It is a smaller MLB slate today, with nine scheduled games taking place. But there are still some intriguing matchups to get involved in. Starting at 6:40 p.m. ET, the Reds will play the Guardians, and the Marlins will face the Pirates. Then the Phillies will look to snap a five-game losing streak as they host the Cubs. The Braves will face the Brewers, and the Blue Jays will continue taking on the Cardinals. This builds out to a pair of matchups starting at 9:40 p.m. ET, taking place between the Diamondbacks and Mariners while the Dodgers face the Padres. One of the more unique features on DraftKings this year is Pick6 Fantasy Baseball!
This article will look at my top Pick6 plays for today’s action, 6/9/25. You simply choose whether each set statistic will be more or less than the set number. With the stage set, here are my favorite picks on the MLB slate.
Trea Turner More Than 1.5 Total Bases
It has been a lifeless stretch of baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies. They have lost nine of their last 10 games and have tallied just eight runs across their recent five-game losing streak. Trea Turner has been an exception to the quiet offensive production, and the Phillies will need him to continue delivering if they are to snap things.
Across the season overall, Turner is slashing .300/.353/.446 with a .800 OPS. He leads the National League in hits with 78 on the season, with 116 total bases on the year. Even amid the team’s slump, Turner has tallied 13 hits and 23 total bases across the past 11 games. He tallied more than 1.5 total bases in five of the past seven games. This will be his first career matchup against Matthew Boyd, but Turner has hit better against left-handed pitching this season and throughout his career. This season, he is slashing .325/.371/.518 with a .889 OPS against lefties. Look for Turner to continue doing his best to elevate this Phillies offense and tally more than 1.5 total bases again tonight.
Nick Castellanos More Than 0.5 Hits
Another mostly bright spot in a struggling Phillies lineup has been Nick Castellanos. While he has shown some regression in his plate approach from the start of the season, he is slashing .282/.323/.420 with a .744 OPS. His slugging is slightly down, but Castellanos is performing as expected. He has tallied 69 total hits across his first 65 games and has two doubles in his five career at-bats against Matthew Boyd.
Castellanos has consistently hit better against left-handed pitching. He is hitting .300 against left-handers this season. The 33-year-old has tallied a hit in four of his past five games with six hits total across this stretch. To push it further, he has gotten a hit in eight of his past 12 games and 17 of his past 25. Expect desperation to kick in with this Phillies team a bit and for the bats to wake up today. Look for Castellanos to be involved in this effort and tally a hit again tonight.
Merrill Kelly More Than 5.5 Strikeouts
The Diamondbacks are looking to bounce back after being swept by the Reds in the previous series. Merrill Kelly will be on the mound as the series starts against the Mariners. It has been a strong start to the season for Kelly, who enters with a 6-2 record and a 3.43 ERA. He has struck out 72 batters across his 76.0 innings pitched with a 23.8% strikeout rate so far this season.
Kelly is producing a 10.3% swinging-strike rate, which is the second-best mark of his career. He has leaned on his four-seam fastball and changeup at a greater rate this season after his cutter was his most utilized pitch last season. Using the cutter less frequently has caught hitters off guard, with the whiff rate up almost seven percent on this pitch. Kelly tallied eight strikeouts in his previous start and has tallied more than 5.5 strikeouts in six consecutive outings entering tonight. The Seattle Mariners have tallied the fourth-most strikeouts per game at 8.98 per contest this season. Look for Kelly to continue cruising against a Mariners offense that has been vulnerable to striking out. Count on him to tally more than 5.5 strikeouts for the seventh straight game and give the Diamondbacks his best chance at a victory tonight.
Corbin Carroll More Than 1.5 Total Bases
At the plate for the Diamondbacks, this is a great spot for Corbin Carroll to continue building off his strong start to the season. The 24-year-old is off to a strong start and has been especially hot of late. Across the season, he is slashing .259/.339/.565 with a .904 OPS. Carroll has 18 home runs and leads the National League with six triples. He is batting .333 over the past five games with a pair of home runs and 12 total bases tallied across this stretch.
Emerson Hancock will be getting the start for the Mariners tonight, entering with a 5.19 ERA and having allowed nine home runs across his 10 starts. Carroll has faced Hancock just twice in his career but is hitting .270 with a .997 OPS against right-handers and has tallied 15 of his 18 home runs against righties. Hancock has not escaped a start without at least one earned run allowed and is averaging 5.7 hits conceded per start. Look for Carroll to capitalize tonight and tally more than 1.5 total bases.
Dustin May More Than 4.5 Strikeouts
The Los Angeles Dodgers will open up a series against the San Diego Padres, which is a tough matchup. But Dustin May is off to a solid start to the season and will be on the mound for the Dodgers tonight. May is posting a 4.09 ERA through his first 11 starts with 63 strikeouts across his first 61.2 innings pitched.
May has improved his strikeout rate to 24.2% this season with his sweeper producing an impressive 30.4% whiff rate. The Padres have fared well this season against right-handed pitching and are striking out at just an 18.5% rate. But this has lowered the prop number to a point where I am comfortable with May at 4.5. He has cleared this number in nine of his 11 starts, including striking out eight or more in three of his past four starts. The 27-year-old has taken strides forward in his understanding of how to attack hitters after already having some impressive quality of pitching that have been evident. Look for him to continue building off his strong start and tally more than 4.5 strikeouts tonight.
Manny Machado More Than 1.5 Total Bases
One player whom May should be wary of is Manny Machado. The Padres’ star has been red-hot of late and continues to perform at an All-Star level. So far this season, Machado is slashing .318/.382/.515 with a .897 OPS. He has tallied 76 hits and 123 total bases across his first 64 games. Over the past seven games, he is hitting .393 with three home runs, 11 total hits, and a 1.166 OPS.
Machado has faced May 28 times across their professional careers, tallying seven hits with two home runs, one double, and four RBIs. While May has been solid overall, he has been vulnerable to home runs. The Dodgers’ right-hander has given up at least one home run in six straight starts and conceded eight in his 11 starts overall. Machado has tallied more than 1.5 total bases in four straight games and seven of his last 10 games played. Look for him to build off this and add to the total in this National League battle tonight.
What is DraftKings Pick6?
Pick6 is a peer-to-peer fantasy variant where you build a lineup (your “Pick Set”) of 2+ players and select whether or not you believe each will outperform their listed stat projection. Enter your Pick Set in Pick6 contests to compete against other users. Get enough picks correct and win a share of cash prizes.
How to Play
Create a Pick Set
Create a Pick Set by choosing 2+ players from the same sport and Pick Group (a set of picks available from a group of set competitions). For each player, simply select if you think they’ll have more or less than their listed stat projection. In each Pick Set, you can not pick the same player twice and you must pick players from at least two different teams.
Enter an Amount
Once you finalize your Pick Set, choose your entry fee amount. Your entries will be automatically distributed into available contests, subject to your confirmation.
Sweat Your Picks
When the games go live, use the My Picks tab to follow your picks in real time to track how your players are performing against their projections and how they stack up against other users.
Compete for Prizes
Make enough correct picks and win a share of the contests’ guaranteed prizes. Any prizes won will be credited to your DraftKings account after contests are finalized.
Play at DraftKings Pick6 or by downloading the DraftKings Pick6 app on Apple or Google!
