DFS MLB Lineups for August 7, 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 new ways to play DFS, be sure and give BOOM Fantasy and DRAFT a try!
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!
8/7/17 MAIN SLATE TOURNAMENT RUNDOWN
DraftKings Swing for the Fences: $6 buy-in, $350k guaranteed
DraftKings Full Count: $55 buy-in, $300k guaranteed
DraftKings Grand Slam: $444 buy-in, $400k guaranteed
FanDuel Papa Squeeze: $4 buy-in, $150k guaranteed
FanDuel Grand Slam: $66 buy-in, $175k guaranteed
FanDuel Monster: $555 buy-in, $200k guaranteed
Best DFS MLB Pitchers for August 7, 2017
Max Scherzer vs. MIA ($12.8k DraftKings, $11.1k FanDuel)
It took a freakish unforeseen injury to force Scherzer from a start and prevent him from finishing as the top option for the first time in several outings, and he’s now a bit cheaper for it. The Nats ace is reportedly over his neck injury and should get back to his dominant ways as the primary N.L. CY Young candidate. He’s racked up plenty of strikeouts with 48 K’s over 208 career at-bats against current Marlins and obviously has more upside than any other option tonight if able to handle a full workload.
Ervin Santana vs. MIL ($9.5k DraftKings, $9.3 FanDuel)
Santana might be the second-best SP on the board tonight in terms of upside, as Cubs RHP Jake Arrieta has been above average in his best outings, while Santana has looked untouchable at times. He posted a league-best 0.66 WHIP way back in April and might be back on track as he began August in dominant fashion with a complete-game effort in San Diego. Tonight he’ll host a Brewers team that’s rocking the highest K-Rate (25.8%) in the Majors for a second consecutive season and he’ll have the advantage of facing most of those batters for the first time in their careers.
Ian Kennedy vs. STL ($6.8k DraftKings, $7.2k FanDuel)
While he was beat up in his last outing in Baltimore, Kennedy was on a very positive trend and is worth a look as a value play with potential in this matchup. The Cardinals lineup isn’t intimidating or necessarily stacked with lefties, which is good for a RHP with a 21.3% K-Rate and 1.15 WHIP when facing righties this year. Kennedy’s sporting a much higher K/9 ratio (8.26) at home this season and is capable of churning out Quality Starts once he regains his rhythm.
Other pitchers to consider: Jake Arrieta, J.C. Ramirez, Carlos Martinez, Brent Suter
Best DFS MLB Hitters for August 7, 2017
Kris Bryant @ SF ($5.3k DraftKings, $4.0k FanDuel)
Anthony Rizzo might get more attention tonight because of his BvP numbers (3-for-3, 2 HRs) against Giants LHP Matt Moore, but a greater sample size against that pitcher would likely favor Bryant. The big RHB has posted a .411 wOBA and .262 ISO Mark with a 20.7% HR/FB ratio against the platoon this year and faces a southpaw who is somehow giving up a 1.49 HR/9 ratio at massive AT&T Park this season. Bryant’s been less consistent than other top options, but the upside is always there for a hitter with power to all fields.
Howie Kendrick vs. MIA ($4.3k DraftKings, $2.6k FanDuel)
Kendrick has been a great pick up for the Nationals and he’ll be money in cash games for as long as he’s batting second in that elite lineup. He’s a great option tonight against rookie LHP Chris O’Grady, who was just lit up for 6 ER and 2 HRs in a start against Washington last Tuesday. Kendrick sparked that early exit with a second-inning homer off O’Grady and the veteran is hitting .372 with a very impressive 1.041 OPS when facing lefties this year.
Cory Spangenberg vs. CIN ($3.9k DraftKings, $2.9k FanDuel)
There are several Padres worth considering tonight against young RHP Lisalverto Bonilla, who has been nearly as vulnerable as Robert Stephenson, the injured starter that he could replace in the rotation. Bonilla is giving up a 2.68 HR/9 ratio with a 7.61 FIP when facing LHB this season and Spangenberg’s been quite reliable with a .306 batting average at home against RHP and a .333 average since the ASB.
Other hitters to consider: Anthony Rizzo, Bryce Harper, Miguel Sano, Anthony Rendon, Eduardo Escobar, Ian Kinsler, Willson Contreras, Josh Harrison, Yangervis Solarte
8/7/17 DFS MLB STACKS
Pirates vs Jordan Zimmerman
Stacking against Zimmerman is no longer a sure thing, as he’s been excellent in 2 of his last 4 outings, but has been lit up in just about ever start in between. The veteran is giving up a 38.3% Hard Contact Rate this season, a career-worst mark by far, and that’s simply not going to translate into much success. The Pirates are an appealing stack because they’re primarily cheap with Andrew McCutchen and Starling Marte both offering elite upside in the upper-tier and Josh Harrison coming on strong as a mid-tier play. Josh Bell is starting to come around again and he’ll have the platoon advantage against Zim along with red-hot contact hitter Adam Frazier.
Nationals vs Chris O’Grady
It’s not quite so simple as predicting that O’Grady struggles badly in his second consecutive start against the Nats, but it’s certainly easy to roll with a lineup that’s second in the N.L. with a collective .282 batting average and .342 wOBA against LHP this season. Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy are both plenty dangerous in LvL matchups while Anthony Rendon and Ryan Zimmerman have posted some gaudy numbers against LHP this season. Kendrick is likely going to be a great value play and Wilmer Difo is another cheap infielder to consider as a switch hitter with category juice.
Other Stacks to consider:
Cubs vs. Matt Moore
Tigers vs. Trevor Williams
