There are no afternoon games this Wednesday in Major League Baseball, leaving all 30 teams in action under the lights. Four games start just before 7:00 p.m. ET on the turbo slate, and 11 games make up the main featured fantasy baseball slate on DraftKings, which gets underway at 7:05 p.m. ET. There are only three divisional games on the slate, but it does include some fascinating matchups between potential contenders with playoff aspirations. The Orioles and Mariners meet in Seattle in one of the late games while the Padres are in Texas to face the defending champs. Coors Field is also in play, as the Rockies and Brewers face off at altitude after splitting the first two games of the series in Denver.
Wednesday’s 22-team player pool offers so many options to consider as you assemble your fantasy baseball squad. Let’s dive in and take a look at some of the studs and values that stand out in each category.
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PITCHER
Stud
Zack Wheeler, Philadelphia Phillies at Chicago Cubs ($9,800) – Wednesday night’s slate features five SPs who have averaged over 20 DKFP per outing, offering some great pay-up arms to choose from. While Chris Sale ($10,200) has had a remarkable comeback and impressive season in Atlanta, the Giants have been good against lefties and recently, so I think Wheeler is in a slightly better spot as the Phillies take on the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Wheeler has been locked in, allowing two runs or fewer and pitching at least six innings in seven of his last eight starts, producing over 21 DKFP in six of those outings. He has a 9-4 record in his 17 starts on the season with 112 strikeouts in his 105 2⁄3 innings. Two starts ago against the Diamondbacks, Wheeler dominated for seven innings and finished with 32 DKFP, which was his sixth start with over 28 DKFP this season. He should be in a good spot on Wednesday night against the Cubs, who have the fifth-highest K% in the MLB over the last 30 days while ranking in the bottom 10 of both team batting average and wOBA. Over the last month, they have averaged only 3.6 runs per game and are just 8-16 over their last 24 games.
Value
Davis Daniel, Los Angeles Angels at Oakland Athletics ($7,500) – Daniel has only made one MLB start in his career, so there’s some inherent risk in going with such an unproven option. That said, his one start was very impressive and his matchup is extremely attractive for this Wednesday. Daniel sparkled in his MLB debut last Thursday against the Tigers, giving up just four hits in eight shutout innings and picking up eight strikeouts for 35.6 DKFP. In a larger sample size at Triple-A, he went 5-4 with a 5.33 ERA and 3.73 FIP but did still have a good strikeout rate with 82 strikeouts in 76 innings. His strikeout potential is legitimate, and he’s in a great strikeout matchup against the A’s, who have the second-highest K% in the MLB on the season and over the last 30 days. Oakland also ranks in the bottom three in the MLB in team ISO and wOBA over the last 30 days while averaging only 3.2 runs per contest. The A’s should be a good matchup for Daniel to continue his strong start to his career and bring great value this Wednesday.
INFIELD
Stud
Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals vs. Tampa Bay Rays ($6,300) – Witt is having a great season for the Royals and emerging as a true MVP candidate. He’s a great pay-up play for DFS fantasy baseball because he brings both elite power and elite speed, giving him multiple ways to go off for a big game. He’s hitting .311 with 13 homers, 22 stolen bases and a .381 wOBA and the advanced metrics indicate he’s actually been a little unlucky based on his 48.8% hard-hit rate, per Statcast. Witt homered on Tuesday against the Rays and has hit safely in seven of his last eight games, going 9-for-29 (.310) with a .420 wOBA. Witt has been much better at home than on the road this season, batting .367 with a .452 wOBA and 190 wRC+ in his 47 games at Kauffman Stadium.
Stud
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays vs. Houston Astros ($4,600) – Guerrero isn’t in an ideal matchup against Ronel Blanco ($9,000), but he has been so scorching hot lately that he is still a great option at this salary. Guerrero has hit a scalding .429 (18-for-42) over his last 10 starts with six home runs, six doubles and a .609 wOBA. Over that span, Guerrero has produced 17.4 DKFP per game, and getting a power hitter with such upside at well under $5,000 is too good to pass up even in a tough matchup.
Value
Richie Palacios, Tampa Bay Rays at Kansas City Royals ($3,400) – Palacios is eligible at 2B or in the OF and brings strong value potential at both spots in the middle of the Rays lineup vs. righties like Michael Wacha ($7,000). Palacios has 13 stolen bases, four homers and a .251 average in his first season with the Rays, but he has been very streaky throughout the season and has been heating up again lately. He has four multi-hit performances in his last seven games, going 10-for-24 (.417) and stealing three bases in those seven contests, averaging 10.7 DKFP per game. Wacha has allowed a .335 wOBA to lefties this season including five of his seven home runs allowed. Now that Palacios is getting time at 2B, there should be more consistent playing time available in the Rays constantly shifting lineup rotation.
Value
Jonathan Ornelas, Texas Rangers vs. San Diego Padres ($2,000) – Ornelas is helping cover 3B while Corey Seager ($5,100; wrist) is out of the lineup for the Rangers and Josh Smith ($4,200) is playing SS. Ornelas has 2B and 3B eligibility and is a great play at th minimum if he gets a second straight start against San Diego. He went 1-for-2 with a walk, a double and an RBI for 9.0 DKFP on Tuesday in his first game after being called up on Sunday. At Triple-A, the 24-year-old prospect was hitting .246 with seven stolen bases, three home runs and a .303 wOBA. He’s not viewed as an elite prospect long-term, but he’s a great salary saver on Wednesday since he comes with good upside against Adam Mazur ($6,200) in what should be a productive Rangers lineup.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Arizona Diamondbacks ($6,600) – Ohtani continues to be absolutely amazing at the plate for the Dodgers. He leads the NL in batting average and home runs and has added 16 stolen bases as well. He had three hits, a homer and 26 DKFP in the first game of this series against Arizona and has gone 21-for-53 (.396) over his last 14 games with 10 home runs, a .642 ISO and a .608 wOBA during that stretch. He and the Dodgers will look to spoil the MLB debut of 21-year-old Cristian Mena ($4,000) on Wednesday night for the Dbacks. Ohtani should be in a great spot to keep smashing against the youngster, who had a 4.90 ERA and 5.65 FIP in Triple-A, allowing 15 homers in 16 starts. If you are paying up for just one slugger on Wednesday night, Ohtani has a slight advantage over Aaron Judge ($6,500), who has also been locked in at the plate lately.
Stud
Brenton Doyle, Colorado Rockies vs. Milwaukee Brewers ($4,900) – Doyle is a great way to get some Coors exposure without having to overpay for an inflated salary. Doyle brings both power and speed potential, which gives him a very high ceiling in this matchup. He had a pair of homers along with a stolen base for 44 DKFP to start the series on Monday and followed that up with another homer on Tuesday on his way to 23 more DKFP. Five of his 10 homers this season have come over his past 13 games, and he is 14-for-52 (.269) over that stretch with two stolen bases and an average of 10.8 DKFP per game. Doyle is hitting under .200 on the road, but when the Rockies are at Coors, he’s worth a look with his salary under $5,000
Value
Justyn-Henry Malloy, Detroit Tigers vs. Minnesota Twins ($2,500) – Even though he’s only hitting .194 in his 24 MLB games, Malloy seems to be starting to settle in. Last year, he mashed 23 homers and had a .402 wOBA at Triple-A and got off to a fast start with a .396 wOBA and six homers in 45 games before being called up. The 24-year-old started slowly but has gone 7-for-28 (.250) with a .345 wOBA and an average of 5.7 DKFP per game. Malloy brings a lot of upside for a cheap play, especially since the Tigers are in a favorable matchup against David Festa ($6,700), who gave up five runs in five innings in his MLB debut last Wednesday.
Value
Derek Hill, Texas Rangers vs. San Diego Padres ($2,500) – Hill earned his chance with the Rangers by hitting .350 in 42 games to start the season in Triple-A with eight homers, seven stolen bases and a .444 wOBA. The 29-year-old journeyman has played 10 games since getting called up and has delivered three homers, two stolen bases, a .384 wOBA and an average of 7.2 DKFP per game. He has at least 14 DKFP in three of his 10 games and brings a high ceiling at a low cost against Mazur.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $222K Bat Flip [$50K to 1st]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and customer (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
