KBO Picks & Odds (July 25): Backing the Stud Starters

Lotte's Dan Straily ranks top-three in the KBO in ERA, WHIP and strikeouts. Photo by @mlbtraderumors (Twitter).

• Lotte’s Dan Straily has allowed one run total in his last three starts
• KIA’s Aaron Brooks is fresh off shutting down the top-three teams in the league
• Find odds and best bets for the KBO’s five-game slate on July 25th in the article below

The weekend is here, and with KBO action in the morning, and MLB in the afternoon and evening, you can now watch baseball around the clock.

Saturday’s KBO slate gets underway at 5:00 am EST, and will feature two of the game’s top pitchers.

 KBO Odds: Saturday, July 25th

Odds as of July 24th.

Straily Has Been Untouchable

Through his first 11 starts in 2020, Dan Straily looked like one of the best pitchers in the league. However, in his last three outings nobody’s looked better.

Dan Straily, Painted 91mph Fastball. ???????? pic.twitter.com/PR4QkpFTwf

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 19, 2020

Straily is fresh off consecutive wins over Samsung, LG and Hanwha, throwing a combined 21 innings and allowing just a single run. He ranks top-three in ERA and WHIP, and after Saturday, he’ll likely overtake Chang Mo Koo for the league lead in strikeouts.

Dan Straily Last Three Starts

Straily pitched well in his only start this season versus Saturday’s opponent Kiwoom, holding the Heroes to three hits and two earned runs over eight innings last month. Kiwoom managed just six hits and two runs on Friday in the series opener, and has averaged just 2.5 runs over the past week.

The Heroes will counter with Hyun Hee Han, who is sporting a 6.28 ERA and has allowed 18 runs in his last three outings.

Pick: Lotte Giants moneyline (-115)

Back on Brooks

Aaron Brooks was supposed to start this past Thursday, but back-to-back rainouts have given him two extra days rest prior to Saturday’s start. As we’ve detailed for the last few days, Brooks has been elite recently shutting down the league’s top-three teams over the past few weeks.

KBO Leaders – Lowest Hard-Hit Rate Allowed

1. Aaron Brooks
2. Ki-young Im
3. Dan Straily
4. Drew Gagnon
5. Shi-hwan Jang pic.twitter.com/1yvMZek94f

— Sports Info Solutions (@SportsInfo_SIS) July 23, 2020

He’s allowed the lowest hard hit rate in the league, and has a 35-6 strikeout-to-walk rate at home. His opponent Samsung has been been extremely inconsistent on offense this season and has struggled against top flight starters. The last time they faced a pitcher of Brooks’ calibre, they managed just four hits and one run against Straily.

Samsung will give the ball to Ben Lively, who pitched well in his return from injury last week, but is still likely to be on a pitch count. That means more work for the Lions bullpen that has a 5.03 ERA over the last 10 games.

Pick: KIA Tigers -1.5 (+125) 

Eagles’ Woes Continue

Hanwha’s latest losing streak is up to seven games and counting, and if recent performance is any indication, Warwick Saupold isn’t the man who’s going to put a stop to it.

Warwick Saupold and Adrian Sampson inability to miss bats pic.twitter.com/Wp02FifNms

— Ricky Sanders (@RSandersDFS) June 9, 2020

The 30-year-old has allowed 21 runs in his last four outings and now leads the league in losses with eight. His counterpart Seung Won Moon is also winless in his past four starts, but has pitched much better.

Moon Seung-won, Paint. ????????️????️ pic.twitter.com/jGQ4HXFrd1

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 7, 2020

He’s allowed an average of just 2.5 runs per outing during that stretch, and held first place NC and third place Kiwoom to a combined five runs over 14 innings.

SK’s offense has been hot recently, scoring 14 runs in its past two games and crossing the plate 12 times in two separate outings last week.

Pick: SK Wyverns moneyline (-145)

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