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The top daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 4/2/21. Euan Leith's MLB DFS analysis and sleepers for building optimal DFS rosters.
Welcome to the weekend, RotoBallers, and Happy Easter to those that celebrate. I'm thrilled to be bringing you fantasy baseball picks for DraftKings every Saturday and Sunday all season long. It's day four of the MLB season and man are some of the pitching options getting thin.
This is the first main slate this season without Coors Field game but baseball's best hitting environment might as well be on the slate with how much offense could occur this Sunday. Lots of teams are on their fourth starter and some bullpens have already been stretched thin. Let's cut the chatter and dive into a fun slate.
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 4/4/2021. 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 important 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
Brady Singer - KC, vs. TEX ($8,700)
Singer is a pitcher I love for season-long fantasy and I'm rolling him out there in DFS at the first chance I get. The former first-round pick finished last season strong going 3-1 with a 1.50 ERA, .114 batting average against, and had 25 strikeouts in 24 innings across his last four starts. Singer relies on an elite sinker that batters pound into the dirt as evidenced by a 53.1 percent ground ball rate last season.
Texas isn't the easiest matchup, but they're far from scary either, and playing in pitcher-friendly Kauffman Stadium should help. The Rangers ranked ninth in baseball last season with a 25.3 percent strikeout rate against righties so even though Singer isn't a strikeout artist, there are K's to be had in this lineup.
Mitch Keller - P, PIT at CHC ($7,000)
If paying down for pitcher then Keller is the way to go. Keller has gotten off to a rough start to his career but has always had the talent which makes him an attractive option in DFS. This game has an over/under of only eight as the warm summer winds haven't hit Wrigley Field yet making the hitter-friendly venue for this game less of a concern. Keller consistently posted double-digit swinging-strike rates in the minors and posted an 11.8 percent mark in 2019, his biggest innings sample yet in his young career. The Cubs, on the other hand, whiffed a ton versus RHP last season ranking fifth-worst with a 25.9 percent strikeout rate versus righties.
Other Oprions: Aaron Civale @ DET ($9,600), Zach Eflin vs ATL ($8,200)
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DraftKings DFS Infielders
Christian Vazquez - C, BOS vs BAL ($5,200)
Vazquez is the most expensive catcher on the slate. Normally, paying up for a catcher is not a good DFS strategy but every rule has its exception and on this slate I want Vazquez. Afternoon games on Sunday mean a lot of teams will rest their starter so the catching options will be even bleaker than usual. This makes a player like Vazquez stand out as he should bat higher in the order than any other catcher on the slate and will do so in a game tied for the second-highest over/under. There are plenty of value bats to make up for Vazquez's salary and he'll be in the lineup after sitting on Saturday.
Jay Bruce - 1B, NYY vs TOR ($2,700)
Bruce has been starting at first base in place of Luke Voit (knee) and is the best way to get exposure to the Yankees offense. The Bronx Bombers have been relatively quiet to start the season but a matchup with T.J. Zeuch could wake up the New York bats. Zeuch only has 34 Big League innings under his belt and has never posted good strikeout rates in the minors. As a result, most of the Yankee bats are expensive on this slate but not Bruce, who is one of the few lefty bats that will face the righty Zeuch.
Whit Merrifield - 2B, KC vs. TEX ($5,200)
It's only been two games but the Texas Rangers have already made their case as the worst pitching staff in the league. Texas gave up 14 runs on Opening Day and followed that up by allowing 11 Royals to cross the plate on Saturday. Now they'll turn to Jordan Lyles and his 5.22 career-ERA to try and calm things down. The Royals are the top stack of the day and Merrifield batting at the top of their order is a player to pay up for after homering yesterday.
Eugenio Suarez - SS, CIN vs STL ($4,200)
With most of the field flocking to the Yankees and Red Sox bats against bad pitchers, don't forget about Eugenio Suarez in Cincinnati. This game has the second-highest over/under on the slate but most managers will likely fill their shortstop slot with the easy answer, Xander Bogaerts. That looks simple enough as Bogaerts mashes lefties but he's also $1,300 more expensive than Suarez and will likely be highly-rostered in DFS. Suarez should bat cleanup for a Reds lineup I want plenty of exposure to today against Carlos Martinez.
Jose Ramirez - 3B, CLE at DET ($5,800)
While we're on the theme of lefty mashers let's add Jose Ramirez to the lineup. JoRam ranked third in baseball with a 1.407 OPS versus southpaws last season. Tarik Skubal is a talented, young pitcher but not someone that will scare me off Ramirez. Skubal whiffs a lot of hitters but Ramirez is one of the elite hitters in the game at putting the ball in play. He has just one season in his career with a strikeout rate above 15 percent and can score fantasy points with his bat or legs as one of the true dual-threat superstars in baseball.
DraftKings DFS Outfielders
Cedric Mullins - OF, BAL at BOS ($2,000)
This will be a free-square in cash games until his price increases. Mullins has batted leadoff for the Orioles in both of its games this season yet somehow carries the bare-minimum price on Draftkings. This game has the highest over/under on the slate. Mullins is a switch-hitter and has good contact skills from both sides of the plate. He should get four if not five plate appearances in this game and one trip on base is it should take to return value at this price.
Michael A. Taylor - OF, KC vs. TEX ($2,600)
Taylor has been on a warpath against Texas pitching early in the season so don't bet on Lyles to slow him down. The former Washington National is 5-for-9 with two homers and six RBI through two games. This is the hottest player in baseball in the young season and at less than $3,000 he works as part of a Royals stack or as a one-off option to save salary. Lyles has given up a fly-ball rate over 37 percent in three straight seasons so there are homers to be had in KC today.
Nick Castellanos - OF, CIN vs STL ($4,800)
The Reds are my favorite non-Royals stack and their two-hole hitter should be a big part of it. Castellanos had a down season in 2020 but posted an OPS above .850 in both 2018 and 2019. He's off to a good start this season going 4-for-8 with four runs scored. His early Statcast data is also positive as he already smacked a homer this season that registered 108.1 MPH off the bat.
DraftKings DFS Stacks
- Kansas City Royals (vs. Jordan Lyles)
- Cincinnati Reds/St. Louis Cardinals (Great American Ballpark, Over/Under 9.5)
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