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DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Saturday 8/15/20
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Pitchers
Patrick Corbin FD - P 10600 DK - SP 10500
Opponent - BAL (Asher Wojciechowski) Park - BAL
FD - 37.53 DK - 20.45
There are a lot of pitchers who have struggled to find their groove in this shortened season but Corbin is not one of them. The southpaw is pitching to a 2.50 ERA and 1.00 WHIP across 18 innings of action, striking out 20 batters. That's not far off of his recent averages, attaining a 3.17 ERA and 1.11 WHIP dating back to 2018. All of that makes him a very attractive against the Orioles, with Baltimore ranked 22nd in OBP and 26th in OPS last season. They've been much better this year but we're likely looking at Corbin entering this matchup as a -190 favorite as well.
Cristian Javier FD - P 7800 DK - SP 7400
Opponent - SEA (Nick Margevicius) Park - HOU
FD - 35.87 DK - 18.64
This dude is honestly very impressive. The lefty is currently pitching to a 3.82 SIERA and 0.89 WHIP this season. His minor league numbers were even more ridiculous, posting a 2.23 ERA and 1.04 WHIP in his minor league career. That doesn't even take into consideration that he posted a K rate north of 30 percent at that level and owns a 27 percent rate in the Majors. All of that is very intriguing against a team like the Mariners, who own a .304 OBP and .671 OPS this year. This is why Javier and the Astros enter this matchup as a -215 favorite. You won't want to go there on FanDuel, but he looks very attractive in the pitcher two slot on DraftKings.
Catcher/First Base
Matt Olson FD - 1B 3600 DK - 1B 4900
Opponent - SF (Kevin Gausman) Park - SF
FD - 10.5 DK - 7.82
While Olson has struggled with his average this season, seven dingers in 20 games is an impressive mark. That's the power hitter we've become accustomed to, with Olson posting a .513 SLG and .855 OPS since 2017. He's also much better with the platoon advantage in his favor too, amassing a .519 SLG and .870 OPS against righties in that same span. That's bad news for a guy like Kevin Gausman, with the righty owning a 4.59 ERA and 1.39 WHIP since 2017.
Eric Thames FD - 1B 2200 DK - 1B 4000
Opponent - BAL (Asher Wojciechowski) Park - BAL
FD - 11.05 DK - 8.24
This FanDuel price is absolutely mind-blowing. This guy should be at least $3,000 whenever he faces a weak righty and we get to use him at a near-minimum price tag. Since 2018, Thames has a .503 SLG and .837 OPS with the platoon advantage in his favor. That's why he typically bats fifth or sixth in these circumstances which is scary after the Nationals dropped 15 runs on Friday. Asher Wojciechowski is not the sort of guy to end those troubles either, generating a 5.62 ERA and 1.40 WHIP for his career. This is easily the best value play of the day.
Second Base
José Altuve FD - 2B 3600 DK - 2B 4900
Opponent - SEA (Nick Margevicius) Park - HOU
FD - 14.3 DK - 10.95
This is the first of many Astros in this article and they're inevitably going to get out of the current rut their in. The reason we like Altuve today is because he gets to face a lefty, providing a .677 SLG and 1.057 OPS against southpaws last season. That .677 SLG is truly absurd for someone this small and it's scary that one of the best eyes in the game gets better in a situation like this. We also love the matchup against Margevicius and we'll go over that more later.
Howie Kendrick FD - 2B 2800 DK - 1B 4000
Opponent - BAL (Asher Wojciechowski) Park - BAL
FD - 11.95 DK - 9.2
Stacking Nationals might be the most profitable endeavor on this slate and it's hard to figure out why their pricing is so messed up. We already discussed the ugly numbers from Woj in the Thames write-up and it pairs really nicely with Kendrick's form since the beginning of last season. In that span, Kendrick is hitting .340 while providing a .390 OBP, .551 SLG and .941 OPS. Those are All-Star type numbers and it's really hard to understand where these DFS sites got these prices from.
Shortstop
Fernando Tatis Jr. FD - SS 4500 DK - SS 5600
Opponent - ARI (Alex Young) Park - ARI
FD - 11.66 DK - 8.91
I wasn't so sure Tatis would be able to stay healthy for very long with his volatile style of play but he's an absolute animal whenever he steps on the field. Since being called up last season, the superstar shortstop is tallying a .315 AVG, .378 OBP, .608 SLG and .986 OPS. Those absurd numbers don't even take into consideration his elite speed, making him one of the most dangerous fantasy assets out there. Getting to face a lefty only adds to his value, with Tatis totaling a .500 OBP and 1.179 OPS against them in his Major League career.
Carlos Correa FD - SS 3300 DK - SS 4400
Opponent - SEA (Nick Margevicius) Park - HOU
FD - 12.89 DK - 9.64
Let's keep the 'Stros bats rolling with their hottest hitter. Correa is one of the only guys in this lineup who's not struggling, hitting .333 this season en route to a .906 OPS. That's pretty much on par with what he did last season, with much of that damage coming against left-handers. In fact, Correa has an OBP north of .420 against left-handers since the beginning of last season while amassing an OPS just shy of 1.000 in that span.
Third Base
Alex Bregman FD - 3B 3800 DK - 3B 5500
Opponent - SEA (Nick Margevicius) Park - HOU
FD - 15.91 DK - 11.85
We haven't really discussed why this is such a great matchup yet, so, let's get into it. Houston gets to face off with Nick Margevicius, who pitches from the left side. That's a nightmare scenario against this righty-heavy lineup, particularly for a guy who pitched to a 6.79 ERA and 1.61 WHIP last season. That's why the Astros are projected for six runs and why Bregman and company should roll right through him. Since the beginning of last season, Bregman has a .465 OBP and 1.200 OPS against lefties, if you needed any more incentive.
Manny Machado FD - 3B 3600 DK - 3B 4600
Opponent - ARI (Alex Young) Park - ARI
FD - 11.1 DK - 8.4
Tatis and Machado make for a nice two-man stack if you want to stray away from the 'Stros. One of the reasons for that is because they face lefty Alex Young, who pitched to a 6.01 ERA and 1.59 WHIP in his Triple-A career. He's been a little better at the Majors but his peripherals tell us that he's due for some negative regression. Machado is definitely the sort of guy who can do just that, owning a .404 OBP, .685 SLG and 1.089 OPS against southpaws last season. That makes Machado way too cheap.
Outfield
Juan Soto FD - OF 4600 DK - OF 5400
Opponent - BAL (Asher Wojciechowski) Park - BAL
FD - 15.78 DK - 11.75
Soto is honestly one of the most impressive hitters out there. We're talking about a kid who was born in 1998, who's got a .404 OBP and .953 OPS for his career. I'm only 29 and that makes me feel old as hell. Many expected him to regress a bit this year but he's been even better. In fact, Soto's got a 1.034 SLG and 1.486 OPS in eight games played this season. That's obviously a small sample size but you can't argue with a four-figure slugging percentage. That looks awesome against Woj's ugly numbers from the Thames write-up, especially with Soto's career OPS against righties being six points shy of 1.000.
George Springer FD - OF 3700 DK - OF 4600
Opponent - SEA (Nick Margevicius) Park - HOU
FD - 15.62 DK - 11.73
Let's cap off our Astros stack with their leadoff hitter. Springer has seen his price drop recently because he missed a few games but he's typically $500 more on each site when he's right. Facing Margevicius from the left side is a good way to get him right, with Springer getting the platoon advantage and posting an OPS north of .900 against lefties since 2017. If we're going to stack the Astros, Springer has to be a part of it at this friendly price tag.
David Dahl FD - OF 3200 DK - OF 4900
Opponent - TEX (Kyle Gibson) Park - COL
FD - 16.53 DK - 12.62
Dahl has been slumping a bit this season but this is too cheap for a productive guy in Coors Field. We're talking about a hitter who's never provided a SLG below .500 and never posted an OPS shy of .830 in three seasons played. That means production is right around the corner, with Dahl also providing a .322 AVG, .592 SLG and .959 OPS at Coors for his career. He's also much better against right-handers, posting an .861 OPS with the platoon advantage in his favor as well. Not to mention, the Rockies are projected for more than six runs and Dahl is one of the only guys who's truly a value.
