Jared Contestabile 
Saturday baseball is back, which means we get a few slates to work with! The first game starts at 1:05 ET, with action all afternoon. The night slate begins at 7:10 and has just three games. There are plenty of targets to get after, so let’s get this party started!
MLB DFS Aces
Freddy Peralta vs San Diego Padres
Look, I get it. Facing a tough Padres lineup in Petco Park isn’t an ideal situation. Well, Freddy Peralta looks like he could dominate anyone right now. He has tossed 12 innings, allowed just six hits and one earned run while striking out 14. The bad? The same bad that always haunts Freddy. One, two, three, you get the picture. Freddy sees bases on balls in his nightmares, and that’s about the only way he gets killed on Saturday. If he is pounding the zone, the sky is the limit for Peralta on Saturday. He isn’t the safest play, but his upside is enormous. He has only struck out 29% of the batters he has faced in 2023 (39% against RHB). Let’s kill it with Freddy P.
George Kirby vs Colorado Rockies
I’m a big George Kirby fan. What I’m NOT a fan of is this Rockies offense. Thus far in 2023, they have the 3rd-lowest walk rate in MLB. Why is that significant? George Kirby just throws strikes. He just pounds the zone. In 25 starts last season, he walked just 22 batters (130 IP).
Colorado hardly has the talent to punish a guy like Kirby, and even if the likes of CJ Cron take him deep? There probably won’t be any ducks on the pond when it happens. Vegas is a believer in Kirby here as well, as the and the Mariners are listed as -240 favorites with a total of just 7.5 runs. He’s my favorite pitcher on the board.
Graham Ashcraft vs Philadelphia Phillies
Ashcraft is a guy who has tremendous stuff. The Philadelphia Phillies are missing a lot of “tremendous stuff” from their lineup, namely Bryce Harper, Darick Hall and Rhys Hoskins. Ashcraft has a 25.5% K rate and 1.08 WHIP in the early going of 2023. The Phillies are severely lacking in star power, and Ashcraft has the stuff to take advantage of a lineup that has the 4th-lowest walk rate AND the 2nd-highest K rate in MLB this season. Graham to the moon!
MLB DFS Stacks
St. Louis Cardinals vs Roansy Contreras
Not only is Roansy not striking anyone out (11.1% K rate in 2023), he has also allowed 17 baserunners in just 9 innings. He is having major issues throwing strikes, and that’s a recipe for disaster against a potent Cardinals lineup. St Louis is punching out just 20.3% of the time and also carrying a 9.3% walk rate as a team. Vegas has the Cardinals as a -200 favorite with a total at 8.5 runs. They are expecting the redbirds to bring some fireworks, and I agree.
Tampa Bay Rays vs Yusei Kikuchi
The best team in baseball draws one of the most hittable pitchers in baseball in Kikuchi. He has already allowed a dozen hits and walked two batters over just 9.1 innings of work. The Rays have just a 19% K rate as a team, a walk rate nearing 10%, and have hit EIGHT more home runs and scored TWENTY-TWO more runs than any other team in MLB.
I’ve never been a believer in Kikuchi, and I’m excited to keep rolling out Rays on Saturday. The total in this one is listed at 9.5, and I’d be stunned if the Rays don’t get 6-7 of those by themselves. Fire up your Randy Arozarena, Yandy Diaz, Wander Franco shares all the way to the bottom.
Did I mention Kikuchi is allowed a 50% HardHit rate? That isn’t a typo. He is getting rocked. Time will only tell how many more starts he gets before he’s banished to the pen. Rays gonna have a big game on Saturday.
Cleveland Guardians vs Chad Kuhl
Chad may be “Kuhl”, but what happens to him on Saturday will be very un-Kuhl. The Guardians are in a prime spot, and Vegas agrees, as the total in this one is approaching 10. Kuhl has been nothing short of awful in 2023, allowing a 43.6% HardHit and allowing 14 baserunners in just 10 innings.
Cleveland is a very patient team at the plate (12% BB rate, 3rd-best in MLB), and they strike out just 19% of the time. They will be putting the ball in play, and Kuhl has been serving them up like slow-pitch softball at the church down the street. He has allowed 9 ER in just 10 IP, including a trio of home runs.
Amed Rosario, Steven Kwan, Jose Ramirez, Andres Gimenez, Myles Straw, everyone is in play against Mr. Kuhl. Run it up!
MLB DFS Summary
Let’s cook up some big scores on Saturday! I’m shooting for the top of the leaderboard, and I’ll meet you there!
Find the team in the Discord and let’s chat about some plays!
Good luck and hope to see you in the green.
Check me out on Twitter @BigItaly42 and let me know who you are playing tonight! Always around to talk some MLB!
