After many MLB teams travel on Monday, Tuesdays are typically some of the busiest nights during the regular season. That trend continues this week with 12 games on the MLB DFS main slate on DraftKings, which begins at 7:05 p.m. ET. With 24 teams in the player pool, options are available that make sense at all different price points and positions. As you build your team and decide who to prioritize, you may need to find a few cheaper players in order to squeeze in your superstars. The good news is that with 24 teams in the mix, there are some great fantasy bargains who come with low salaries but high ceilings. In this post, we’ll look at my top three bargain plays for Tuesday’s MLB DFS action.
As always, be sure to double-check weather conditions and lineups before the first pitch. Tampa, Chicago and St. Louis will have some rain in the area to monitor, while the weather is set up well for potential offense again in Sacramento based on the wind and warm weather.
As you make out your lineup card for this Monday afternoon, be sure to check out the full range of MLB coverage from the team at DKNetwork, since these bargain values are just one piece of the MLB DFS picture to consider.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $225K Knuckleball [$50K to 1st]
SP Landen Roupp, San Francisco Giants vs. San Diego Padres, $7,400
Roupp has earned over 16 fantasy points in three straight starts for the Giants and is a good option on Tuesday as he goes up against the Padres at pitcher-friendly Oracle Park.
Roupp has shown good upside in his first full season in the majors, going 3-4 in his 11 starts with a 3.54 ERA, 3.40 FIP and 56 strikeouts in 56 innings. He had seven strikeouts in his last start despite only lasting four innings against the Tigers. He took the loss in that start but only gave up one earned run and ran into trouble after a Matt Chapman error.
In each of his two previous starts, Roupp went exactly six innings and gave up no runs on five hits. He earned 17.3 and 19.3 fantasy points in those two outings since his strikeout totals weren’t quite as high as against the Tigers. He had even higher strikeouts earlier in the season, including a dominant seven-inning, nine-strikeout game against the Angels that earned him 30.2 fantasy points.
Normally, the Padres aren’t a matchup to attack, but they have been in a team-wide slump lately. Over the last two weeks, they have hit just .200 as a team, the lowest mark in the majors. In their 13 games during that span, they averaged 3.4 runs per game with a .265 wOBA and 69 wRC+ as a team. They were shut out for eight innings by Logan Webb on Monday, and Roupp will look to continue their struggles with a similarly strong start for the Giants on Tuesday.
OF Denzel Clarke, Athletics vs. Minnesota Twins, $2,300
I highlighted Clarke in Monday’s bargain plays, and the rookie delivered a good fantasy game once again, earning 10 fantasy points with a 1-for-4 performance boosted by a stolen base and a run scored. He has double-digit fantasy points in each of his last four games and remains available at barely over the minimum despite his multi-category upside.
He hit his first MLB home run on Saturday for 16 fantasy points and stole two bases on Sunday for 15 fantasy points. The 25-year-old brings both power and speed potential as he takes over as the Athletics’ primary centerfielder.
Before his promotion just over a week ago, Clarke hit .286 in his 133 plate appearances in Triple-A with 21 RBIs, 25 runs scored, seven stolen bases and a 17.3% walk rate. He didn’t homer this season but had at least 12 home runs in each of the previous three seasons. His main asset, though, is his speed, since he had 36 stolen bases last year in Double-A for the Midland RockHounds and already has three thefts in his 10 MLB contests. He continues to stack up strikeouts, but his major production plays with homers and stolen bases are good enough to make him a very strong option at this price point on Tuesday against righty Pablo Lopez ($9,300) and the Twins.
SS Ronny Mauricio, New York Mets at Los Angeles Dodgers, $2,000
In extra innings of the late game on Monday night, Mark Vientos (hamstring) went down with what looked like it could be a significant injury. While the Mets haven’t officially given Vientos a timeline, they are recalling Mauricio from Triple-A, and the prospect should step into meaningful playing time for however long Vientos is out.
Mauricio was the Mets’ No. 9 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, and he brings a lot of positional versatility. He played 26 games with the team at the end of 2023, hitting .248 with seven stolen bases, two home runs and a .284 wOBA. In December of that year, though, he tore his ACL playing in the Dominican Winter League and missed all of 2024. He got a late start to this season as well, but he has looked great since arriving in Triple-A with the Syracuse Mets nine games ago. In those nine games, he showcased both his speed and power potential, going 17-for-33 (.515) with three homers, four stolen bases and a 48.3% hard-hit rate. His average exit velocity was 91.8 miles per hour over that small sample size, and he only had a 12.8% strikeout rate.
Mauricio has a great blend of power, speed and contact, so he brings a very high ceiling as he joins the Mets. If he makes the start on Tuesday against lefty Clayton Kershaw, the 24-year-old switch-hitter brings an immense ceiling at the minimum salary of just $2,000.
