Another summer of baseball is evaporating quickly, and this weekend is already the final weekend in August. The busy weekend of fantasy baseball gets underway with a jam-packed slate on DraftKings that includes the 12 games that start at 7:05 p.m. ET or later. There is only one divisional game on tap, which comes from the NL Central, and there are only three interleague games as well. Most of the series are matchups from the same league but different divisions, many of which could have Wild Card race implications.
There are some potential weather issues in a few spots on Friday, so be sure to monitor for pregame updates that should impact your lineup. You can keep up with all the latest injury, weather, and lineup news by installing the DK Live app and following DraftKings Network on X (@DKNetwork). I’m also on X (@ZT_Sports), where you can keep up with all my picks as the regular season races play out and we get geared up for what should be an outstanding postseason.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $200K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
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PITCHER
Stud
Spencer Strider, Atlanta Braves at San Francisco Giants ($12,800) – Aside from the Pittsburgh Pirates, no one has been able to find much success against Strider this season. He leads the majors in strikeouts and K/9 by wide margins and has been one of the most productive fantasy options as an ace to build around. He is an impressive 14-4 in his 25 starts with a 3.57 ERA, 2.87 FIP and 227 strikeouts in his 146 1⁄3 innings. That means he’s averaging 9.1 strikeouts per game to go with his impressive average of 24.95 DKFP per contest.
Strider had that one bizarre outing in Pittsburgh that resulted in -4.8 DKFP, but other than that, he posted at least 26 DKFP in each of his past six outings while averaging 29.9 DKFP per start. His most recent start was also against the Giants, who have been an excellent matchup for opposing pitchers over the past 30 days. No team in the majors has scored fewer runs than the Giants over that period. Since the All-Star break, the Giants hit just .218 with a .281 wOBA and 25.5% K% while averaging only 3.6 runs per game. Strider gave up just one hit and one walk while striking out 10 in seven strong innings last Friday to post 37.95 DKFP. He has a similar ceiling in the rematch and can’t be overlooked even as the most expensive SP on the board. There are some excellent spots to save salary listed below that make paying up a strong possibility to consider on this slate.
Other Options – Kodai Senga ($9,600), Mitch Keller ($8,800)
Value
Dane Dunning, Texas Rangers at Minnesota Twins ($7,400) – After starting the season in the bullpen, Dunning has been forced to step into the starting rotation for Texas, and he has delivered several ceiling performances. After joining the rotation, he went 7-5 with a 3.45 ERA and 4.22 FIP in 19 starts. He had double-digit strikeouts in two of his four starts this month and posted an 11.57 K/9 rate to go with a 2.81 ERA and 3.30 FIP. Those two ceiling games resulted in 33.6 DKFP against the Giants and 38.9 DKFP against the Chicago White Sox.
Dunning is in a good spot to return value at this salary and gives a high ceiling as he takes on the Twins. In the last 30 days, the Twins have the fourth-highest K% in the majors, and they continue to be an offense that relies heavily on home runs. If Dunning can keep them in the ballpark on Friday night, he could end up being one of the top starting pitchers on the slate, even though he comes at this very attractive price point.
Other Options – Chris Bassitt ($8,000), Kutter Crawford ($6,600), Cole Irvin ($5,000)
INFIELD
Stud
Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals at Seattle Mariners ($6,200) – The Royals still have lots of questions about their future, but the 23-year-old Bobby Witt has established himself as a huge part of the answer with a scalding second half of the season. The former No. 1 prospect in all of the MLB has come into his own and hit .385 over his past 29 games with a great blend of speed and power giving him a high ceiling and multiple ways to produce in every contest. In those 29 games, he had 10 home runs and 10 stolen bases while compiling a .476 wOBA and .328 ISO. He averaged 13.9 DKFP during that impressive run and posted double-digit DKFP in eight of his past 10 games. He and the Royals will face the surging Seattle Mariners this weekend, starting with Friday’s matchup with another young star, Bryce Miller ($8,600).
Stud
Rafael Devers, Boston Red Sox vs. Los Angeles Dodgers ($5,600) – Devers and the Red Sox hung 17 runs on the Houston Astros in their getaway contest on Thursday and now come back to Fenway Park to host the Dodgers. Devers hit safely in seven of his past eight games and went 14-for-37 (.378) during that span with two doubles, three home runs, a .470 wOBA and an average of 14.4 DKFP per game. He has been especially productive at home this season, where he posted a .284 batting average and .365 wOBA. Devers and the Red Sox face a rejuvenated Lance Lynn ($9,400) as the Dodgers come to town, but despite his recent turnaround, he has still allowed lefties to post a .393 wOBA against him this season.
Other Options – Bryce Harper ($5,900), Zack Gelof ($5,500),
Value
Nolan Schanuel, Los Angeles Angels at New York Mets ($3,000) – Schanuel sky-rocketed to the majors faster than any player in recent history, and the No. 11 overall pick from this year’s draft appears to be locked in atop the Angels’ lineup, especially against righties like Kodai Senga ($9,600). Since joining the Halos, the 21-year-old lefty went 7-for-19 (.368) and has also drawn seven walks to help him average 7.8 DKFP per game. He doesn’t have an extra-base hit or a stolen base yet, but he showed good pop and speed in this rapid rise through the minors. As long as he keeps hitting leadoff in front of Shohei Ohtani ($6,700), Schanuel will be a bargain at this price. It has been a rough week of news for the Angels, but at least Schanuel appears to be the real deal and ready to contribute.
Value
Noelvi Marte, Cincinnati Reds at Arizona Diamondbacks ($2,800) – Marte is another recent call-up who has impressed early in the majors and still comes very affordably given his upside. Marte had 11 homers and 18 stolen bases in 89 games split between Double-A and Triple-A this season with a batting average over .280 and a wOBA over .360. He went 3-for-14 (.214) in his first five games in the majors but has two doubles and two stolen bases to average 7.2 DKFP per contest. He led off in one of those games and has the potential to be a fantasy stud if he claims that spot ahead of the Reds’ other promising young bats. For now, getting him under $3K at 3B is a great option that keeps your lineup low-cost without sacrificing your high ceiling.
Other Options – Pablson Reyes ($3,200), Ji Hwan Bae ($3,000), Lenyn Sosa ($2,000)
OUTFIELD
Stud
Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers at Boston Red Sox ($6,500) – Betts will be returning to Fenway Park for the first time as a visitor on Friday night, and he’s sure to get a warm welcome and be keyed up for his return to Boston. He comes into the matchup on an absolute roll. While building his current 12-game hitting streak, Betts went 25-for-44 (.568) with four doubles, three homers, two stolen bases and a .622 wOBA. He averaged 14.5 DKFP over that span and posted at least 12 DKFP in each of his four most recent contests. Sure, there’s some “Narrative Street” speculation involved in Betts’ homecoming, but his current form is pristine enough to support paying up for him in any situation.
Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Cincinnati Reds ($5,700) – Like Witt and Betts, Carroll is an elite fantasy play that brings the potential for production in both speed and power categories. He went 2-for-4 with his 22nd home run of the season on Thursday, which turned a one-run deficit into a one-run win for the Diamondbacks. In his past nine games, Carroll went 10-for-31 (.387) with five multi-hit performances and also contributed two stolen bases along with that home run. Carroll has balanced splits this season, but hitting at home against flame-throwing righty Hunter Greene ($9,000) should be a good spot for him to continue to find success.
Other Options – Julio Rodriguez ($5,600), Luis Robert Jr. ($5,500), Adam Duvall ($4,600)
Value
Daulton Varsho, Toronto Blue Jays vs. Cleveland Guardians ($3,300) – Varsho’s season-long totals are still pretty ugly due to his rough start to his first season in Toronto. However, he has turned things around and has been trending in the right direction lately. He’s a good value at this salary after he averaged 12.1 DKFP in his past nine games, in which he went 10-for-30 (.333) with three doubles, three homers and two stolen bases. Early in the year, Varsho was regularly priced in the mid-to-upper $4K range, so getting him at just over $3K puts him in a good spot to return value now that he’s got his groove back.
Value
Wilyer Abreu, Boston Red Sox vs. Los Angeles Dodgers ($2,300) – Abreu was an amazing value play on Thursday, smashing his first MLB home run as part of a four-hit performance that earned him 35 DKFP. He went 6-for-12 (.500) in his three games in Houston since being called up. Abreu hit .274 with eight stolen bases, 22 homers and a .401 wOA in his 86 games in Triple-A, so he does have significant power potential. He’s definitely a usable bargain play on Friday against Lynn who has struggled with lefties as highlighted above.
Other Options – Steven Kwan ($3,600), Dominic Canzone ($3,100), Brenton Doyle ($2,500)
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $200K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skills and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
