MLB DFS DraftKings.com & FanDuel.com Lineups & Picks for June 3, 2018
Happy Sunday, DFSers. We’re back for another full slate of MLB DFS games scheduled for 6/3/18. The main slates on both DraftKings and FanDuel kick off at 1:05 p.m. EST. We’ve got nine games in play at DraftKings, while FanDuel’s main slate features eight games.
For today, we’re listing our MLB DFS best 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.
6/3/18 MLB DFS TOURNAMENT PICKS
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Best MLB DFS Pitchers for June 3, 2018
Nick Kingham @ STL ($8.2k DraftKings, $8.1k FanDuel)
Kingham’s major league debut, a 7-inning, 9-strikeout gem against the St. Louis Cardinals back in April, does seem like a somewhat distant memory considering his last three starts have looked like this:
Home vs. CHI — 5.2 IP, 8 H, 3 ER, 4 SO
Home vs. SD — 6 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 5 SO
Away vs. MIL — 5.1 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 7 SO
Now, those scores are nowhere close to his debut, but they aren’t disastrous either. Game-log watchers will likely stay away from Kingham and his elevated price tag, but he’s already shut down St. Louis once this year, and he has some strikeout upside. The Cardinals strike out at an above-average per-game rate, and, out of all offenses on this slate, only one is averaging more strikeouts per game over their last 10 than the Cardinals. What’s more? All this is adding up over on RotoQL, where Kingham has the top score for strikeout potential based on matchup. The Cardinals have also hit a bit of a skid, scoring three runs over their last two games. Kingham is GPP viable, but he’s an interesting cash game pivot on DraftKings.
Jakob Junis vs. OAK ($9.0k DraftKings, $8.8k FanDuel)
The Athletics racked up 16 runs in a win over the Royals two days ago, but they lost a close game 5-4 last night. And they’ve been held scoreless in two of their last six games, a stretch that has seen them compile a 2-4 record. The Royals are probably worse than the Athletics (at least their record is), but Junis has been a bit of a bright spot, as the Royals are 7-4 in games started by the lefty. In his last outing, Junis was pedestrian, allowing three earned runs over six innings. But his 7 strikeouts (for a second consecutive outing) were good enough to make up for several of his blunders. At a higher level, over his last five games, Junis has racked up at least seven strikeouts in four of them. His strikeout floor, coupled with the matchup, make him a potentially underowned stud. The Athletics strike out at the 10th highest per game rate in the league, and they struck out 11 times just two games ago. Junis might not spin a gem, but he has strikeout upside, a solid strikeout floor, and a winnable matchup at home.
Jon Lester @ NYM ($10.4k DraftKings, $8.4k FanDuel)
I really don’t think pitching is deep today, and I’m worried about a lot of the more expensive guys. But if I did decide to go chalk today, it’d be Lester. The lefty veteran didn’t look good in his last outing, allowing four earned runs to the Pirates. But prior to that, he had three straight starts in which he allowed one earned in each and averaged just under six strikeouts. The Mets had lost nine of their last twelve games prior to this weekend, while the Cubs have won five of their last six. This season, Lester is 5-2 with a sub-3.00 ERA, and he’s all but completely made up for Darvish’s rocky start. The Mets shouldn’t be much of a challenge, as they have racked up a .601 OPS against left-handed pitchers compared to a .748 OPS against right-handed pitchers. Lester is an intriguing tournament option, especially on FanDuel where I don’t think he’ll be heavily owned.
Other pitchers to consider: Mike Clevinger, Domingo German, Kyle Gibson, Michael Wacha, Dylan Covey (Deep GPP)
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Best MLB DFS Hitters for June 3, 2018
Javier Baez vs. NYM ($4.9k DraftKings, $3.9k FanDuel)
Baez looks great this season. He’s slashing .267/.300/.553, all on par or better than career bests. His slugging, specifically, is through the roof, as the .553 SLG is 25% higher than his career SLG. That is a critical stat, as Baez hurts you from an OBP standpoint, given he doesn’t walk, but he also brings insane power for a second baseman. He got the day off yesterday, but he should be good to go today against Steven Matz, a player who, in six showdowns with the Cubs infielder, has allowed four hits, including a home run. While Matz did look good in May, finishing the month with a 2.25 ERA, he’s been bad at Citi Field this season. Compared to a 1.61 road ERA in 2018, Matz is allowing a 5.40 ERA at home. That doesn’t bode well for a guy who has allowed 12 hits in 33 at bats to this Cubs roster, including three home runs. I’m all about a Chicago stack today, but I do believe Baez is a strong starting point for a GPP stack if you can grab some cheaper options elsewhere. Chicago stacks are never cheap.
Matt Adams @ ATL ($3.9k DraftKings, $3.6k FanDuel)
Anibal Sanchez looked to be making a late career resurgence at the start of this season for Atlanta, but a DL stint ended that. In his first start back, he allowed four runs over four innings against the New York Mets. That rough outing included two home runs, which came against Adrian Gonzalez and Asdrubal Cabrera, both batting as lefties. While Sanchez has actually been better against lefties than righties over the past three seasons, his return to action was a jarring one. And I don’t think his stuff is anywhere close to fixed. Enter Matt Adams, a power bat who—you guessed it—hits from the left side. He’s crushing RHPs this season to the tune of 11 home runs (out of his 12 on the season) and a .959 OPS. You can’t play Adams against left-handers, but you always have to consider him against right handers. Like the Cubs, the Nationals have a great matchup and the bats to capitalize. Adams is a mid-tier option as far as price, but his upside is enormous against the waning veteran.
Mike Moustakas vs. OAK ($4.6k DraftKings, $4.3k FanDuel)
Currently being projected as the highest scorer over at RotoQL on the Kansas City Royals roster, Moustakas leads the way for a few reasons. One, he hits right-handed pitching well (.912 OPS this season). Two, Daniel Gossett is allowing lefties to hit for an OPS of .942. And in his only other road start this year, the Athletics prospect allowed 5 earned runs over 3.1 innings against the Los Angeles Angels, including a home run to lefty Shohei Ohtani. Moustakas has 12 home runs this season, 10 of which have came against right handers. He also hits homeruns at 2.5x the rate against RHPs as he does against LHPs, to better weight that statistic. And he’s just two games removed from a home run off lefty starter Fernando Romero of the Minnesota Twins. Moustakas is the main Royal I’m looking at today, and I think he’s viable in tournament and GPP formats, alike.
Justin Turner @ COL ($4.5k DraftKings)
I’ll just preface this with Chad Bettis’ home-road splits. At home this season, he’s earned a 7.06 ERA compared to a road ERA of 2.03. So, yeah, needless to say I’m targeting bats on the Dodgers side. But one sticks out. Justin Turner is 9-for-18 lifetime against Bettis, and as much as I hate leaning into BvP so much today, that is a telling line given there would appear to be a definitive advantage to the hitter in this one. Over the past several seasons, Turner, a right-handed hitter, has actually hit better against RHPs than LHPs. This season, that hasn’t been the case, but over the past three seasons, he’s 27-for-82 at Coors field with two home runs and nine doubles. Heading back to the hitter-friendly park may be just what Turner needed. After all, he went 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, a run, and an RBI in the series opener on June 1. Roster Turner in GPP and cash games if you, like me, sense a high scoring contest here. Bettis, at least, should anticipate one in spite of his efforts tonight.
Other hitters to consider: Brett Gardner, Greg Bird, Manny Machado, Trea Turner, Bryce Harper, Anthony Rendon, Ender Inciarte, Dansby Swanson, Jose Abreu, Edwin Encarnacion, Jason Kipnis, Salvador Perez, Whit Merrifield, Yasmani Grandal, Cody Bellinger, Trevor Story
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MLB DFS Stacks to Consider for June 3, 2018
Yankees vs. Alex Cobb (Orioles)
Dodgers vs. Chad Bettis (Rockies)
Cubs vs. Steven Matz (Mets)
Nationals vs. Anibal Sanchez (Braves)
