DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Thursday 9/17/20 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 Shane Bieber FD - P 11900 DK - SP 10900 Opponent - DET (Casey Mize) Park - DET FD - 45.82 DK - 25.64 Pitching is pretty straight forward tonight and it starts with odds on favorite to win the Cy Young, Shane Bieber. It has been incredible what he has been doing in 2020 as he not only leads the entire league in ERA(1.53) and xFIP(1.95) but also leads all pitchers with an insane 41.3% K rate. He now gets an elite matchup vs. the Tigers who rank bottom 10 in almost all offensive categories including strikeouts as they K 27% of the time overall and 28% against right-handed pitching. Fire up Bieber in all formats. Dakota Hudson FD - P 8700 DK - RP 8200 Opponent - PIT (Steven Brault) Park - PIT FD - 29.54 DK - 14.07 While Hudson doesn't provide elite upside in terms of strikeouts(21.7% K rate), he has been very solid in his second season a starter. Through seven starts, he has gone 3-2 while holding opponents to two or fewer earned runs in five of his last six starts. Another positive here is the growth throughout the season as he failed to make it through five innings in his first three starts but has averaged six innings per start over his last four. The icing on the cake here is the matchup against the Pirates who sit dead last in runs-scoring(3.6 per game), wOBA(.276), and second to last in wRC+(71). Like I mentioned yesterday, I like to keep my SP's combined salary under $20K and pairing Hudson and Bieber accomplishes this tonight. Catcher/First Base Paul Goldschmidt FD - 1B 3700 DK - 1B 4600 Opponent - PIT (Steven Brault) Park - PIT FD - 13.62 DK - 10.23 The decision at the top is very close on DraftKings as Luke Voit has put the Yankees on his back but the slight discount can make all the difference in the world tonight if we are paying up for two pitchers. Goldy has once again been the face of consistency as he entered Wednesday hitting .314 with an elite .412 wOBA and 162 wRC+ and hitting lefty pitching has been his bread and butter tallying a .420 wOBA and 164 wRC+ since the start of last season. The Cards are a Top 5 offensive target on this slate and Goldy is in play...

DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Wednesday 9/16/20 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 11500 DK - SP 9900 Opponent - TOR (Tanner Roark) Park - NYY FD - 46.61 DK - 26.72 Almost all of the elite pitching comes on the main slate and while you can never go wrong with Jacob deGrom, it is almost impossible to ignore Cole's price that has dipped below $10K on DraftKings. Finally, after 10 starts, he went a whole start without giving up a home run and outside of two starts(vs. TB, @ATL) has been very good this season. He has struck out seven or more batters seven straight starts and has a 33% K rate on the season and faces a Jays team that is only slightly above average offensively on the season and have struck out over 28% of the time over the last week. This is the lowest price I can remember over the past couple of years and you can bet I will be taking advantage in all formats. Dylan Bundy FD - P 9800 DK - SP 9100 Opponent - ARI (Caleb Smith) Park - LAA FD - 35.33 DK - 18.96 On DraftKings, I am always trying to keep my starting pitcher's combined salaries below $20K and with Cole's price, we can easily accomplish that with Bunday at SP2. After four mediocre(at best) seasons with the Orioles, he looks like a completely new pitcher in LA going 5-2 over his first nine starts and holding opponents to two or fewer runs in seven of those starts(2.48 ERA, 3.38 xFIP). Tonight, he faces a D-Backs team that has lost 20 of their last 24 games and rank bottom 3 in almost every offensive category. All things considered, Bundy is my favorite SP2 on DraftKings and an upside GPP play on FanDuel. Catcher/First Base Albert Pujols FD - 1B 2900 DK - 1B 3800 Opponent - ARI (Caleb Smith) Park - LAA FD - 10.15 DK - 7.72 If we are going to be paying up for pitching tonight(possibly two on DraftKings) we are going to need some value and I am a fan of what first base provides. It starts with the future first-ballot Hall of Famer, Albert Pujols, who may be on the home stretch of his career but is still providing fantasy value. He has been especially good lately as he comes in with hits in eight of his last 10 games while...

DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Monday 9/14/20 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! We have quite the slate to start the week with three doubleheaders, one make-up game, and two completely different slates on FanDuel and DraftKings. If playing DraftKings, keep in mind the three doubleheaders are just seven-inning games. Let's dig in and take a look at some core plays at each position, covering the entire day. Pitchers Trevor Bauer FD DK 10800 Opponent - PIT (Cody Ponce) Park - PIT FD - 38.91 DK - 21.14 Despite a small, very odd slate today, we have some nice options at starting pitcher. Bauer and the Reds are playing in one of the doubleheaders today but I am not as concerned with pitchers and especially Bauer who has a realistic shot at a complete game as he has gone seven or more innings in three of his eight starts(6+ IP in 7 of 8). Either way, Bauer has been incredible to start the year with a 1.74 ERA and while there is going to be regression, he is still operating with a 3.30 xFIP. On top of that, he has a sky-high ceiling striking out 36% of batters he has faced and gave up just a .222 wOBA against. The odds are not out on this game yet but I am going to go out on a limb and say the reds will be big favorites facing the Pirates who rank at or near the bottom of the league in every offensive category. Fire up Bauer in all formats. Marco Gonzales FD DK 7000 Opponent - OAK (Jesus Luzardo) Park - OAK FD - 31.69 DK - 16.87 If you are playing DraftKings, you are going to need a value option at SP2 allowing you to play Bauer or Kershaw. Gonzales is at the top of my list for a couple of reasons starting with the form as he has posted a 2.25 ERA over his last four starts while striking out 29 and walking just one batter. The other reason is the matchup as he faces an A's team who may be league-average against lefties in terms of wRC+(100) but have struck out an insane 27% of the time. At these prices, I will have exposure in all formats. Also Consider: On FanDuel, we have to Clayton Kershaw and I say this only due to the matchup against the Padres. Catcher/First Base Freddie Freeman FD 4300 DK 5500 Opponent - BAL (Jorge Lopez)...

DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Saturday 9/12/20 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! Everyone knows that using Coors Field bats is the best strategy on any given slate, so, we're going to do our best to stay away from that game. We will have just one recommendation from that game but just be aware that pretty much every bat is in play there. The only problem with doing that is how much salary you have to pay to build that sort of lineup but we'll do our best to throw out recommendations to help make that sort of build. Pitchers Zac Gallen FD - P 10000 DK - SP 9400 Opponent - SEA (Justus Sheffield) Park - ARI FD - 36.83 DK - 19.95 It's going to be tough to pair Coors Field bats with Gallen but he's easily one of the best raw points plays on the board. The reason for that is because we're talking about a guy who has a 2.29 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 9.8 K/9 rate for the season. His last start was actually the only time he's allowed more than three runs in any start of his impressive career, showing just how dominant he can be. The best part about using him today might be the matchup though, with Seattle ranked 25th in runs scored and 24th in wOBA. Tejay Antone FD - P 5500 DK - SP 6900 Opponent - STL (Dakota Hudson) Park - STL FD - 25.33 DK - 12.02 This price really surprised me. While this kid is a relatively unknown pitcher, he's looked great in his short time at the Majors. In fact, Antone now has a 2.49 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 11.7 K/9 rate across 25.1 innings of action this year. That makes him one of the most underrated pitchers around and it makes these price tags hard to figure. It's not like St. Louis is that tough of a matchup either, ranked 20th in runs per game. We also like the fact that Antone pitches from the right side, with the Cards lineup consisting of righties like Paul Goldschmidt, Paul DeJong, Tyler O'Neill and Yadier Molina. There are other good options out there too, like Reynaldo Lopez at a low price and Dinelson Lamet. Catcher/First Base Rhys Hoskins FD - 1B 3700 DK - 1B 4700 Opponent - MIA (Jose Urena) Park - MIA FD - 12.01 DK - 8.87 There are a lot of hot hitters in baseball right now but there aren't...

DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Thursday 9/10/20 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 Early Dylan Bundy FD - P 9400 DK - SP 9800 Opponent - TEX (Kyle Gibson) Park - TEX FD - 37.81 DK - 20.62 Sitting atop the projections on the early slate is Dylan Bundy who may seem expensive on DraftKings but is actually at his lowest price in four starts. He and the Angels are in a favorable spot today as -180 favorites against the Rangers who rank dead last in runs scored and wRC+(64) and have been slightly worse against righties. For Bundy, it has been a terrific start to the season with his new team as he enters with a 2.49 ERA, 3.79 xFIP, and has struck out 27% of the batters he has faced. He is the top pitcher in all formats on the early slate. Main Gerrit Cole FD - P 11200 DK - SP 10300 Opponent - BAL (Keegan Akin) Park - NYY FD - 47.55 DK - 27.23 I am not going to lie. I am a little worried about all the home runs Cole has been giving up this season but there is also a lot to like and it starts with the price on DraftKings at remains in the low $10K range. Even when he is giving up home runs, he is still hitting his floor and comes with a ton of upside thanks to his elite swing and miss stuff(33% K rate, 15% Swinging Strike Rate). After two terrible starts in a row, he bounced back his last time out against these Orioles and I think he puts together back to back solid starts and easily hits his cash value tonight and has a ton of GPP upside at this DK price. Also Consider: Chris Paddack(SDP) at his price is high in our PTS/$ rankings but which Paddack do we get? Josh Fleming(TAM) is an intriguing punt option for SP2 on DK as he has started his career with three straight wins posting a 3.52 ERA and backing it up with a 3.91 xFIP. Catcher/First Base Early Yuli Gurriel FD - 1B 2800 DK - 1B 3700 Opponent - OAK (Sean Manaea) Park - OAK FD - 10.44 DK - 8 I am going to double down with Gurriel as I wrote him up last night. He hasn't been as consistent as years past but is still crushing left-handed pitching(.438 wOBA, 184 wRC+) and hitting near the middle...