DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Sunday, 5/8/22

Man, how crazy has the weather been this week? We had six postponements on Friday and another three on Saturday. That leaves us with a couple of doubleheaders and more headaches in terms of guessing weather. The East Coast has been flooded by rain this weekend, and it looks like we could have more thunderstorms here. The skies are clearer than they were on Friday and Saturday, though, which means we could get a full day of baseball. With that in mind, let's kick things off with the pitchers!

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Pitchers

Joe Musgrove FD - P 10000 DK - SP 9800
Opponent - MIA (Trevor Rogers) Park - SD
FD - 42.85 DK - 23

We have been waiting for Musgrove to break out for most of his career, but it looks like we're finally there. The former Pirate provided a 3.18 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in a breakout 2021 season. He's been even better this year, tallying a 4-0 record, 1.97 ERA, and 0.91 WHIP. That obviously makes him one of the best pitchers in baseball, scoring at least 17 DraftKings points in all five starts. All of that makes him tough to fade against Miami, with the Marlins ranked 20th in runs scored and 22nd in xwOBA. The oddsmakers agree with everything we mentioned, making Musgrove a -185 favorite in a game with a 6.5-run total.

Alek Manoah FD - P 10400 DK - SP 10100
Opponent - CLE (Konnor Pilkington) Park - CLE
FD - 34.79 DK - 18.83

We just discussed that Musgrove is amid a breakout campaign, and it looks like Manoah is in the same boat. The right-hander was spectacular in a limited role last season and has carried that over to the tune of a 1.45 ERA and 0.84 WHIP this year. Those are some of the best averages around, with Alek doing that damage against teams like the Yankees (2), Red Sox, and Astros. Cleveland has half the talent of those other rosters, with the Guardians ranked 24th in xwOBA. All of that will likely have Manoah entering this matchup as a -200 favorite!

Patrick Sandoval (FD $9100 DK $8900) has a 1.29 ERA and 1.14 WHIP this season and faces weak Nationals lineups.

Catcher/First Base

Ty France FD - 1B 3800 DK - 1B 4400
Opponent - TB (Ryan Yarbrough) Park - SEA
FD - 12.51 DK - 9.54

France hasn't gotten much publicity outside of Seattle, but this guy is quietly having a fantastic season in the northwest. The slugging first baseman has a .324 AVG, .392 OBP, .486 SLG, and .878 OPS. That's not far off of his impressive .817 OPS over the past two seasons, and it's clear this is one of the best hitters in baseball. That consistently earns him a prominent spot in this lineup, especially against a lackluster lefty like Ryan Yarbrough. Not only does France have a .938 OPS against lefties this season, but Yarbrough allowed five runs across 2.2 innings in his debut earlier in the week!

Jared Walsh FD - 1B 3200 DK - 1B 4300
Opponent - WSH (Erick Fedde) Park - LAA
FD - 11.28 DK - 8.5

Walsh was horrible through the first three weeks of the season, but something has clicked this week. The Angels slugger has homered in three of the last four games, generating a 1.059 SLG and 1.529 OPS in that span. That obviously makes him one of the hottest hitters around, and we love him when he has the platoon advantage against a righty. We say that because Jared has a .316 AVG, .384 OBP, .586 SLG, and .970 OPS against them since 2020. Good luck finding that production from another player in this price range, especially against a guy with a 4.68 ERA and 1.44 WHIP.

If you're playing on DK and need a catcher, Salvador Perez is a good bet to homer against Jordan Lyles.

Second Base

Trevor Story FD - 2B 3200 DK - 2B 9400
Opponent - CHW (Dallas Keuchel) Park - BOS
FD - 13.49 DK - 10.23

There is no doubt that Story has struggled, but he's going to get it going sooner rather than later. The stud middle infielder averaged about 27 homers, and 15 steals through his first four seasons, and it's just a matter of time before he starts doing that again. He's still hitting atop this dominant Red Sox lineup, and this is the best matchup possible. Dallas Keuchel is toeing the rubber for the White Sox, totaling an 8.40 ERA and 2.33 WHIP in what's becoming a disastrous season. We love that since Story has a .386 OBP, .615 SLG, and 1.002 OPS against left-handers since 2020.

Jorge Polanco FD - 2B 3100 DK - 2B 4700
Opponent - OAK (Daulton Jefferies) Park - MIN
FD - 10.65 DK - 8.15

It feels like I write up Polanco in every article that I do, but I don't understand this pricing. Polanco is an .800 OPS guy at this point in his career, and he's being priced like he's not in the heart of this lineup doing damage every night. In fact, Jorge has a .473 SLG and .808 OPS since 2019. That's why he usually bats third and why he should be $500 more on each site. A matchup with Jefferies is the icing on the cake, though, with Polanco hitting from his more favorable left side. Daulton is a disastrous arm, too, amassing a 4.81 ERA and 1.32 WHIP after posting similar averages in Triple-A last season.

Shortstop

Francisco Lindor FD - SS 3500 DK - SS 5000
Opponent - PHI (Zach Eflin) Park - PHI
FD - 10.33 DK - 7.84

Many people were saying that Lindor was a bust of a contract last year, but all of those skeptics have been quiet this season. Frankie has been one of the best bats in baseball, accumulating 16 runs, 17 RBI, five homers, and three steals. That's some of the best all-around counting numbers in the game, and it's clear he's going to be a fantasy beast in the heart of this rebuilt lineup. The reason we like him here is the matchup with Zach Eflin, with the righty registering a 4.50 ERA and 1.29 WHIP. Not to mention, the switch-hitter has always been better from the left side.

Bobby Witt Jr. FD - SS 2700 DK - 3B 2900
Opponent - BAL (Jordan Lyles) Park - BAL
FD - 8.3 DK - 6.38

This rookie has been one of the biggest disappointments in baseball, but this pricing is getting ridiculous. We're still talking about one of the best prospects in the sport, being taken in the Top-75 of many season-long leagues. There aren't many of those guys being priced like this, and it's clear the DFS algorithms don't trust him since he's never done it before. Witt will, though, collecting a .290 AVG, .361 OBP, .575 SLG, .936 OPS, and 29 steals at Triple-A last year. Those stats earned him this high draft price in season-long, and we're going to assume that this DFS pricing creeps back up. Jordan Lyles is a good way to get him going, pitching to a 5.19 ERA and 1.44 WHIP across 1,173 career innings.

Third Base

Manny Machado FD - 3B 4500 DK - 3B 5800
Opponent - MIA (Trevor Rogers) Park - SD
FD - 11.51 DK - 8.73

Manny has probably been the best player in fantasy this season. He's the top guy in season-long formats and leads all position players with 12.1 DK points per game. His multi-cat elusiveness is the reason why, tallying seven doubles, seven homers, six steals, 26 runs scored, and 21 RBI en route to a 1.107 OPS. All of those are near the top of the league, and it makes him tough to fade since he's slaughtered southpaws throughout his career, too. Rogers is one we would have been scared of at the beginning of the season, but his 6.13 ERA and 1.50 WHIP make him a good target here.

Eugenio Suárez FD - 3B 3200 DK - 3B 4400
Opponent - TB (Ryan Yarbrough) Park - SEA
FD - 9.98 DK - 7.42

This is a risky play with how bad Eugenio was to begin the year, but it looks like the slugger is starting to find his swing. Suarez has three homers over the last four games, providing a .375 OBP and 1.304 OPS in that span. That's a small sample size, but any power run like that is impressive since Suarez has 161 homers since 2017. That's one of the best power swings in the game, and we don't mind that he has the platoon advantage against a lefty here. We already talked about how Yarbrough is flirting with a 20.00 ERA and 4.00 WHIP, making this France-Suarez one of the sneakiest two-man stacks of the day.

Outfield

Shohei Ohtani FD - OF 4100 DK - 1B/OF 6000
Opponent - WSH (Erick Fedde) Park - LAA
FD - 15.29 DK - 11.46

Shohei is the most dynamic baseball player we might ever see. He's been dominating on both ends of the diamond, and we're going to keep riding him at the plate whenever he has a tasty matchup. That's certainly the case here, with Fedde approaching a 1.50 WHIP. More importantly, it gives Shohei the advantage from the left side, flirting with a .900 OPS against righties throughout his career. He also has most of his steals against righties, and that's common for speedsters like this.

J.D. Martinez FD - OF 3900 DK - OF 9600
Opponent - CHW (Dallas Keuchel) Park - BOS
FD - 11.92 DK - 9.02

The Red Sox are one of the best stacks on the board. They've been struggling mightily recently, but this is the spot where they're going to get right. We say that because Keuchel has a 2.33 WHIP this season, after accruing a 5.28 ERA and 1.53 WHIP last year. That means it's time for this gas can to hang it up, but we will use the Sox while he's still around. We love J.D. here because he's crushed left-handers throughout his career, providing a .376 OBP, .577 SLG, .953 OPS, and .272 ISO in over 1,400 plate appearances against them. Good luck finding that from another player in this price range!

Daulton Varsho FD - OF 3100 DK - OF 3800
Opponent - COL (Germán Márquez) Park - ARI
FD - 11.22 DK - 8.54

Varsho is catcher-eligible on FanDuel, and he's simply one of the best catchers in baseball at this point. He's the only one that I can think of who hits leadoff, with Varsho establishing himself as Arizona's best bat. The 25-year-old has a .330 OBP, .479 SLG, and .809 OPS so far this season. That doesn't even include his sneaky speed, swiping two bags as well. That versatility is why he bats atop this lineup, and that success should continue with how bad German Marquez has been. The Rockies righty has a 6.92 ERA and 1.69 WHIP in what's been the worst season of his career.