DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Sunday, 6/12/22

This might be an unpopular opinion, but the baseball grind is what I love most about the sport. Looking at players' stats daily and adapting to different matchups is my favorite thing when it comes to baseball, and it has me excited every day to do some box score research. It also feels beneficial from a DFS perspective because every day feels like a new season of its own. Approaching DFS with a clean slate every day is the best way to approach this racket, and I'm ready to keep rolling here!

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Pitchers

Justin Verlander FD - P 10900 DK - SP 10500
Opponent - MIA (Edward Cabrera) Park - HOU
FD - 39.68 DK - 21.96

What this old man is doing is unbelievable. It would have been easy for this guy to hang up his cleats after Tommy John surgery at 37, but this dude has come back as good as ever. The perennial All-Star leads all players on this slate with 24 DraftKings points per game, thanks to a 2.14 ERA and 0.84 WHIP. Those are obviously some of the best ratios in baseball, with JV dropping a season-high 37 fantasy points in his most recent outing. A matchup with Miami is marvelous, too, with the Marlins ranked near the bottom of every offensive metric. A Coors Field series in which they scored 26 runs in two days inflated their numbers, but this is one of the worst offenses in baseball. We also love that Verlander enters this matchup as a -230 favorite, with Miami projected for only three runs.

Kyle Wright FD - P 10500 DK - SP 10100
Opponent - PIT (José Quintana) Park - ATL
FD - 42.12 DK - 23.03

Wright looks to be in the midst of a breakout season. The Braves righty has a 2.39 ERA and 1.02 WHIP, striking out 71 batters across 67 innings. He's been even better recently, totaling a 1.69 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, and 9.0 K/9 rate over his last five starts. All of that is horrifying news for the Pirates, with Pittsburgh sitting 29th in runs scored, 28th in OPS, and 27th in wOBA. The oddsmakers agree with our assessment, making Wright a -250 favorite in this matchup, with the Pirates projected for just 3.5 runs. These two pitchers are easily the safest options on the board!

Michael Kopech (FD $9200 DK $8100) has a 1.94 ERA and 0.94 WHIP this season and should keep that going against a terrible Texas lineup.

Catcher/First Base

Rhys Hoskins FD - 1B 3200 DK - 1B 3800
Opponent - ARI (Kyle Nelson) Park - PHI
FD - 11.72 DK - 8.7

Let's start with a few cheap first basemen because we have some big bats later on! Hoskins is one of my favorite values of the day, providing a .318 AVG, .400 OBP, .636 SLG, and 1.036 OPS over his last 11 games. That has moved him up to the leadoff spot, which means more at-bats for this underpriced hitter. The biggest reason we like him is the matchup, with Kyle Nelson making the first start of his career, posting a 5.79 ERA and 1.43 WHIP. He also happens to be a lefty, with Rhys registering a .385 OBP, .582 SLG, and .967 OPS against southpaws since 2020.

Darin Ruf FD - 1B 2700 DK - 1B/OF 3700
Opponent - LAD (Julio Urías) Park - SF
FD - 10.23 DK - 7.69

You might lift your eyebrow a bit when seeing this suggestion but bear with me. Ruf has been a sneaky asset for the Giants all season, typically batting cleanup against left-handers. It's easy to see why, with Darin donning a .378 OBP, .553 SLG, and .930 OPS against left-handers since 2020. That's a large sample size of dominance, and we believe it makes him way too cheap against a struggling southpaw. Julio Urias has certainly displayed talent throughout his career, but 3.41 ERA and 1.25 WHIP over his last six starts make him someone we shouldn't avoid completely.

Salvador Perez (FD $3100 DK $5200) is starting to get hot, and KC might face the worst pitcher on this slate!

Second Base

Trevor Story FD - 2B 4100 DK - 2B 5300
Opponent - SEA (Robbie Ray) Park - SEA
FD - 10.89 DK - 8.26

Story got off to a subpar start in his first month with the Red Sox, but this guy has been raking since then. In fact, Trevor has tallied a .358 OBP, .604 SLG, and .963 OPS over his last 24 games. He's also got five steals in that span and has returned to the power-speed stud we loved in Colorado. A ton of his damage has come against left-handers, with Story amassing a .381 OBP, ..617 SLG, and .998 OPS against them since 2020. Robbie Ray looks like a tough matchup on the surface, but the lefty has a 4.97 ERA and 1.32 WHIP this year. That's scary since Story has a .463 OBP, .677 SLG, and 1.140 OPS in 41 at-bats against Ray.

Whit Merrifield FD - 2B 3000 DK - 2B/OF 4700
Opponent - BAL (Dean Kremer) Park - KC
FD - 12.29 DK - 9.63

Merrifield is having one of the worst seasons of his career, but it's just a matter of time before he gets rolling again. The speedster averaged a .292 AVG, .777 OPS, and 20 steals a year between 2017 and 2021, and he'll eventually get back to that guy soon. Whit is showing glimpses of that recently, accumulating a .303 AVG and .790 OPS over his last 31 games. That alone makes him a good value, but we also mentioned that KC faces one of the worst arms on this slate. That's Dean Kremer, compiling a 6.81 ERA and 1.58 WHIP across 77 MLB innings. We believe the Royals are one of the best cheap stacks of the day, and Merrifield would have to be the key atop this lineup.

Shortstop

Dansby Swanson FD - SS 3400 DK - SS 5300
Opponent - PIT (José Quintana) Park - ATL
FD - 13 DK - 9.89

I wasn't so sure that Swanson was a legitimate fantasy player at the beginning of the season, but this guy has proven me wrong with his stellar play. The slugging shortstop has a .333 AVG, .399 OBP, .512 SLG, and .911 OPS over his last 46 games played. That's nearly two months of dominance, with Atlanta moving Dansby up to their two-hole in this hot stretch. We also don't mind that he has nine steals as well in that span, establishing himself as one of the best fantasy producers at this position. Getting to face a lefty is the icing on the cake, with Swanson swinging a .381 OBP, .491 SLG, and .872 OPS against southpaws so far this year.

Bobby Witt Jr. FD - SS 3600 DK - SS 5500
Opponent - BAL (Dean Kremer) Park - KC
FD - 11.9 DK - 9.15

Witt was a Top-50 pick in most season-long formats at the beginning of the season, and most intelligent baseball people believe this will be an All-Star player in years to come. He got off to a horrendous start this year, but he's really hit his stride recently. Over his last 18 games played, Witt has a .279 AVG, .544 SLG, .877 OPS and four steals. That power-speed threat is what made him such a pristine prospect, with many people protecting Bobby to flirt with a 30-30 season. We already talked about how disastrous Dean Kremer has been, and that only adds to his intrigue since Witt has much better splits against right-handers.

Third Base

Manny Machado FD - 3B 4000 DK - 3B 5200
Opponent - COL (Germán Márquez) Park - SD
FD - 13.79 DK - 10.46

As someone who lives in Colorado, let me tell you that Manny has abused our franchise since signing with San Diego. The former Baltimore bat has a .346 OBP, ..481 SLG, and .821 OPS against them throughout his career. It's easy to understand why when looking at all of the Rockies numbers, with German Marquez maintaining a 6.49 ERA and 1.59 WHIP this season. All of that is horrifying with Manny amid a career season, posting a .332 AVG, .405 OBP, .556 SLG, .961 OPS, and seven steals.

Alec Bohm FD - 3B 2700 DK - 3B 3200
Opponent - ARI (Kyle Nelson) Park - PHI
FD - 7.93 DK - 6.1

The Phillies are one of my favorite stacks of the day, and this young bat is a significant reason why. This guy can save you a ton of salary, and it's hard to understand why he remains so cheap. The young third baseman has a .268 AVG and .698 OPS throughout his career, but he's projected to be a .300 AVG and .800 OPS guy. He was better than that in the minors, but he's posted similar averages with the platoon advantage in his favor. Alec has a .281 AVG, .347 OBP, .471 SLG, and .819 OPS against left-handers since his call-up. That's all you can hope for from such a cheap player, and facing an inexperienced guy like Nelson in Citizens Bank Ballpark is quite the treat too!

Outfield

Ronald Acuña Jr. FD - OF 4300 DK - OF 6000
Opponent - PIT (José Quintana) Park - ATL
FD - 17.42 DK - 13.13

Acuna is the safest play on the board. This guy has been the best player in fantasy since his call-up, and he's shown us why recently. The outfielder has 12 runs, three doubles, four homers, seven RBI, and 10 steal attempts over his last 10 games, en route to a .447 OBP and 1.197 OPS in that span. Those numbers are tough to sustain, but he's actually posted similar splits against southpaws. Since 2020, Acuna has accrued a .433 OBP, .598 SLG, and 1.031 OPS with the platoon advantage in his favor. We love that against a struggling southpaw like Quintana, collecting a 5.40 ERA and 1.86 WHIP over his last four starts. That won't go over well against this bludgeoning Braves lineup, particularly in Truist Park.

Christian Yelich FD - OF 3200 DK - OF 4200
Opponent - WSH (Paolo Espino) Park - WSH
FD - 11.17 DK - 8.44

Not much about Yelich's form will make you want to play him, but this is simply one of the most talented bats in baseball. This guy took down MVP honors just a few years back, and it's strange to see him in this price range. The 30-year-old outfielder has three multi-hit games in a row, and that tiny glimpse of hope is all we need to hop back on the train. The matchup is what really entices us, though, with Paolo Espino producing a 4.49 career xFIP. It also gives Yelich the advantage from the left side, with Christian clobbering righties throughout his career.

Andrew Benintendi FD - OF 2900 DK - OF 3900
Opponent - BAL (Dean Kremer) Park - KC
FD - 11.83 DK - 9.09

Kansas City is my favorite stack of the day because all of these guys are way too cheap. Benintendi is the best value of the bunch because he's been the Royals best hitter this season. He's bat second or third for this lineup all season, generating a .316 AVG, .380 OBP, and .791 OPS. That's why Boston fans loved this guy back in the day, and we certainly don't mind that he has a .380 OBP and .809 OPS against right-handers this year. We've discussed thoroughly how bad Kremer has been this season, and Beni would be one of the best plays against him.