DFS MLB Lineups for June 20, 2017 at Draftkings.com & Fanduel.com
For this daily fantasy baseball season, each day there’s a good slate of DFS MLB games, we’ll be writing up a group of pitchers and hitters that we’re considering for our cash and GPP lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel. We’ll also provide a list of stacks to consider, MLB start times, starting pitchers, and game run totals to give you a good idea of where the fantasy goodness might come from on a given night. As with any DFS sport, the advice below is relevant for fantasy purposes. A player or team might be better or worse from a fantasy perspective than they are in real life due to matchup, price, park factor, etc. This is important when constructing a roster. And if you’re looking for a new way to play DFS, be sure and give BOOM Fantasy a try!
Every team is taking the field tonight making for a interesting DFS MLB slate here on June 20. Chris Sale will be the top option on the night, but WOW, that price tag. $13.2k on DK will make him extremely difficult to fit into your tournament lineups without going with one of the sub $7k guys as your SP2. That guy is going to be Francisco Liriano on a lot of teams. He’s just $6.7k and is coming off a 25 point performance against the Rays. Chalk Liriano sounds horrible to me. I’ll likely have some exposure, but I’ll try to limit and look to pivot to one of the guys right above or right below given how unpredictable Liriano can be. It’s going to be a fun night with a myriad of different ways to go with lineup construction. Good luck and I hope to see you all above the cash line. – Matt
A quick reminder while playing DFS MLB, don’t forget baseball is a game of variance. You can make a really solid lineup and still fall short of the cash line. Even Clayton Kershaw can get lit up, and Mike Trout can still go 0 for 4. Baseball is funny like that. Trust the process and know that if you’re playing quality lineups, you’ll be a winner in the long term.
Another thing to remember outside of making sure your player is in the lineup, is to always check the weather. Always. Make this something that is part of your basic routine. Baseball games can get postponed! Your players receive no points from postponed games!
6/20/17 MAIN SLATE TOURNAMENT RUNDOWN
DraftKings Full Count: $55 buy-in, $400k guaranteed
DraftKings Rally Cap: $8 buy-in, $150k guaranteed
DraftKings Four Seamer: $4 buy-in, $125k guaranteed (20 Entry Max)
FanDuel Grand Slam: $40 buy-in, $100k guaranteed
FanDuel Squeeze: $9 buy-in, $125k guaranteed
FanDuel Suicide Squeeze: $6 buy-in, $100k guaranteed
Best DFS MLB Pitchers for June 20, 2017
Chris Sale @ KC ($13.2k DraftKings, $11.7k FanDuel)
He’s back to pitching angry, pitching very well, and somehow not earning wins, as Sale was surprisingly outdueled by Phillies rookie Nick Pivetta last Thursday. Of course, he looked filthy as ever while striking out 10 and allowing just 5 baserunners in that losing effort and he’ll look to take out his building anger against a Royals squad that’s sporting the lowest collective wOBA (.301) with the fewest runs scored (269) amongst A.L. teams this year. Current Royals might have solid splits against Sale in the past, but they lack the confidence and ability that they’ve flashed while making runs to the World Series in recent years.
Ervin Santana vs. CWS ($10.4k DraftKings, $9k FanDuel)
While he’s struggled in 2 of his last 3 outings, Santana is in a get-right spot tonight against a White Sox lineup that really struggles to hit righties. The Northsiders are tops in the Majors with a .300 batting average against LHP, but that average plummets to .249 with the second-lowest wOBA (.302) amongst A.L. teams when they face RHP. Santana’s still rocking an impressive 2.56 ERA with a 0.95 WHIP and .170 BAA on the year and he has the potential to go the distance if he can get back into a groove at home.
Francisco Liriano @ TEX ($6.7k DraftKings, $7.4k FanDuel)
Double down on Liriano as an appealing cheap play with upside after he exceeded value by going 7 strong innings with 9 K’s against the Rays last Wednesday. Tonight he’ll face a Rangers lineup that’s consistently disappointed with a 27% K-Rate over the last 14 days and a .230 batting average against LHP this year, which is the fifth-lowest mark in the Majors. Current Rangers are just 34-for-147 (.231) with 33 K’s in their careers against Liriano, who is always an upside option with the risk of his occasional implosion. Just hope that doesn’t happen against a lefty-heavy Rangers lineup. One drawback, Liriano might be incredibly owned on DraftKings which is a scary proposition. Keep your ears open and see if a fade is in order.
Other pitchers to consider: Zack Greinke, Gio Gonzalez, Sonny Gray, Julio Teheran, Edinson Volquez, Brandon McCarthy, Alex Cobb
Best DFS MLB Hitters for June 20, 2017
Anthony Rizzo vs. SD ($4.9k DraftKings, $4.6k FanDuel)
Joe Maddon looks like a genius for moving Rizzo into the leadoff spot, as he’s caught fire with a .389/.511/.750 slash line, 3 HRs and 9 walks over his last 10 appearances. He’ll draw a plus matchup at home tonight against RHP Jhoulys Chacin, who is allowing lefties to hit .311 with a .393 wOBA and posting a 2.30 HR/9 ratio when facing the platoon this year. Rizzo is 4-for-8 with a dinger and 3 walks in his career against, Chacin, who has been rocked on the road to the tune of a 10.27 ERA and .377 BAA this season.
Cameron Maybin @ NYY ($3.7k DraftKings, $3.6k FanDuel)
While he has much better splits at home than he does on the road, Yankees RHP Michael Pineda was just lit up by the Halos for 5 ER on 10 hits over 6 IP in his last start and he’s a tough sell as the second-most expensive SP on the board tonight. Maybin is back for the Angels and filling the shoes of Mike Trout in some fashion with a .357/.400/.524 slash line over his last 10 appearances. He has crazy upside if he continues to run wild, as he’s stolen 9 bags during that span and he’s 2-for-2 on SB attempts in his career against Pineda, who may unravel if things go south early for him again.
Mallex Smith vs. CIN ($3.5k DraftKings, $2.8k FanDuel)
So the Rays face a LH starter, meaning it’s time to fade Smith, right? Not necessarily, as the red-hot speedster is actually 7-for-17 (.438) with a triple and SB off lefties this season. If in the lineup, he’ll face a young LHP in Amir Garrett, who has been rocked in 3 of his last 5 outings to raise his ERA to 6.92, so he might not last long and if that’s the case creating an opportunity for Smith to get a righty. Monitor Smith’s spot in the order as he will lose a little value if they stick him at the bottom.
Other hitters to consider: Paul Goldschmidt, J.D. Martinez, Brian Dozier, Mitch Haniger, Kyle Seager, Didi Gregorious, Jarrod Dyson, Josh Harrison, Brian McCann
6/20/17 DFS MLB STACKS
Yankees vs Parker Bridwell
The hottest team in the Majors with a collective .350 wOBA and league-leading 383 runs scored this year, the Yankees are clearly an elite stack to consider against a weak young RHP. Parker Bridwell was tagged for 5 ER and 2 HRs over 2 appearances last year and gave up 2 bombs in his first start this season. He somehow managed to hold the Yankees to an unearned run despite coughing up 7 hits over 15 at-bats while lasting just 3.2 IP and his 5.41 FIP certainly belies his 2.79 ERA through 2 appearances this season. Feel free to use mid-tier options such as Brett Gardner, Didi Gregorious and Aaron Hicks while considering high-priced tournament plays such as Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez at the heart of this stack.
Twins vs Derek Holland
Minnesota’s offense has erupted for some eye-popping crooked numbers lately, including a franchise-record 28 hits to produce 20 runs last week. The Twins righty-heavy lineup could crush Holland tonight, as the White Sox southpaw is posting a 5.97 FIP and giving up a 2.04 HR/9 ratio when facing RHB this season. Brian Dozier and Miguel Sano are 2 notable GPP options and both have homered off Holland in their careers. Switch-hitters Eduardo Escobar and Robbie Grossman could also do some damage while Kennys Vargas offers up some salary savings over the top first base plays.
Mariners vs Jordan Zimmerman
The Mariners draw another plus matchup at home tonight with the Tigers sending another vulnerable RHP to the mound in Jordan Zimmerman. The veteran has been lit up with a 5.35 ERA and 2.02 HR/9 ratio on the season and he’s allowed lefties to go 45-for-148 (.326) with 8 HRs so far. Robinson Cano and even the struggling Kyle Seager are worth deploying in this matchup, while Jarrod Dyson stands out as a speedy value with upside. Although they’re righties, Mitch Haniger and Danny Valencia are also very appealing at a mid-tier price point and Nelson Cruz is always capable of mashing.
Other Stacks to consider:
Braves vs Matt Moore
Orioles vs. Josh Tomlin
Blue Jays vs. Nick Martinez
Cardinals vs. Jeremy Hellickson
