Wednesday night’s main DFS fantasy baseball slate gets underway at 7:10 p.m. ET and includes the eight games scheduled for under the lights. The first game of the set is the only divisional matchup as the Red Sox and Blue Jays face off again at Fenway. The rest of the slate has some intriguing interleague matchups, some strong values to consider, a potential World Series preview in L.A., and another potentially high-scoring game at Coors Field.
With 16 teams packing the player pool, several studs and values stand out as good options to consider. Check out my favorite options for this Wednesday night listed below:
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PITCHER
Stud
Chris Sale, Atlanta Braves at Minnesota Twins ($11,000) – After multiple injuries derailed his last few seasons, Sale’s turnaround in Atlanta has been one of the most surprising storylines of the season. He’s a leading candidate for the Comeback Player of the Year and Cy Young after going 14-3 in 24 starts with a 2.62 ERA. He leads the MLB with an 11.6 K/9 and an MLB-low 2.08 FIP. He can also tie Tarik Skubal for the most wins in the majors if he gets a win on Wednesday.
In his last start, Sale had just four strikeouts after three straight games of double-digit K’s. His production dipped to “only” 13.8 fantasy points after posting over 28 fantasy points in back-to-back road wins over the Angels and Giants. On the year, Sale’s numbers have been slightly better on the road, so he should be set up well for this start in Minnesota. He has been remarkably consistent all season long and has allowed two runs or fewer in 13 straight starts while racking up 109 strikeouts in 80 innings over that impressive run. He’s worth paying up for if you can make his price tag work under your salary cap by going cheap in other places.
Value
Kyle Freeland, Colorado Rockies vs. Miami Marlins ($5,500) – One way to save a lot of salary on Wednesday is to go with Freeland as one of your SPs. Since he’s starting at Coors Field, there’s definitely a high risk in rolling with the lefty, but there are also some good signs that he could deliver great value.
Since returning from injury, Freeland has only allowed more than three earned runs in two of his 11 starts. He has a 5.70 ERA and 4.65 FIP during those starts, so his season-long numbers are still skewed from his rough outings in March and April. The sinker-ball specialist was born in Denver and has actually posted a better ERA and FIP (3.86/3.70) at Coors Field than on the road (7.34/5.50). At home on Wednesday, Freeland will face the Marlins, who have some exciting young hitters but also have the second-lowest wOBA in the MLB this season against lefties. Until their ninth-inning rally on Tuesday, they had only scored six runs in 17 innings this week at Coors, so they’re not a matchup that needs to be avoided, given the upside Freeland brings at this very affordable salary.
INFIELD
Stud
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays vs. Boston Red Sox ($5,700) – Guerrero is on pace for another great season, and he is on pace to set a new personal best in batting average, K% and wRC+. He has raised his average to .321 on the year, with 27 homers and a .404 wOBA. On Tuesday, he had his fourth straight multi-hit performance and has hit a blistering .415 since the All-Star break with 13 home runs in 36 games to power him to a .541 wOBA. He’s had 23 barrels in those 36 games with an 18.7% barrel rate and 55.3% hard-hit rate, per Statcast. The Blue Jays have two more games this week at Fenway, where Guerrero has a .353 career average and a 1.057 OPS. He also has had success in the past against Brayan Bello ($7,700), going 8-for-19 with two homers in their previous matchups.
Stud
Francisco Lindor, New York Mets at Arizona Diamondbacks ($5,500) – Lindor has been red hot since the All-Star break and keeps the Mets in the Wild Card hunt. He has hit safely in 19 of his last 20 games while going 31-for-87 (.356) with five home runs, two stolen bases and a .437 wOBA over that stretch. He has been more productive on the road and against lefties this season, so he’s on the strong side of both those splits against Eduardo Rodriguez ($8,500) in Arizona.
Value
Connor Norby, Miami Marlins at Colorado Rockies ($3,900) – Norby has proven to be a great pickup for the Marlins at the Trade Deadline, coming over from the Orioles in exchange for Trevor Rogers. After a solid season in Triple-A, the No. 3 prospect in the Marlins system has made a splash in the majors, hitting safely in all eight games since being called up and going 11-for-32 (.344) with five doubles, two homers and a stolen base. He has moved to the leadoff spot with Xavier Edwards (elbow) on IL and averaged 10.9 fantasy points in his small sample size since joining the Marlins. Even if you go with Freeland as a value starting pitcher, getting Norby in the leadoff spot under $4,000 at Coors Field is a deal too good to pass up. It also helps that he can fit at either 2B or 3B.
Value
Will Wagner, Toronto Blue Jays at Boston Red Sox, $2,700 – Wagner was another prospect who was moved at the Trade Deadline and has found success in his early work with his new team. He dominated at Triple-A for the Sugar Land Space Cowboys and Buffalo Bison and has become a regular fixture at 2B in the Blue Jays overhauled infield. He had three hits and his first MLB home run on Tuesday, finishing with 24 fantasy points, and he is hitting .326 (14-for-43) with five doubles and an average of 7.6 fantasy points per start.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Baltimore Orioles ($7,000) – Ohtani is incredibly expensive on Wednesday night, but he has been producing at such a high level that he’s still worth a look. He has 41 homers and 40 stolen bases on the season and could be the first MLB player ever to reach the 50/50 club. He’s getting those big numbers while hitting an impressive .292 with an NL-leading .413 wOBA. After two more hits on Tuesday, Ohtani has hit safely in eight of his last nine games, going 12-for-36 (.333) with one home run and five stolen bases to average 15.3 fantasy points per game over that stretch. On Wednesday, he’ll be matched up against Corbin Burnes ($8,700), who has allowed 22 runs in 20 2/3 innings over his last four starts.
Stud
Marcell Ozuna, Atlanta Braves at Minnesota Twins ($5,500) – Ozuna has powered the Braves offense this season while multiple other big bats have gone down with injuries. He has 37 homers and has hit an impressive .308 with a .408 wOBA as one of the best right-handed batters in the majors. He’s had two hits in each of the first two games of this series and is 29-for-78 (.372) over his last 20 games with five home runs and a .457 wOBA. He’s much cheaper than Ohtani, Mookie Betts and some of the other dual-threats, but his power bat in the heart of the Braves order is enough to make him a solid play against David Festa ($6,800) and the Twins as the Braves look to close out a three-game sweep in Minnesota before heading to Philly for a huge four-game set this weekend.
Value
Addison Barger, Toronto Blue Jays at Boston Red Sox, $2,900 – Barger struggled in his first few stints with the Blue Jays this year, but the versatile lefty has found his groove this time around. He has 10 hits in his last 10 games, with three home runs, a .335 wOBA and an average of 7.4 fantasy points per game. His hard-hit rate has been on the rise, and he brings a lot of upside at Fenway for this salary under $3,000, especially given how shaky the Red Sox bullpen has looked. If they are both in the lineup, Barger and Wagner can create a value mini-stack that can help save salary and also bring excellent ceiling correlation.
Value
Grant McCray, San Francisco Giants at Milwaukee Brewers, $2,700 – McCray has been a great value play since taking over as the Giants CF in mid-August. The 23-year-old lefty started the season in Double-A but rose through the ranks and has looked very comfortable in the majors. Over his 11 games, he has gone 12-for-39 (.308) with three doubles, three homers, two stolen bases and an average of 8.8 fantasy points per game. He’s still hitting low in the lineup but has posted double-digit fantasy points in three straight games after hitting a home run and stealing a base on his way to 23 fantasy points in the series opener in Milwaukee. He has a high ceiling since he offers both power and speed potential.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $200K Bat Flip [$50K to 1st]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (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.
