hasn't been at his best lately, but that's dropped him into a surprisingly affordable price range. In five games since the break, he's recorded just a single hit, though he doesn't look completely lost at the plate, walking three times while striking out on four occasions. Even after that brief blip, however, his numbers are far too good for a player with his price tag. He still owns an .849 OPS on the season and has homered 18 times, just three shy of the league lead. He'll get the platoon advantage Sunday against Eagles lefty Ryan Carpenter, who owns a solid 3.52 ERA on the season but has been prone to blowups at times, including an eight-run showing against the Wiz in his second-last outing before the break.
Bargain Bats
Sticking with the Dinos, Ki Hwan Kim ($2,000) won't get the platoon advantage against Carpenter, but if he remains the leadoff man nonetheless, he'll be quite the bargain. Batting in front of the likes of Altherr, Eui Ji Yang and Sung Bum Na is enough justification to start almost anyone at this low of a price, though Kim has been interesting enough in his own right as well. He only has 27 career KBO plate appearances, but he's going 6-for-19 with a pair of steals since the break, serving as the leadoff man in every game. If the Dinos elect to go a different route atop their order against a southpaw, whoever occupies that spot is likely to be worth selection at their presumably low price.
While Dan Straily earned top billing in the pitchers section above, Justin Bour ($2,000) will get the platoon advantage against him and should be in every lineup which doesn't include Straily himself. Bour has gone a modest 2-for-17 with one homer in his first four KBO games, but that's a tiny sample and has little bearing on what the expectations should be for him going forward. We rarely see players with an MLB resume as strong as Bour's (which includes a 114 wRC+ in 559 games) in the KBO, so it would be a surprise if the first baseman doesn't wind up as one of the best hitters down the stretch. He'd be a bargain at double this price.
Stacks to Consider
Wiz vs. Jae Hee Lee: Baek Ho Kang ($6,200), Jae Gyun Hwang ($5,400), Han Joon Yoo ($3,400)
It's an odd slate Sunday, with several of the league's best pitchers alongside two KBO debutants. I'll recommend stacking against both of those newcomers here. Lee, a 19-year-old righty, could be a decent pitcher one day, as the Lions liked him enough to select him third-overall in the most recent draft. There's little reason to believe he's ready to have success at the KBO level, however. He's thrown just 18.1 innings at the Futures League level and hasn't looked good at all. He owns 8.35 ERA and 1.85 WHIP, striking out just 15.9 percent of opposing batters while walking 12.5 percent. The Wiz should knock him out of the game quite early in this one.
You'll have to pay up to get Kang, but that should be easier than usual given the number of surprisingly affordable top-tier pitchers on the slate. His high price is certainly justified, as he's getting on base more than half the time and continues to flirt with a .400 season, hitting .397/.511/.578 on the year. Hwang is typically one of the best options at the fairly shallow third base position, and that's as true as ever against Lee. The former San Francisco Giant owns an .835 OPS, marking the seventh straight season he's crossed the .800 mark in that category. 40-year-Yoo is no longer the player who managed a 1.009 OPS back in 2015 as a member of the Heroes, but he still has enough in the tank to justify his very affordable price tag. He's slashing .290/.422/.370 on the year and has hit cleanup in three of five games since the break.
Eagles vs. Tae Gyeong Kang: Eun Won Jung ($4,700), Jae Hoon Choi ($4,200), Ju Suk Ha ($4,300)
It's tough to recommend stacking the last-ranked Eagles lineup, but the matchup here is too tempting to avoid. Kang isn't a particularly highly-rated prospect, as he was merely a fifth-round pick in the 2020 draft. The 20-year-old righty hasn't shown much reason to get excited at the Futures League level, either. In 24.2 innings, he owns a 5.47 ERA, striking out just 9.2 percent of opposing batters. If he can't put hitters away at that level, he's going to struggle at the KBO level, even against the least intimidating lineup the league has to offer.
The Eagles' lineup doesn't offer much to get excited about, but the team's top few hitters are usually worth a look. Leadoff man Jung gets the platoon advantage against Kang and fills his role well, walking 18.3 percent of the time en route to a .420 on-base percentage. Number two hitter Choi has one of the best lineup spots you'll find for a catcher. His .692 OPS this season is unimpressive, but he finished about .750 in each of the last two seasons, a solid mark for the position. Ha would be less interesting if he wasn't a shortstop, but his .727 OPS is respectable for that shallow position. He'll get the platoon advantage and has hit third in all of his starts this season.
