Saturday night is set up to be another great night of fantasy baseball on DraftKings with a solid five-game main slate which gets underway at 7:15 p.m. ET. Four of the five games on the slate are interleague matchups, including a pair of games featuring the two teams from Los Angeles. Another one of the matchups takes place at Coors Field, so there are lots of angles and options to consider as you put together your team for Saturday night.
Be sure to keep up with the latest player news and lineups leading up to the first pitch of each game. You can do that by installing the DK Live app and following DraftKings Network on Twitter (@DKNetwork). I’m also on Twitter (@ZT_Sports), where you can keep up with all my picks as the dog days of summer continue.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $125K Relay Throw [$25K to 1st]
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PITCHER
Stud
Tyler Glasnow, Tampa Bay Rays at Seattle Mariners ($10,500) – Glasnow had a season-high 12 strikeouts in his most recent start but only lasted five innings against the Royals. He still got the win and produced over 30 DKFP for the first time this season. He has at least 16 DKFP in four of his other five starts, though, and has been rounding back into form after a late start to the season. Overall, he is 2-1 with a 4.45 ERA and 3.84 FIP. He has at least six strikeouts in every start and has a total of 45 strikeouts in 30 1⁄3 innings. That kind of strikeout upside makes him a good pay-up play since his ceiling is extremely high, and he can counteract a shaky outing by still producing punchouts.
Even though he’s not ramped up to over 100 pitches and has struggled pitching deep into games, his upside far outweighs any concerns he brings. The Mariners have the second-highest K% of any team this season and hit just .231 with a .305 team wOBA in June.
Other Option – George Kirby ($9,200)
Value
Tanner Bibee, Cleveland Guardians at Chicago Cubs ($8,400) – Bibee has had an impressive rookie season so far for Cleveland, going 4-2 in 11 starts with a 3.79 ERA and 3.85 FIP while racking up 58 strikeouts in 59 1⁄3 innings. He has allowed two earned runs or fewer in seven of those 11 outings and has averaged 15.2 DKFP per start.
In his last outing, he only gave up three singles in six innings against the Brewers, earning the win and 25.3 DKFP. It was his fourth start with over 25 DKFP this season, showing how high the upside for the 24-year-old can be. He gets a pretty decent matchup in Chicago on Saturday night. Of the options under $9K, he brings the highest ceiling and the fewest red flags on Saturday.
Other Options – Tyler Anderson ($7,000), Ryne Nelson ($6,100)
INFIELD
Stud
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels vs. Arizona Diamondbacks ($6,500) – Ohtani owned June, hitting .398 (41-for-103) with 15 home runs in 27 games and a wOBA over .555. He has eight homers in his past 12 games, averaging 16 DKFP per game during that span. You could make a case for him as the best player in baseball just from his batting numbers, never mind that he’s also one of the best pitchers on top of that. Ohtani and the Angels will take on Ryne Nelson ($6,100) on Saturday night in what should be a favorable spot. Nelson has a 4.97 ERA and 4.45 FIP, but he gives an even bigger boost to lefties like Ohtani. Seven of his 10 home runs allowed have come against left-handed hitters, who have posted a .387 wOBA against him. Otani’s expensive, but since he can fit at either 1B or OF, he’s a building block you have to consider given the matchup and his recent home run binge.
Stud
Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers at Kansas City Royals ($6,400) – Betts can also move to the OF if you find savings at SS, but I think he brings slightly more value in his infield position. Betts finished June in style going 4-for-4 just like he did in his first game of the month on June 2. He hit .309 (29-for-94) with nine home runs and five stolen bases to average 12.5 DKFP per contest. He has strong splits against lefties and should find continued success in this matchup against lefty Daniel Lynch ($6,300), who has given up six home runs in 36 1⁄3 innings this season. All six of those homers have come from right-handed batters like Betts.
Other Options – José Ramírez ($5,800), Ketel Marte ($5,400)
Value
Ezequiel Tovar, Colorado Rockies vs. Detroit Tigers ($3,700) – Tovar extended his hitting streak to 13 games on Friday night by going 2-for-4 with his eighth home run of the season. He has hit .359 (19-for-53) during the streak with two doubles, a triple, a home run and a .406 wOBA. He has added a stolen base as well to average 10.6 DKFP per game. He has strong home splits like most Rockies and had been hitting near the top of the lineup until Friday when he dropped to seventh with the return of Kris Bryant ($4,700). While he stays this hot, though, the Rockies may need to find a spot near the top of their order for the emerging star, who is still a month shy of his 22nd birthday.
Value
Jared Young, Chicago Cubs vs. Cleveland Guardians ($2,200) – Speaking of young options, this Young is a little older than Tovar but is also a strong option to consider. If you like Tovar at shortstop or Young at 1B as value plays you can slide Ohtani or Betts into the outfield with their dual eligibility. The left-handed-hitting Young joined the Cubs earlier this week and has gone 4-for-9 (.444) with two triples and a home run for an impressive .674 wOBA. Before being called up, he played 52 games in Triple-A and hit .326 with 13 home runs and a .441 wOBA. The fact that he has two triples already is a little bizarre, but he definitely has enough power potential to be a great play at barely more than the minimum salary as he looks to post double-digit DKFP for a fourth straight game.
Other Options – Maikel Garcia ($3,000), Gabriel Moreno ($2,800)
OUTFIELD
Stud
Randy Arozarena, Tampa Bay Rays at Seattle Mariners ($5,900) – Arozarena smashed his 15th homer of the season on Friday night while helping the Rays romp past the Mariners in the first game of their set in Seattle. Arozarena has gone 13-for-39 (.333) over his past 10 games and averaged 10.1 DKFP per contest during that stretch while staying right in the middle of the run production in one of the best lineups in baseball with eight runs scored and nine RBI.
Randal Grichuk, Colorado Rockies vs. Detroit Tigers ($4,000) – Grichuk missed the first month of the season while recovering from hernia surgery but has been productive since his return. In his first 48 games, he hit .294 with two homers and a .340 wOBA. He’s hitting .330 with a .367 wOBA at Coors Field and .310 with a .373 wOBA against lefties. On the strength of those two splits, he should be in a good matchup at home against a bullpen day for Detroit that is expected to include lefties Tyler Alexander ($5,200) and Zach Logue ($6,400).
Other Options – Mike Trout ($6,300), J.D. Martinez ($5,700)
Value
Andy Ibáñez, Detroit Tigers at Colorado Rockies ($3,100) – Ibáñez has been red-hot for the Tigers over the past few weeks, going 21-for-63 (.333) with four doubles, four homers, a .254 ISO and a .409 wOBA. Ibáñez has done most of his damage against lefties but seems to have settled into a very productive role against either righties or lefties, making him a viable value against whoever the Rockies decide to give the ball to on Saturday night at Coors.
Value
Dominic Fletcher, Arizona Diamondbacks at Los Angeles Angels ($2,900) – Fletcher rejoined the Diamondbacks on Friday after a brief stint with the Reno Aces in Triple-A. He went 1-for-4 in his return and is hitting .305 with two homers and a .346 wOBA in his 23 games in the majors this season. Fletcher was in a slump, so the team sent him to the minors to get it figured out, and it looks like he has after hitting .328 with two doubles, one triple and a stolen base in his 13 games after demotion. The Arizona outfield is jam-packed with young outfielders with potential, but if Fletcher gets another start, he has the potential to be the best value play under $3K in the outfield on Saturday night.
Other Options – Jose Siri ($3,600), Jake McCarthy ($3,000), Mike Tauchman ($2,500)
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $125K Relay Throw [$25K 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 skill 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.
