MLB DFS DraftKings.com & FanDuel.com Lineups & Picks for May 6, 2018
Hope everyone had a safe and entertaining Cinco de Mayo. We’re back for another full slate of MLB DFS games scheduled for Sunday, 5/6/18. The main slate on DraftKings includes nine games starting at 1:05 p.m. EST, while FanDuel’s main slate includes eight games starting at the same time.
For today, we’re listing our top MLB DFS picks at pitcher, hitter, and stacks to target in Cash and GPP lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel. The info below can also be used for crafting your daily fantasy baseball strategy at FantasyDraft.
Please note the advice below is relevant for daily fantasy purposes. A player or team might be better or worse from a fantasy perspective than in real life due to matchup, price, and lots of other factors. This is important to consider when constructing a roster. Remember that more than in other sports, variance is a huge part of baseball. Even Mike Trout can go 0-for-4 on a given night, and Max Scherzer can get lit up by an unsuspecting team.
Weather can also play a huge role in MLB DFS on a nightly basis, and lineups are constantly shifting. So always, always check the starting lineups and weather reports when playing for an MLB slate.
5/6/18 MLB DFS TOURNAMENT PICKS
Nifty Fifty: $50 entry, $300k guaranteed (DraftKings) – $50,000 to 1st!
Rally Cap: $8 entry, $150k guaranteed (DraftKings) – $25,000 to 1st!
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Best MLB DFS Pitchers for May 6, 2018
Chris Sale @ TEX ($12.6k DraftKings)
You can’t play him on FanDuel given their shorter slate, but you can take Sale over on DraftKings. He’s incredibly expensive, but he’s an incredible pitcher. However, I know at least I’m shocked that he only has one double-digit strikeout game this season, a 10-K outing against Oakland back in April. Fortunately, the Texas Rangers strike out with the best of them, racking up the fourth most strikeouts per game. I’m predicting a double-digit strikeout performance from Sale, though I’m sticking with him in GPPs only. Given his lack of dominance from the strikeout perspective, he’s too expensive for me to roster in cash games. That said, he ranks atop RotoQL’s top pitcher matchups, with the Rangers 10 strikeouts per game over their last 10 contests driving that in a big way.
Max Scherzer @ PHI ($13.4K DraftKings, $11.6k FanDuel)
While Sale has an excellent matchup, I want to discuss what you should consider, specifically at DraftKings, if you’re between the two ultra-expensive aces. Frankly, I think I’d prefer Sale so that I could have some semblance of a solid lineup across the other positions, but there is merit to finding a way to get Scherzer into some of your GPP lineups if you enter multiple times. The Philadelphia Phillies have the second most strikeouts per game in the entire league, and Scherzer has four double-digit strikeout performances in seven starts this season. It’s also been, like, a month since he did anything truly spectacular, so it feels like he’s due.
But where I really think you need to play him is on FanDuel. Look, with nine games, this slate is large enough to find value at the hitter positions, and looking up and down the available pitchers, I’m not sure you can afford to fade Scherzer’s upside when I’m not sure the value plays can compensate. What I’m trying to say is: even if you hit on some value plays and the lower-priced pitcher you pivoted to from Scherzer hits value, you’re not winning a GPP if Scherzer racks up 15 K’s. Game theory might scream fade here on FanDuel, but I feel like he’s the best play. At DraftKings, his price is so high that ownership will probably be lower than usual, which is nice. And his slate-leading upside makes it even nicer.
And no, the next pick is not Noah Syndergaard. We’ll get into some value options here shortly, but I’m avoiding Thor for a few reasons. Namely, the strikeouts haven’t been there, and both Sale and Scherzer have better matchups. And I would like to emphasize that I do not think pitching is very deep on this slate, which is why I’m so bullish on Sale and Scherzer (especially Scherzer).
Mike Clevinger @ NYY ($7.1k DraftKings, $8.0k FanDuel)
Clevinger didn’t immediately jump out to me until that $7.1k salary registered. I have a feeling most will see he’s at New York and that will be enough to fade him. But DraftKings clearly seems to be baking in the matchup here, and he’s an excellent leverage play, as such. Just two starts ago, Clevinger faced another AL East team (Baltimore Orioles) and dropped 32.85 DraftKings points in a nine-inning shutout. The Yankees are a much better team than the Orioles, but only one other offense on this slate has a higher per-game strikeout average over their last 10 contests. While the Yanks are red-hot right now, winning 14 of their last 15, rain is expected in the forecast for tomorrow. A little precipitation and thicker air from Mother Nature should benefit Clevinger and perhaps help cool the Yanks and their power bats.
Mike Soroka vs. SF ($7.5k DraftKings, $7.3k FanDuel)
With a phenomenal stretch at Triple-A, including a sub-2.00 ERA, followed by a pretty phenomenal MLB debut with five strikeouts over six innings against the Mets, Soroka should draw plenty of attention in his home debut. Especially considering the Giants got all of their scoring out of the way yesterday—or at least I hope. The Giants are really not that great of a team, and yesterday’s onslaught was probably more on Brandon McCarthy not playing well than San Francisco figuring out how to score all of a sudden. Ranking seventh lowest in runs per game, and top 10 in most strikeouts per game, the Giants shouldn’t scare anyone. Soroka is still cheap enough across the industry to consider rostering him, though I do think at FanDuel I’d prefer to take savings elsewhere. Soroka is a very interesting GPP option at DraftKings, though.
Kyle Gibson @ CWS ($7.0k DraftKings, $7.8k FanDuel)
A great GPP option, Gibson ranks 3rd over at RotoQL when looking at best pitcher matchup (a scoring system which includes both the pitcher and his opponent’s recent performance). He has had two outstanding performances this year: a 6-inning shutout (with 10 strikeouts) against the New York Yankees in April and a 6-inning, 6-strikeout shutout against the Orioles in his Twins debut. Everything in between has been messy, for the most part, but Gibson has flashed upside this season. On a slate with three historically dominant strikeout pitchers, Gibson has strikeout upside at a much lower cost. First of all, the White Sox struck out seven times to Lance Lynn last night, and they strike out more than 70% of MLB teams (7th highest per-game strikeout rate). Gibson, meanwhile, has averaged just over seven strikeouts per game over his last three starts. And it’s supposed to be very humid in Chicago tomorrow, which should give Gibson some additional assistance in keeping the ball in the park, though he has allowed just two home runs this season. I think you can consider him in cash on DraftKings, but he’s a better GPP play. On both DraftKings and FanDuel.
Other pitchers to consider: Andrew Suarez, Chase Anderson, Kyle Freeland, Chris Archer
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Best MLB DFS Hitters for May 6, 2018
Travis Shaw @ PIT ($4.2k DraftKings, $3.8k FanDuel)
Chad Kuhl is allowing lefties to hit for an OPS of 1.154 this season, and Travis Shaw is 3-for-6 lifetime against the rightie with two doubles. Even playing on the road in Pittsburgh, the Brewers bats—particularly the left-handed bats—are primed to excel. Kuhl is coming off his worst start of the season, a 4.2 inning dud against the Washington Nationals, and he allowed four home runs in that game. Guess what? All four came to left-handed batters. Kuhl now is allowing one home run to lefties every 11 at bats. Shaw, who has been going through a bit of a rough patch, has reached safely in four out of his last five games. That’s not a ringing endorsement, but Shaw is twice as good against right-handed pitchers as left-handed pitchers. No, seriously. His OPS against LHP is .431. His OPS against RHP is .963. He’s a strong play across the industry.
Mookie Betts @ TEX ($5.9k DraftKings)
A day late and a dollar short. Betts left us (or was it just me?) high and dry last night. But I’m going back to the well here, especially since Betts is in the latest game on the slate and facing a guy who can’t seem to figure it out against right-handed bats. Fister, a former member of the Red Sox, will attempt to contain his former team in Arlington on a hot Texas day. He’s allowing right-handed bats to hit for a .388 average, making Boston’s right-handed bats in play today. I like Betts here because, yesterday aside, he is in the midst of an incredibly hot streak including five home runs over his past four games. He can deliver in plenty of ways, and I believe many will fade him here and instead pivot down to J.D. Martinez, another guy I like. However, if you’re fading the Sale and Scherzer, you should probably grab Betts, a player with the kind of upside you want when fading chalk.
Wilson Ramos vs. TOR ($3.9k DraftKings, $2.7k FanDuel)
Ramos’ horrendous start to the season seems to be behind him, as he’s the slate’s top catcher when looking at points scored over the last five games. Today, he faces Marco Estrada, a pitcher he has done quite well against, with three hits in eight at bats, one hit being a home run. Perhaps more importantly, this season Estrada is allowing righties to achieve an OPS of just over 1.000, while Ramos has a .977 OPS against lefties this season, driven by five extra base hits in 31 at bats. Look for Ramos to build on his 5-for-12 start to March, and you can roster him in GPPs and Cash at DraftKings, while he’s GPP only for me at FanDuel given their format.
Kendrys Morales @ TB ($3.5k DraftKings, $2.6k FanDuel)
I sometimes cite BvP (batter vs. pitcher) because baseball is a mental game. And I think if you’ve homered off a guy three times, you probably remember that. And you probably feel like you are capable of doing it again, because you’ve done it before. So today we have Kendrys Morales against Chris Archer, who have met each others 32 times. Morales has won 17 of them. Among those 17 victories (hits and walks), Morales has 16 total hits, six doubles, and three home runs. So that hypothetical earlier? Not so hypothetical. Archer is allowing left-handed bats to hit for an OPS of 1.023 this season, and Morales weirdly has an OPS of .769 on the road compared to a .241 OPS at home. While the Blue Jays veteran isn’t having his best season from the left side of the plate, his history against Archer is enough for me.
Eduardo Escobar @ CWS ($4.0k DraftKings, $4.0k FanDuel)
No sense in ignoring it — Eduardo Escobar is on fire. The Twins infielder is 10-for-28 over the last week with five doubles, three home runs, and six RBIs. And his 1.006 OPS on the season is a 33% improvement over last season. He’s very clearly having a breakout year, and today, James Shields should be complementary to Escobar’s progress. Shields is 1-3 on the season with a 5.35 ERA. He walks guys nearly as often as he strikes them out (19 Ks vs. 17 BBs) and he’s actually been worse at home, with a 5.96 ERA and 0-2 record at US Cellular. While Escobar is lifetime 2-for-13 against Shields, Escobar is on the rise, while Shields is on the way out. I expect Escobar to continue on this hot streak as the Twins close out their series in Chicago. He’s priced low enough that you can afford him across the industry.
Other hitters to consider: Michael Brantley, Jose Ramirez, Brian Dozier, J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts, Matt Adams, Christian Yelich, Eric Thames, Eddie Rosario, Nick Markakis, Jason Kipnis, Nolan Arenado
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MLB DFS Stacks to Consider for May 6, 2018
Twins vs. James Shields (White Sox)
Indians vs. Domingo German (Yankees)
Red Sox vs. Doug Fister (Rangers)
Brewers vs. Chad Kuhl (Pirates)
