DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Tuesday 4/13/21

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Welcome back baseball fans. I am back for article one of three for me on the week and man did I luck out with pitching after a few of the slates over the weekend. Let's jump in and have a look at a few of my favorite plays at each position for the main slate on Tuesday.

Pitchers

Trevor Bauer FD - P 11000 DK - SP 10200
Opponent - COL (Antonio Senzatela) Park - LAD
FD - 46.53 DK - 25.32

Bauer has been everything the Dodgers hoped for as he has been electric to start the season. He has struck out 10 in both starts and backed it up with a 14% swinging-strike rate and the best part is he hasn't been subject to the "Dodger pitch count" going 96 and 110 pitches and getting into the 7th inning in both starts. Tonight he faces the Rockies for a second time and I love the matchup as the Rockies are 25th overall with a 75 wRC+, a stat I love as it is park-adjusted. With Bieber facing a much more dangerous White Sox offense, Bauer is easily my top pitcher on this slate and a great play in all formats.

Stephen Strasburg FD - P 10400 DK - SP 8400
Opponent - STL (Jack Flaherty) Park - STL
FD - 36.82 DK - 19.95

This play is more of a price mismatch more than anything as he is the 3rd most expensive option on FanDuel but 6th on DraftKings. While that doesn't seem like much, getting a pitcher of Strasburg's talent in mid $8K range is highway robbery. He looked great in his first start, returning from a 2020 injury, going six innings allowing just one hit while striking out eight and walking just two. While the Nats are slight underdogs here, the Cards offense has actually been slightly below average to start the year with a .219 average, .299 wOBA, and 90 wRC+. Strasburg is my favorite SP2 on DraftKings tonight.

Catcher/First Base

Max Muncy FD - 1B 3200 DK - 1B 5200
Opponent - COL (Antonio Senzatela) Park - LAD
FD - 13.6 DK - 10.02

The Dodgers are in a great spot tonight and sit atop the implied run rankings in our system. It is very tough to play more than one of them on DraftKings at their prices but on FanDuel there are a couple I really like running together as cash game core plays. It starts with Max Muncy who is still in the low $3k range on FD despite getting the bump up to the cleanup spot with Bellinger on the IL and Betts day-to-day. While he has only hit one home run, he enters Tuesday with .462 wOBA and 198 wRC+ with hits in seven of 10 games. He is my top play at first on FanDuel tonight.

Wilson Ramos FD - C 3300 DK - C 3400
Opponent - HOU (Jake Odorizzi) Park - HOU
FD - 7.79 DK - 6

On DraftKings, where we are forced to play a catcher, I am always looking for a cheap option who can just get on base a couple of times while allowing me to spend up for pitching and some other top bats. Ramos is that play for me tonight as he is not only cheap in the mid $3K range on DK but has also been hot with hits in five of his last six games and home runs in four of his last five. The streak is going to come to an end and I am not expecting another bomb but at these prices, i am sure going to chase it!

Second Base

David Fletcher FD - 2B 2600 DK - 2B 4400
Opponent - KC (Danny Duffy) Park - KC
FD - 10.05 DK - 7.86

I will preface here by picky-backing off what James said in yesterday's article about taking some of these early-season small samples with a grain of salt. Fletcher is one of those players as he has been slow out of the gates with an average just over .200 but the good news is that has helped keep the price down while he continues to hit leadoff for the Angels who are a Top 10 offense early on. At these prices, especially on FanDuel, Fletcher is a top value play in all formats.

The rest of the second base position is a mess with Jose Altuve coming in at elite prices and if you have the salary to get there, is a great play and has been hot to start the year. For value, I like Ty France who has been solid with hits in seven of nine games while hitting near the top of the Mariners lineup.

Shortstop

Dansby Swanson FD - SS 2400 DK - SS 4200
Opponent - MIA (Pablo Lopez) Park - ATL
FD - 9.79 DK - 7.43

The system is leaning value at the shortstop position and Swanson is right in the mix as second in our early PTS/$ rankings. While the average below .200 looks might turn some off, it is very positive to see he comes into tonight with hits in three straight and six of his last eight games as the Braves try to rebound after a slow start offensively. It isn't the greatest of matchups vs. Pablo Lopez but I am willing to sacrifice to be able to spend up at pitcher and a few other key positions for bats.

Carlos Correa FD 3100 DK 4700
Opponent - DET (Matthew Boyd) Park - DET
FD - 10.57 DK - 7.96

The Astros are in a nice spot once again tonight facing lefty Matthew Boyd who does have the potential to be a top pitcher but continues to be nothing more than average and is prone to giving up home runs. Correa is in a similar situation as Swanson as he hits down in the lineup but has been very solid to start the year hitting .325 with a .432 wOBA and 182 wRC+. The Astros give us multiple ways to stack them with a deep lineup and I really like the middle to bottom of the order stack with Correa and also like him as a one-off cash game play, as well.

Third Base

Justin Turner FD - 3B 3600 DK - 3B 5300
Opponent - COL (Antonio Senzatela) Park - LAD
FD - 12.85 DK - 9.7

I mentioned how it's a bit easier to fit the Dodgers on FanDuel and Turner/Muncy are my favorites at their prices and also happen to hit 3-4 in the lineup. Like pretty much every bat in the lineup, Turner has been hot to start the season with hits in seven of nine games with five doubles, two runs, and a 193 wRC+. He and the Dodgers got to Senzatela in Coors and while the park is a downgrade from that game, I still think they are one of the top-scoring teams on the slate putting Turner in play in all formats.

Joey Wendle FD 3300 DK 4800
Opponent - TEX (Kyle Gibson) Park - TEX
FD - 7.92 DK - 6.16

We can't go through the entire article without mentioning a stack against Kyle Gibson. Sure, the Jays made him look like an All-Star but don't be fooled as he carries a career mid-4 ERA due to a consistent lack of control which he showed in the opener. For Wendle, it has been a very solid start to the season as he is hitting over .300 with a .361 wOBA, 135 wRC+ and has already driven in seven runs. The price is getting up there but the matchup and overall lack of value has him in my player pool for all formats.

Outfield

Mike Trout FD - OF 4400 DK - OF 6000
Opponent - KC (Danny Duffy) Park - KC
FD - 14.84 DK - 10.96
Justin Upton FD - OF 2700 DK - OF 3500
Opponent - KC (Danny Duffy) Park - KC
FD - 11.15 DK - 8.31

I got some California love tonight and going back to another LA team here in the outfield. Trout is a no-doubter almost every single night so there is not much to say there but I include him tonight as he is much easier to fit with his teammates with Rendon out of the lineup. I already talked about Fletcher at the top of the lineup hitting in front of Trout and hitting behind him we have Justin Upton. While he doesn't provide much in terms of consistency, he does make up for that with power which comes most often against southpaw pitching. The biggest thing is the opportunity and cost allowing us to easily stack the Angels tonight without sacrificing a top pitcher.

Akil Baddoo FD 2800 DK 3800
Opponent - HOU (Jake Odorizzi) Park - HOU
FD - 7.33 DK - 5.62

Not only has this been a terrific story to track as his path to the big leagues is not like most but he has also had some early success and on the fantasy radar. It started with home runs in each of his first two games and he now enters tonight with hits in five of seven games including three home runs and nine RBI. It won't be long before he gets a boost up the lineup and if that happens, jump on board before the price increases.

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