RADIO
We have a nice, tidy nine-game slate on tap for Wednesday on DraftKings. There are three elite arms to decipher at the top in Darvish, Bauer, and Kershaw, while we also have a few interesting arms to consider in the mid-to-low range. There are also plenty of options when in comes to offenses set up for success with their respective matchups on tonight's slate.
I'll be going through some of the best plays at each position on DraftKings with a GPP/tournament lineup build in mind. That's not to say that these players won't work in cash-game lineups, but we're looking to provide high-upside plays for the most part (it's more fun that way, anyway). As a reminder, it is best practice to stack 3-5 hitters from the same team for DFS purposes, so try to envision how the games will play out and build your lineups from there. Utilizing unique lineup combinations (i.e the nine, one, two, and three hitters) is another great way to differentiate.
In this article, I'll be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for the DraftKings main slate on 9/9/2020. 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. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me on Twitter @kringstad19
DraftKings DFS Starting Pitchers
Yu Darvish - SP, CHC vs CIN ($11,500)
Darvish is having an incredible season that has him squarely in the NL Cy Young conversation, and he's the pitcher I'm making sure to get to as my pay-up option on tonight's slate. He's 7-1 with a 1.44 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 2.01 FIP, and 2.60 xFIP on the season. He holds an elite 33% strikeout rate and if you need any more reassurance that he's worth the hefty salary, check out the advanced metrics sliders in the image below. Lastly, his matchup against the Reds is a good one as they rank in the bottom-10 in wOBA, wRC+, and SLG while coming in with the 10th-highest strikeout rate in the MLB. Fire up Darvish as he has great win odds and the highest ceiling on the slate.
Dane Dunning - SP, CWS vs COL ($6,500)
If you have the salary to spare, getting to Zach Davies against the Rockies in Petco is a safer play. Sometimes you have to risk it for the biscuit in fantasy, though. Dunning is ultra-cheap and works great paired with Darvish or Kershaw as an SP2. He's making his fourth start of the year and though he has had mixed results and hasn't made it past the fifth inning, he has some impressive metrics that we can use a reason to get to him against the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates. He holds a 3.86 ERA, 2.79 FIP, 3.12 xFIP, and a great 30.5% strikeout rate. His advanced metrics are somewhat eye-popping (in a small 14 inning sample size), highlighted by a 97th percentile Whiff%. The Pirates are duking it out with the Rangers in the battle for the most putrid offense in the league, and they come in at 9th in team strikeout rate and have a low 3.9 run total for this game.
Other options: Clayton Kershaw (LAD vs ARI) $10,500, Zach Davies (SDP vs COL) $8,700, Trevor Bauer (CIN vs CHC) $10,900
DraftKings DFS Infielders
Brandon Belt - 1B, SFG vs SEA ($3,400)
Belt has been on fire lately as he's slashing .469/.574/.898 with four homers, seven doubles, a triple, 13 RBI, and 12 runs scored over the last 21 days. He has had some monster games mixed in during that time frame, including a two-homer, 44 DK point outing on 8/25. He's in the 98th percentile or better in Barrel %, xSLG, wOBA, xwOBA, and xwOBACON and he's in the 94th percentile with a 51.4% hard-hit rate. That'll work against Nick Margevicius, who has decent surface numbers but holds the slate's highest Hard% at 50.8%.
Jeff McNeil - 2B/OF, NYM vs BAL ($3,500)
McNeil is still priced around where he was when he was slumping for the first chunk of the season. He's certainly not slumping now. His line is up to .306/.378/.468 with three homers, 16 RBI, and 12 runs scored. He's on a three-game homer streak coming in and has at least 10 DK points in seven of his last nine games played. The matchup against the Jorge Lopez is one to attack as he has allowed the second-highest Hard% among tonight's pitchers and the Mets are projected to score 5.4 runs.
Alex Bregman - 3B, HOU vs OAK ($4,800)
We likely won't be seeing this low of a price on Bregman for very long, so we'll need to take advantage while we can. The young star just made his first start back from the IL as he had been out since 8/19. He went hitless yesterday, but he's still coming in as a good value stud today despite the Astros projecting for only 3.9 runs against Jesus Luzardo. Luzardo has been decent and he doesn't really have many metrics to attack aside from one of the slate's worst HR/FB ratios at 19%. This is more a bet on Bregman's talent as he holds a .221 ISO and .379 wOBA and has been markedly better against LHP in his career with a .337 average and 1.082 OPS them since 2018.
Other options: Joseph Odom (SEA vs SFG) $2,300, Marcus Semien (OAK vs HOU) $4,200, Mitch Moreland (SDP vs COL) $3,800
DraftKings DFS Outfielders
Chris Taylor - OF/SS, LAD vs ARI ($4,700)
Chris Taylor has had at least 12 DK points in four of his six games played as he has tallied eight RBI and seven runs scored in that span. He holds a solid .349 wOBA and 42.2% hard-hit rate, while it's reasonable to expect his .143 ISO to positively regress closer to his 3-year average of .199. The appeal here is Taylor's placement in a packed Dodgers lineup that's projected to put up a slate-high 5.8 runs off of Taylor Clarke and company. Clarke holds a 3.75 ERA, but he has a 4.65 WHIP, 5.35 tERA, 1.5 HR/9, 22.2% HR/FB%, and a high 44.1% Hard%.
Brandon Nimmo - OF, NYM vs BAL ($4,000)
Nimmo is 5-for-12 with a homer, two RBI, and two runs scored over his last two games and he'll have the platoon-advantage over Orioles starter Jorge Lopez. He's slashing .259/.398/.467 overall but he's crushing RHP with a .308/.447/.549 line with five of his six homers and 10-of-11 RBI coming against right-handers. He also walks a ton (15.7% BB%), doesn't strike out (19.3% K%), and has a high ISO (.207) and wOBA (.384).
Corey Dickerson - OF, MIA vs ATL ($3,200)
Dickerson isn't having a great year but he has been heating up a bit lately, that's for sure. He comes in on a five-game hitting streak that includes two home runs, a triple, a double, three RBI, and four runs scored. None of his season-long stats stand out but his current form his notable, so he's worth a look here against the uninspiring Tommy Milone. Milone has a 5.30 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 4.19 FIP, and a slate-worst 5.34 tERA. He also gives up 1.8 HR/9 and a 47.9% Hard%, and he allows the highest batting average against (.303) on the slate.
Other options: Josh Reddick (HOU vs OAK) $2,400, Dee Gordon (SEA vs SFG) $2,600, Trent Grisham (SDP vs COL) $4,700
DraftKings DFS Stacks
The top stacks to target tonight are the Dodgers and Mets, while the White Sox and Padres are also quite appealing. Sneaky stacks include the Rangers, Marlins, and Giants if you're feeling like rolling the proverbial dice or want to seek out rostership leverage in GPP's.
Good luck in your DraftKings contests and make sure to give me a follow on Twitter!
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