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

This weekend has been wild. The amount of sports we have right now is mind-blowing, but we're going to keep grinding away in MLB. This sport is the biggest grind of them all, but it's the most rewarding if you stay with it. We've been doing that at DFSR and feel like we have an excellent read on the baseball landscape. The one thing we don't have a good read on is the weather, but who does? It's actually been snowing here in Denver and raining all over the east coast. Just be sure to check weather reports before submitting lineups!

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Pitchers

Freddy Peralta FD - P 10500 DK - SP 10500
Opponent - WSH (Aaron Sanchez) Park - MIL
FD - 34.83 DK - 18.91

The Brewers have quietly developed the best rotation in baseball, and Peralta is a significant reason why. The right-hander has a 2.95 ERA and 0.99 WHIP since the beginning of last season, striking out 243 batters across 180 innings. Those strikeout numbers are some of the best you'll see, and it's clear that Peralta is developing into an ace. The matchup with Washington is wonderful, too, with the Nationals ranked 19th in wOBA and 20th in runs scored. That was clear when Freddy threw seven one-run innings in their most recent matchup en route to 49 FanDuel points. We obviously don't mind that Peralta enters this matchup as a -250 favorite, either.

Patrick Sandoval FD - P 9500 DK - SP 9300
Opponent - OAK (Zach Logue) Park - LAA
FD - 34.32 DK - 18.13

Sandoval was one of my top picks to break out this season, and it's hard to understand why more people weren't on him. This guy had a 3.31 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and 10.3 K/9 rate over the final 12 starts of last season and has been even better this year behind a 1.91 ERA and 1.25 WHIP. It's his change-up that's gotten him to this point, and the A's won't be able to produce against him. The Athletics rank bottom-two in runs scored, OBP, OPS, and xwOBA. All of that has Sandoval entering this matchup as a -200 favorite, with Oakland projected for just 3.5 runs.

Jose Urquidy (FD $7400 DK $6500) has seen his price drop massively with some horrific outings, but he still has a career WHIP sitting around 1.05. That should be much easier to duplicate against a 28th-ranked Rangers offense as a big favorite.

Catcher/First Base

Freddie Freeman FD - 1B 4000 DK - 1B 5400
Opponent - PHI (Zach Eflin) Park - PHI
FD - 14.91 DK - 11.24

Freeman started off slow after his big contract in LA, but he's been one of the best hitters in baseball for a month now. In fact, Freddie has put together a .342 AVG, .439 OBP, .541 SLG and .980 OPS ver his last 24 games. Those are the sort of averages that earned him an NL MVP, and one would have to believe he's one of the frontrunners this season in the heart of the best lineup in baseball. Getting the platoon advantage from the left side is a small bonus, with Freddie posting a .431 OBP and 1.002 OPS against righties since 2020. That's bad news for Zach Eflin, and we'll dive into his numbers later on!

Pete Alonso FD - 1B 4300 DK - 1B 5500
Opponent - COL (Austin Gomber) Park - COL
FD - 14.21 DK - 10.62

Polar Bear Pete is a great play in a pitcher's park like Citi Field, so he's obviously one of the best options for DFS in Coors Field. That ballpark has surrendered the most runs year after year, and a guy like Alonso will be amazing there. In eight games at Coors, Pete is providing a .452 AVG, .906 SLG, and 1.363 OPS. That's scary since he gets to face a lefty here, accruing an .876 OPS against them throughout his career. Getting to face a pitcher like Gomber is grand, too, with the Rockies lefty providing a 1.31 career WHIP and 1.59 WHIP at home this season. We anticipate the Mets going off in this spot, and Alonso would have to be the key piece of that stack!

Second Base

José Altuve FD - 2B 4200 DK - 2B 5400
Opponent - TEX (Taylor Hearn) Park - HOU
FD - 12.82 DK - 9.78

The Astros are the best stack of the day! They might not be the highest-projected offense, but they're in a sensational spot. We say that because this lineup is almost exclusively righty mashers, and they get to face a crappy lefty here. Texas is throwing out Taylor Hearn, who has a 5.46 ERA and 1.69 WHIP this season. That's the guy we've seen for most of his career, and there's no chance he slows down this elite offense. Altuve is the table-setter for this lineup, totaling a .549 SLG and .900 OPS in what's a typical season for the All-Star. He consistently slaughters southpaws, too, computing a .323 AVG, .380 OBP, .497 SLG, and .887 OPS against them throughout his career.

Ketel Marte FD - 2B 3000 DK - 2B 4800
Opponent - CHC (Wade Miley) Park - CHC
FD - 10.01 DK - 7.66

Marte got off to a terrible start this season, but he's turned it on recently. In fact, Ketel has a .344 AVG, .420 OBP, .590 SLG, and 1.010 OPS over his last 18 games played. That's the borderline All-Star we've seen for years, with Marte maintaining an .891 OPS since 2019. That's a lengthy streak of success, and it's moved him back into the heart of this order. Getting to face a lefty is the best part of this, though, with Ketel collecting a .380 AVG, .652 SLG, and 1.075 OPS against southpaws in that same span. Wade Miley is not a concerning matchup for him either, producing a 1.40 WHIP since 2013.

Shortstop

Trea Turner FD - SS 4000 DK - SS 6000
Opponent - PHI (Zach Eflin) Park - PHI
FD - 15.36 DK - 11.83

Turner is arguably the best player in fantasy, and he's an easy choice on every slate. The power-speed combo that this guy provides is the primary reason why, averaging about 20 homers and 30 steals per season. That doesn't even include the fact that he's hitting in the heart of the most dangerous lineup around, making him a bet to finish Top-5 in runs scored and RBI as well. All of that is terrible news for Zach Eflin in Citizens Bank Park, one of the most hitter-friendly environments in baseball. The Phillies righty has a 4.52 career ERA and 1.31 WHIP, with LA projected for five runs!

Francisco Lindor FD - SS 4000 DK - SS 5100
Opponent - COL (Austin Gomber) Park - COL
FD - 13.44 DK - 10.2

Many people were complaining about Lindor's contract in the offseason, but those skeptics have kept quiet recently. The switch-hitting shortstop has been seeing the ball well for a week now, posting a .405 OBP over his last eight games. That's the guy we've been waiting to see, and we love that form in a place like Coors Field. His biggest asset is his spits against lefties, with Franky generating a .291 AVG, .355 OBP, .475 SLG, and .830 OPS against them throughout his career. The simple fact is, Lindor is just too cheap with his offense projected for the most runs on this slate.

Third Base

Alex Bregman FD - 3B 3500 DK - 3B 5200
Opponent - TEX (Taylor Hearn) Park - HOU
FD - 12.36 DK - 9.27

Bregman has been slow to get going this season, but a matchup with a lousy lefty might be just the thing he needs. This guy has been crushing left-handers throughout his career, tallying a .309 AVG, .397 OBP, .559 SLG, and .956 OPS against them in nearly 1,000 at-bats. That's tough to find from a player in this price range, especially since he's in the heart of one of the highest-projected offenses on this slate. We already talked about how bad Hearn had been, allowing four runs across five innings in a matchup with the Astros just last month.

Luis Arraez FD - 3B 2600 DK - 1B 3600
Opponent - KC (Jonathan Heasley) Park - KC
FD - 7.75 DK - 6.06

Arraez is always way too cheap. This guy will rarely provide any power for you, but this is still one of the best fantasy producers in this price range. The lefty utilityman has a .314 career average in over 1,000 at-bats, earning him a top spot in this lineup. Anyone hitting like that is tough to avoid in this price range, especially since Arraez has a .430 OBP this season. A ton of that damage has come recently, with Arraez accumulating a .533 OBP and 1.012 OPS over his last seven games played. We're not worried about a matchup with Heasley either, providing a 1.80 WHIP in limited time this season.

Outfield

Giancarlo Stanton FD - OF 3700 DK - OF 5900
Opponent - CHW (Johnny Cueto) Park - NYY
FD - 12.71 DK - 9.5

Stanton is my favorite baseball player, and he becomes particularly fun to watch when he's smashing the baseball like he is right now. The massive outfielder is leading baseball in nearly every hard-hit metric and continues to power this Yankees offense along with Aaron Judge. Giancarlo is supplying a .377 AVG, .452 OBP, .811 SLG, and 1.233 OPS over his last 14 games played. He's done damage like that for months at a time, and NY fans have been waiting to see this for years. A matchup with an over-the-hill Cueto is the icing on the cake, with Stanton summing a .565 OBP, 1.059 SLG, and 1.624 OPS in 23 at-bats against him.

Christian Yelich FD - OF 3400 DK - OF 5000
Opponent - WSH (Aaron Sanchez) Park - MIL
FD - 11.23 DK - 8.49

It's crazy that this is the first Milwaukee bat in here. We say that because they have one of the best matchups possible. Aaron Sanchez has been one of the worst pitchers in baseball since 2017, accruing a 5.23 ERA and 1.59 WHIP in that span. That makes it hard to believe that he still has a job, but it makes the Brewers one of the best stacks of the day. Yelich is undoubtedly their best hitter, collecting a .295 AVG, .389 OBP, .927 SLG, and four steals over his last 20 games. That's the MVP we saw a few years back, and he's always been better against right-handers as well!

Mark Canha FD - OF 3300 DK - OF 3300
Opponent - COL (Austin Gomber) Park - COL
FD - 11.91 DK - 8.93

Let's cap off our Mets stack with Canha. We already discussed how New York is the highest-projected lineup on the slate, and it makes it hard to understand why Mark is so cheap. The occasional leadoff hitter has a .377 OBP, .433 SLG, and .810 OPS since 2019. That's scary against a bad pitcher because it also gives Canha the platoon advantage from the right side. The $3,300 price tag on DraftKings is honestly one of the worst prices on this slate, and it makes him easy to stack with some of the studs mentioned before. Not to mention, Canha has a .406 OBP and .906 SLG over his last eight games played.