It's Thursday, July 7th and there is a decent-sized MLB DFS slate on tap for tonight. Thursday's are usually a split slate due to “get away” day across Major League Baseball, but we have a full slate of games on tap for daily fantasy baseball lineups. The 10-game DraftKings slate starts at 7:05 pm ET, FanDuel and Yahoo Fantasy slates feature nine games (they will not be including the second game of the Pirates/Reds doubleheader). The elite arms of Gerrit Cole and Dylan Cease lead the slate for MLB daily fantasy lineups, plus a value play in Spencer Strider could be popular. The Atlanta Braves are my top MLB DFS stack of the night, led by Austin Riley and Ronald Acuña Jr. facing a struggling young lefty. The Blue Jays will also be popular in MLB DFS lineups due to a date with the erratic Marco Gonzales and the Mariners. We have some spots to keep an eye on for weather so make sure to check the latest MLB weather report throughout the day. Be sure to use our MLB DFS Lineup Generator as well. Plus, check out the confirmed lineups on the MLB lineups page, today's MLB daily projections, and MLB Vegas Odds. Now let's take a look at my MLB DFS Core plays for Thursday.
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FD | Position | Top Tier | Mid-Tier | Value-Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| SP | Dylan Cease | Spencer Strider | Casey Lawrence |
| 1B | Vladimir Guerrero | José Abreu | Christian Walker |
| 2B | Brendan Rodgers | Ketel Marte | Max Muncy |
| 3B | Austin Riley | Kris Bryant | Jonathan Villar |
| SS | Dansby Swanson | Francisco Lindor | Joey Wendle |
| OF | Ronald Acuña | Teoscar Hernández | Jordan Luplow |
DK | Position | Top Tier | Mid-Tier | Value-Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| SP | Gerrit Cole | Dylan Cease | Spencer Strider |
| C | Alejandro Kirk | Elias Díaz | Carson Kelly |
| 1B | Vladimir Guerrero | José Abreu | Christian Walker |
| 2B | Ketel Marte | Brendan Rodgers | Buddy Kennedy |
| 3B | Austin Riley | Matt Chapman | Joey Wendle |
| SS | Dansby Swanson | J.P. Crawford | Brandon Crawford |
| OF | Ronald Acuña | Mookie Betts | Jordan Luplow |
Y!DFS | Position | Top Tier | Mid-Tier | Value-Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| SP | Dylan Cease | Spencer Strider | Jordan Lyles |
| C | Alejandro Kirk | Travis d'Arnaud | Carson Kelly |
| 1B | José Abreu | Vladimir Guerrero | Jared Walsh |
| 2B | Brendan Rodgers | Ketel Marte | Buddy Kennedy |
| 3B | Austin Riley | Matt Chapman | Jonathan Villar |
| SS | Dansby Swanson | Bo Bichette | J.P. Crawford |
| OF | Ronald Acuña | Mookie Betts | Jordan Luplow |
Player News
Ronel Blanco underwent Tommy John surgery with an internal brace procedure on Friday.
Blanco’s surgery also included a repair of the flexor tendon in his right forearm. The 31-year-old righty is facing a long road back. Fantasy managers shouldn’t anticipate him returning until the late stages of the 2026 season, even in a best-case scenario.
Denzel Clarke is day-to-day with a left shoulder contusion.
Clarke somehow managed to avoid serious injury when he collided with the left-center field wall to make a brilliant catch during Friday’s contest against the Orioles. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the 25-year-old rookie get a break this weekend to rest and recover, but he seemed upbeat and optimistic that he wouldn’t need much time off while speaking to reporters after his early exit from the game. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now.
Phillies INF José Rodríguez has elected free agency.
Rodríguez lost his spot on Philadelphia’s 40-man roster earlier this week when his one-year suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy wrapped up. He’ll likely wind up latching on somewhere else as organizational depth.
Diamondbacks designated RHP Scott McGough for assignment.
McGough was removed from Arizona’s 40-man roster earlier this week after Andrew Saalfrank’s one-year suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy concluded. The 35-year-old righty figures to pass through waivers unclaimed and remain with the club as extra relief depth.
Diamondbacks activated LHP Andrew Saalfrank from the restricted list; optioned him to Triple-A Reno.
Saalfrank returned earlier this week on Thursday from a one-year suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy. The 27-year-old southpaw will remain with the organization as extra relief depth.
X-rays came back negative for any fractures in Gabriel Moreno’s right hand.
It’s a positive development for the Diamondbacks as losing Moreno for an extended period would’ve put some strain on their catching situation. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo told reporters postgame that Moreno’s removal was for precautionary reasons due to swelling that occurred after he was struck by a wild pitch in his throwing hand. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now.