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It’s important to consider the opposing bullpen when selecting hitters in daily fantasy leagues [url=http://www.greenbaypackersteamonline.com/dean-lowry-jersey]http://www.greenbaypackersteamonline.com/dean-lowry-jersey[/url] , both the quality of the team’s bullpen as a whole and the differences in quality between its individual pitchers.

The best bullpens in the league, like the Astros, have very little drop off in quality from their best relievers to their worst. That means whether a game is competitive or not, Houston’s opponents are facing high-end relief pitching. The Astros have five relievers with expected fielding independent pitching (xFIP) below 3.00, a measurement similar to ERA that strips away defense and some luck.

This isn’t the case with the bullpens in the middle of the league’s rankings. Some are top heavy while others are balanced. In daily fantasy baseball, top-heavy bullpens are the ones to take advantage of when they are large underdogs. The hope is that if your offense plays from ahead, you will avoid the elite relievers in a top-heavy bullpen. A balanced opposing bullpen won’t have as much of a difference in quality of reliever based on the game situation.

Take for example the Reds bullpen, which diminishes quickly. The Reds bullpen xFIP is 4.16 but when they play from ahead opponents will often see some combination of Amir Garrett (3.10 xFIP), Jared Hughes (3.41 xFIP), and Raisel Iglesias (3.30 xFIP). However, if they get behind the bottom of the bullpen contains Wandy Peralta (5.83 xFIP) and Michael Lorenzen (4.34 xFIP).

On the other hand, the Angels have a team bullpen xFIP of 4.15 but maintain a much more balanced bullpen. Their top six relievers all have xFIPs between 3.42 and 4.22. That makes it less important to identify game situations against the Angels.

Let that difference play to your advantage when top-heavy bullpens are underdogs – that improves your odds of facing the weakest relievers.

GOLF

TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm is this year’s host for the Quicken Loans Invitational, hosted by Tiger Woods. TPC Potomac also hosted the 2017 version of this event, while previous years it was held at the nearby Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland. Because of the limited sample size, fantasy players shouldn’t put much weight in course history this week.

Last year, the Quicken Loans Invitational played as the fourth most difficult event on tour and played harder than the U.S. Open and Players Championship [url=http://www.greenbaypackersteamonline.com/kentrell-brice-jersey]http://www.greenbaypackersteamonline.com/kentrell-brice-jersey[/url] , so birdies will be hard to come by. When courses feature few birdies, the finishing position makes up more of the fantasy scoring and paying up for the tournament favorites can be a profitable strategy. Last year, strokes gained tee-to-green was the biggest differentiator between players as 22.5 percent of strokes were gained off the tee and 36.6 percent of strokes were gained on approach compared to tour baselines of 15 percent and 34.8 percent, respectively.

While Woods headlines the field for public rooting interest, Rickie Fowler is the class of the field with a 42 percent chance to finish inside of the top 10 this week. Fowler is ranked first in the field in strokes gained total, 10th in strokes gained tee-to-green and first in DraftKings scoring. On a week where capturing the top end of the leaderboard will prove critical, Fowler will anchor many winning DraftKings lineups.

In order to have the salary cap space to pay for Fowler, finding a cheap complementary player is required. Adam Hadwin is our favorite value selection this week on DraftKings and his $7,300 price lets you comfortably roster Fowler. There are 40 golfers priced more expensive than Hadwin, whose 75 percent odds to make the cut are inside of the top 20 made cut probabilities. While Hadwin is ranked outside of the top 50 in strokes gained off the tee, he rates inside of the top 20 in strokes gained approach and 10th in total strokes gained over the last 50 rounds.

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This column was provided to The Associated Press by DailyRoto, Madison Bumgarner isn’t easily impressed in pregame warmups.

Thursday night was different.

”I don’t put a lot of stock into the bullpen before the game, but today I could tell that the stuff was picking up a little,” the 2014 World Series MVP said.

Bumgarner pitched eight innings of three-hit ball for his first win this season, Mark Melancon earned his first save in a year and the San Francisco Giants beat the San Diego Padres 3-0.

”It was the Madison we know,” Giants manager Bruce Bochy said.

San Francisco won for the fourth time in five games and sent the last-place Padres to their fifth straight loss.

Bumgarner (1-2) struck out eight and walked two in his best start since coming off the disabled list. He also drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly.

”It was the type of game we’ve seen so many times from him,” Bochy said. ”We needed it because their guy pitched well [url=http://www.greenbaypackersteamonline.com/jimmy-graham-jersey]http://www.greenbaypackersteamonline.com/jimmy-graham-jersey[/url] , too.”

Bumgarner outdueled Tyson Ross (5-5), who gave up one run and four hits in seven innings. Ross struck out three and walked three.

”This is what you want to do as a pitcher, to go toe-to-toe against a guy,” he said. ”You just have to give your team a chance to win. He was little bit better tonight.”

Bumgarner began the season on the DL with a broken pinkie on his pitching hand sustained in his final spring training start when he was hit by a line drive. The ace left-hander was 0-2 with a 4.67 ERA in three previous outings since being reinstated.

Bumgarner’s sacrifice fly scored Pablo Sandoval in the fifth. Sandoval singled leading off the inning and Joe Panik followed with a double.

It was the fourth time in his career Bumgarner made a scoreless start and had the game-winning RBI, tying Stephen Strasburg and Fernando Valenzuela for the most such games by any pitcher in the last 40 years, according to STATS.

The Padres’ best scoring chance came in the fifth, when Jose Pirela was thrown out at home trying to score from second on Manuel Margot’s one-out double to deep right field. Giants catcher Buster Posey tagged out Pirela after a perfect relay from Andrew McCutchen and Panik.

”We had one chance offensively and we ran through a stop sign, which took away that one opportunity,” Padres manager Andy Green said.

Melancon, who started the season on the DL with a right elbow flexor strain, pitched the ninth for his first save since June 20, 2017.

DROUGHT BUSTER

Bumgarner was winless in his six previous starts against the Padres. He was 0-4 with a 4.73 ERA during that stretch.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Padres: OF Wil Myers (left oblique strain) and Maton (right lat strain) were reinstated from the 10-day DL, and RHP Colin Rea (right shoulder strain) was activated from the 60-day DL. … OF Franchy Cordero (right elbow bone spur) was transferred to the 60-day DL and RHP Phil Hughes (right rhomboid strain) was placed on the 10-day DL. … OF Franmil Reyes was optioned to Triple-A El Paso. … RHP Bryan Mitchell (right elbow impingement) had an MRI on Wednesday that showed inflammation in the affected area but no ligament damage, Green said. Mitchell is expected to start throwing in four or five days.

Giants: SS Brandon Crawford was reinstated from the paternity list and was in the starting lineup. … INF Kelby Tomlinson was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. … RHP Hunter Strickland (broken right pinkie) will have more X-rays in two weeks to determine if two pins he had surgically inserted on Wednesday can be removed. The 29-year-old reliever was injured when he punched a door in frustration after a blown save against Miami on Monday. … RHP Johnny Cueto (right elbow inflammation) will throw 40 pitches in a rehab start with Triple-A Sacramento on Saturday. … RHP Jeff Samardzija (right shoulder tightness) threw 73 pitches in his second rehab start with Sacramento.

UP NEXT

LHP Clayton Richard (6-6, 4.31 ERA) will make his team-leading 16th start for the Padres. He’s 5-2 with a 3.04 ERA over his last eight. Giants RHP Chris Stratton (8-4, 4.22) hasn’t allowed a run over 13 2/3 innings in two career starts against San Diego.

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