On Wednesday night, Major League Baseball has a solid five-game slate on the board for fantasy baseball competitions after a busy full afternoon of baseball as well. With 10 teams in the player pool, you might have to get creative to include the big-name stars you want to pay up for in certain spots. If you’re shopping for a bargain play who brings good upside at a reduced salary, check out these three MLB DFS value picks for Wednesday night
Whenever you’re putting together a fantasy baseball team, it pays to double-check for weather and lineup updates before first pitch. While the weather looks mostly clear and two of these five games are indoors, it still makes sense to make sure your MLB DFS value picks are in the lineup and in the place in the batting order that you expect.
Check out the full range of MLB coverage from the team at DraftKings Network, since these bargains are just one piece of the MLB DFS picture to consider.
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SP Nestor Cortes, San Diego Padres at Arizona Diamondbacks, $6,900
In my main MLB DFS picks for the day, I highlighted Jeffrey Springs ($6,800) as a good value play against the Nationals, but another high-risk, high-upside play I like a lot on Wednesday night is Nasty Nestor in his Padres’ debut against the Diamondbacks. Cortes arrived with the Padres at the trade deadline in a deal from the Brewers, who acquired him from the Yankees last offseason. Unfortunately, the veteran lefty only made two starts for the Brew Crew this season before landing on the injured list with a left elbow flexor strain, which has kept him out since early April.
Cortes made four rehab starts for the Brewers, but he showed enough that he will be added right into the rotation by the Padres. During those four starts in High-A and Triple-A, he had a 1.00 ERA and 0.72 WHIP while racking up 18 strikeouts in 18 innings. He looked especially sharp in his last outing, giving up just four hits and one earned runs in 5 2/3 innings while picking up nine strikeouts.
The Snakes should be a good matchup for Cortes in his return since they rank last in the majors in runs scored over the last two weeks, with just a .217 team batting average and a 77 wRC+, meaning they have been 23% below league average in run creation over that span.
3B/SS Darrell Hernaiz, Athletics at Washington Nationals, $2,800
I highlighted Tyler Locklear ($2,400) and Eli White ($2,500) in my main MLB DFS picks for the day, but there are plenty of other options in the bargain bin to consider this Wednesday. Hernaiz is coming off a monster night on Tuesday, when he homered and helped the A’s get a 16-7 win in Washington with 23 fantasy points.
Hernaiz is filling in at shortstop for the Athletics while Jacob Wilson (forearm) is on the injured list. Since Wilson doesn’t have a clear timeline and the A’s are out of the playoff race, they’ll take it easy with their cornerstone shortstop, especially with Hernaiz showing he can step in and contribute as well.
Since his promotion on July 25, the 23-year-old Hernaiz has gone 7-for-24 (.318) with two homers, four RBI, a stolen base, and a 43.5% hard-hit rate. He has hit safely in all but one of his six games, averaging 9.0 fantasy points per contest. At Triple-A, Hernaiz was hitting .305 for the Las Vegas Aviators with four homers, 12 stolen bases, and a solid .369 wOBA. Hernaiz isn’t one of the A’s big-name prospects, but he’s in a good spot as part of a very productive lineup right now, so he’s worth a look as long as he stays so hot.
3B Nacho Alvarez Jr., Atlanta Braves vs. Milwaukee Brewers, $2,100
Alvarez is filling in for the Braves at 3B with Austin Riley (abdomen) back on the injured list, and he still comes at a bargain salary that is barely over the minimum, even though he brings serious upside. MLB Pipeline ranked Alvarez as the No. 3 prospect in the Braves system, and last year he rose from Single-A to Triple-A, while hitting .284 with 10 homers and 26 stolen bases for a 129 wRC+.
He’s gotten limited playing time in the majors this season, hitting .222 with no homers or stolen bases, but he went 1-for-3 with five fantasy points in each of his first two games since his promotion earlier this week. He missed most of the year with “wrist inflammation” that landed him on the 60-day injured list, but he has the raw ability to produce big plays if he’s healthy, and the Braves will likely get a long look at the 22-year-old the rest of this season to see how he can fit into their future plans.
