We’ve got a seven-game slate for Thursday’s MLB action, starting at 12:15 pm ET. Hooray for afternoon baseball!
Let’s find some studs and values for your MLB DFS lineups on DraftKings. This article was written before lineups were announced.
Make your DraftKings MLB DFS picks here: MLB $150K BatFlip [$50K to 1st]
PITCHER
Stud
Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals, $10,300 —
After Skenes’ first outing, in which he lasted only 0.2 innings and gave up five earned runs for -10.7 FPTS, the victory-lapping by his haters was swiftly shut down. The reigning NL Cy Young has put up at least 20 FPTS in four of five starts since, with a high of 33.2 FPTS. His lone miss was 17.2 FPTS. Skenes’ numbers are slightly down from last year, but his 27.3% strikeout rate and 20.9% K-BB% remain elite. His FIP is 2.88, and he has only allowed two home runs in 29 innings. While he’s benefitted from a .174 BABIP, Skenes boasts a 29.6% hard-hit rate and a 4.2% barrel rate, along with an average exit velocity of just 85 mph.
Value
Andrew Abbott, Cincinnati Reds vs. Colorado Rockies, $6,700 —
Abbott has gotten off to an abysmal start, posting a 6.59 ERA with a 14.3% strikeout rate and 4.5% K-BB%. That said, he’s been very unlucky, as evidenced by a .351 and a 63.9% strand rate. In addition, Abbott has a career strikeout rate of 21.6%, so positive regression should occur. That could start in this one, as Colorado leads MLB with a 25.3% K-rate.
INFIELD
Stud
Elly De La Cruz, Cincinnati Reds vs. Colorado Rockies, $6,200 —
De La Cruz is hitting .283 with a .933 OPS and a .299 ISO through 130 plate appearances. He has 10 home runs, 26 runs scored, 24 RBIs, and eight stolen bases. De La Cruz’s average exit velocity is a whopping 95.8 mph, which ranks in MLB’s 99th percentile. He has also posted a 17.5% barrel rate with 75 mph bat speed. He’s put up double-digit FPTS 13 times, including five performances over 20 FPTS and a high of 44 FPTS.
Nathaniel Lowe, Cincinnati Reds vs. Colorado Rockies, $2,700 — Lowe has only had 52 plate appearances, but he’s slashing .265/.345/.571 with four home runs. The walk rate is 9.6%, while the strikeout rate is just 15.4%. The ISO is .319. Lowe also sports a career-high 91.3 mph average exit velocity, along with a 10.3% barrel rate — his first time in double digits since 2020. His bat speed has increased from 72.7 mph last season to 74.5 mph in 2026. Against righties, he’s hitting .342 with a 211 wRC+ and a .395 ISO.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Juan Soto, New York Mets vs. Washington Nationals, $5,800 —
Soto only has 59 plate appearances on the season due to injury. While his plate discipline remains elite, his ISO sits at .161, while the BABIP is an elevated .325. Soto’s 90.9 mph average exit velocity and 40.5% hard-hit rate are both career lows, while the launch angle and barrel rate are much lower than last season. The road to positive regression started Tuesday as he hit a home run off Zack Littell. Who hasn’t? Soto then went 3-for-5 with another homer and a double on Wednesday, which his advanced stats have yet to account for. Now he gets to face Miles Mikolas, who owns a 6.94 FIP, 5.4% K-BB% and has allowed seven home runs in 23.1 innings. And Washington’s bullpen isn’t much better.
Carson Benge, New York Mets vs. Washington Nationals, $3,000 — Yup, we’re stacking against the Nationals’ pitching staff once again. The season-long numbers are gross for Benge, as the slash is .186/.247/.279 with a .098 ISO. His BABIP is only .230, though. The rookie’s barrel rate is just 4.8%, but his average exit velocity is an encouraging 91.1 mph. Benge had posted an impressive .250 ISO with three multi-hit games in the five contests leading up to Wednesday’s blowout loss. While the .429 BABIP fueled the .438/.438/.688 slash line, his average exit velocity sat at 94.4 mph.
