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Thunder Dan Palyo highlights the top FanDuel and DraftKings MLB DFS lineup picks for the "Early Only" slate on 4/21/21, and a couple of sleepers to consider while building daily rosters.
We have a split slate of MLB games today and for once both FanDuel and DraftKings ran the same slates! While most of our MLB DFS coverage here at RotoBaller is geared towards the main slate, I wanted to give you some of my favorite pitchers and bats for this five-game "early only" slate that locks at 3:10 PM ET.
I'll highlight my favorite pitching options here first and then give you some hitters at each price tier to consider as well as my favorite teams to stack up AND some sample lineups for both sites!
I'll be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for the FanDuel and DraftKings early only slate on 4/21/2021. Be sure to also check out all the MLB player news, including late scratches, and the projected and confirmed daily MLB lineups for each DFS slate. You can also check out today's MLB DFS lineup picks for the main slate here, and read more DFS advice and lineup picks for other sports too. Let's get to it!
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MLB DFS Pitchers
Max Scherzer vs. STL ($11,000 FD, $10,700 DK)
Mad Max is at the head of the class for this slate and he's an absolute must-play in cash games. He's coming off his best game of the season - seven scoreless innings with ten strikeouts against the Diamondbacks. He'll face a right-handed heavy Cardinals lineup and is an implied -175 favorite to win today. We know he has no problem pitching deep into games and running up big pitch counts, so he provides the best ceiling/floor combo of any pitcher with his strikeout ability even if he does give up some runs. I would definitely pay up for either Max or this next guy on FanDuel.
Dinelson Lamet vs. MIL – ($9,000 FD, $9,500 DK)
Lamet is set to make his 2021 debut for the Padres and he walks right into an incredible matchup for strikeouts - the Milwaukee Brewers. We saw Musgrove strike out 13 Brewers the other night and Lamet has arguably better stuff and one of the most devastating sliders in the game. These Brewers all have high K rates and they are really missing Christian Yelich in that lineup right now. The only risk here is that Lamet might not go too deep if he has a hard pitch count cap, but he did throw 75 pitches in his most recent simulated game so 5-6 innings with 7-8 strikeouts is still a possibility here if he's somewhat efficient.
Others to consider: Kenta Maeda or Frankie Montas as SP2 options on DraftKings
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MLB DFS "Bats Worth Paying For"
Mike Trout – OF, LAA vs. TEX ($4,500 FD, $6,000 DK)
Trout is still the best hitter in baseball in my opinion and he's been hot to start the season, hitting .385 with five homers this month. He owns a .450 wOBA and .370 ISO against RHP since 2019 and is facing a fly-ball pitcher with a home run problem today in Mike Foltynewicz. That sounds like a recipe for a big game and probably another bomb hit by Trout today.
Alex Bregman – 3B, HOU at COL ($4,300 FD, $5,000 DK)
Bregman has been an elite lefty-masher in his career and is facing southpaw Austin Gomber in Coors Field today. He also smashes curveballs, and that happens to be Gomber's main offspeed pitch. Gomber is a solid groundball pitcher, but I like Bregman (and his teammate Yuli Gurriel) to elevate some pitches today and take one out of the yard - or at least drive a few into the gap in the spacious Coors outfield.
MLB DFS Values
Justin Upton – OF, LAA vs. TEX ($3,000 FD, $3,700 DK)
Upton is finally coming on after a slow start with hits in four straight games and two homers in that span. Like Trout, he's an elite power hitter against RHP but people often mistakenly only play him against LHP. If you're stacking Angels' bats, make sure Trout and Upton are in there and this price is good to pass up.
Andrew Stevenson – OF, CLE vs. CWS ($2,200 FD, $2,800 DK)
With Juan Soto out, Stevenson took his spot and led off the last game for the Nats. As a lefty, we should expect him to lead off again today against Cards' righty Carlos Martinez. Martinez has been very shaky this year, allowing three or more earned runs in each of his first three starts and failing to make it to the sixth inning. He's got the same old control issues, too. Look for Stevenson to get on base today via hit or walk and score some runs. He's one of the best values on the slate at near minimum price.
Josh Bell – 1B, WAS vs. STL ($3,000 FD, $4,200 DK)
I'm going with another Nats' bat here with Bell. He's been slow out of the gates since coming off the COVID list but crushed a bomb last night showing that power that we were accustomed to seeing during his breakout year in Pittsburgh. He profiles well against CarMar's pitch mix and it's hard not to love him hitting clean up today against Martinez who has looked very hittable so far this year.
Nick Solak - 2B/OF, TEX @ LAA ($3,200 FD, $4,800 DK)
I know I know - that DraftKings price does not exactly scream "value," but he's much too cheap on FanDuel for a cleanup hitter. I like some of these Texas bats today against lefty Jose Quintana who has looked horrible so far in his first two starts. He's walking too many guys and failing to miss bats and it might be the end of his run as a reliable starter. Solak, meanwhile, has four homers already this season with three of those coming in the last week, and is riding a six-game hitting streak.
MLB DFS Hitter Stacks
Los Angelas Angels vs. Mike Foltynewicz
While we do have a game in Coors today, we don't have gas cans on the hill for either team. I'd rather target some one-offs from that game and hunt some homers with Bregman, Gurriel or Ryan McMahon than full-stack those teams. Many people don't realize that the Angels home stadium has one of the better park factors in MLB and these Halo hitters could tee off on Folty and a suspect Rangers bullpen today. Trout, Upton, Walsh, and Ohtani are the big boppers but there are some cheaper guys like Kurt Suzuki, Luis Rengifo, and Albert Pujols who can allow us to get a full four or five-man stack in tournaments.
Washington Nationals vs. Carlos Martinez
Yes, their best hitter is out of the lineup in Soto, but these Nats could be big today on this slate. Martinez hasn't shown much so far this year and we still have some power in this lineup from the left side with Josh Bell and Kyle Schwarber as well as value in Stevenson. Trea Turner is certainly viable here, too, and is a power/speed threat that can hit anyone. I like the Angels the most, but I do like rolling some Nats here today, too.
Sneaky Stack: San Diego Padres (lefties especially - Grisham/Cronenworth/Hosmer) vs. Adrian Houser
MLB DFS Sample Lineups
FanDuel Sample Lineup
DraftKings Sample Lineup
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