MLB DFS DraftKings.com & FanDuel.com Lineups & Picks for May 24, 2018
Baseball is back with a great slate of MLB DFS games scheduled for Thursday, 5/24/18. The main slate on DraftKings includes four games starting at 6:10 p.m. EST. Then, FanDuel’s main slate includes three games starting at the 7:10 p.m. EST.
For today, we’re listing our top MLB DFS pitchers, hitters, 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 Jose Altuve can go 0-for-4 on a given night, and Max Scherzer can get lit up by a weak 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. If a game gets rained out, your player gets zero points!
5/24/18 MLB DFS TOURNAMENT PICKS
Rally Cap: $8 entry, $150k guaranteed (DraftKings) – $25,000 to 1st!
Fastball: $33 entry, $100k guaranteed (DraftKings)
Squeeze: $5.55 entry, $100k guaranteed (FanDuel) – $20,000 to 1st!
Grand Slam: $33 entry, $50k guaranteed (FanDuel)
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Houston Astros (-135) at Cleveland Indians (Over/Under – 8 runs)
*Contest only available on DraftKings Main Slate*
Savvy Astros veteran RHP Charlie Morton ($11.4k) is fresh off another dominant performance. He dominated this Cleveland team with 8 Ks and 1 ER over 7 IP last Friday.
He’s averaging 23.3 FPPG over his last five appearances per RotoQL, and his stalwart performances could limit the upside of promising RHP Mike Clevinger ($9.0k) once again.
Morton has been incredible with a 32.1% K-Rate and 2.88 SIERA over nine outings, but he has struggled with the long ball (20.6% HR/FB ratio). So perhaps you could consider Indians RHB Edwin Encarnacion ($3.9k) in tournaments since Morton has been even better against LHBs and Encarnacion happens to be 3-for-6 with 2 HRs in his career against Morton.
That said, Morton should be able to limit Cleveland’s deadly switch-hitting combination of Jose Ramirez ($5.2k) and Francisco Lindor ($5.1k) once again.
Clevinger is pitching to contact this year and has danced around trouble against most offenses. Still, the Astros tagged him for 3 ER on 8 hits last Friday.
This is a favorable matchup for Jose Altuve ($4.6k), who is one of the best contact hitters in the game and has logged 10 hits over his last seven appearances.
Young third baseman Alex Bregman ($4.0k) is also heating up and is worth a look in tournaments with a healthy projection of 9.3 FPs on RotoQL.
Yuli Gurriel ($3.7k) is another contact hitter worth considering. Then, Tony Kemp ($3.7k) could serve as a value with upside.
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Boston Red Sox (-130) at Tampa Rays (Over/Under – 7.5)
While Charlie Morton has the most upside, Rick Porcello ($11.2k, $9.3k) is an equitable Cash play on a team that is also favored on the road tonight. Porcello bounced back from a couple rough outings by picking on the weak Orioles offense. He’s 2-0 with 17 Ks over three starts against Tampa this season.
Porcello is much tougher on RHBs, and that makes this a good matchup for him.
Boston is posting the sixth-lowest wOBA (.299) with a 23.5% K-Rate against LHPs this season, giving Blake Snell ($8.0k, $8.1k) some appeal as a GPP option. He’s figured it out with a 3.21 K/BB ratio and 3.70 SIERA this season and struck out nine in his last meeting with the Red Sox.
Mookie Betts ($6.0k, $5.4k) has been less dangerous against LHPs throughout his career but is collaborating with J.D. Martinez ($5.3k, $5.0k) and apparently picking some things up from a man who posted a .531 wOBA against the platoon last season. Both players are absolute studs with great upside, yet it may be worth fading Mookie at that price tag on DK.
We could see Eduardo Nunez ($3.4k, $2.8k) start at 3B with the platoon advantage against Snell. And Xander Bogaerts ($4.0k, $4.0k) is at a good price point on DK, so he’s worth using on that DFS site despite his recent quiet stretch.
The Rays do have a couple of under-priced options, including hot-hitting 3B Matt Duffy ($3.0k, $3.1k). He’s 5-for-16 in his career against Porcello, while Brad Miller ($3.0k, $2.3k) has owned the Red Sox righty with 6 doubles and 5 HRs (1.052 OPS) over 46 career plate appearances. Miller could serve as a very cheap punt play at 1B.
Elite prospect Willy Adames ($3.3k, $2.7k) homered in his first MLB game and is worth a look as a value at SS on FD.
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Kansas City Royals (+105) at Texas Rangers (Over/Under – 8.5)
Rangers RHP Austin Bibens-Dirkx ($4.0k) posted a 1.82 HR/9 ratio and gave up a 36.6% hard contact rate over 24 appearances in his rookie season. He draws a favorable matchup against the Royals but is probably better to target.
Royals LHP Danny Duffy ($4.3k, $6.0k) is a recommended value against a Rangers lineup that’s shorthanded with Elvis Andrus (elbow) and Adrian Beltre (hamstring) both on the DL.
Last night’s offensive eruption notwithstanding, Texas has been awful this season. The Rangers have posted the fourth-lowest batting average (.225) and the highest K-Rate (28%) in the Majors when facing lefties. Those players’ absence is felt in both tangible and intangible ways. While Duffy has been hit hard of late, he did shut down the weak Orioles offense and would pay huge dividends on that measly price tag if he can post a Quality Start against a similarly struggling opponent.
The Royals hitter with the best floor-ceiling combination is Whit Merrifield ($4.5k, $3.6k), a dual threat capable of doing damage with his legs or bat.
Mike Moustakas ($4.4k, $3.8k) is worth a look in tournaments given how Bibens-Dirkx has struggled with the long ball.
Salvador Perez ($4.0k, $3.3k) is projected for 7.2 FPs and has a higher floor than the Mets’ Devin Mesoraco, who leads the position with a slightly higher projection of 7.3 FPs tonight.
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New York Mets (-110) at Milwaukee Brewers (Over/Under – 8)
The Brewers have a complete boom-bust offense, and Steven Matz ($5.1k, $7.1k) is a volatile play in his own right. This simply isn’t a great matchup for the southpaw given Milwaukee’s long list of RHBs that thrive against the platoon.
This may also seem like a tough matchup for Brewers RHP Zach Davies ($6.1k, $7.9k). He’s posting 3.30 FIP with a .214 BAA when facing lefties this year and has had success against the Mets in the past. Davies makes for a solid value on DK without the same volatility as Danny Duffy.
Lorenzo Cain ($4.7k, $3.5k) is the most expensive Brewers batter with good splits against the platoon. He’s 16-for-40 (.400) off lefties this year and is a career .308 hitter against LHPs.
Jesus Aguilar ($4.1k, $3.2k) is a powerful RHB with a career 19.2% HR/FB ratio. He’s posting a .427 wOBA off LHP this season.
Domingo Santana ($3.8k, $2.7k) and Jonathan Villar ($3.8k, $2.6k) are two more RHBs to consider adding to a stack against Matz. And Christian Yelich ($4.4k, $3.4k) could be contrarian despite his solid numbers in LvL matchups.
Both Michael Conforto ($4.0k, $3.5k) and Brandon Nimmo ($3.5k, $3.1k) have healthy projections of around 10 FPs on RotoQL tonight. They have the platoon advantage against Davies and both have plenty of pop. Nimmo has sneaky upside with a .420 wOBA off righties this year.
Finally, Asdrubal Cabrera ($4.0k, $3.9k) is also worth deploying on DK if you want a 2B with upside for GPP lineups.
