Happy Hump Day! We’ve got a 10-game main DraftKings MLB slate tonight with plenty of fun matchups everywhere, like the Chicago Cubs taking on the Atlanta Braves. There are also a lot of exciting bats at a low cost, and some pitchers with great value. With so much variety, this should be a fun slate to play.
Let’s go position-by-position and break down everything you’ll need to know to set your DraftKings lineups.
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PITCHER
Stud
Carlos Rodon, Chicago White Sox vs. Detroit Tigers, $9,800 - You’re not going to be alone picking a guy who’s thrown a no-hitter already in 2021, but you should pay this price for Rodon in the hopes folks decide to pivot to Tyler Glasnow ($10,300) in a tough matchup. I’m as big a fan of this Tigers lineup as you’ll find, but even I will admit they can’t hit lefties. Detroit ranks second to last to only the Braves within the split with a 42 wRC+, and Rodon has been dominant this season, allowing just a .187 wOBA. Detroit has returned Miguel Cabrera, but he’s not good enough at this age to turn a split advantage this grand.
Value
Domingo German, New York Yankees at Baltimore Orioles, $7,400 - There aren’t a lot of pitching values on this slate, so let’s just take a guy under $8K who has a shot at one of the worst offenses in baseball. The Orioles have had some nights, but they still rate as the sixth-worst offense in baseball against righties by wRC+. German seemed to stabilize in his last outing, allowing a few runs early against the Indians then sticking around for six innings and registering a quality start with six strikeouts. He’s proven for years he’s a perfectly fine pitcher, and he should present a relatively high floor given the matchup.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $200K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
Stud
Carson Kelly, Arizona Diamondbacks vs. San Diego Padres, $4,600 - Kelly is on an absolute heater right now and represents the best option in an Arizona offense that’s leading the league in wRC+ against lefties. I think Ryan Weathers ($7,300) is in for a long night, and Kelly is leading off my Diamondbacks stack. He’s averaging 13.3 DKFP against southpaws this season and has gone deep in three of the last four.
Value
Kyle Higashioka, New York Yankees at Baltimore Orioles, $3,200 - It’s always difficult to gauge when catchers will get off nights, so there’s no guarantee Higashioka plays here, but he’s been absolutely mashing of late and looks poised to unseat Gary Sanchez ($4,700) as the starter. He has a multi-hit game in two of his last three — the one he didn’t register a hit in was against Shane Bieber — and a matchup with Dean Kremer ($5,900) is mighty appealing. Fire him up if he’s in the Yankees’ lineup.
FIRST BASE
Stud
Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves vs. Chicago Cubs, $5,500 - I already talked about the fact that I like stacking up Arizona, so I’ll lead off with another stack I like even more, and that’s the Braves against Kyle Hendricks ($7,700), who appears a broken man. He’s on pace to post the lowest ground-ball rate of his career along with his highest fly ball rate, and I think there are plenty of homers to be had in this one. Freeman’s already got a homer off of Hendricks in his career, and has 33 DKFP over his past two games.
Value
Rowdy Tellez, Toronto Blue Jays vs. Washington Nationals, $3,400 - Tellez is a big boy, and we know what he is capable of when he puts the bat to the ball. That’s been difficult this season against some good swing-and-miss pitchers, but Erick Fedde ($7,100) won’t be one of them. He’s allowing contact at over an 85% clip this season, and has been a walking disaster for Washington. Tellez has begun to heat up with three hits in as many games, and I like his chances to pick up some total bases here.
SECOND BASE
Stud
Ozzie Albies, Atlanta Braves vs. Chicago Cubs, $5,100 - The stack continues with Albies, who has only faced Hendricks six times in his career, and has still managed to hit two doubles off of him, coupled with a base knock and a walk. I laid out above why I hate Hendricks in this spot, and Albies — who’s gone for 14 DKFP in back to back games — should be ready to pounce on a guy he’s been able to pick up with ease.
Value
Nico Hoerner, Chicago Cubs at Atlanta Braves, $2,800 - Finally, a guy on the Cubs who can actually hit. Hoerner’s contact-first approach has been refreshing on a team filled with whiff-happy bats, and as a result he’s found himself hitting leadoff for Chicago. The at-bats coupled with a decent floor makes him a really attractive option at this price. At the very least, he should get you a single or two. At the most, he could drive in a few and even take Huascar Ynoa ($7,800) deep. Only good things can happen.
THIRD BASE
Stud
Asdrubal Cabrera, Arizona Diamondbacks vs. San Diego Padres, $3,600 - I’m going back to my Diamondbacks affection here with Cabrera, who has four hits in his last three games and regularly hits in the middle of a surprisingly-effective Diamondbacks order. This team is going to score runs, and Cabrera should be in the middle of it all with his ability to get on base and get timely hits for Arizona.
Value
Gio Urshela, New York Yankees at Baltimore Orioles, $3,200 - That’s right, no money is being spent at third base. I am in love with Urshela at this price. He’ll be in the heart of the Yankees’ order, and he has produced three hits and three RBIs in the last two games, representing one of the few Yankees who can actually hit the baseball. The implied team total for the Yankees is over five runs, so this is a good offense to target against Kremer. I see immense value in the cheaper bats like Urshela.
SHORTSTOP
Stud
Editor’s Note: Diamondbacks SP Riley Smith will start tonight’s game vs. the Padres. SP Taylor Widener (groin) has been placed on the IL.
Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego Padres at Arizona Diamondbacks, $5,600 - Okay, so Tatis had an off night on Monday against Merrill Kelly, which still saw him double and come around to score. This guy is seeing the ball so well at the moment, and some may pivot off of him considering he’s seemed to come back down a bit from the ridiculous high of playing the Dodgers. I, on the other hand, am seeing some value in grabbing him at a good price against Taylor Widener ($7,900), who ranks in the bottom 8% of the league in expected slugging percentage.
Value
Editor’s Note: Padres 2B/SS Jake Cronenworth is not in the lineup for tonight’s game vs. the Diamondbacks.
Jake Cronenworth, San Diego Padres at Arizona Diamondbacks, $3,500 - I am very cool with fading Widener again here with Cronenworth, who should hit fifth here and like Hoerner, has a pretty nice floor with his ability to put the ball in play. Cronenworth has shown plenty of pop in his time in the major leagues as well, and though it hasn’t come through so much this season, it’s only a matter of time. The Padres should bust out of the funk they were in on Monday and score some runs here, and I’d project Cronenworth for a modest 7 DKFP.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Marcell Ozuna, Atlanta Braves vs. Chicago Cubs, $5,100 - We’ve arrived on my favorite play of the day. You know by now that Hendricks has struggled, and should struggle once again on Wednesday. You also know that some members of the Braves have good numbers against the righty. None have owned Hendricks like Ozuna has. The slugging left-fielder has 13 hits in 34 at-bats against Hendricks with two home runs, good for a .443 wOBA. He’s been cold at the plate, but he’s batting in the third spot in the order, and has more talent than almost anyone in baseball at the plate. Seeing his old friend Kyle should get him out of his funk, and given his form I’m not sure anyone will want to roster Ozuna. His history with Hendricks is too good to ignore, as are the putrid numbers the hurler has posted. The Braves have one of the higher implied totals on the slate and I see big things in their future.
Value
Dylan Carlson, St. Louis Cardinals vs. Philadelphia Phillies, $3,300 - Can we please respect Carlson just a little? He’s got a premium lineup spot in the three-spot for St. Louis, he’s averaging 9 DKFP over his last five, and he’s facing Vince Velasquez ($6,500), who’s been a special kind of bad over his long and torturous career. Velasquez has allowed an average of 91.7 mph off the bat this year, and Carlson has shown exceptional pop and bat-to-ball skills. The only thing I don’t love here is the fact that the rest of the Cardinals are slumping at the plate, but I do like Carlson’s prospects of a multi-hit game given the matchup.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $200K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
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