DFS MLB Lineups for August 30, 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 Chris Sale can get lit up, and Paul Goldschmidt 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!
8/30/17 MAIN SLATE TOURNAMENT RUNDOWN
DraftKings Walk Off Home Run: $400 buy-in, $150k guaranteed
DraftKings Fastball: $33 buy-in, $200k guaranteed
DraftKings Rally Cap: $8 buy-in, $100k guaranteed
FanDuel Monster: $666 buy-in, $200k guaranteed
FanDuel Grand Slam: $66 buy-in, $125k guaranteed
FanDuel Squeeze: $4 buy-in, $125k guaranteed
Best DFS MLB Pitchers for August 30, 2017
Dallas Keuchel vs. TEX ($11.4k DraftKings, $9.1k FanDuel)
Old reliable is back with three consecutive Quality Starts and a whopping 40 ground ball outs over his last 3 outings. Keuchel’s been excellent at home over the past 3 seasons and well, it’s technically a home game! Texas is hitting just .243 with the fifth-highest K-Rate (24.4%) in the Majors when facing LHP and current Rangers are hitting .243 with as many K’s (63) as hits over a huge sample of 273 at-bats against Keuchel.
Jose Berrios vs. CWS ($10.1k DraftKings, $9.0k FanDuel)
The Twins young phenom has figured it out to an extent with 16 K’s and 3 ER allowed on just 6 hits over his last 2 outings and he draws a juicy matchup tonight against a White Sox team that simply can’t hit RHP right now. Current White Sox are 9-for-47 (.191) with 18 K’s and a weak .241 wOBA in their careers against Berrios, who is 7-1 with a 2.87 ERA and 0.90 WHIP at home this season. He’s a strong play in GPP formats and worth the risk in cash games since he lines up against human piñata Derek Holland.
Jason Vargas vs. TB ($6.9k DraftKings, $6.4k FanDuel)
Vargas has struggled lately in 3 of his last 4 starts, but of course 2 of those outings came against the slugging Indians, a far different team than Tampa. The Rays rank 29th in collective batting average (.230) and runs scored (99) over the last 30 days, while they’re also rocking the third-highest K-Rate (25.1%) in the Majors this year. Vargas has been more consistent at spacious Kaufman Stadium and he matches up well against a Rays lineup that depends on LHB such as Corey Dickerson, Logan Morrison and Mallex Smith to produce.
Other pitchers to consider: Robbie Ray, Rick Porcello, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Parker Bridwell
Best DFS MLB Hitters for August 30, 2017
Joey Votto vs. NYM ($5.6 DraftKings, $4.2k FanDuel)
It’s stunning to see Votto cheaper than other 1B options on FanDuel tonight given how locked in he’s been and how vulnerable the Mets SP is tonight. Rafael Montero is posting a 5.64 ERA and 1.76 WHIP over 27 appearances this year and he’s given up 24.4% Line Drive Rate with a 1.85 WHIP in his career against the platoon. Votto amazingly walked in all 5 of his plate appearances on Monday night and he’s drawn 60 walks over 66 home games while hitting .326 with a 1.030 OPS at hitter-friendly Great American Ballpark. Needless to say, he has a high floor-ceiling combination this evening.
Eduardo Escobar vs. CWS ($3.8k DraftKings, $2.7k FanDuel)
Escobar has a great chance to contribute as part of a stack against LHP Derek Holland, who is sporting a 7.02 ERA and 2.59 HR/9 ratio on the road this season. The Twins utility man is hitting .293 with a .350 wOBA against lefties this year and is an impressive 6-for-11 with 2 doubles and a HR in his career against Holland. The White Sox southpaw managed to fool the Twins hitters in his most recent outing, but has generally been pummeled and will find the sledding tough on the road tonight.
Chris Young @ TOR ($2.5k DraftKings, $2.3k FanDuel)
If Young starts again tonight against LHP J.A. Happ, he’ll certainly be worth consideration as an ultra-value within the Red Sox potent lineup. The platoon specialist is a career .263 hitter with a .360 wOBA and .206 ISO Mark against LHP and he happens to be 5-for-15 with 2 HRs and 5 walks over a large sample against Happ. The Blue Jays southpaw has been up and down all season as he battles multiple injuries and he’s giving up a 32% Hard Contact Rate at Rogers Centre.
Other hitters to consider: Jose Altuve, Anthony Rizzo, Byron Buxton, Hunter Pence, Jorge Polanco, Alex Avila, Melky Cabrera, Christian Vazquez, Jose Pirela, Josh Harrison
8/30/17 DFS MLB STACKS
Astros vs Andrew Cashner
Cashner’s been dancing on egg shells throughout most of the season and the bounces have been unkind for him with a 4.50 ERA on the road, while he’s somehow held it together despite posting a 5.35 FIP at home. He’ll face an Astros team tonight at Tropicana Field that should be charged-up to represent their wounded city and you can expect Jose Altuve to lead that stack with his excellent career splits (8-for-15, HR, SB) against Cashner. Carlos Beltran and Marwin Gonzalez are struggling, but have plenty of upside as LHB with power and Yuli Gurriel is a solid cash game play. George Springer could pair with Altuve as the heart of a true Astros stack.
Reds vs Rafael Montero
Votto is the main slugger to pay up for, yet there are several tempting RHB that could add to Montero’s misery. The Mets SP is allowing righties to hit .315 with a 16.3% HR/FB ratio and 1.83 WHIP in RvR matchups this year, so consider Eugenio Suarez, Zack Cozart and Jose Peraza as excellent mid-tier plays. Adam Duvall has upside despite his recent slump and Billy Hamilton could also blow up with his limitless speed on the base paths.
Other Stacks to consider:
Twins vs. Derek Holland
Mets vs. Homer Bailey
Royals vs. Jake Odorizzi
