DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Tuesday 4/12/22 - Main Slate

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Pitchers

Yu Darvish FD - P 9700 DK - SP 10100
Opponent - SF (Alex Cobb) Park - SF
FD - 34.55 DK - 18.65

Darvish was anything but sharp in the first game of the season, walking four and only striking out three in his four innings. That’s not the kind of efficiency (or lack thereof) we want to see out of a SP in this price range. But I think we can go back to the well for Tuesday with some factors working in his favor. The run line in this game is low (8) thanks to a fantastic pitcher’s park in San Fran and the Giants have one of the lowest implied run lines on the day. Darvish has gotten the walks in check over the last couple of seasons so I’m not as worried about any control issues and I think the FanDuel price is especially a bargain.

Patrick Sandoval FD 8400 DK 7900
Opponent - MIA (Jesús Luzardo) Park - MIA
FD - 32.3 DK - 16.84

Sandoval draws a good matchup against the Marlins as a -167 home favorite, some of the better win odds on this main slate of games. Miami has scored all off 11 runs through their first four games, highlighting just how bad of an offensive attack this team is working with this season. Sandoval, for his part, is coming off a solid 2021 campaign that saw him strike out more than 9.5 batters per nine with a 3.79 xFIP that played better than average. I like the price on both sites and think he makes a strong SP2 candidate on DK.

If you think the 9.45 K/9 rate from last year is real then Alex Cobb (FD $7600 DK $7000) is a total bargain here even in a bad matchup against the Padres.

Catcher/First Base

Max Muncy FD - 1B 3100 DK - 1B/2B 4600
Opponent - MIN (Chris Archer) Park - MIN
FD - 13.95 DK - 10.31

Muncy is still coming too cheap to start the season, especially considering the kind of potent lineup he’s able to hit in combined with his own skills at the plate. He’s coming off a .900 OPS season, walking at a borderline elite level, and carrying a ton of power (36 home runs last season). Archer is still able to strike batters out, but has struggled with consistency over the last couple of years, still walks far too many batters, and will allow the long ball. I love Muncy’s price on both sites.

Brad Miller FD - 1B 2700 DK - 3B/OF 3400
Opponent - COL (Chad Kuhl) Park - TEX
FD - 11.59 DK - 8.68

If looking for a cheaper DraftKings play, I like some of the savings you get on Miller here. He didn’t start against the lefty Gomber on Monday but should be back against the righty Kuhl in this one. Miller is coming off a 20 home run season in 2021 and has already gone yard twice to start this season. The strikeout rate is a bit high, but that’s mitigated some facing off against Kuhl who is far from elite when it comes to missing bats. The righty has a career 4.64 xFIP and is the definition of below average. I love the park and think Miller is a bargain.

Strongly consider Nathaniel Lowe (FD $2600 DK $4400) in a Rangers stack.

Second Base

Marcus Semien FD - 2B 3500 DK - 2B 5400
Opponent - COL (Chad Kuhl) Park - TEX
FD - 14.62 DK - 11.07

Semien has struggled to start the season but we are still so earlier that I wouldn’t let it bother me all that much. He’s still among the best offensive second basemen in the game and is in a good spot against Kuhl today. The Rangers have among the highest implied run lines on the slate and things are setting up well for them to put up some runs. Semien was a fantasy darling last season, blasting 45 home runs and stealing 15 bases for one of the best seasons around. He makes the move to Texas with a lineup downgrade, but a park upgrade. The FanDuel price is a steal.

Kolten Wong FD - 2B 2400 DK - 2B 4100
Opponent - BAL (Undecided) Park - BAL
FD - 10.95 DK - 8.43

The Orioles haven’t announced a starting pitcher yet and that’s always code for: This guy is going to stink. Wong should still be in the leadoff slot for the Brewers here even though the beginning of the season has been a bit of a struggle out of the gate. He’s still a guy who finished with a mid-700s OPS last season, knocking 14 home runs while also stealing 32 bases. As long as it’s not a lefty on the mound for the Orioles I think he makes a very solid cheap play on FanDuel where he’s coming almost at the minimum.

Strongly consider Brendan Rodgers (FD $2500 DK $3600) against the lefty Martin Perez. Rodgers is significantly better in this platoon for his career.

Shortstop

Corey Seager FD - SS 3200 DK - SS 5000
Opponent - COL (Chad Kuhl) Park - TEX
FD - 13.94 DK - 10.58

Seager was another of the Rangers’ big offseason signings, coming over from the Dodgers as Texas looked to reload on some of its bats. He’s slotted into the second spot in the lineup and brings a patient approach a little pop. He’s coming off back-to-back .900+ OPS seasons and last year saw a career-best 12% walk rate while also reducing the strikeout rate to 16%. He’s a dangerous hitter and stacking him and Semien in cash games sure seems like a viable strategy out of the gate.

Trea Turner FD 3800 DK 5800
Opponent - MIN (Chris Archer) Park - MIN
FD - 14.64 DK - 11.27

These days, it’s just so tough to ever go cheap at shortstop. The position just seems stacked with talent with some of the better offensive and fantasy options manning it up the middle for their teams. Turner is one of those dudes, coming off a 28 home rune, 32 steal season between the Nationals and the Dodgers. He’s started off slow this year, but again, it’s still so early that we don’t make much of the first few games when there is a solid track record behind a player.

Third Base

Anthony Rendon FD 3000 DK 4100
Opponent - MIA (Jesús Luzardo) Park - MIA
FD - 13.68 DK - 10.29

The Angels are actually in a pretty good spot here against Jesus Luzardo and the Marlins. The latter does strike batters out, but struggles with control and last season sported a 4.84 xFIP through nearly 100 innings on the mound. Rendon really struggled last season with injuries hampering much of the performance, and this year hasn’t started out like gangbusters, but we aren’t all that far removed from this guy rocking four-straight seasons of .900+ OPS stuff at the plate. The Angels desperately need him to get back into that form. This is a good spot to start.

Austin Riley FD 4000 DK 4700
Opponent - WSH (Patrick Corbin) Park - WSH
FD - 13.68 DK - 10.36

Riley just crushed it last season with a breakout year at the plate. He swatted 33 home runs and had the OPS in the mid-900s. He faces the lefty, Patrick Corbin, on Tuesday, though the righty Riley has mostly been a platoon neutral hitter through his short career. Maybe that ends up falling more in line with other righties where he excels against southpaws, but it hasn’t been the case so far. That being said, this is still a good matchup against Corbin who’s really fallen off over the last three seasons with an xFIP well over four in that time.

Outfield

Mike Trout FD 4100 DK 5700
Opponent - MIA (Jesús Luzardo) Park - MIA
FD - 16.52 DK - 12.22

Shohei Ohtani FD 4000 DK 6000
Opponent - MIA (Jesús Luzardo) Park - MIA
FD - 16.54 DK - 12.39

Because pitching isn’t coming at a total premium on this slate, I do think there were will be ways to fit these salaries (or at least one of them) into your lineups. Their teammate Sandoval helps in that respect seeing as how he’s coming pretty cheap on both sites. Look, these dudes don’t require all that much explanation seeing as how, when on, are two of the best hitters in the game. Frankly, both are just generational talents in their own respects. Trout was scratched because of illness on Monday, so watch out for that with today’s game. But Ohtani should be at the top of the lineup against Luzrado.

Adolis García FD - OF 2900 DK - OF 4700
Opponent - COL (Chad Kuhl) Park - TEX
FD - 12.22 DK - 9.31

We’ve done a bunch of other Rangers guys for this slate so why not one more? Garcia is hitting cleanup for this improved squad and last season saw the power really flash, tagging 31 home runs in his 622 plate appearances. He’s been mostly a two true outcome hitter with an OPS barely scraping over .700 even with the power because he just refused to take a walk. Maybe that starts to turn around seeing as how he’s already taken four this season, but I’m a bit skeptical. That said, I still like the matchup in general for the Rangers and they make a great main slate stack.

Cody Bellinger FD - OF 2700 DK - OF 2900
Opponent - MIN (Chris Archer) Park - MIN
FD - 11.63 DK - 8.71

Man, what do we do with Cody Bellinger at this point? On the one hand, he’s still in the Dodgers’ starting lineup which is about as good a spot as any to be in baseball. On the other hand, it’s been pretty damn bad over the last 600 or so plate appearances with the OPS well under .600 over the last season-plus. I’m still holding out hope for a bounce-back and at these prices, especially on DraftKings you almost have to just bite the bullet. But man, it’s tough.