Tuesday is officially upon us with a lovely 12-game slate for MLB DFS contests on DraftKings. Contests lock at 7:05 p.m. EST with first pitch taking place for the Yankees, Blue Jays and Mets, while the Cubs, Mariners, Tigers and Dodgers are all in action later in the evening. With so many talented baseball teams in action, there’s no shortage of talent in the player pool.
Let’s get Tuesday’s contests rolling with three must-start players for tonight’s MLB DFS lineups.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $200K Bat Flip [$50K to 1st]
SP Matthew Boyd, Cubs @ Giants; $8,700
Astros stud Hunter Brown headlines today’s stable of pitchers, but with an $11,000 salary, he’s a very costly option. The next tier of arms includes a couple of intriguing options, but the Cubs’ Matthew Boyd looks like a nice pick among the bunch. The lefty averages 18.3 FPPG and has seen some highs and lows lately, but he’s displayed a 30-point ceiling and sees a positive matchup this evening against the Giants. Boyd boasts a 2.61 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 129 strikeouts across 148 innings of work. While not an elite punchout pitcher, Boyd offers other upside by inducing soft contact, limiting baserunners and often pitching deep into games. He posted 23.9 points against the Giants in his lone matchup against the team this season, and San Francisco falls 25th in average and OPS over the last month with the sixth-most strikeouts. Boyd’s a solid starter to build a lineup around.
1B Nick Kurtz, Athletics vs. Tigers; $5,900
Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz is in the midst of one of the best rookie seasons in recent memory, but he’s standing out even among longtime pros. The left-handed slugger slashes .308/.398/.640 with 66 runs, 70 RBI and 27 homers in his 91 games. With 10.2 FPPG, Kurtz remains a great fantasy baseball pick on most nights, but he’s averaged 12.8 FPPG over his last 10 games as well. Over that span, he’s tallied 16 points, 18 points, 21 points twice, and even a 30-bomb. The guy looks like one of the best hitters in the sport and sees a tasty matchup against the Tigers and right-hander Charlie Morton (5.09 ERA, 1.47 WHIP, 130 SO), who’s giving up the highest average exit velocity of his long career which ranks in the 12th percentile. Kurtz could easily go yard again this evening.
OF George Springer, Blue Jays vs. Twins; $5,000
I put Blue Jays outfielder George Springer in this column yesterday and he responded with a 17-point outing against ace Joe Ryan. Somehow, the veteran’s salary dropped $100 after that showing despite entering an easier matchup on Tuesday evening. Springer averages 9.1 FPPG this season and 12.4 FPPG over his last 10 contests. Slashing .294/.384/.522 with 75 runs, 65 RBI and 22 homers, he just keeps on producing big nights on the diamond (as well as the virtual one in our lineups). Springer now sees the benefit of a date with Bailey Ober (5.05 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 93 SO), who limits walks and forces batters to chase but hasn’t done much else well this season. The hurler doesn’t bring good velocity and his exit velo numbers are average at best, so I like Springer again tonight.
