Fantasy Baseball Picks: Top DraftKings MLB DFS Lineup Strategy for Athletics vs. Angels Showdown on May 22

The Saturday night Showdown this week on DraftKings is an AL West battle between the Oakland Athletics and the Los Angeles Angels. The Athletics took the first game of the series and moved into first place in the division behind big games from Ramón Laureano ($10,200) and Chad Pinder ($4,800). The Angels are 7.5 games behind Oakland and are in last place in the AL West after dropping four of their past five.

The matchup on the mound on Saturday is scheduled to be Chris Bassitt ($10,600) against Patrick Sandoval ($7,400). Bassitt has been solid in his nine starts, going 3-2 with a 3.88 ERA and 3.41 FIP along with a career-high 9.62 K/9. Sandoval has made four starts for L.A., going four innings or less in each outing and compiling a 5.56 ERA and 7.83 FIP. Sandoval has surrendered a 14.7% barrel rate and 50.0% hard-hit rate, so the Athletics should be in a good spot offensively, especially those that excel against southpaws.

DraftKings Sportsbook has the over/under for this game at 8.5 runs, and the Athletics are very slight favorites with a -110 moneyline. There are some interesting fantasy plays to consider on both sides, though, so let’s jump right into how to construct your DraftKings lineups for Saturday night’s Showdown contest.

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Captain’s Picks

Ramón Laureano ($15,300 CP) - Laureano leads the majors with eight home runs in May and is an especially good place to start when the Athletics are taking on a lefty. He has been on fire against southpaws this season, going 19-for-52 (.365) with three homers, a .308 ISO and a .462 wOBA against lefties. Overall, he has a .269 ISO and .365 wOBA this season, both of which would be new career-highs for the speedy 26-year-old.

Laureano has spent most of the season in the second or third spot in the A’s order and has been heating up lately, averaging 13.3 DKFP over his past seven games and posting a pair of games with over 30 DKFP in his past four. One of those games was last night against the Angels when Laureano went 4-for-4 with a double, a home run and 31 DKFP while also adding a highlight-reel catch in CF that robbed Anthony Rendon ($9,600) of a home run. Laureano is a little off the radar since he’s playing in Oakland, but he’s emerging as a true star this season.

Mark Canha ($11,700 CP) - Canha is a little bit cheaper option in the Captain’s Pick spot but also comes in swinging a hot bat, especially against lefties. He has averaged 12.0 DKFP over his past seven games and also homered in the series opener, giving him nine home runs this season. Canha has a .213 ISO and .368 wOBA to go with a 39.2% hard-hit rate. He has actually done most of his damage against righties this season, although throughout his career he has hit lefties slightly better. He’s another big bat from the Oakland lineup you can build around with confidence.

Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $4K Extra Inning [$1K to 1st] (OAK vs LAA)

Value Plays

José Iglesias ($7,200) - Iglesias has settled in as the Angels’ leadoff hitter since David Fletcher ($8,200) was dropped to the No. 9 spot. Iglesias doesn’t bring much speed or stolen base potential but has been getting on base at a good rate while also offering some decent pop. In his 41 games this season, Iglesias is hitting .272 with a .297 wOBA, but he has been significantly better at home, where he has a .297 average and .340 wOBA. If he stays in the leadoff spot ahead of the Angels’ power bats, he should continue to provide solid counting stats.

Juan Lagares ($5,600) - Another bargain bat with upside in the Angels’ lineup, Lagares should be in the lineup just about every day while Mike Trout (calf) is sidelined. The ex-Met signed with the Angels this offseason and has gone 8-for-35 (.229) with a .200 ISO and .309 wOBA in that small sample size. He was battling a toe injury earlier this week but went 1-for-3 with a triple, a walk and 14 DKFP in the series opener and has double-digit DKFP in three of his four most recent starts.

Fades

Anthony Rendon ($9,600) - With Trout sidelined, Rendon and Shohei Ohtani ($11,000) will have to carry the load offensively. While Ohtani has been up to the task so far this season, Rendon hasn’t really found his groove. He’s also priced right around Laureano and Canha, who are both in better matchups and producing more fantasy goodness lately. Rendon has just a .125 ISO and .317 wOBA this year along with a 19.8% strikeout rate, which would be a new career high. Rendon has shown a few signs of life lately, including his deep drive last night that Laureano snagged, but he still has only a 27.5% hard-hit rate, per FanGraphs, which is enough of a reason for me to look elsewhere at this price point.

The Outcome

The Athletics are always a little underrated since they don’t have the superstars some teams bring. However, they have played their way back to the top of the AL West, and I think they’ll battle it out with the Astros atop the division for the rest of the summer. With the Angels bullpen a mess and Sandoval not likely to go deep into the game, I think the Athletics’ offense is poised for another big game, so stack up Oakland’s bats and look for them to take another road win in this one.

Final Score: Athletics 9, Angles 4

Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $4K Extra Inning [$1K to 1st] (OAK vs LAA)

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