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Happy Wednesday, RotoBallers! 12 games occupy the midweek schedule, and it's chock full of pitching. We kick things off with Miami and Philadelphia at 7:05 pm ET and go all the way through to Detroit and Seattle at 10:10 pm ET. Hopefully, the Tigers didn't celebrate Spencer Turnbull's no-hitter too much last night because they will see the Mariner's top-prospect Logan Gilbert on the mound. As for the weather, no significant rain threats in outdoor ballparks, but the wind will be an important factor. There is 10 mile per hour winds expected in Dunedin, St. Louis, Chicago, Atlanta, and San Diego. It could be as much as 20 miles per hour in Dunedin out to left field and could result in a fireworks show between Boston and Toronto.
I'm not joking when I say this may be the most amount of pitching talent on a slate since the opening week of the season. Clayton Kershaw, Corbin Burnes, and Max Scherzer are your $10,000 arms tonight, but as you scroll down the list, you can see John Means at $9,400, Shohei Ohtani at $7,400, and even top-prospect Logan Gilbert is on the board at $4,700 against Detroit. With so many viable arms on the schedule, it feels like a tournament kind of evening. You can go big at pitching and burn up to $20,000 of your budget, or you could go completely the other way and spend as little as $12,000 on an Ohtani-Gilbert combination. Don't forget to check out the excellent pitching primer later today if you need a deeper dive into tonight's arms.
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 5/19/2021. 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
Corbin Burnes - P, MIL at KC ($10,300)
Well, we knew regression was coming for Burnes, and the ONE walk he gave up in his last outing had me on the fence about whether to play him tonight. Sarcasm is hard to convey over text, but hopefully, that came through. Fire up Burnes against the Royals. One of the Brewer's two aces (three with Freddy Peralta?), Burnes is in for a massive outing. He's struck out nine batters every start this season despite only pitching into the seventh inning once. His 1.57 ERA is terrific, his 0.64 WHIP is delightful, and I don't care about Kansas City's low strikeout rate because Burnes is doing that at a 45.3 percent rate through 34 1/3 innings in 2021. I think he has the highest K upside among all the arms and one of the biggest chances at a win outside of Clayton Kershaw and Jack Flaherty.
Shohei Ohtani - P, LAA vs. CLE ($7,400)
Man, DraftKings is begging us to play Ohtani tonight. Well, I will oblige them and start the Japanese phenom without any hesitation. There is nothing this man can't do. DFS managers won't get points when he inevitably crushes a ball around the park tonight, but we can grab all those pitching numbers. I doubted Ohtani last time out, and he made me look like a fool with seven innings of one-run baseball and 10 strikeouts against Houston. If he can do that to the Astros, then I am not worried about Cleveland. As a team, the Indians strike out 25 percent against right-handed pitching and own a below-average 87 weighted Runs Created Plus. Ohtani could end up being the cashiest arm on the slate because of his price tag, but it'll be good chalk to keep all your lineups afloat in those types of contests.
Other options: Max Scherzer at CHC ($10,000), Jack Flaherty vs. PIT ($9,700), Corey Kluber at TEX ($7,800), Logan Gilbert vs. DET ($4,700)
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DraftKings DFS Infielders
Mike Zunino - C, TB at John Means ($3,900)
When a catcher's hot, you ride the heatwave. Zunino has cranked four home runs in his last five games as he continues to crush the baseball all over the diamond in 2021. Through 27 games and 87 at-bats, the backstop is slugging .586 thanks to 10 of his 19 hits clearing the outfield fence. I will go out on a limb and say a 28.6 percent home run to fly ball ratio is unsustainable over the season for Zunino. However, it doesn't mean he can't continue to enjoy the friendly confines of Oriole Park at Camden Yards for another day.
Jared Walsh - 1B, LAA vs. Aaron Civale ($4,600)
It's a shame Walsh lost his outfield eligibility, but I'll still slot him in as my first baseman. The left-handed bat has been incredibly consistent this season as he follows up a breakout 2020 campaign. Over his first 38 games, Walsh has a .990 OPS and averages 9.2 fantasy points per game, and, over his last 10 games, the former two-way player owns a .994 OPS with 9.7 FPPG. The 27-year old is top-10 in batting average (.333), RBI (30), and OPS (.963), and while he's only got one home run in his last 10 games, he still drove in 8 and even swiped a couple of bases.
Gavin Lux - 2B/SS, LAD vs. Merrill Kelly ($3,300)
I was excited to write up Lux for today’s game. With teammate Corey Seager (hand) on the injury shelf, Lux will receive all the at-bats he could want. He’s been sneaky good in May with seven runs, three doubles, two home runs, 12 RBI, and a .874 OPS. Last night he went 2-for-4 and knocked this grand slam into the Dodger Stadium stands to break the game wide open. Now, I'm still excited to recommend Lux, but I doubt he will be as sneaky of a play as I was hoping for on Wednesday's slate.
Rafael Devers - 3B, BOS at Ross Stripling ($5,500)
I'll pair Devers and Kike Hernandez (see below) as a mini-stack in DFS tonight because of the ballpark and the pitcher, Ross Stripling. Devers is talented enough to smack around any caliber of pitcher, but it should be an easier night than most against Stripling. On the season, the third baseman rocks a .913 OPS with 26 runs, 11 doubles, 11 home runs, 34 RBI, and even two stolen bases. On the other hand, Stripling owns a 5.91 ERA and 1.69 WHIP. Putting that many ducks on the pond is a death sentence against a lineup this talented. Devers will have plenty of chances for counting stats and fantasy points on Wednesday.
Jazz Chisholm - 2B/SS, MIA at Zach Eflin ($4,800)
Miami's magnificent infielder is making up for lost time after a three-week stay on the IL. In his first two games back, Chisholm is 4-for-9 with three runs, a home run, two RBI, and a stolen base. It's highly encouraging to see him pick up right where he left off before hitting the trainer's table. The 22-year old launched a rocket ship into the right-field seats last night off a 100 mph pitch from left-handed hurler Jose Alvarado. This guy is exceptional, and he will have another chance to impress in Philadelphia tonight against Zach Eflin.
DraftKings DFS Outfielders
Joey Gallo - OF, TEX vs. Corey Kluber ($4,000)
Let's go home-run hunting with Joey Gallo in Texas. The outfielder is showing us a different player than we saw in April, but it's resulting in a power surge and, therefore, more fantasy points. In the season’s second month, the left-handed slugger is getting on base less frequently but hitting the ball a lot further. Through 16 May games, Gallo is slashing .213/.273/.492 with eight runs, two doubles, five home runs, and 12 RBI. His opponent, Corey Kluber, is on a bit of a hot-pitching streak now, but his last four games have come versus Baltimore (twice), Washington, and the Tigers. The Rangers are equal or even worse than some of those teams, but I think Gallo can tag Kluber with a long ball tonight and get DFS managers those fantasy points.
Kyle Tucker - OF, HOU at Frankie Montas ($3,600)
I'm going to keep running Kyle Tucker out there until DraftKings gets him above $4,000. It's probably due to his low position in the batting order, but he's still churning out fantasy points on a nightly basis. Last night in Oakland, he hit another home run and continued his recent power surge. Over his last 10 games, the outfielder is slashing .389/.463/.889 with 13 runs, a double, a triple, five home runs, and 12 RBI. It would be hard to keep him out of my lineups if he was $4,600, so getting that $3,600 price tag is an outstanding value.
Kike Hernandez - 2B/OF, BOS at Ross Stripling ($3,300)
Batting leadoff for a lineup facing Ross Stripling automatically puts a player on the DFS radar. Getting him for $3,300 and batting in a Triple-A ballpark turns him into a smash play. Before landing on the IL with a hamstring injury, it looked like Hernandez was settling into his role for the Red Sox. In the 10 games prior, the utility man was getting on base at a .342 clip to score seven runs and even flashed some oomph with two doubles and a home run. While Boston struggled with Hyun-Jin Ryu last night, that won't be the case against Stripling because Boston has the second-highest implied run total on the slate.
DraftKings DFS Stacks
- Los Angeles Angels vs. Cleveland Indians (Aaron Civale, RHP)
- Sneaky stack: Baltimore Orioles vs. Tampa Bay Rays (Ryan Yarbrough, LHP)
- Game stack: Boston Red Sox (Garrett Richards, RHP) at Toronto Blue Jays (Ross Stripling, RHP)
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