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The top daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 6/2/21. Dave Swan's MLB DFS analysis and sleepers for building optimal DFS rosters.
Happy Wednesday, RotoBallers! The main slate is an eight-game affair with with the first pitch set for 7:05 EST. Now, as far as weather concerns, there is potential rain in the northeastern area of games. So be weary of the players from MIN@BAL and MIA@TOR. Remember, the Blue Jays have flown north for a new home ballparks in Buffalo, New York.
As far as a quick overview of the slate; the highest implied run total should not be a surprise. Coors Field will feature two suspect starting pitchers that could create an abundance of hitting chalk. Form a pitching aspect, there is no true ace outside of Walker Buehler. However, he is facing the Cardinals, who strike out the least in the MLB. My suggestion, find yourself two reasonably-priced SPs with higher strikeout upside and stack some bats together. Lastly, steer clear of the teams in Coors Field since everyone and thier plus one will be rostering from there. Good luck!
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 6/2/2021. The lineup will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. You can also check out today's FanDuel MLB DFS lineup picks and read more DFS advice and lineup picks for other sports too. It’s also essential to monitor injury news and today's MLB starting lineups. If you have any questions or comments, contact me on Twitter.
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DraftKings DFS Starting Pitchers
Sean Manaea - P, OAK @ SEA ($9,600)
Today is the first time of the year Sean Manaea has topped the $9K salary mark; and for good reason. His fastball velocity is back to where it was in 2016(92-mph), and that is helping bolster the changeup and curveball. The three-part arsenal is experiencing a career-high in K%(24.2%) while also doing his usual part in not allowing traffic on the basepaths(5.5% BB-rate). Additionally, the matchups is rather enticing. His foes, the Mariners, have the 7th highest strikeout rate(27.8%) and 87 wRC+.
Shane McClanahan - P, TB @ NYY ($7,600)
Let's start by mentioning the elephant in the room; the Yankees offensive woes. In the last two weeks vs. southpaws, the Yankees are striking out over 30% of the time with a 70 wRC+. The scuffling pinstripes will be without Luke Voit and Aaron Hicks as well. Additionally, this isn't just a matchup play; McCalahan can ball out. The Rays' young stud has two secondary offerings with whiff% well over 40%, and changeup with a velocity split from the fastball at nearly 8-mph. Oh yeah, his fastball tops out at nearly triple-digits too. The only concern is his pitch count and the pesky Rays not allowing SPs to go a third time through batting orders. We need Shane to make quick work on the Yanks through most likely only five IP.
Other options: Walker Buehler vs. STL ($10,600), Jordan Montgomery vs. TB ($9,300), Alek Manoah vs. MIA ($8,200)
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DraftKings DFS Infielders
Will Smith - C, LAD vs. Carlos Martinez ($4,400)
The top-priced catcher on the board is, ummmm, Dom Nunez? No thanks. Instead, we are going to kick out a five-person Dodgers stack with Will Smith. It's rare that you find a catcher with an OPS north of .800 that also strikes out less than 20% of the time. We aren't going to get too cute here; just plug in Smith and keep the string of Dodgers going for a big day.
Mitch Moreland - 1B, OAK @ Chris Flexen ($2,600)
Mitchy Two-Bags has only been held hitless once following his return from the IL. Unfortunately, none of those knocks were of the extra-base variety but Moreland, an elder statesman, loves to face RHP. He touts a career .211 ISO and .337 wOBA when a right-handed pitchs is on the mound. Because we have to scroll pretty far down the 1B tab to find Moreland, he could be a sneaky little 1B play that is rostered in fewer lineups.
Max Muncy - 1B/2B, LAD vs. Carlos Martinez ($5,200)
Everytime we save a little salary, it is for mega-studs like Max Muncy. Dude is hitting out of his mind! In 175 at-bats, Muncy is slashing .274/.433/.549 with a .982 OPS. On top of the season long success, Muncy is punishing RHP by sending eight pitches in to the bleachers and raking up 24 RBI. On top of smacking the ball all over the yard, he is showcasing a chase rate, which is leading to an enormous amount of walks. It's all gravy in a big stack like this.
Justin Turner - 3B, LAD vs. Carlos Martinez ($4,500)
After looking at Turner's Statcast page, you could convince me that his nickname, Big Red, is because of that reason. Much like his battering mate, Muncy, Turner carries the 88th percentile in chase rate and walks nearly 12% of the time. Additionally, Turner has a 10% barrel rate, 49.7% hard-hit rate, and .841 OPS vs. RHP. Third base is littered with great options, so maintaining out Dodgers stack will be key to correlating points.
Gavin Lux - SS, LAD vs. Carlos Martinez ($3,900)
Probably the best value in the Dodgers bats is Gavin Lux. Since the calendar flipped to May, it's like a new player emerged and SPs are paying the price. For the last 30 days, Lux hold a .204 ISO and 132 wRC+. Even more impressive, is Lux cut the strikeout rate to 18.7%. His season-long strikeout rate is still 23%; which should show you how rough an April he encountered. Lastly, he doesn't most his damage against RHP. In 117 at-bats, Lux swatted all five of his HR vs. RHP, and his SLG% is in the mid-400s.
DraftKings DFS Outfielders
Seth Brown - OF, OAK @ Chris Flexen ($2,900)
The OF laying waste to RHP is Seth Brown. And, OMG, at only $2,900 I almost fell out of my chair seeing the salary. Now, there is a lot of swing-and-miss in Brown's game but it comes inside the zone. His chase rate is in the 71st percentile. Why is that good? Because his pitching nemsis, Chris Flexen, is a former-KBO pitcher loves to pitch inside zone. In fact, his zone-contact% is 85.1%; which is a bit above league-average. Let's cross our fingers and hope Brown makes Flexen pay for attacking the zone too much.
Cody Bellinger - 1B/OF, LAD vs. Carlos Martinez ($4,700)
Okay, this is the last Dodger; I swear. First, Bellinger is not having his usual type of season due to injuries. The good news about the struggle, is it has caused his salary to dip below the $5K mark. After a night off to clear his head and put his focus to tonight's matchup, we are going to hope this is the "get-right" game for Bellinger. Rather than lament on the current struggles, look at his career marks. In a little more than 1200 at-bats vs. RHP, Bellinger is a 144 wRC+ bat with .287 career ISO. Let's hope his struggles cause his roster% to plumet and we reap the benefits in a healthy-sized stack.
Tyler O'Neill - OF, STL @ Walker Buehler ($4,400)
This is a hot-hand play with some built in leverage. Rarely do I like to attack the best SP on the slate because the outcomes are not usually in our favor. But, since we aren't using Walker Buehler, grabbing the player with the best chance of taking him deep would be a double-win. Furthermore, O'Neill is not just hot; he is on fire. The Cardinals' OF is in the top 1% of the league for barrel%, and the .619 SLG% is in elite company. Additionally, nearly all that damage is against RHP(105 AB, 11 HR, 23 RBI, .953 OPS).
DraftKings DFS Stacks
- Los Angeles Dodgers vs. St Louis Cardinals (Carlos Martinez, RHP)
- Oakland Athletics @ Seattle Mariners (Chris Flexen, RHP)
- Game stack: Washington Nationals (Jon Lester, LHP) @Atlanta Braves (Drew Smyly, LHP)
- Sneaky stack: Tampa Bay Rays @ New York Yankees (Jordan Montgomery, LHP)
- Chalk stack: Texas Rangers at Colorado Rockies(Antonio Senzatela, RHP)
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