Stan Son gives his top studs and value plays for Friday’s 10-game fantasy baseball slate on DraftKings.
We’ve got a 10-game slate for Friday’s MLB action. TGIF!
Let’s find some studs and values for your MLB DFS lineups on DraftKings. This article was written before lineups were announced.
Make your DraftKings MLB DFS picks here: MLB $200K Bat Flip [$50K to 1st]
PITCHER
Stud
Dylan Cease, Toronto Blue Jays at Chicago White Sox, $9,900 — Cease has some Ricky Vaughn in him, as the BB/9 has never been below 3.00. But like the Wild Thing, Cease is an intimidating presence on the mound and racks up plenty of Ks. The strikeout rate has been at least 29% in four of the prior five seasons. In the season opener, Cease struck out 12 in 5.1 innings, good for 31 FPTS. Now he gets to face a White Sox team that is second in strikeouts (34%) through six games. Chicago is also only 23rd in wRC+ and 25th in wOBA.
Value
Michael McGreevy, St. Louis Cardinals at Detroit Tigers, $7,200 — McGreevy was solid in his season opener, going six innings, walking two and striking out five without allowing a hit. He only averaged 91.1 mph on the fastball while the barrel rate was 14.3%. The BABIP was .000, so he got extremely lucky. That said, he’s cheap and the matchup is a good one, as Detroit is dead-last in ISO, ninth in strikeouts, 26th in wOBA and 24th in wRC+.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Kyle Schwarber, Philadelphia Phillies at Colorado Rockies, $6,200 — Through 27 plate appearances to start the season, Schwarber has a .182/.333/.500 slash with a 37% strikeout rate. But, but, but…the ISO is a robust .318 and he’s slugged two home runs. Now he gets to play in Coors Field and faces Michael Lorenzen, who allowed an average exit velocity of 92.1 mph with a 12.5% barrel rate in the opener. In 141.2 innings last season with Kansas City, Lorenzen had a HR/9 of 1.59. Welcome to Colorado!
Value
TJ Rumfield, Colorado Rockies vs. Philadelphia Phillies, $2,600 — Rumfield has been scorching hot to start the season, slashing .429/.478/.619 with a .190 ISO. Sure, the BABIP is an unsustainable .533, but he gets to bat in Coors Field for the first time this season. Aaron Nola used to be one of the premier pitchers in baseball, but Father Time comes for everyone. The strikeout rate has decreased over the years while the proneness to the long ball has increased. Not a good combo for Coors Field. In the opener, Nola got tagged for two home runs.
INFIELD
Stud
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers at Washington Guardians, $6,500 — Ohtani is 3-for-18 to start the season with five strikeouts, no home runs and zero stolen bases. The sky is falling! The sky is falling! It’s not a question of if Ohtani will heat up, it’s a matter of when. Why not today? He faces Miles Mikolas who allowed a home run in his season opener. The FIP has been over 4.00 in five of the last six season and was 5.03 last season. He only averages around 92-93 mph on the fastball while the strikeout rate has never been above 19% in his career.
Value
Nick Gonzales, Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Baltimore Orioles, $2,800 — Gonzales has batted second, six, fifth, seventh and eighth in the batting order to start the season. But wherever he’s been slotted, Gonzales has delivered. He has a hit in five of six games with four of those with two hits. Gonzales doesn’t have much power, as the career ISO is .117, and the stolen base prowess is minimal, although he has one on the season. He’s cheap and has put up at least 8 FPTS in all but one contest, with three of those double-digits.