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The top daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 9/24/20. Eric Samulski's MLB DFS analysis and sleepers for building optimal DFS rosters.
We head into Friday night of the final weekend of the regular season with a 10 game slate on tap. There are a few big-name pitchers that jump out like Clayton Kershaw, Yu Darvish, Jose Berrios, Dinelson Lamet, and Carlos Carrasco. We also have a few intriguing SP2 options, which is good because you may find yourself needing to avoid the high-priced options if you want to get hitters from the high-powered offenses that aren't facing these aces.
With all the good pitchers on the slate, it limits the offensive options, so the stacks are more straightforward tonight. You can roll with the Braves, Astros, Royals, and Padres or try to target one of the more susceptible high-priced arms by going with one-offs or stacks from the Twins, Cubs, or Dodgers. There is likely to be at least one big-name pitcher who falls flat tonight so identifying the right one could give you a huge leg up. It's also important to remember that the Giants and Padres game on the slate is a seven-inning game that's the first of a doubleheader, so you have to be ready for each batter in those lineups to get one fewer at-bat than normal, which hurts their value a bit.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 9/25/2020. The lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. You can also read more DFS advice and lineup picks for sites like FanDuel, and other sports too.
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DraftKings DFS Starting Pitchers
Dinelson Lamet - P, SD at SF ($9,700)
With so few offenses in blow-up spots tonight, I'm not sure that I can stomach paying up for Darvish or Carrasco, and Kershaw versus a talented Angels lineup just isn't as appealing to me as this. Yes, the Giants have some strong hitters, but Lamet has been on fire lately, allowing two earned runs total in his last three starts (20.2 innings) while striking out 32 and walking only four over that time. While two of those matchups were against the Rockies in San Diego and the Mariners, he also dominated a strong Dodgers lineup. We want to chase strikeouts for fantasy goodness, and it doesn't get much better than Lamet's 35.2 K%. We've also seen, in a small sample size, that managers tend to stretch good starters longer in the first game of these short doubleheaders in order to save the bullpen for the second game. If Lamet is running hot, he's liable to get all seven innings and has a good chance at that win bonus.
Chris Bassitt - P, OAK vs SEA ($7,900)
Bassitt is one of my favorite arms on the slate bar none. He's allowed one earned run over his last three starts (19.2 innings) while striking out 19 and walking five. Bassitt has a 2.57 ERA on the season and could take advantage of a Mariners team that is bottom-10 with a 24.7% strikeout rate and has gotten worse since Dylan Moore went on the IL. The Mariners are also bottom-10 in ISO, wOBA, and wRC+, so this is a strong matchup to target, especially if you want to pay up for some of the big bats on the slate.
Other Options: Carlos Carrasco (CLE vs PIT) $10,400, Jose Urquidy (HOU vs TEX) $7,100
DraftKings DFS Infielders
Travis d'Arnaud - C, ATL vs Chris Mazza ($4,800)
If you want to pay up at catcher for sure-fire production, D'Arnaud is my top choice since the Braves are one of my top stacks. He's hitting .341 over the last 10 games with two home runs and eight RBI. He hits in the middle of a potent lineup and has been crushing the ball this year with a .540 SLG, .217 ISO, and 93.3 mph average exit velocity. The Red Sox bullpen was called in a bit in yesterday's blowout loss to Baltimore, and I imagine they'll be asked to carry the load a bit today after the Braves get to Chris Mazza and his 5.40 ERA.
Other Options: Salvador Perez (KC vs DET) $5,000, Sean Murphy (OAK vs SEA) $3,800
Garrett Cooper - 1B, MIA vs J.A. Happ ($3,600)
There are definitely some higher-priced options to target tonight, but you can't fill all of your roster spots with the top-tier offensive options. Cooper has had a solid season, hitting .288/.363/.495 with five home runs. He also has fared pretty well against left-handed pitchers, batting .351 with a .378 ISO and 1.130 OPS on the season. Happ has been better of late, but he's prone to get hit hard and giving up home runs, so perhaps this is the night the magic wears off.
Other Options: Freddie Freeman (ATL vs BOS) $5,400, Luke Voit (NYY vs MIA) $5,300
DJ LeMahieu - 2B/3B, NYY vs Sandy Alcantara ($5,300)
Sandy Alcantara has been pitching relatively well of late, and I'm actually not super eager to attack him; however, LaMahieu has simply been on fire and is the best hitter on a dangerous Yankees team. Over the last 10 games, he's hitting .372 with four home runs, 10 RBI, and 10 runs. He has an absurd .744 SLG and 1.193 OPS, and if you want some exposure to the Yankee lineup tonight, I think he's the perfect place to start rather than chasing the home runs with some of the more popular mashers.
Other Options: Ozzie Albies (ATL vs BOS) $5,400, Chris Taylor (LAD vs LAA) $4,600, Jon Berti (MIA @ NYY) $2,400
Jose Ramirez - 3B, CLE vs Mitch Keller ($5,600)
When I talked about paying down at pitcher, or even playing Cooper, in order to roster the higher-priced bats at other positions, I was especially thinking about Ramirez. J-Ram is tearing the cover off of the ball lately. Over the last 10 games, he's hitting .421 with six home runs, 18 RBI, nine runs, while crushing a 1.026 SLG and 1.515 OPS. It's really hard to keep that out of your lineup, especially against a young pitcher like Keller who has been prone to giving up hard contact. The Indians' offense as a whole hasn't been great, so I wouldn't go for a full-stack, but a one-off with Ramirez or a mini-stack with him could be a strong play tonight.
Other Options: Rafael Devers (BOS @ ATL) $5,200, Brian Anderson (MIA @ NYY) $3,900, Mikael Franco (KC vs DET) $3,900
Adalberto Mondesi - SS, KC vs Spencer Turnbull ($4,800)
So Mondesi put up 30 fantasy points last night and is now CHEAPER than he was last night? Um, OK. As Bubba mentioned yesterday, Mondesi is hitting like the guy that was drafted in the top four rounds of fantasy drafts. Last night he went 4-for-4 with two runs, two RBI, and two stolen bases. He's stolen six bases over his last 10 games and continues to contribute across the board for the Royals. I like Kansas City as a sneaky stack against Turnbull, who continues to insist on throwing his mediocre sinker, which has gotten hit around all year. Pairing Mondesi with Franco or Perez is a great mini-stack that may come in under-rostered tonight.
Other Options: Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD @SF) $5,300, Willi Castro (DET @ KC) $3,400
DraftKings DFS Outfielders
George Springer - OF, HOU @ Kyle Cody ($5,400)
Houston is in a good spot tonight against Cody, and Springer makes for a solid option if you have the funds to pay up. He has three home runs in his last four games and is riding an 11-game hitting streak. Springer has a tremendous 16.8% K% for the season and a solid .275 ISO which has helped lead to 14 home runs on the season. The Astros offense as a whole has been waking up a bit, and everybody seems to hit well against the Rangers, so I like getting some exposure to this lineup tonight.
Marcell Ozuna - OF, ATL vs Chris Mazza ($4,900)
You want to play your Braves tonight, which almost always means you want to play Ozuna. He's hitting .327 with 17 HR and a 1.041 OPS on the season, but he's stepped it up in September, hitting .379/.455/.759 with nine home runs, 30 RBI, and 15 runs. I think the Braves are gonna put a hurting on the Red Sox tonight, and Ozuna's spot in the middle of the order will afford him plenty of opportunities to get in on that fun.
Eddie Rosario - OF, MIN vs Tyler Mahle ($4,100)
I'm not actively trying to attack Mahle today because I think he's a solid arm, but the Twins have a strong offense and Rosario has been swinging the bat well lately. He's hitting .297 in September, has hits in six of his last seven games, a home run in two of his last four, and six RBIs over those four games. Mahle is a popular arm given his price-point tonight, so having some Twins in your lineup could give you some sneaky differentiation.
Other Options: Wil Myers (SD @SF) $5,000, Michael Brantley (HOU @ TEX) $4,000, Max Kepler (MIN vs CIN) $4,000, Jackie Bradley Jr. (BOS @ ATL) $3,400
DraftKings DFS Stacks
- Atlanta Braves vs Boston Red Sox (Chris Mazza, LHP)
- Houston Astros at Texas Rangers (Kyle Cody, RHP)
- Sneaky Stack- Kansas City Royals vs Detroit Tigers (Spencer Turnbull, RHP)
- Sneaky Stack #2- Miami Marlins vs New York Yankees (J.A. Happ, LHP)
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