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The top early-slate daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on May 18, 2023. Mike's MLB DFS analysis and sleepers for building optimal DFS rosters.
This is a light Thursday compared to the previous month or so. There are four early games, which makes the early slate the main slate, so here I am. Don't worry...our esteemed staff here at RotoBaller will have the two-game nightcap covered as well. We start early today, so get those lineups in before lunch!
This article contains my picks for the four-game early slate on Thursday, May 18, 2023, for both DraftKings and FanDuel, which locks at 12:35 PM ET.
The lineup picks will range from some elite high-priced players to mid-priced options and value plays. I'll give you a few of my top pitching options and then some infielders, outfielders, and teams to stack. You can also read more DFS advice and lineup picks for other sports here. It's also essential to monitor injury news and today's MLB starting lineups.
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DraftKings, FanDuel Pitchers - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Taj Bradley, TB at NYM ($9,100 DK, $10,200 FD)
Taj is back! He has been back in the minors for about three weeks...and wasn't pitching all that well. However, the guy really didn't deserve to be demoted anyway. Bradley allowed six runs in 15.1 innings while striking out a staggering 23 batters. His stuff computes at the big league level. I'm not crazy about this matchup, and I totally understand a pivot to Cease against the toothless Cleveland lineup without Jose Ramirez. However, Bradley's strikeouts are intoxicating, and can rack up points in a hurry. I would run Cease in cash games and Bradley in GPP.
Eury Perez, MIA vs. WAS ($7,700 DK, $8,500 FD)
Less than two weeks ago, Perez was a Pensacola Blue Wahoo. Now he has a slot in the Marlins rotation. He was solid against the Reds in his major league debut, striking out seven in only 4.2 innings. He did give up a couple of homers and a couple of walks, so Perez is still a bit wild. Still, this is a very low price for that kind of strikeout upside. The Nationals haven't scored more than four runs in a game in more than a week. Perez might be my favorite play on the whole slate!
Others to consider: Dylan Cease ($9,700 DK, $9,800 FD) vs. CLE
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DraftKings, FanDuel Infielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Andrew Vaughn - 1B, CWS vs. CLE ($2,900 DK, $3,000 FD)
It hasn't been a great year for Vaughn thus far. In fact, he went hitless in 12 tries over the weekend against Houston. Boy, was he happy to see Cleveland! Vaughn has three hits in eight tries in the first two games of this series with two runs scored, a homer, and two RBI. He gets to face a lefty today in Logan Allen. Even though Vaughn hasn't been great against lefties this year, he is hitting 37 points higher against southpaws in his career.
Luis Arraez - 2B, MIA vs. WAS ($5,400 DK, $2,800 FD)
Wow...peep that price on FD! Arraez has three consecutive two-hit games and is hitting .389 on the season in 39 games. Arraez has reached base in every game since April 26. He is going to get you some points. That's a great floor for a really low price on FanDuel. That price is a bit of a turn-off on DraftKings, but I'm not afraid of Trevor Williams and his low-strikeout high-flyball ways.
Isaac Paredes - 3B DK; 1B/3B FD, TB at NYM ($3,400 DK, $3,000 FD)
It would be hard to find a hotter hitter than Paredes right now and he's still this cheap! Paredes has four hits in eight tries against the Mets so far with two runs, two homers, and six RBI...IN TWO GAMES! That's not a fluke either. Paredes has ten hits over his last six games. That's a lot of crooked numbers at a very low price.
DraftKings, FanDuel Outfielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Jorge Soler - OF, MIA vs. WAS ($5,200 DK, $3,300 FD)
Soler has homered in back-to-back contests in the first two games of this series and now has five homers in the last ten games. He's not quite as hot as Arenado, but he's close. Soler has four RBI in the series and 11 in the last ten games. The overall numbers don't look all that great, but I'll trust the hot streak against a good-but-not-great Trevor Williams.
Luis Robert Jr. - OF, CWS vs. CLE ($4,100 DK, $3,600 FD)
Robert had his four-game homer streak snapped last night, but his price still feels low on DK. Robert has absolutely punished left-handed pitchers this season with a .375 average and three homers in just 24 at-bats. Allen is a solid pitcher, but I'll trust Robert, who is hitting .408 with seven homers and 15 RBI in just 14 May games.
Mickey Moniak - OF, LAA at BAL ($2,700 DK, $2,000 FD)
The one-time highly-touted Phillies prospect has hit the ground running in L.A. Moniak is 5-for-12 with two solo homers and two steals in his first four games this year. He has played so well that the Angels have put him in the leadoff slot. With another righty on the mound today, Moniak has a chance to do some real damage at the bare minimum on FanDuel. I thought it was DraftKings that usually screwed up the pricing!
DraftKings, FanDuel MLB DFS Stacks
Baltimore Orioles vs. Tyler Anderson
The Orioles crush lefties. Yeah, I know...you're a visual learner. Don't just take my word for it.
The Orioles are hitting 30 points higher against lefties and the OPS is nearly 100 points higher. Anderson has been better in May, but that's a relative term. He still hasn't been sharp and only struck out one Guardian over six innings in his last start. It's a day game against a lefty. Baltimore is definitely my favorite stack.
Things get expensive quickly with Ryan Mountcastle, Adley Rutschman, Cedric Mullins, and Anthony Santander (not to mention Austin Hays), but I highlighted enough value above that this stack is still affordable today.
Also consider: Miami Marlins vs. Trevor Williams
Sneaky stack: Chicago White Sox vs. Logan Allen
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