Welcome to the Paydirt Breadwinners. This is a short interview series with real Paydirt subscribers who are having success using the various tools found on the site. Today we’re talking with SICKHEMI about his success with the Portfolio Management (PM) tool for MLB DFS. In this quick Q&A, he breaks down his MLB DFS process, how he uses Paydirt tools and concepts to build lineups, and why sticking to a repeatable process matters more than chasing results on any one slate.
If you have any questions or comments reach out to me in the discord or over on X for some more discussion
Chatting MLB with SICKHEMI
SickHemi: So, I’m not really sure where to start. I usually look at a bunch of sites for info, but mainly I stick to Scoring Percentages and Stacks ROO. I usually check whether the ceiling outcomes in Stacks ROO line up with the Scoring Percentages. Since I MME, I stack every team. My highest-exposed team would be at the top of the ROO, and my lowest team would be at the bottom, which is usually around 1% to 2% in my 100 or 150 lineups, depending on what I build and the slate. For large slates, it’s usually about 2%, and my top team is usually around 14% to 20%. On DraftKings, I always use 5-2-1, and on FanDuel, 4-3. Not sure if you can mention it, but I use Saber[Sim] as well since it helps, and I submit projections using Paydirt too. I also cap all pitchers at 60% because I don’t want any pitcher above 60%. I trust the numbers because James [McCool] is a numbers guy. I don’t remove any pitcher, because you never know who can wind up being the nuts. I also submit to PortfolioManager (PM) and use weighted ownership. Then I look at the highest-owned team I’m getting and take 20% off that. That’s just how I play. It’s kind of difficult to explain, but you get it, lol. I also remove all negative edge. My whole concept is that I only need one lineup to take down a tournament, and that’s how I’ve been so successful. So I stack every team according to scoring percentages, and I wait as close as possible to lock for the latest updates.
Tribe: Thanks. A couple of clarifying questions, just so I make sure I represent your words accurately: when you say you submit to PM and take weighted ownership, do you mean you’re stratifying by weighted ownership, or sorting by weighted ownership?
SickHemi: Stratify, then sort.
Tribe: Got it. And when you compare Stacks ROO to Scoring Percentages, what are you doing with that info? For example, tonight the White Sox are fourth in scoring percentages but not even top 10 in Stacks ROO.
SickHemi: So, for example, I only use the FL1s in the ROO, and if a team is fourth in scoring percentage but it doesn’t match up at all, then the White Sox would most likely be near the bottom for me. I’d make Minnesota my top stack since they’re fifth in scoring and No. 1 in ceiling.
Tribe: OK, and you said you cap SP ownership at 60%, but do you hard-cap stack ownership percentage too?
SickHemi: No, just pitchers. When I first came to Paydirt, I was still learning and not winning, lol. Toward the end of last year, I started using scoring percentages, and it was working. I stick to the same process every slate, win or lose.
Tribe: That’s such an important concept. Thanks.
SickHemi: Absolutely. Stick to a process and crush, man.
If you want to try out the portfolio manager yourself, go over to the Paydirt Portfolio Manager and mess around!
Thanks for reading, go grab some trophies.
