On Monday night, the MLB has a great eight-game slate to get the week underway with plenty of fantasy baseball goodness on the board. As always, DraftKings has a wide variety of ways to get a piece of the fantasy baseball action, including GPPs, Tiers and Pick6. For this post, we’re focused on some prime picks for MLB DFS cash games.
This style of contest gives managers the opportunity to double the entry fee since almost half of the players are paid out. These 50/50 or “double-up” contests are best suited for lineups with high floors and as little risk as possible. In on-diamond terms, we’re looking to hit singles with these lineups, not home runs. Variance is not as much of a factor here as we look for players with high floors regardless of their ceilings. In short, these should be the safest and most consistent MLB DFS plays of the slate.
With all that in mind, let’s dive into my top picks.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Single Entry $10 Double Up.
SP Bryce Elder, Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals, $8,200
The Braves have been rolling lately and are five games clear of the rest of their division after a five-game winning streak that included their weekend sweep of the Phillies in Philadelphia. They’ll look to pick up their sixth straight win on Monday night as they visit the Nationals and give the ball to Elder, who has been very strong in the early part of the season.
Elder has allowed only a total of two earned runs in his four starts, averaging 21.9 FPTS per outing and racking up 23 strikeouts in 23 1/3 innings. He had 26.6 FPTS in his last start, which was against the Marlins last Wednesday. He left after only 79 pitches, but got through 5 2/3 scoreless innings with just four hits and two walks to go with his seven strikeouts.
While the Nats lineup has some power and run production potential, the Braves should be able to get Elder plenty of run support against Jake Irvin ($6,100). The Braves are the second-heaviest favorite of the night behind only the Dodgers and the Nationals have the lowest implied run total, so Elder has a good chance at getting a win with another strong outing on Monday.
3B Austin Riley, Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals, $3,800
One of the Braves’ bats that has been fueling their recent surge has been Austin Riley’s. The 29-year-old righty is hitting .250 on the season but has gone 15-for-47 (.319) over his last 11 games with three doubles, three homers and a pair of stolen bases. He has a 52.6% hard-hit rate over that span with a .574 SLG and .255 ISO.
Riley is 3-for-9 with two walks against Irvin in the past, and he has at least seven FPTS in nine of those 11 games, showing the kind of balanced production with upside we’re looking for in MLB DFS picks in general and fantasy baseball cash plays specifically.
OF Leody Taveras, Baltimore Orioles at Kansas City Royals, $3,100
Taveras has been another steady producer at a very reasonable salary for the Orioles. He had hit safely in seven straight games before he struck out as a pinch-hitter in Sunday’s loss. Taveras is hitting .359 on the season and went 8-for-20 (.400) during his seven-game heater with a double, a homer, a stolen base and an average of 9.7 FPTS per game.
While he may not be the splashiest play, he does have good upside with both power and speed potential and has been consistent enough to be a solid option at just over $3,000 as the Orioles roll into Kansas City to face the Royals and Seth Lugo ($9,600). Taveras’ high batting average and consistent production make him a nice value play for cash lineups.
