Did you enjoy MLB Opening Day? Let's jump right back into the baseball action with another full slate of games on Friday. If you’ve come looking for cheap MLB DFS picks today, you’ve come to the right place! For tonight’s main slate, I’ve identified some value options for your DFS lineups on FanDuel, DraftKings and Yahoo.
Glancing at the options for tonight’s slate, there are a couple of things that stand out. First off, the pitchers on the main slate are rather limited – so you’re really scraping the bottom of the barrel outside of the top three or four arms. Offensively, the popular MLB DFS stacks today are going to be the Houston Astros and Toronto Blue Jays. So, if you want the likes of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Jose Altuve, and their teammates, keep on reading for some value options to round out your DFS lineups.
Pitchers
($6,500 FD/$6,200 DK/$25 Y!)
This slate of pitchers has me leaning to the top three or four options across the board, but you could do worse than Merrill Kelly if you need to save some money. He posted a 3.78 ERA at home last season and against the Padres, in particular, he went 2-1 with a 2.25 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. The overall upside is capped for the Arizona starter, and the slate plays more favorable to the more prominent names on the mound. Still, if you want to zig where others zag, Kelly is your budget option on the board.
Hitters
($2,200 FD/$2,400 DK/$13 Y!)
Dom Smith was going to be my guy today, but no luck there. So, how about we pivot to his teammate Robinson Canó! Cano had two hits on Opening Day and Josiah Gray’s struggles against left-handed hitters is well-documented. I like the price point for Cano best on DraftKings today, but he’s a value across the board.
($2,400 FD/$11 Y!)
Charlie Morton is a good play today, don’t get me wrong. However, Tyler Naquin punished right-handers last season (.283 AVG, .853 OPS, 120 wRC+) and we all know that left-handed power plays well in Atlanta. Small sample size, sure, but Naquin hit .400 (4-for-10) at Truist last season – and his upside isn’t reflected at this price point. If paying up for Vladdy Jr. and some other expensive bats (or arms) on the slate, Naquin is a nice upside play at a bargain.
($3,400 DK/$9 Y!)
Alejandro Kirk’s price point is favorable on FanDuel too, but when you don’t have to play a catcher, chances are you won’t. Kirk hit .304 with one home run and just two strikeouts in 23 at-bats this spring, and that hot bat should carry over into the team’s season opener. You will want to be sure he cracks the Blue Jays' lineup, but his bat is too powerful to pass up for sub-3.5k on DraftKings and less than $10 on Yahoo – whether he’s catching or serving as the designated hitter for Toronto.
($2,500 FD)
I do like José BerrÃos today but, if you want part of the Texas offense, look at the left-handed hitters. On FanDuel, Nathaniel Lowe is a great value. Though Lowe hits southpaws better batting average-wise, his .780 OPS and .166 ISO against righties last year trumped some of his other marks against lefties. Over the last two seasons, Berrios has allowed a .457 SLG, .329 wOBA and 1.6 HR/9 to left-handed hitters. There are a lot of good options at first base today, with Lowe being one of them. If you don’t like Lowe, Luke Voit is the same price on FanDuel – and his reverse splits should match up nicely against Merrill Kelly’s reverse splits.
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Max Muncy went 2-for-4 with two homers and three RBI in the Dodgers 6-5 win over the Mets on Tuesday.
Muncy has been on a tear at the plate as his home run barrage continued Tuesday. He took Tylor Megill deep for a two-run blast in the first inning, then later tied the game with a solo homer in the bottom of the ninth for his second round-tripper of the evening. The 34-year-old slugger is up to nine homers, five in his last seven games, while hitting .230/.350/.432 across 223 plate appearances.
Freddie Freeman went 2-for-5 with two doubles, two RBI, and a run scored against the Mets on Tuesday.
Freeman put the Dodgers on the board with a double in the first inning to bring home a run before scoring on a groundout. His next hit came in the bottom of the tenth. With two runners on and one out, he doubled off the left field wall to drive in the game-winning run. The 35-year-old first baseman is hitting an incredible .369/.435/.626 with nine homers, 34 runs scored, and 40 RBI across 214 plate appearances.
Juan Soto went 1-for-5 with a two-run homer against the Dodgers on Tuesday.
Soto took Clayton Kershaw deep for his only hit of the game, sending a two-run blast to right center field. It was Soto’s third home run in four games and his 11th on the season as he’s hitting .233/.361/.438 with 39 runs scored, 30 RBI, and seven steals across 269 plate appearances.
Huascar Brazobán gave up one run to blow the save chance against the Dodgers on Tuesday.
With Edwin DÃaz getting a breather after pitching in three of the last four games, Brazobán was summoned to close things out with a one-run lead in the bottom of the ninth. He surrendered a game-tying solo homer to Max Muncy before ultimately striking out the side.
Clayton Kershaw allowed five runs -- three earned -- with two strikeouts over 4 2/3 innings in a no-decision against the Mets on Tuesday.
Kershaw allowed a run in the first inning on a two base hits and a wild pitch. Juan Soto later took him deep for a two-run shot in the third. The Mets then brought two more unearned runs in on a walk, error, and two hits in the fifth before Kershaw’s day was done with two outs in the frame. He struck out two. The 37-year-old veteran left-hander will carry a 5.17 ERA, 1.66 WHIP, and an 8/9 K/BB ratio across 15 2/3 innings into a start against the Padres in San Diego on Monday.
Tylor Megill allowed four runs with seven strikeouts over six innings in a no-decision against the Dodgers on Tuesday.
Megill was hit for four runs in the open frame, including two on a home run by Max Muncy. He recovered tremendously following the first inning, locking in for five more scoreless frames, striking out seven batters over six innings. The 29-year-old right-hander will take a 3.77 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, and a 79/28 K/BB ratio across 59 2/3 innings into a start against the Rockies in Colorado on Sunday.