DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Tuesday 9/7/21

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Pitchers

Blake Snell FD 10100 DK 9200
Opponent - LAA (Packy Naughton) Park - LAA
FD - 35.77 DK - 18.86

We have some interesting choices to make on today’s slate with some high total even games to target expensive bats. But I think we can confidently run Snell out there in cash games, especially on DraftKings where he is just $9200. Snell’s walk rate is a bit of a concern this season, but man has he been awesome in his last few starts. Over his last three he has 29 strikeouts and just four walks in 19.2 innings. Those are just elite numbers and he will face a compromised Angels’ offense in this one. There is no early line of the game but expect the Padres to be big favorites here.

Zac Gallen FD 7900 DK 7900
Opponent - TEX (Spencer Howard) Park - TEX
FD - 33.18 DK - 17.93

If looking for a cheaper arm, I think we can consider targeting Gallen here. He is a solid home favorite at -164 against the Rangers. Texas ranks dead last in team offense this season, tied with the Pirates and strikeout more than 23% of the time. Gallen has some K stuff in his repertoire, striking out batters at a 26% clip on the season. The walks are an issue though and that has, at times, meant he struggles to go longer into games. But at this price point considering some of the bigger bats on the slate, he is a good option to go cheaper, especially as a DK SP2.

Catcher/First Base

Freddie Freeman FD 3900 DK 5700
Opponent - WSH (Paolo Espino) Park - WSH
FD - 15.21 DK - 11.38

Like I said at the top, there are some offenses in good spots on this slate and the Braves are one of them against Paolo Espino. The righty is a middling starter who is only striking out 7.33 batters per nine through 86 innings this season. Freeman meanwhile is having a down year for him, but still is in the upper 800s with his OPS, getting on base around 39% of the time. He is tough to strikeout and should have the ball in play against Espino here.

Buster Posey FD 3300 DK 4400
Opponent - COL (Chi Chi González) Park - COL
FD - 13.48 DK - 10.38

The Giants are the other team in a great spot here on Tuesday, heading into the thin air of Coors. And they kick things off with a matchup against Chi-Chi Gonzalez. Posey is having a turn-back-the-clock season, keeping the OPS over .900 and putting up his most home runs since 2015. It was tough to see this coming from the 34 year old, but its awesome to see it play out. He is cheap enough on both sites and makes for the obvious catcher choice on DraftKings especially.

Second Base

Tommy La Stella FD 2700 DK 3300
Opponent - COL (Chi Chi González) Park - COL
FD - 14.12 DK - 10.85

If we see La Stella in the leadoff spot for the Giants in this game then this is about as easy a play as it gets. He is projected to hit in the one spot now, thought San Fran has been known to shift things around from time-to-time this season. That being said, a low $3K and high $2K number on FanDuel and DraftKings respectively would make him the chalk play if he was hitting leadoff in Coors. We will have to wait and see what the Giants come out with in terms of their order.

If La Stella isn’t there then I think you can pay up for Ozzie Albies (FD $3800 DK $5100) in this spot. The Braves are poised to put up runs against Espino.

Shortstop

Fernando Tatis Jr. FD 4400 DK 6100
Opponent - LAA (Packy Naughton) Park - LAA
FD - 15.65 DK - 11.84

He is expensive for sure, but it is for more than enough reasons. Tatis is simply one of the best fantasy (and real life) players we have seen in some time and is having one of the truly amazing seasons you will see. The OPS is right around 1.000 and he has the dream power-speed combination you love to see. On the season, he has a whopping 37 home runs and 24 stolen bases, and could push to the 40-30 mark before it is all said and done. Packy Naughton projects as a well below average major league arm.

Dansby Swanson FD 3000 DK 5000
Opponent - WSH (Paolo Espino) Park - WSH
FD - 11.73 DK - 8.9

Swanson is coming a lot cheaper on FanDuel which puts him in play on that site for the main slate. His OPS has tailed a bit of late which has led to the price dip, but this is still a guy with 26 home runs and nine stolen bases on the season. He is just about platoon neutral for his career which means we don’t need to shy away from the righty-righty matchup against Espino.

Third Base

Kris Bryant FD 4100 DK 5300
Opponent - COL (Chi Chi González) Park - COL
FD - 15.2 DK - 11.39

Kris Bryant should be in the middle of the Giants order in this matchup and even though he is expensive, could be a tough fade here against Gonzalez in Coors. He had an excellent July and August after struggling in June and has the OPS up to .854. He is still tougher to put down on strikes with a 23% K% and there is plenty of power still in the bat. He has been much, much better against lefties for his career but is well above average in the righty split with a 129 wrc+ and .366 wOBA.

Josh VanMeter FD 2200 DK 2400
Opponent - TEX (Spencer Howard) Park - TEX
FD - 9.75 DK - 7.39

If you want to go a little cheap at the position, I don’t mind taking a punt flyer on a guy like VanMeter. He should hit around 6th in the lineup for the D-Backs and they have a good matchup against Howard. VanMeter will take some walks (12%) and has just a little bit of power. The OPS is hovering around .700 which isn’t amazing, but again, he is coming very cheap here.

Outfield

Jorge Soler FD 3400 DK 3800
Opponent - WSH (Paolo Espino) Park - WSH
FD - 13.88 DK - 10.35

In the outfield, we have some chances to go a little cheaper to fit in the bigger arms and bats at the other positions. One of those guys is Soler who is still way too cheap on DraftKings especially. He has 22 home runs on the season and is locked into the second spot for the Braves right now. While better against lefties for his career, we can make the platoon exception against Espino and the price on DraftKings warrants the play even if this is his worse split.

Michael Brantley FD 2700 DK 4100
Opponent - SEA (Logan Gilbert) Park - SEA
FD - 11.53 DK - 8.83

After sitting in the mid-$3K range on DraftKings for seemingly the whole season, he is now up over $4K there. But considering his slot in the batting order, he is still a value on both sites. He makes contact nearly 83% of the time this season and has an .808 OPS. There isn’t a ton of power in the bat, but his contact rate helps him get on base 37% of the time and that is a great spot considering some of the other bats around him in the order.

Tyler Naquin FD 2900 DK 2900
Opponent - CHC (Adrian Sampson) Park - CHC
FD - 9.99 DK - 7.66

If we get Naquin in the second spot for the Reds in this matchup then he makes for a great DraftKings price under $3K. He is coming entirely too cheap for what he has been able to do at the plate this season. He has an .823 OPS with 19 home runs on the year and even swiped five bags. The wind is blowing out in Wrigley today which could lead to some big run-scoring.