Aaron Judge is on his way to winning the Rookie of the Year and possibly the triple crown this year. But does that mean he is the best daily fantasy baseball option? After taking a look at salary, performance and other metrics, you can see that there is a case to be made that Judge is a terrible selection for daily fantasy owners.
Salary
There is no question that when Judge has a monster game he will provide enough fantasy points to carry a lineup, but what if he is just average? And what if he is off for a long stretch? As you will see below, from 6/29/2017-7/2/2017, Judge under performed his salary by a wide margin. The main reason for this was pitchers pitching around him, thus producing walks. But the end results were damaging to daily fantasy players.
Who’s Better?
If you don’t start Judge, who do you start? With Judge’s salary being around $4900 on Fan Duel and $5500 on Draft Kings, you can pretty much replace him with anyone and have salary to invest in other players. By doing research and using the available tools out there, players can find opportunities each day. Also, it should be noted that due to Judge’s popularity, a greater percentage of players take him in contests, thus putting themselves at a disadvantage when he under performs. Basically, what I’m saying is that a well educated pick is better than picking a stat and salary monster like Judge.
Final Ruling
While Judge is off to a monster start this year and hits tape measure homers, it may be best to sit back and enjoy what he’s doing, and not have to stress about him performing in your lineup. With so many great players to choose from, and salary that is freed up for pitching, you will thank me later for leaving Judge on the bench.