Major League Baseball finished up a busy Wednesday of action with a six-game slate under the lights. It’s mostly an American League slate, with two National League divisional matchups included to spice things up. The last game of the night has the potential to be the spiciest of all since it is scheduled for 8:40 p.m. ET at Coors Field, where offenses always have a higher probablitlity of going off. The first two of the six night games get underway at 7:10 p.m. ET, and that’s when the contests lock. With 12 teams of players in the pool, let’s take a look at some of the top MLB DFS picks for this Wednesday.
While the weather can be a concern as we head into the summer, the six games on Wednesday night look relatively clear. The wind will be blowing out at Citi Field, giving bats a little bit of a boost, while the Coors Field effect is in play for the Giants and Rockies in the last game on the slate.
Let’s break down the top options in my MLB DFS picks.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $175K Bat Flip [$50K to 1st].
PITCHER
Stud
Robbie Ray, San Francisco Giants at Colorado Rockies, $9,300: The standout stud starting pitchers on Wednesday night each have some significant risk factors. Kris Bubic ($9,600) is the most expensive play despite his matchup with the Yankees, and Ray has been in good form but is pitching in the rarified air of Coors Field. I am ok with the added risk of rolling with Ray in this environment because he brings such a high strikeout ceiling. Even if he does give up a few runs, his strikeouts will likely be enough to compensate for any damage in MLB DFS contests.
The 2021 AL Cy Young winner is 8-1 in his 13 starts this year and has an exceptional 2.44 ERA and 3.03 FIP. He has bounced back very nicely after being limited to just 34 innings over the last two seasons and picked up 87 strikeouts in his 77 1/3 innings this season. He is averaging 22.2 fantasy points per start and has posted over 25 fantasy points in four straight starts by dominating the Royals, Nationals, Marlins and Padres.
This will be his second matchup against the Rockies this season after earning an impressive 33.4 fantasy points against them in seven shutout innings on May 2. That was at Oracle Park, though, while this matchup is at Coors Field. The Rockies’ strikeout numbers have been a little better over the last week, but they still lead the NL with a 26.4% strikeout rate on the season. They are only hitting .220 as a team with a .286 wOBA, both of which are the lowest numbers in the majors. The boost from facing such a struggling offense cancels out the Coors Field headwind for Ray this Wednesday, leaving him as a great option to build around with lots of upside in the last matchup on the board.
Value
David Festa, Minnesota Twins, $7,200: With both Zebby Matthews (shoulder) and Pablo Lopez (lat) on the injured list, Festa should have plenty of leash in the Twins’ rotation over the next few weeks. The rookie looked outstanding in Triple-A and has flashed a high upside in the majors as well. He was knocked around in his first start since his promotion on Thursday, but should be set to bounce back at home against the Rangers.
He made three home starts in the majors earlier this season, earning double-digit fantasy points in each outing with a high point of 17.6 fantasy points against the Mets. In Triple-A, the 25-year-old went 2-1 in six starts with a 2.83 ERA, 2.53 FIP and 10.7 K/9. He had 5+ strikeouts in each of his last four minor league starts and each of his last three major league starts, so while he isn’t at Ray’s level, there is definitely some strikeout upside.
The Rangers have the second-lowest wOBA in the majors this year, ahead of only the Rockies, and over the last month, they have scored just 3.7 runs per game with an MLB-low .213 team batting average and 24.3% strikeout rate.
INFIELD
Stud
Jeremy Pena, Houston Astros vs. Chicago White Sox, $4,500: While elite options Francisco Lindor ($5,800) and Bobby Witt Jr. ($5,700) always bring high MLB DFS ceilings and come in hot to their Wednesday night matchups, Pena saves some sigificant salary and has also been swinging a hot stick from the top of a lineup in a great matchup. The Astros face Sean Burke ($6,500), who has let righties hit .261 with a .330 wOBA and .435 SLG in the reverse splits.
Pena is on the strong side of that matchup and comes in having hit safely in 14 of his last 15 games while going 25-for-62 (.403) with five doubles, three home runs, seven stolen bases and a .458 wOBA. His added aggressiveness on the bases has helped him average 12.2 fantasy points pre game over that span, but he is still available at a very reasonable salary.
Stud
Maikel Garcia, Kansas City Royals vs. New York Yankees, $4,500: Garcia has also been a dual-threat lately for the Royals with three stolen bases and two home runs over his last seven games while hitting right behind Witt in the third spot in the order.
Over his last 10 games he has produced 11.2 fantasy points per game while hitting .308 with a .409 wOBA. He and the Royals will take on Clarke Schmidt ($8,500) and the Yankees as they look to bounce back after losing on Tuesday, 10-2.
Value
Kyle Teel, Chicago White Sox at Houston Astros, $2,400: Teel remains a great value behind the plate after earning his promotion to the majors before last weekend. As I highlighted in Tuesday’s value picks, Teel hit .295 with eight home runs, seven stolen bases and an impressive .399 wOBA in Triple-A for the Charlotte Knights.
He had a 41.9% hard-hit rate in Triple-A and has continued to hit the ball well since his call-up. He has a 57.1% hard-hit rate in his four games while going 3-for-10 (.300) with four walks and at least six points in three of his four games. Teel brings a very high ceiling for a play under $2,500 and is a great way to fill in a sometimes-tricky catcher spot in your MLB DFS lineup.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Aaron Judge, New York Yankees at Kansas City Royals, $6,500: Judge is going against the highest-priced pitcher on the slate, but does it really even matter anymore? He is in such a zone that he is virtually matchup-proof for MLB DFS at this point and continues to produce monster stats almost every night.
On the year, he’s still hitting .396 with 24 homers, a .380 ISO, and a .522 wOBA. He has nine homers in his last 19 games after going yard on Tuesday, and has a 57.1% hard-hit rate over that span. He has the highest rate of barrels per plate appearance in the majors this season, the most barrels overall and the third-highest average exit velocity. All the metrics back up his oustanding production, and he’ll look to keep that going on Wednesday against Bubic.
Stud
Jarren Duran, Boston Red Sox vs. Tampa Bay Rays, $4,700: Especially since his salary has dipped back under $5,000, you can pair this Red Sox star in the outfield along with the Yankees star in Judge–no fighting! Duran has hit safely in eight straight games, going 11-for-34 (.324) with six extra-base hits, six runs scored and an average of 10.4 fantasy points per game.
He has strong splits at Fenway Park with a .314 home batting average and .379 home wOBA. He also gets a good matchup with Zack Littell ($7,300), who has struggled on the road the last two seasons.
Value
Willi Castro, Minnesota Twins vs. Texas Rangers, $3,400: Castro is a good bargain play for the Twins as they face Jack Leiter ($7,500) and the Rangers. Over his last 11 games, Castro is 15-for-38 (.395) with four homers, a double and a stolen base for 11.5 fantasy points per game.
The switch-hitting utility player can slide to the infield at 2B if that works better in your roster builds, and his versatility has been a huge help for the Twins as they’ve battled injuries. He had three hits on Sunday for 15 fantasy points against the Blue Jays and has found a nice groove that gives him good MLB DFS upside from under $3,500.
