We’ve got a 12-game slate for Friday night’s MLB action. TGIF!
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 $200K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
PITCHER
Stud
Ryan Weathers, New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox ($9,300) — Weathers has a 29% strikeout rate and 21.6% K-BB%. He has given up 11 home runs in 64 innings and the FIP is 3.88, but he’s put up double-digit FPTS in all but one start this season, with four of those over 20 and a high of 32.9 FPTS. Boston is 27th in ISO and 25th in wRC+.
Value
Roki Sasaki, Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Los Angeles Angels ($7,700) — Sasaki was putrid to start the season. In the first seven starts, he posted a 6.51 FIP with a 9.6% K-BB%. He allowed nine home runs with an average exit velocity of 90.7 mph and a barrel rate of 12.3%. In the three most recent outings, the FIP is 2.18 while the K-BB% is a robust 24.6%. The average exit velocity is down to 86.4 mph while the launch angle is 7.7 degrees. He’s put up 21.6, 15.6 and 31.4 FPTS over that span. Now he faces an Angels team that is first in strikeouts and 18th in wRC+.
INFIELD
Stud
CJ Abrams, Washington Nationals at Arizona Diamondbacks ($5,700) — Abrams has 12 home runs 28 runs, 47 RBI and nine stolen bases in 265 plate appearances. Against right-handed pitching, the wRC+ is a whopping 171 while the ISO is .282. Merrill Kelly is allowing an average exit velocity of 90.5 mph with a barrel rate of 16.3%. Against lefties, the FIP is 6.88 while the K-BB% is -0.7%. Seven of the 10 home runs allowed have come off the bat of a lefty.
Value
Kyle Manzardo, Cleveland Guardians at Texas Rangers ($2,900) — Manzardo has a 33.9% strikeout rate, but the barrel rate is 13.5%. He has seven home runs in 189 plate appearances, six of those off right-handed pitching. Against said righties, the ISO is .181. Kumar Rocker has a 4.48 FIP and 6.3% K-BB% against lefties. The matchup isn’t bad, but this is more of a cheap heat-check play, as Manzardo has hit a home run in two of the last three games, good for 21 and 24 FPTS.
OUTFIELD
Stud
James Wood, Washington Nationals at Arizona Diamondbacks ($6,200) — Wood has a high strikeout rate of 29.6%, but the ISO is .264 and he’s racked up 16 home runs, 53 runs, 39 RBI and 10 stolen bases. The average exit velocity is a whopping 96.1 mph while the barrel rate is 25%. The bat speed is 76.3 mph! Against right-handed pitching, the wRC+ is 173 with a .285 ISO. 12 of the 16 home runs have come off a righty. I went over the struggles that Kelly has had with lefties in the above Abrams section.
Value
Yohendrick Pinango, Toronto Blue Jays vs. Baltimore Orioles ($2,700) — Pinango has three home runs, eight runs and 16 RBI in 97 plate appearances. The .304 batting average is fueled by a .368 BABIP, the walk rate is only 5.2%, strikeout rate is 21.6% and the ISO is .141. Against right-handed pitching, the wRC+ is 140 with a .152 ISO. All three home runs have been hit off a righty. Brandon Young has a 4.77 FIP and 3.6% K-BB% against lefties.
