It’s Monday. Everyone’s least favorite day. Although DraftKings is trying it’s best to change that vibe with an absolutely stacked crop of starting pitchers for its nine-game featured MLB DFS slate this evening.
We’ve got Yoshinobu Yamamoto ($10,500). We’ve got Jacob deGrom ($10,300). Heck, we’ve got Yu Darvish ($8,300) coming off the IL and making his first start of the season.
Let’s break it all down and sort through the night’s top picks.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $225K Rally Cap [$50K to 1st]
PITCHER
Stud
Cristopher Sanchez, Philadelphia Phillies at San Francisco Giants, $8,800 – A popular narrative-based strategy in NBA DFS is rostering the player that just got snubbed from the All-Star Game. Will it work in MLB DFS? I think so, at least as it specifically pertains to Sanchez. The left-hander has been amazing all season long, but he’s been especially dominant in his last five starts. It’s a span of time where Sanchez has pitched to a 1.80 ERA with an even better 1.49 FIP. That’s what happens when you strike out 34 opponents and walk only two in 34.0 innings of work. It’s also a stretch where Sanchez has exceeded 24 FPTS in four of his five outings. To be blunt, Sanchez should be a National League All-Star and he should be more expensive than $8,800 on tonight’s slate. It doesn’t hurt that he’ll be facing the Giants at Oracle Park, either. Across the past two weeks, San Francisco owns the league’s seventh-highest strikeout rate (23.9%).
Value
Yusei Kikuchi, Los Angeles Angels vs. Texas Rangers, $7,200 – Let’s keep riding the Kikuchi train, shall we? The veteran LHP is still outperforming his ERA estimators, but we’re now 18 starts into Kikuchi’s season and he’s managing a 2.81 ERA and averaging over a strikeout per inning. I don’t think we have to keep looking for reasons to tear the man down. He’s been even better since May 7, as Kikuchi’s in possession of a 2.05 ERA and a 3.09 FIP with a 26.7% strikeout rate. I have no idea how he remains this cheap on DraftKings. Take advantage of the savings on Monday, as Kikuchi and the Angels will draw the Rangers. Texas hasn’t been able to hit lefties throughout 2025, sporting a .216 average and a 72 wRC+ within the split — the lowest mark in the American League.
INFIELD
Stud
Elly De La Cruz, Cincinnati Reds vs. Miami Marlins, $5,900 – De La Cruz is on the heels of an amazing month of June, where he managed to hit .344 with a 191 wRC+. July hasn’t gotten off to quite as explosive a beginning, but all that could change this evening in a matchup with Janson Junk ($6,000). Not only is Junk right-handed — a well-known requirement to use De La Cruz in DFS — but he’s struggled with LHBs throughout his career. To wit, the 167 that Junk has faced at the MLB level have combined to slash .342/.370/.542 with a .388 wOBA. Woof.
Stud
Maikel Garcia, Kansas City Royals vs. Pittsburgh Pirates, $4,400 – Garcia is in the midst of a true breakout campaign and a big reason for his overall success has been his play against left-handed opponents. In 72 plate appearances within the split in 2025, Garcia is slashing .328/.366/.567 with a .400 wOBA. He’ll look to continue that success on Monday in a matchup with the struggling Andrew Heaney ($6,500), who owns an inflated 6.03 ERA over his past seven outings. After a decent start to the season, the veteran southpaw is crumbling.
Value
Carlos Narvaez, Boston Red Sox vs. Colorado Rockies, $3,600 – I don’t usually spend too much time talking up a non-Coors hitting environment for a Rockies game, but it’ll be a muggy night in Boston with the winds blowing out towards the Green Monster. If that sounds like ideal DFS conditions, you’d be correct in thinking so. Narvaez has crushed LHPs this season, slashing .296/.405/.521 with a 158 wRC+. This evening’s lefty will be Austin Gomber ($4,500), who’s posted a 6.14 xERA in his four starts so far in 2025. The Red Sox might put up a couple crooked numbers in this one and Narvaez will likely be in the middle of it all.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego Padres vs. Arizona Diamondbacks, $5,600 – Tatis has cooled since a red-hot April, but he still enters tonight’s tilt with Zac Gallen ($7,800) and the Diamondbacks in possession of a 92nd percentile average exit velocity (93.0) and a 90th percentile expected wOBA (.384). Tatis is also on pace to break his career-high in stolen bases this season, so there’s a number of ways he can contribute in your lineups. As for Gallen, well, it’s been a tough 2025. Through 18 starts, the RHP has registered an ugly 5.45 ERA and he’s given up 20 opponent home runs — the second-most of any NL pitcher. Between him and an underwhelming Arizona bullpen, Tatis is a great place to spend up on this slate.
Value
Rob Refsnyder, Boston Red Sox vs. Colorado Rockies, $3,700 – We don’t have to delve too deep into this one. Refsynder is one the league’s best one-trick ponies. He hits left-handed pitchers at an elite level. Just look at his .398 wOBA or his 155 wRC+ within the split so far this season. He should be two or three cracks at the aforementioned Gomber tonight, and I assume he’ll have an impact.
