Ethan Thiel 
There was a 10 game slate on Thursday May 23rd. I will go into detail on a few players who performed really well and a couple who underachieved. Salaries and points are based on DraftKings.
Winners
Lucas Giolito ($8,400)
Lucas Giolito of the White Sox had a phenomenal game on Thursday against the Houston Astros. The Astros have had the best offense in the league this year but they couldn’t get anything going on Thursday. Giolito pitched a complete game shutout and picked up nine strikeouts along the way. The Astros were only able to get four hits and worked one walk. Giolito gave his fantasy owners 43.65 fantasy points. Giolito has been great all year and his ERA is now at 2.77 with a WHIP of 1.06. He has racked up 59 strikeouts over 52 innings pitched; his K/9 is now at 10.21. He has only allowed two earned runs over his last four starts.
Giolito’s Outlook
Giolito’s next projected start will come against the Kansas City Royals at home. The Royals have had an average offense this year and produce 4.49 runs per game. They have a team batting average of .245. They have also struck out at just below the league average, at 8.45 strikeouts per game. Although the Royals have played okay, they have not blown the doors off anyone, especially lately. Over their last seven games they have only averaged 3.29 runs per game. This should be another spot for Giolito to thrive. I will continue to ride the hot hand and roll with him.
Max Kepler ($4,500)
The Twins put up 16 runs against the Angels on Thursday and Kepler was a big part of the success. Kepler was one of three Twins who scored over 30 fantasy points. He scored 37 fantasy points while going 3-for-5 with a double and a home run. He scored four runs, had two RBI and also took a walk. Kepler has had a decent start to the year and has a batting average of .260 with an OPS of .830. He has hit 10 home runs and has 25 RBI on the season. Kepler has been hot lately and has multi hit games in four of the last five and is currently on a six-game hit streak. He left the game late and was replaced by Byron Buxton. Although it is not expected to be serious, Kepler will be re-evaluated Sunday.
Kepler’s Outlook
The Twins will now head back home for a three-game set against the Chicago White Sox. The White Sox rank 25th in the league in team ERA at 5.02 and allow an opponent’s batting average of .265, which also ranks 25th. They have also allowed a batting average of .269 against left handed batters. The White Sox pitching has struggled this year and Kepler has been on a tear recently. With Kepler’s form and this matchup, I will be looking to roster him in this series if he is available.
Starling Marte ($4,700)
Starling Marte and the Pirates hosted the Rockies on Thursday and got the win 14-6. Marte went 2-for-4 with a home run and a double. He had two RBI and scored three runs. Marte rewarded his owners with 32 fantasy points. He has had a bit of a slow start to the year and has a batting average of .244 with an OPS of .689 and has also only taken three walks compared to 32 strikeouts Marte has hit five home runs and has 19 RBI. He is 8-for-9 on stolen base attempts.
Marte’s Outlook
The Pirates have a three-game series at home against the Dodgers, starting on Friday May 24th. The Dodgers have had one of the best pitching staffs in the league and have a team ERA of 3.47, ranking them at number three. They also rank third in opponent batting average, allowing a BA of only .244. The Dodgers have been much worse on the road though, with a team ERA of 4.49, nearly two full runs worse than their home ERA. Marte’s latest game seems to be a bit of a fluke and even with the Dodgers’ pitching being worse on the road, I will be staying away from him.
Losers
Adam Plutko ($7,400)
Plutko pitched against the Rays on Thursday and took the loss. Plutko gave up seven earned runs on 12 hits while getting through only 5.1 innings. He gave up four home runs in the game. He was also only able to get three strikeouts. This was Plutko’s second start of the year and he fell to 1-1. Plutko may have had some takers on Thursday as he pitched well in his first start and got the win while giving up only one hit in six innings. Plutko has had a decent start to his career with a record of 5-5 and a WHIP of 1.29.
Plutko’s Outlook
It will be hard to find much optimism going into his next start as he will face the Boston Red Sox on the road. Boston has the fifth most runs scored this year and average 5.29 runs per game. They have been even better at home with 5.57 runs per game. Although I do think Plutko will have some value moving forward, I do not expect much from him in this start. Leave him off your rosters against the Red Sox and re-evaluate for when he faces off against the Chicago White Sox.
Carlos Correa ($4,900)
Correa and the Astros could not get anything going against the White Sox and Giolito. They were shut out and Correa went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. Alex Bregman joined him and also scored zero fantasy points. Correa has been really good this year and has been a very important part of the Astros offense. He has a batting average of .291 with an OPS of .912. He has hit 11 home runs and has 33 RBI. Five of those home runs and 15 of the RBI have come in the month of May.
Correa’s Outlook
The Astros will stay at home and host the Boston Red Sox for a three-game series. Boston’s pitching has been okay this year and they have a team ERA of 4.37 and allow an opponent’s batting average of just .235. They have pitched much better lately and have a team ERA of only 3.43 in the month of May. Correa and the Astros have been good enough this year that I will continue to roster him and stack them, even as the Red Sox have started to pitch better.
Injury Report
George Springer took BP on Thursday and should be back in the lineup for Friday’s game against the Red Sox.
