DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Monday 8/3/20

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Pitchers

Gerrit Cole FD - P 11000 DK - SP 11000
Opponent - PHI (Asher Wojciechowski) Park - BAL
FD - 39.05 DK - 22.32

It hasn't exactly been a dominating start to the season for Cole but he has won both of his starts and three of the four earned runs he has given up came on two home runs. Overall, he limited the Nationals and Orioles to just five hits across 11.2 innings with 12 strikeouts(28%) and just three walks. Tonight, he gets a matchup against the Phillies who have not played since their opening series with the Marlins. The price still has room to go up and given the other elite arms on this slate have much tougher matchups, Cole is easily my top play on this slate in all formats.

Alec Mills FD - P 7000 DK - RP 8000
Opponent - KC (Danny Duffy) Park - CHC
FD - 27.11 DK - 13.9

The Cubs open up as -150 favorites on Monday at home to a Royals team that has struggled losing three straight and five of their last six scoring just 3.5 runs per game. Mills came up in the Royals system and joined the Cubs in 2017 and it appears he is finally getting a shot in the rotation. He was decent in his first start going six innings, giving up just two hits and two earn earned runs. He only went 77 pitches so I fully expect that leash the be extended to at least 85 tonight which is more than enough for him to hit value. He is in play in all formats.

Catcher/First Base

José Abreu FD - 1B 3200 DK - 1B 4200
Opponent - MIL (Adrian Houser) Park - MIL
FD - 10.23 DK - 7.77

The line is not out yet on this game at the tie of writing this but I would suspect the red-hit White Sox are favorites here. Either way, they are near the top of my list for teams to targets, especially from a PTS/$ perspective with the very expensive Yankees ad Rockies bats tonight. The Sox have won four straight scoring 27 runs and Abreu hits right in the middle of the lineup between some up and coming superstars. At these prices, he is a top target at first base in all formats.

Willson Contreras FD - C 3300 DK - C 4500
Opponent - KC (Danny Duffy) Park - CHC
FD - 12.28 DK - 9.26
Austin Nola FD - C 2100 DK - 1B/C 2800
Opponent - OAK (Frankie Montas) Park - SEA
FD - 7.2 DK - 5.53

At catcher, it is always tough to buy into a player the night before when writing but these are two that stand out in different price tiers. First up is Contreras is has been solid to start the year and comes in with hits in three straight and six of the last seven with five doubles. He hits in the middle of the Cubs lineup that went into Sunday leading the league in wOBA(.370) and wRC+(135).

If you are like me and love punting the catcher position on DraftKings, keep an eye on Austin Nola as he gets starts near the top of the lineup. This would really boost his implied at-bats putting him right near the top of the PTS/$ ranks at the position and most of all allowing us to spend up for the multiple elite bats at other positions.

Second Base

Ryan McMahon FD - 2B 3600 DK - 1B/2B 4700
Opponent - SF (Johnny Cueto) Park - COL
FD - 13.73 DK - 10.42

For the first time this year, I get a Coors slate to write up so I am hoping things go about how they did over the weekend. The three-game slate averaged 12.3 runs per game with the Rockies scoring 6+ in all three. As of writing this, the Giants have yet to announce a starter but it really won't change much as they are a top team for me in all formats. For cash games, McMahon is my top target if paying up for pitching as the Rockies are expensive and he is the 5th most expensive on the team. He hits 6th which isn't the best-case scenario but he has been consistent to start the year and comes in with hits in four of his last five games including three multi-hit efforts.

Donovan Solano FD - SS 3300 DK - 2B/3B 5000
Opponent - COL (Chi Chi González) Park - COL
FD - 14.6 DK - 11.5

On the other side of this game, I feel like I would be doing a disservice if I didn't mention what Donovan Solano has been doing this season. He didn't get the opening day start and went 0 for 1 in a pinch-hit appearance but has been "insert fire emoji" since with hits in eight straight games and now leads the league with a .448 average(players with 15+ at-bats) and 13 RBI. While this is obviously not sustainable, seeing as the Giants are a bottom-five offense, they are in Colorado so fire him up while he is hot, especially on FanDuel in the low $3K range where he lists as a shortstop.

Shortstop

J.P. Crawford FD - SS 3200 DK - SS 3600
Opponent - OAK (Frankie Montas) Park - SEA
FD - 8.61 DK - 6.56

As I mention throughout the article, there are a ton of elite bats in great spots tonight and that means the value plays are pretty high up on the priority list. I talked about Solano above who is a nice SS value on FanDuel and another one that stands out is J.P. Crawford. he won't win you a GPP very often with his limited upside but has a nice floor for cash games hitting leadoff and comes in with hits in six of his last seven games.

If you are looking to pay up at the shortstop position, Trevor Story is the top choice as he has been red-hot to start the season with a wOBA north of .500 and already has four long balls. Another intriguing option in the middle tiers is Gleyber Torres of the Yankees who may be cold to start the season but is hitting 3rd in arguably the most powerful offense in the league.

Third Base

Gio Urshela FD - 3B 3000 DK - 3B 4000
Opponent - PHI (Asher Wojciechowski) Park - BAL
FD - 9.22 DK - 7.1

We have a Coors slate tonight but I can almost guarantee the Yankees bats will be very close in terms of ownership tonight and for good reason. They went into Sunday averaging 5.1 runs per game to start the season and currently have five once again against the Red Sox on Sunday Night Baseball. The average(.227) may not jump off the page but he is currently sporting a .392 wOBA, 156 wRC+ and has already scored six runs and driven in five. At these prices, he is in play in all formats despite hitting down in the Yankees lineup.

Phillip Evans FD - 3B 2400 DK - 3B 2600
Opponent - MIN (Lewis Thorpe) Park - MIN
FD - 5.98 DK - 4.6

Evans is a player that won't break the bank but also won't win you a GPP very often either. He is getting opportunity in this return to play 60-game season and has hit as high as 2nd and as low as 7th in the lineup and comes in with hits in four of six games and at least minimum fantasy points in all six. As of now, we don't know who the Cubs are starting so stay tuned during the day for that info and the Pirates starting lineup.

Outfield

Charlie Blackmon FD - OF 4300 DK - OF 5700
Opponent - SF (Johnny Cueto) Park - COL
FD - 16.29 DK - 12.47
David Dahl FD - OF 3900 DK - OF 5300
Opponent - SF (Johnny Cueto) Park - COL
FD - 16.09 DK - 12.28

Like I mentioned above with McMahon, the Rockies are expensive so getting multiple players is going to be tricky with the way pitching sets up tonight with so many aces and not much after. If you are targeting the Rockies in cash, Blackmon has to be at the top of the list as he is one of the hottest players in the league right now as he enters tonight with a six-game hit streak and has multiple hits in five straight.

From a salary perspective for cash games, it might be easier to attack the semi-value bats in the lineup and Dahl is the 4th most expensive on the team on both sites. He is the regular leadoff hitter so that alone brings value with implied at-bats at the best hitters park in the league. He has also been consistent lately with hits in three straight and six of eight games on the season.

Aaron Hicks FD - OF 2700 DK - OF 4400
Opponent - PHI (Asher Wojciechowski) Park - BAL
FD - 11.85 DK - 8.83

The Yankees outfield is loaded and no one needs to tell you to play Judge and Stanton almost every single day as long as they are healthy. The Yankees are huge -300 favorites as of writing this putting them only slightly behind the Rockies in terms of implied runs and preference in terms of teams to stack. In cash games, I like targeting Aaron Hicks who gives us exposure to the lineup but at a bit of a discount, especially on FanDuel in the sub $3K range. The average doesn't look great at this time but the above average advanced stats all-around have me not worrying one bit and I will have exposure in all formats.

Luis Robert FD - OF 3200 DK - OF 3900
Opponent - MIL (Adrian Houser) Park - MIL
FD - 10.84 DK - 8.36

For some odd reason, Luis Robert continues to be underpriced on both sites and will most likely be heavily owned again on a red hot White Sox team that has won four straight scoring 27 runs. After opening the season with hits in six of his first seven games, the White Sox moved him to the leadoff spot where he has rewarded them going 5 for 10 with three extra-base hits the last two days. If he is back in that leadoff spot tonight, he is one of the top PTS/$ on the slate.

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