DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Wednesday 6/23/21

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Pitchers

Early
Brandon Woodruff FD - P 10700 DK - SP 10300
Opponent - ARI (Caleb Smith) Park - ARI
FD - 40.98 DK - 23.2

As well as Kevin Gausman has pitched this season, the decision at top pitcher on this slate is pretty easy here. To start with, Woodruff gets the much better matchup against the D-backs who are among the worst offenses in the league and much worse against right-handed pitching. For Woodruff, he is coming off his worst start of the season but it was in Coors and before that he had held opponents to just 11 earned runs over his previous 12 starts. All things considered, Woodruff is my top pitcher in all formats on the early slate.

Also Consider: Dylan Cease(CHW) in a plus matchup against the Pirates

Main

Jose Urquidy FD - P 8500 DK - SP 8100
Opponent - BAL (Thomas Eshelman) Park - BAL
FD - 32.46 DK - 16.92

The main slate is a much tougher decision at pitcher tonight with Bauer and Musgrove going head to head and add in Trevor Rogers and all three top pitchers have pretty terrible matchups. I will bypass those guys in cash and head down the board a bit with Jose Urquidy who is a -200 favorite tonight against the Orioles. The K upside(22%) or lack thereof is a bit of an issue but the price is low enough that we can deal with it an on DK we are looking for about 16 points and he has tallied 15 or more in six of his last seven starts with 22 or more in three of his last four. All things considered, I love the PTS/$ value here making him my fav pitcher for cash games on the main slate.

Catcher/First Base

Early

Paul Goldschmidt FD - 1B 3900 DK - 1B 5000
Opponent - DET (Matt Manning) Park - DET
FD - 11.6 DK - 8.72

After a slow start to the season, Goldy has really started to heat up hitting over .300 in the month of June with an elite .392 wOBA and 153 wRC+. With it, however, is a huge spike in price but it is also slightly relative to the size of this early slate. The Cards sit right behind the White Sox in terms of implied runs and goldy is my favorite play at first in all formats.

Main

Yuli Gurriel FD - 1B 3200 DK - 1B 4800
Opponent - BAL (Thomas Eshelman) Park - BAL
FD - 14.94 DK - 11.46

PThe underprice Astros bats picked up the win last night but were not a great stack scoring just three runs. Gurriel came through for us in cash picking up a pair of hits and scoring a run pushing his average up to .325 for the season. His price didn't budge meanwhile the Astros and their league-leading offense is in another good spot sitting atop the implied run rankings once again. All things considered, I will have a ton of exposure again and it starts with Gurriel.

Second Base

Early

Brendan Rodgers FD - 2B 2400 DK - 2B/SS 3300
Opponent - SEA (Justus Sheffield) Park - SEA
FD - 9.07 DK - 6.98

To fit Woodruff and as many White Sox and Cardinals bats as possible we are going to need some serious value and that brings us to Brendan Rodgers at a position I love to punt. First of all, the Rockies are not nearly as dangerous on the road but do get a plus matchup vs. a struggling Justus Sheffield(5.65 ERA/4.81 xFIP) and sit To 4 in implied runs on this slate. For Rodgers, it is all about the splits as he has crushed lefties to the tune of a .448 wOBA, 173 wRC+, and .318 ISO this season. He is one of my top values on this slate.

Main

DJ LeMahieu FD 3100 DK 4900
Opponent - KC (Danny Duffy) Park - KC
FD - 9.74 DK - 7.52

Second base is a wasteland on the main slate and I am kind of hoping some value shows up near the top of someones lineup before lock. As of now, I am looking at LeMahieu who is very fairly priced on both sites considering he has been starting to pick it up with hits in five straight and nine of his last 10 games with five multi-hit efforts. The Yankees also get Duffy in a good spot as he has struggled recently giving up 15 hits and seven earned runs over his last two starts. All things considered, LeMahieu is my top play at second base on the main slate.

Shortstop

Early

Tim Anderson FD - SS 4100 DK - SS 4300
Opponent - PIT (Chase De Jong) Park - PIT
FD - 12.72 DK - 9.89

He is going through a mini-slump right now but don't be fooled as he is still one of the best hitters in the game and is coming at close to season-low prices on a smaller slate. The White Sox have struggled as a team, to be honest, but still have a loaded lineup despite some injuries and get a plus matchup today against Chase De Jong. Anderson is easily my top play at shortstop on the early slate.

Main

Wander Franco FD - SS 2500 DK - SS 2000
Opponent - BOS (Garrett Richards) Park - TB
FD - 8.92 DK - 6.91

If you were in chat last night when I posted my sheet, I promised he would be in the article after crushing for us in his major league debut. The price didn't budge as salaries were already out before he went 2 for 4 with a home run and is most likely going to remain in the two-hole until(if) he hits the rookie wall. He is the #1 prospect in baseball and has already shown why and is once again going to be a top PTS/$ play in the system and a great play in all formats.

Third Base

Early

Ty France FD - 2B 3100 DK - 1B/3B 3100
Opponent - COL (German Márquez) Park - SEA
FD - 9.52 DK - 7.27

If you have the money to spend up here, I do like Nolan Arenado if playing Goldy at first or Yoan Moncada under $5K in a plus matchup. If you need a little more value, I will be turning to Ty France, especially on DraftKings at his current price. While the matchup is not at the top of my list, he hits in the middle of the order and more importantly, has been red-hot since the middle of May hitting .323 with a .389 wOBA and 153 wRC+.

Main

Matt Chapman FD 3100 DK 4600
Opponent - TEX (Mike Foltynewicz) Park - TEX
FD - 11.14 DK - 8.32

Despite finally starting to pick up hits in bunches lately, Matt Chapman has seen a nice drop in price making him my top play at the position. He didn't let us down last night with an early home run and now has hits in 10 straight games with four doubles and four home runs. He now gets to face a struggling Mike Foltynewicz who has given up 22 hits and 16 earned runs over his last three starts. Lock and load in all formats.

Outfield

Early

Andrew Vaughn FD - 1B 2100 DK - OF 2800
Opponent - PIT (Chase De Jong) Park - PIT
FD - 9.15 DK - 6.94
Brian Goodwin FD - OF 2600 DK - OF 3000
Opponent - PIT (Chase De Jong) Park - PIT
FD - 8.6 DK - 6.1

The White Sox lead all teams in implied runs on this smaller six-game slate and are not that hard to fit considering the value scattered throughout the lineup. I talked about an underpriced Tim Anderson at shortstop but the punt value comes in the outfield with this pair. The rookie Vaughn has been better against lefties but has the potential to be a top-of-the-order hitter if he can cut down on the strikeouts. Either way, the price is cheap for this matchup and slate. For cash games, it really comes down to batting order and a of now, I am seeing Goodwin projected to hit top 4 which immediately puts him on my radar despite the lack of upside. He has also been fairly consistent since joining the White Sox with hits in six of eight starts and enters the night with a .373 wOBA/141 wRC+. If hitting near the top of the lineup, he will be a top PTS.$ play on this slate.

Main

Michael Brantley FD - OF 3500 DK - OF 4100
Opponent - BAL (Thomas Eshelman) Park - BAL
FD - 12.89 DK - 9.87

The Astros are at the top of my list of teams to target as they are jam-packed with underpriced bats. No one stands out more than Michael Brantley who is on another planet hitting over .510 in the month of June with nine multi-hit efforts in just 13 games. This is the part that makes me question DraftKings algorithm as he is somehow still the 21st most expensive outfielder on a smaller seven-game slate. You know what to do!

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