On Friday, Major League Baseball has a 12-game slate under the lights, providing plenty of great options for MLB DFS contests in a massive 24-team player pool. As you get your team together to start the weekend with a win, you may need to find a few bargain plays to include in your lineup in order to pay up for your key superstars. In this post, I’ll highlight my top three bargain plays for Friday’s 12-game slate of MLB DFS action.
As always, be sure to double-check weather conditions and lineups before the first pitch. New York, Washington, Cincinnati, St. Louis and Denver all have rain that could impact the games on Friday, and since it’s the start of weekend series, we could get some games pushed further into the weekend as doubleheaders. Be sure to check the latest before game time.
As you make out your lineup card for this Friday night, 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 $200K Rally Cap [$50K to 1st]
SP Logan Allen, Cleveland Guardians vs. Houston Astros, $6,000
It has undoubtedly been an up-and-down year for the 26-year-old lefty, but he has flashed enough of a ceiling to be worth a look at this salary on Friday night, when all of the cheap pitchers come with lots of “bust” to go with their potential “boom.”
Allen worked a clean inning out of the bullpen since his last start, which was May 25 in Detroit. His last home start was one of his best of the season, as he went six scoreless innings against the Brewers with six strikeouts and 27.1 fantasy points. While that was a season high, he has earned 12+ fantasy points in five of his 10 starts. He is 3-3 with a 4.22 ERA, 4.18 FIP, 1.59 WHIP and 17.1% strikeout rate.
On Friday, Allen will be on the strong side of his splits at home against the Astros. Houston had to play a late, rain-delayed game in Pittsburgh on Thursday. Over the last two weeks, the Astros have averaged 3.8 runs per game while hitting .266 as a team. They have hit lefties well this year, but I still think Allen brings good upside at only $6,000 on Friday.
1B/2B Keston Hiura, Colorado Rockies vs. New York Mets, $2,500
Hiura was a top prospect not that long ago for the Brewers, but he could never hit for enough average to stick in the majors despite his good power. He didn’t play in the majors at all in 2023 and split last year between the Tigers and Angels organizations. He got had great numbers in Triple-A for the Halos, hitting .354 with 20 homers in 37 games. He struggled again in his 10 MLB games, hitting just .148 with no home runs.
In January, he signed with the Rockies and hit .243 with nine homers, a .368 wOBA and 27 RBI in his 46 games in Albuquerque. He joined the MLB roster on June 1 and has gone 2-for-9 (.222) with a double and a pair of hard-hit batted ball events in his first four games.
Hiura still has raw power and makes sense as a bargain play at this salary while he’s playing at Coors Field. He could be a really late bloomer and stick with the Rockies or he could continue to struggle with a high strikeout rate and low batting average. At this salary, though, he can be a punt play with excellent upside while filling in at either 1B or 2B on Friday’s slate.
OF Daniel Johnson, San Francisco Giants vs. Atlanta Braves, $2,300
I’ve been hyping Denzel Clarke ($2,500) in my bargains earlier this week, and I still think he’s a good option against Dean Kremer ($6,800). Another play to consider, though, is Daniel Johnson of the Giants, who earned a promotion to the majors earlier this week.
Johnson has spent time in the MLB over the last few seasons with the Guardians and Orioles, and he signed as a free agent with the Giants on May 2. In Triple-A, he hit .272 with six homers, five stolen bases, a .361 wOBA and a 50.6% hard-hit rate.
He went 2-for-4 with a stolen base and 15 fantasy points in his first game of the season on Wednesday, and hit leadoff on Thursday. He went 0-for-4 out of the leadoff spot and didn’t earn any fantasy points, but if he’s in that spot again as the Giants face righty Spencer Schwellenbach ($10,000), he could be an elite value play in a premium lineup spot. The Giants shook up their roster and are looking for a spark on offense, and Johnson is a good option at this salary to give them some added juice in the outfield.
