DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Wednesday, 7/27/22

This is one of the strangest slates I've seen all year. We have almost every team in action, but there are not many teams playing at the same time. In fact, there aren't more than two games that start at the exact same time, with four games happening in the early afternoon, five games in the mid-afternoon, and five games at night. We usually try to focus on one slate, but we'll spread the love here. It's the dealer's choice in terms of which slate you want to play, so hopefully, we will provide you with some good plays throughout all of them!

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Pitchers

Kevin Gausman FD 10400 DK 9300
Opponent - STL (Adam Wainwright) Park - STL
FD - 47.51 DK - 25.95

Gausman has the highest pitching projection, by far, for Wednesday and it's with good reason. He's a massive -264 favorite at home against the Cardinals who didn't bring their whole team to Toronto because of restrictions. Gausman has been excellent this season, sporting a 3.00 ERA and 2.73 xFIP while striking out batters at a 10.55 clip and sporting a 6.4 K:BB ratio. He's the top play for the whole day, going in the evening in this matchup.

Cristian Javier FD - P 9800 DK - SP 8700
Opponent - OAK (Cole Irvin) Park - OAK
FD - 40.44 DK - 21.9

The Stros churn out starters year after year, and Javier is yet another gem they've stumbled into. The right-hander has been one of the best pitchers in baseball for a month now, tallying a 3.03 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, and 13.7 K/9 rate across his last seven starts. He's done that damage despite facing the Yankees twice, and a matchup with Oakland should keep him rolling. The A's rank 29th or 30th in runs scored, OBP, OPS, wOBA, and xwOBA. In his last three starts against the A's, Javier has allowed just four runs across 15 innings while striking out 20 batters. All of that has Javier entering this matchup as a -210 favorite, with Oakland projected for just 3.5 runs.

Drew Rasmussen FD - P 7300 DK - SP 7300
Opponent - BAL (Tyler Wells) Park - BAL
FD - 33.42 DK - 18.43

It's hard to understand why Rasmussen remains so cheap. This guy has been another fantastic find for the Rays, registering a 3.13 ERA and 1.18 WHIP this year. He's usually capped off at about 5-6 innings, but he's still scored at least 27 FanDuel points in nine of his 16 starts this year. That's all you can hope for from such an affordable player, especially in such a tasty matchup. Baltimore has turned into America's favorite team, but they still rank 21st in runs scored, 24th in OBP, 22nd in OPS, and 23rd in K rate. If you get a quality start out of Rasmussen, which seems likely, you've stumbled into the best value of the day.

Luis Castillo (FD $10600/DK $8900) has a 2.20 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and 10 K/9 rate across his last nine starts and faces a horrific Miami lineup.

Catcher/First Base

José Abreu FD - 1B 4000 DK - 1B 4900
Opponent - COL (Antonio Senzatela) Park - COL
FD - 14.29 DK - 10.82

The Coors Field game was a clunker on Tuesday night, but we're going right back to the well. This is the highest total on the slate, and both of these offensives should go off. Chicago is the preferred stack of these two squads, with Abreu being the best option of the bunch. The former MVP has been raking for two months now, totaling a .362 AVG, .442 OBP, .554 SLG, and .996 OPS since May 21. That makes him tough to avoid in a place like Coors, particularly against a putrid pitcher like Senzatela. The right-hander has a 4.98 ERA and 1.78 WHIP this year and will have a tough time navigating this challenging Chicago lineup.

Jared Walsh FD - 1B 2600 DK - 1B 2700
Opponent - KC (Brad Keller) Park - KC
FD - 10.24 DK - 7.71

Walsh has been horrible for most of the season, but this pricing is insane. This guy was $1,500 more on both sites this time last year, and it's just a matter of time before he returns to that guy. A matchup with Brad Keller is the way to get him back on track, with the right providing a 4.16 ERA and 1.31 WHIP. Those aren't terrible numbers, but it gives Walsh the platoon advantage from the left side. The slugging southpaw has a .295 AVG, .356 OBP, .545 SLG, and .902 OPS against right-handers since 2020. That sort of production is impossible to find from a sub-$3K player, and you're going to have an under-owned bat in a great spot.

Will Smith (FD $3000/DK $5000) is the best catching option on the slate, batting in the heart of the LAD lineup against one of the worst lefties in baseball.

Second Base

Jose Altuve FD - 2B 4200 DK - 2B 5100
Opponent - OAK (Cole Irvin) Park - OAK
FD - 12.3 DK - 9.38

Stacking against Cole Irvin has not gone well this season, but a low K rate lefty against this Stros lineup is a recipe for disaster. We say that because they're stacked with hard-hitting righties, with Altuve hitting atop the lineup. The little second baseman has been one of the best bats in baseball for a month now, accruing a .394 OBP, .538 SLG, and .931 OPS over his last 29 games. His splits are even more impressive, amassing a .325 AVG, .385 OBP, .735 SLG, and 1.120 OPS against left-handers this season. Irvin's 4.51 xERA and 4.30 xFIP tell us that some negative regression is right around the corner, and we'll bet on it starting here.

Marcus Semien FD - 2B 3200 DK - 2B/SS 5100
Opponent - SEA (Marco Gonzales) Park - SEA
FD - 10.02 DK - 7.58

Semien was one of the worst hitters in baseball through the first two months, but he's returned to the All-Star player we saw last season. The slugging second baseman finished the previous year with 45 homers and 15 steals and currently has a .286 AVG, .344 OBP, .522 SLG, and .866 OPS since May 25. He's also got 14 steals in that span and has been a Top-5 DFS player at his position. That makes him intriguing against anyone, but he gets the platoon advantage against Marco Gonzales, who has a 4.34 ERA, 1.53 WHIP, and 3.6 K/9 rate over his last six starts.

Shortstop

Trea Turner FD - SS 4000 DK - SS 5900
Opponent - WSH (Patrick Corbin) Park - LAD
FD - 12.63 DK - 9.73

The Dodgers are the best stack of the day, and it's really not close. This is the best offense in baseball, and they're facing possibly the worst pitcher in our sport. That's Patrick Corbin, who's compiled a 6.02 ERA and 1.70 WHIP this year. That's the guy we've seen for a few years now, and it's clear the southpaw has lost it. That won't go over well against Trea Turner, who's been a Top-5 player in fantasy for five years. He's particularly hot right now, entering this matchup amid a 12-game hitting streak while generating a .993 OPS in that span. Not to mention, Turner has a .365 AVG, .421 OBP, .671 SLG, and 1.092 OPS against lefties since 2020.

Bobby Witt Jr. FD - SS 3200 DK - SS 5000
Opponent - LAA (Janson Junk) Park - KC
FD - 11.15 DK - 8.57

Witt looks to be in the bridesmaid's position for AL Rookie of the Year but finishing behind Julio Rodriguez is nothing to be embarrassed by. The speedy shortstop has been one of the best options in fantasy recently, accumulating a .308 AVG, .351 OBP, .533 SLG, and .884 OPS over his last 27 games. More importantly, he has 10 steals in that span and is one of the best DFS producers with his power-speed combo. Janson Junk has an appropriate name for his game, pitching to a 3.97 ERA and 1.31 WHIP in the minors and throwing just 8.2 innings at this level.

Third Base

Alex Bregman FD - 3B 2900 DK - 3B 4800
Opponent - OAK (Cole Irvin) Park - OAK
FD - 11.85 DK - 8.89

The two-man stack of Bregman and Altuve has been working for years. We like going this route against left-handed pitching because Bregman's splits are equally as impressive as Jose's. The righty masher has a .298 AVG, .388 OBP, .538 SLG, and .921 OPS in nearly 1,000 plate appearances against lefties. That's scary considering his recent form, with Alex accruing a .281 AVG, .380 OBP, .496 SLG, and .876 OPS over his last 33 games. That's tough to find from a player in this price range, and we discussed how Irvin has some negative regression headed his way.

Yoán Moncada FD - 3B 3400 DK - 3B 4300
Opponent - COL (Antonio Senzatela) Park - COL
FD - 12.61 DK - 9.55

The season-long numbers from Moncada are terrifying, but things are starting to turn around for the former top prospect. In fact, Yoan has a .267 AVG, .340 OBP, .489 SLG, and .829 OPS over his last 11 games. That encouraging stretch has moved him to the two-hole in this lineup, and that's a great spot to be in since he faces a pitcher with a 1.78 WHIP in Coors Field. That means Moncada is about $500 too cheap on both sites, especially since he's a much better hitter from the left side. If Chicago scores the six runs we project, Moncada should be a part of that damage.

Outfield

Mookie Betts FD - OF 4200 DK - OF 5800
Opponent - WSH (Patrick Corbin) Park - LAD
FD - 12.86 DK - 9.68

If we stack the Dodgers, we have to use Mookie. This is one of the frontrunners for NL MVP, producing a .280 AVG, .349 OBP, .575 SLG, and .923 OPS over his last 69 games. He also enters this matchup homering in three of his last six games, and none of that is good news for Patrick Corbin. We already talked about how the lefty has an ERA above 6.00, and it has LA as one of the highest projected lineups on the slate. If that's the case, Betts needs to be considered everywhere because he'll be the table setter for this daunting lineup. Not to mention, Mookie has a .385 OBP, .598 SLG, and .982 OPS with the platoon advantage in his favor this season.

Shohei Ohtani FD - OF 3900 DK - 1B/OF 5900
Opponent - KC (Brad Keller) Park - KC
FD - 13.78 DK - 10.33

It's hard not to be amazed by Shohei. This guy is an elite talent on both ends of the field, but we're going to ride him at the dish today. What we genuinely love is his recent form, totaling a .405 OBP, .554 SLG, and .959 OPS over his last 27 games. One thing that's not discussed enough is his speed, swiping 36 bags since the start of last season. The best part of all of this is that he gets to face a righty, with Ohtani obtaining a .364 OBP, .554 SLG, and .918 OPS with the platoon advantage in his favor this season. Keller is also far from a concerning matchup, compiling a 5.22 ERA and 1.51 WHIP across his last 13 starts.

Eloy Jiménez FD - OF 2700 DK - OF 4300
Opponent - COL (Antonio Senzatela) Park - COL
FD - 14.32 DK - 10.88

Let's cap off our Chicago stack with the best value of the bunch. The price tags for Jimenez completely blew my mind because he should be $1,000 more on each site. This is simply one of the best pure power hitters in our sport, providing a .231 ISO and .496 SLG. He showed even more power potential in the minors, and most MLB people believe Jimenez will be a 40-homer guy. That's terrible news for Senzatela's sky-high WHIP, with Eloy homering in two of his last three games. It's rare to see such a highly-projected lineup with this much talent remain so cheap, so we want to stack them every way possible!