RADIO
The top daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on April 15th, 2019. Daniel E. Dobish's MLB DFS analysis and sleepers for building optimal DFS rosters.
For Monday's slate of Major League Baseball games, I'll focus on the evening contests (first pitch of 7:05 PM EST and later). Be sure to double-check the weather and the lineups before finalizing your roster.
The good news is that precipitation will not be an issue at any of the MLB park on Monday night. However, wind will be a big factor in a couple of the venues. The winds will be blowing from left to right across the diamond at a 19-23 mph clip for the New York Mets-Philadelphia Phillies battle, and that could favor left-handed hitters. At Target Field in Minneapolis, the winds will be blowing 10-13 mph into the face of the batters from right field, slowing down the Blue Jays and Twins and aiding the pitchers. The same holds true for the Angels and Rangers in Texas, as winds howl from 16-19 mph from right field to home plate.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 4/15/19. 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, contact me on Twitter @danieledobish.
DraftKings DFS Starting Pitchers
Trevor Cahill - P, LAA at TEX ($7,100)
Cahill has lasted at least six innings in each of his first three starts so far, including a pair of quality starts in the past two outings. He has really stepped up and filled a void for the Angels with the pitching staff banged up early on. He struck out either batters last time out, and he should have similar success. The Rangers are middle of the road in terms of scoring, and they are hitting just .241 as a team. Plus, Cahill has a super favorable matchup against the extremely shaky RHP Shelby Miller.
Joey Lucchesi - P SD vs. COL ($9,000)
The southpaw Lucchesi will be making his fifth career start against the Rockies, and he is 1-0 with a 2.05 ERA and 23 strikeouts across 22 innings with a .208 opponent batting average. And those solid numbers came against a much better Colorado offense. The Rockies are hitting a dismal .201 through 16 games with just 46 runs scored, last in the National League.
DraftKings DFS Infielders
Jonathan Lucroy - C, LAA at TEX ($3,500)
Lucroy is an inexpensive backstop option with the potential for some power against a familiar face. He knows Miller from their days facing each other in the NL Central. He has four multi-point games in the month of April, and you can expect a fifth against the very giving Miller.
Paul Goldschmidt - 1B, STL at MIL ($4,300)
Goldschmidt faces a very favorable matchup against RHP Freddy Peralta, who has a 6.91 ERA and 1.40 WHIP through three starts with three homers allowed in 14 1/3 innings. Goldie is scuffling with a .203 batting average, but he has six bombs in 52 at-bats vs. RHP.
Whit Merrifield - 2B, KC at CHW ($4,500)
Merrifield will be facing RHP Ervin Santana, who was roughed up for seven earned runs and seven hits over 3 2/3 innings with three homers allowed in his first outing of the season. Merrifield leads all second basemen with 11.3 fantasy points per game, and hitting an impressive .360 (18-for-50) with six RBI, a .385 on-base percentage and .885 OPS against right-handed pitching.
Manny Machado - 3B, SD vs. COL ($4,300)
Machado will be squaring off against RHP Antonio Senzatela, who is making his first start of the season after starting on the 10-day injured list. There might be a little bit of rust, and a guy like Machado could certainly take advantage. He hasn't gotten off to the hot start the Padres were hoping for, but he has the ability to rack up big power numbers in bunches.
Elvis Andrus - SS, TEX vs. LAA ($4,200)
Andrus has three more hits in Sunday's series finale against the Athletics, giving him four straight games with two or more hits. He is hitting .414 with seven extra-base hits, including three homers, and he has 12 RBI over the first 14 contests. Andrus is showing no signs of slowing down, so strike while the iron is hot and the price tag isn't too high.
DraftKings DFS Outfielders
Brian Goodwin - OF, LAA at TEX ($4,000)
Goodwin looks to continue his red-hot April. He is even better against right-handed pitching, going 10-for-29 (.345) with three doubles, a homer, four RBI and seven runs scored with a .958 OPS. If you're planning to run a Halos stack you will definitely want Goodwin as part of your plans.
Alex Gordon - OF, KC at CHW ($4,200)
Gordon is a good value at this price level since he is averaging 11.2 FPPG. He has been rolling up huge numbers against right-handed pitching, slashing .359/.422/.590 with two homers and 10 RBI across just 39 at-bats with a 1.012 OPS. While his price tag is still fairly low, keep thumping Gordon until he starts to cool off.
