DFS MLB Lineups for August 9, 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!
8/9/17 MAIN SLATE TOURNAMENT RUNDOWN
DraftKings Fastball: $33 buy-in, $200k guaranteed
DraftKings Rally Cap: $8 buy-in, $115k guaranteed
DraftKings Four Seamer: $4 buy-in, $100k guaranteed
FanDuel Squeeze: $4 buy-in, $150k guaranteed
FanDuel Grand Slam: $55 buy-in, $125k guaranteed
FanDuel Monster: $455 buy-in, $150k guaranteed
Best DFS MLB Pitchers for August 9, 2017
Justin Verlander vs. PIT ($10.5k DraftKings, $9.5k FanDuel)
After a brief lull in his production, Verlander’s returning to Ace-status despite pitching for a Tigers team that has very little chance of contending for a playoff spot. Since getting shelled in Cleveland back on July 8, Verlander is 2-1 with a 2.51 ERA, .205 BAA and 10.58 K/9 ratio. He just handled the elite Astros and Orioles offenses and draws a much easier matchup at home tonight against a Pirates team that ranks 25th in collective wOBA (.309) this year. While he’s posted lower strikeout numbers at home, he’s been more reliable with a 3.29 ERA and .235 BAA at Comerica Park and he’s certainly capable of dominating this opponent.
Masahiro Tanaka @ TOR ($9.4k DraftKings, $9.3k FanDuel)
Here’s another mercurial ace that is on a hot streak and draws a matchup you’ll want to take advantage of tonight. The Blue Jays rank 27th in collective batting average (.243) and 26th in runs scored (478) during a disappointing offensive campaign and Tanaka has beaten Toronto twice with 12 K’s over 13.1 IP against the Yanks divisional rivals. He’s still struggling with the long ball to a degree, but has made up for it with an 11.37 K/9 ratio over his last 4 starts and current Blue Jays happen to struggle badly with a .188 batting average (31-for-165) in their careers against Tanaka.
Collin McHugh @ CWS ($8.8k DraftKings, $8.6 FanDuel)
McHugh looked great in a second consecutive start after getting hit hard in his season debut and he draws a beautiful matchup tonight against a White Sox squad that ranks dead last amongst A.L. teams in runs scored (473) with the lowest collective wOBA (.302) against RHP this season. McHugh has been solid against lefties and righties throughout his career and is posting a .195 BAA with a 27.9% K-Rate against RHB this year, so Jose Abreu and company will likely have a tough time producing, while the Astros offense should once again provide plenty of support in a juicy matchup against RHP Miguel Gonzalez.
Other pitchers to consider: Alex Wood, Gio Gonzalez, Trevor Cahill
Best DFS MLB Hitters for August 9, 2017
Marwin Gonzalez @ CWS ($4.9k DraftKings, $3.5k FanDuel)
Flying under the radar along with the rest of the Astros for the most part this year, Gonzalez boasts a career-best .314/.391/.574 slash line with a .261 ISO Mark as a huge cog in Houston’s league-leading offense. He’ll be worth using tonight against his surname partner, Miguel Gonzalez, whether as part of an Astros stack or solo, as the White Sox RHP is giving up a 35.5% Hard Contact Rate with a 5.60 xFIP when facing LHB this season. Marwin has done extensive damage with a .361 batting average and 1.034 OPS on the road as a LHB this year and is one of the best bats to choose in an Astros uniform.
Ryan Braun @ MIN ($4.3k DraftKings, $4.4k FanDuel)
Suddenly on fire and only marginally more expensive on DK, Braun makes for a great option on the road tonight against ancient RHP Bartolo Colon. The 44-year-old has posted his first 2 Quality Starts this season, but has still given up 4 HRs over his last 3 starts while posting a league-worst 7.32 ERA on the season. Braun is 8-for-13 with 3 XBH over his last 3 appearances and seems to be well over his slump, while he’s tagged Colon for 5 hits, including 2 HRs, over 12 career at-bats.
Whit Merrifield @ STL ($3.9k DraftKings, $3.6k FanDuel)
Another bargain on DK tonight, Merrifield will look to lead a Royals stack against Cardinals RHP Mike Leake, who has been consistently vulnerable since opening the season with a string of good starts. Leake is giving up a .311 BAA with a 1.64 WHIP during the second half and that makes Merrifield a great bet to get on base ahead of a couple of red-hot Royals hitters. The leadoff man is 18-for-20 on SB attempts this season and has been quite consistent with a .324 batting average and .927 OPS since the break.
Other hitters to consider: Jose Altuve, Aaron Judge, Eduardo Nunez, Freddie Freeman, Corey Seager, A.J. Pollock, Andrew Benintendi, Eric Thames, Lorenzo Cain, Christian Vazquez
8/9/17 DFS MLB STACKS
Yankees vs Nick Tepesch
He’s basically been out of the Majors for 3 years, but Tepesch has been lit up over his lone appearances with the Dodgers and Twins in 2016 and 2017. He was last seen posting a 4.36 ERA over 23 appearances with Texas in 2014 and will be hard pressed to contain a slugging Yankees lineup at hitter-friendly Rogers Centre tonight. While Tepesch hasn’t been particularly homer-prone, Aaron Judge is certainly a candidate to dong tonight as he tries to snap out of his funk and Didi Gregorious is another contrarian GPP option to consider. Brett Gardner and Chase Headley could make use of the platoon advantage against the vulnerable righty and we’ll see if Gary Sanchez responds positively to getting benched for defensive purposes earlier this week.
Astros vs Miguel Gonzalez
Marwin Gonzalez might wind up producing the most of any Astros batter, but it would be foolish to leave A.L. MVP candidate Jose Altuve out of this stack considering his ridiculous .431 batting average on the road. Josh Reddick is an expensive option on DK, whereas Carlos Beltran can provide a similar floor-ceiling combination at a much cheaper price tag. If you’re looking for salary relief, consider Brian McCann as a cheap option at catcher, as Gonzalez is allowing LHB to hit .289 with a .365 wOBA this year and is coming off a horrible outing in Boston last week. George Springer is expected back tonight, but if he sits out another game, whoever replaces him in the lineup will be a great value option.
Other Stacks to consider:
Red Sox vs. Jake Odorizzi
Brewers vs. Bartolo Colon
Nationals vs. Adam Conley
Reds vs. Travis Wood
