DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Friday 8/20/21 Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB, NBA, PGA, NHL, and NFL optimizers and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! Pitchers Walker Buehler FD 11600 DK 10500 Opponent - NYM (Carlos Carrasco) Park - NYM FD - 38.42 DK - 21.05 It is a tight race for the National League Cy Young in 2021 and Walker Buehler is right in the thick of it. He has been good all season but has been horse in the second half averaging 6.7 innings per start and has held opponents to two or fewer earned runs in all six starts(1.34 ERA). He has also been providing much more upside in the second half with a 30.4% K rate(25% first half). He now faces a Mets team that has struggled to score runs in August with just a 78 wRC+. There is a sizeable price gap but Buehler is still my top pitcher on this slate. Chris Sale FD 10700 DK 9700 Opponent - TEX (Dane Dunning) Park - TEX FD - 44.09 DK - 24.95 To say his return to baseball after missing almost two years was a success would be a huge understatement. He not only made it through five innings on just 89 pitches, but he also struck out eight Orioles while walking none with the only damage being two solo home runs. With that said, his DK price is just $100 more on Friday and he gets a much better matchup against the Rangers who rank 30th and 29th in wOBA(.283) and wRC+(78) against left-handed pitching and dead last in runs scored since the break. Sale is in play in all formats. Catcher/First Base Paul Goldschmidt FD 3600 DK 4700 Opponent - PIT (Mitch Keller) Park - PIT FD - 12.55 DK - 9.44 The Cards offense has been a disappointment overall but has been heating up lately and now get one of the best matchups on the board. The offense coming around can be directly correlated to Goldshmidt's success as he comes in with hits in eight straight including six multi-hit efforts and is now hitting .322 with a .379 wOBA since the All-Star break. In an elite matchup vs. a struggling Mitch Keller(6.86 ERA/5.12 xFIP) at these very affordable prices, Goldy is my top play at first tonight. Luke Voit FD 2900 DK 3400 Opponent - MIN (Charlie Barnes) Park - MIN FD - 14.91 DK - 11.14 Anthony Rizzo FD 3500 DK 3600 Opponent - MIN (Charlie Barnes) Park - MIN FD - 14.42 DK - 10.8 For...

DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Thursday 8/19/21 Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB, NBA, PGA, NHL, and NFL optimizers and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! Pitchers Brandon Woodruff FD 10700 DK 9200 Opponent - STL (Jon Lester) Park - STL FD - 41.69 DK - 23.9 Woodruff was removed early in his last start but it was reported to not have been injury-related so we will move forward as such. That is great news as he has been one of the best pitchers in baseball this season trailing only Walker Buehler and teammate Corbin Burnes in ERA(2.18). The Brewers pitching has seemingly brought the Cardinals' hot streak to a halt and they have struck out 18 times(26%) in the first two games of this series and now face Woodruff and his 30% K rate. Fire up Woodruff in all formats tonight. Also Consider: Luis Castillo(CIN) while not the most consistent, has tallied 7+ strikeouts in five of his last six games and faces a Marlins team that has struck out 27% of the time over the last two weeks. I also love the price on Jameson Taillon(NYY) who has been rock solid for the Yankees with a 1.68 ERA over his last eight starts while going 4-0 Catcher/First Base Anthony Rizzo FD 3500 DK 3700 Opponent - MIN (John Gant) Park - MIN FD - 16.17 DK - 12.11 Rizzo returned from the COVID list on Wednesday and picked up a hit with two RBI giving him hits in seven of 10 games with three home runs since joining the Yankees at the deadline. He and the Yankees now get a matchup vs. the Cardinals bullpen but what really stands out here is the sub $4K price tag on DraftKings. That easily makes him the top play at first base on this small slate. Also Consider: Max Muncy(LAD) who provides huge upside and should be lower owned at his price on this smaller slate  Second Base Kolten Wong FD 3300 DK 4200 Opponent - STL (Jon Lester) Park - STL FD - 9.32 DK - 7.18 The Brewers are going to be popular on this small slate in a plus matchup vs. a very inconsistent Jon Lester(5.32 ERA/5.08 xFIP). This sends me directly to one of my favorite two-man stacks for cash games. Let's start with Wong who has been consistent lately with hits in six of his last seven games and before you shout lefty/lefty, he sits with a .369 wOBA and 130 wRC+ in the split this season. At these prices, he is a...

DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Wednesday, 8/18/21 It feels crazy to say, but we're getting close to the end of the season. There's only a month, and some change left, making things exciting from a DFS perspective. This is where the good teams separate themselves from the poor ones, leading to some lopsided results. The good news is that we've been on some of the right ends of those games, and we're going to look to do that again here. We need to start things off by talking about the arms, though, so let's go ahead and get into it! Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB and NBA optimizers and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! Pitchers Charlie Morton FD - P 9200 DK - SP 9700 Opponent - MIA (Jesús Luzardo) Park - MIA FD - 34.68 DK - 19.09 Morton has been one of the most reliable pitchers in baseball over the last decade, and he's been feeling it recently. Over his last 11 starts, Morton has maintained a 2.51 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, and 10.6 K/9 rate. One of those came against this Marlins team, throwing seven scoreless en route to 52 FanDuel points. A gem like that is no surprise when you see his form, but it's even less surprising when you consider this matchup. Morton gets to face a Marlins team that ranks 26th in scoring, 27th in OPS, and dead-last in xwOBA. That's terrifying since they play in one of the most pitcher-friendly ballparks in baseball, making Morton all the more intriguing. Jack Flaherty FD - P 10100 DK - SP 9100 Opponent - MIL (Freddy Peralta) Park - STL FD - 34.01 DK - 18.4 It seems like people forget just how special this guy is. Flaherty will be a Cy Young candidate for the next decade, and he's only being priced like a front-end starter. We're talking about a pitcher with a 3.12 ERA and 1.04 WHIP since 2018, posting a 2.65 ERA and 0.97 WHIP this season. Some might worry that he's not in form after missing so much time, but six two-hit innings in his return is a sign that he's ready to go. Milwaukee might look tough when you look at the standings, but the offense is far from worrisome. In fact, the Brewers rank 28th in OPS and 27th in xBA. That certainly appeared to be the case when Flaherty threw six scoreless against them in their one meeting earlier this year. Catcher/First Base Max Muncy FD - 1B 3900 DK - 1B/2B 5700 Opponent -...

  DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Tuesday 8/17/21 - Main slate Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB, NBA, PGA, NHL, and NFL optimizers and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! Pitchers Corbin Burnes FD 11500 DK 10200 Opponent - STL (Adam Wainwright) Park - STLFD - 46.44 DK - 26.8 Corbin Burnes has been one of the best pitchers in the league this season and has been a serious Cy Young candidate. He is also coming off his best game of the season, which is really saying something when he struck out 15 batters over eight scoreless innings. That puts him at a 36% K% for the season and a ridiculous 8.2:1 K:BB ratio. These are simply some of the best numbers you will ever see from a starting pitcher. He faces off against the Cardinals on Tuesday, which isn’t the best matchup, but he is just so far and away the best arm that he is easily the top option on the slate. Alek Manoah FD 9900 DK 8600 Opponent - WSH (Erick Fedde) Park - WSHFD - 35.79 DK - 19.69 Manoah is an interesting case this season. On the one hand, he isn’t as good as the 2.59 xFIP would suggest with the ERA sitting almost 1.5 runs higher at 3.91. But on the other hand, this is a guy who is striking out almost 11 batters per nine. The K% is only 26% so he doesn’t just miss bats, but has K upside for sure. I like the matchup against Washington who is working with a much weaker team after the trade deadline. Catcher/First Base Max Muncy FD 3600 DK 5400 Opponent - PIT (Wil Crowe) Park - PITFD - 15.77 DK - 11.62 Things might get a bit tricky today with wanting to pay up for Burnes at pitcher, but with some expensive bats in good spots as well. The Dodgers are one such team, facing off against the righty Will Crowe on this slate. Muncy is one of the best bats in the league, sporting a .964 OPS on the season, striking out only 18% of the time, taking a ton of walks, and racking up 26 home runs. From a cash game perspective, this is nearly the perfect profile, only lacking speed but that would just be gilding the lily. He is a better deal on FanDuel for sure where it might not be a total stretch to fit him in. Yuli Gurriel FD 3100 DK 5100 Opponent - KC (Daniel Lynch) Park - KCFD - 14.51 DK - 11.13...

DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Monday 8/16/21 Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB, NBA, PGA, NHL, and NFL optimizers and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! Pitchers Gerrit Cole FD - P 11400 DK - SP 10900 Opponent - LAA (José Suarez) Park - NYY FD - 42.61 DK - 23.81 Cole hasn't pitched in two weeks and his last start was a bit of a disaster(7 ER to @TB) but he is easily the best pitcher on this slate that lacks a whole lot of depth. There has been no announcement of a pitch count at the time of writing this so I am going to assume there won't be one which puts him easily at the top of the projections. Even with multiple hiccups along the way, Cole comes into his 22nd start of the season with a 3.11 ERA, 2.87 xFIP, and 34% K rate. He now gets a plus matchup against the Angels who have been producing runs 28% below league average over the past 14 days. Fire up Cole in all formats. Wade Miley FD - P 8800 DK - SP 8200 Opponent - CHC (Justin Steele) Park - CIN FD - 35.59 DK - 19.21 If you are not planning on paying up for Cole and Gausmna together tonight, Wade Miley is a solid SP2 option on DraftKings in the mid-tier. While the strikeout upside is limited(18.5% K rate), Miley has been terrific for the Reds in 2021 as he enters tonight's start with a 3.00 ERA and has only allowed more than three earned runs in a start four times. What stands out the most is the matchup vs. the depleted Cubs lineup that has a 79 wRC+ and 32% K rate since the trade deadline. Catcher/First Base Yuli Gurriel FD 3100 DK 5000 Opponent - KC (Carlos Hernández) Park - KC FD - 13.6 DK - 10.43 Gurriel is back after missing two weeks with a neck strain and while he hasn't recorded a hit in two games, he has walked twice and only struck out once. As a whole, the veteran is having a career year hitting .321 with a .386 OBP and a huge contributor in that #1 offense on Houston. The matchup is average as Carlos Hernandez has been good, not great(3.33 ERA/4.34 xFIP) since joining the rotation so I will have much more exposure to Gurriel on FanDuel with the lower pricing(relative to salary cap). Jesús Aguilar FD 3000 DK 3300 Opponent - ATL (Touki Toussaint) Park - ATL FD - 9.39 DK - 7.06...

DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Sunday, 8/15/21 Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB and NBA optimizers and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! This is a bizarre slate. There really aren't many pitchers that we're completely comfortable with, but there's a couple of five-figure guys you can ride. The rest of the options are downright ugly, though, and it's going to lead to some chalky lineups. What's also going to be chalky is the Boston Red Sox stack. They're projected for more than six runs, and rightfully so. Sometimes it's a good idea to fade chalk, but Boston feels like a lock today. With that in mind, let's kick things off with some of those pitchers we mentioned before. Pitchers Eduardo Rodriguez FD 8000 DK 9800 Opponent - BAL (Keegan Akin) Park - BAL FD - 27.97 DK - 15.15 This game has a high run total, but E-Rod is a big favorite at -280 at home against the Orioles. Again, you do not like the 10.5 over/under coming in, but the win odds are really in his favor if he can get through five innings. And the strikeout potential is definitely there against Baltimore. Rodriguez is putting down batters almost 30% of the time this season and has the lowest walk rate of his career. Sean Manaea FD 9600 DK 10400 Opponent - TEX (Kolby Allard) Park - TEX FD - 32.58 DK - 16.88 Manaea was a guy we used to fade because of his lack of strikeouts, but something has changed. Over his last 14 starts, Manaea has a 2.82 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, and 10.7 K/9 rate. Those are some shocking numbers, but it makes him one of the best options on the board. What really adds to his intrigue here is this tasty matchup with Texas. The Rangers currently rank dead-last in OBP and OPS, freefalling down the standings. The Rangers ballpark used to be a tough cookie to crack, but it's actually developed into one of the most pitcher-friendly parks once they moved to Globe Life Field. Catcher/First Base Paul Goldschmidt FD 3400 DK 4700 Opponent - KC (Kris Bubic) Park - KC FD - 13.1 DK - 9.85 We absolutely love the Cardinals in this spot. Guys like Nolan Arenado and Tyler O'Neill are fantastic options, but Goldy is the guy we want to use. We say that because he's killed left-handers throughout his career, posting an OPS just shy of .950 against them. That alone makes him a good option, but Goldy is absolutely rolling right now. Over his last...