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Dan's top DraftKings and FanDuel MLB DFS picks for today, Friday, 5/16/25. His favorite daily fantasy baseball lineup sleepers and value picks for DFS on DraftKings and FanDuel.
Fridays are some of the best slates for daily fantasy baseball. We have a 12-game main slate on both sites and a very top-heavy pitching slate, which means plenty of pitchers to choose from and fewer obvious choices for offensive stacks.
This article will provide my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on 5/16/2025, and I'll focus most of my picks from the main slate starting at 7:05 p.m. EDT on both sites. The lineup picks will showcase elite players to mid-priced options, and value plays.
You can also read more DFS advice and lineup picks for other sports here. Monitoring injury news and today's MLB starting lineups is always essential.
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DraftKings, FanDuel Pitchers - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
It's a loaded pitching slate, so there are certainly more than just these five arms as viable options, but here are some of my favorites.
Nathan Eovaldi - TEX vs. HOU ($10.4K DK; $10.5K FD)
I can't help but return to my guy "Nasty Nate." He doesn't carry the same high strikeout projection that guys like Cole Ragans, Chris Sale, or Joe Ryan do, but he's been in fantastic form all season long. He is doing an incredible job of eating innings and keeping opponents off the basepaths. His 0.75 WHIP leads all of baseball. He doesn't walk guys and keeps the ball on the ground, while still getting his fair share of strikeouts.
Looking at the MLB leader boards this morning and the Texas Rangers have three pitchers in the top 10 for ERA in baseball.
No. 4: Tyler Mahle (1.47)
No. 6: Nathan Eovaldi (1.78)
No. 10: Jacob deGrom (2.29)— The Prospect Times (@ProspectTimes) May 16, 2025
Houston is slowly trending up offensively, but we saw deGrom dominate them last night, and they still don't scare me in terms of being a team that can knock a good pitcher out early. Eovaldi has a very high floor tonight.
Joe Ryan - MIN at MIL ($9.5K DK; $10.2K FD)
I wrote a lot about Ryan and his impressive start this week for season-long fantasy managers. He's been locked in with a minuscule 2% walk rate and is still getting 30% strikeouts. He's getting it done consistently and giving his team a great shot to win every time he takes the bump.
Meanwhile, Milwaukee's offensive struggles vs. RHP continue. Their wRC+ of 68 ranks 29th in the league over the last two weeks. I like Ryan's chances of handling this lineup, which lacks any power from the left side other than Christian Yelich.
Cole Ragans - KCR vs. STL ($9.3K DK; $9.8K FD)
How can we pass up a pitcher with a 38% strikeout rate who is priced as the SP6 on the slate? Ragans brings elite strikeout upside every time he takes the bump. I have to consider him here at this price, even with the Cardinals being a neutral or maybe even a slightly below-average matchup for him.
Also Consider: MacKenzie Gore - WAS at BAL ($8.6K DK; $9.7K FD), Chris Sale - ATL at BOS ($8.9K DK; $9.6K FD)
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DraftKings, FanDuel Infielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Freddie Freeman, 1B - LAD vs. LAA ($6.2K DK; $4.4K FD)
Lefties wreck Jack Kochanowicz this season, and there's been no better left-handed hitter in baseball this season than Freeman, except for his teammate Shohei Ohtani.
Lefties are hitting .308 against Kochanowicz with six home runs and a .527 SLG this season. He doesn't miss many bats with an 8% SwStr% and 92% Z-Contact%, while Freeman is making elite contact this year with a .370 average and nine home runs already.
Fitting in expensive bats is going to be tough with all the good pitching on this slate, but I am going to make an effort to pay up for Freddie where I can.
Brandon Lowe, 2B - TBR at MIA ($3.5K DK; $2.7K FD)
Lowe homered twice yesterday and now has seven hits over his last three games. He's prone to hot and cold stretches, but it seems like he's seeing the ball well right now, and I want to jump on while he's hot (and still quite cheap).
Brandon Lowe homers twice as @RaysBaseball takes the series in Toronto. pic.twitter.com/imAQ9uAhyM
— MLB (@MLB) May 15, 2025
Max Meyer is on the hill for Miami, and while he started the year in great form, he's been smacked around in his last three starts for 15 earned runs. Miami also has a bottom-5 bullpen backing Meyer, so if he can't cover five or six innings, we could get a few at-bats for Lowe against some pretty poor relievers.
Bo Bichette, SS - TOR vs. DET ($3.6K DK; $2.9K FD)
Bichette has been too cheap on both sites now for almost a full week. He has two home runs in his last five games and is coming off another three-hit outing against the Rays yesterday.
Getting a leadoff hitter with some power in his bat at this price is just silly. I know it's Jack Flaherty on the bump for Detroit, but he's been scuffling a bit lately and isn't a pitcher we have to avoid entirely.
Also Consider: Hyeseong Kim - 2B/SS ($2.4K DK; $2.5K FD), Pavin Smith - 1B/OF ($4.2K DK; $2.9K FD), Max Muncy - 3B ($3.1K DK; $2.9K FD)
DraftKings, FanDuel Outfielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Riley Greene, OF - DET at TOR ($4.4K DK; $3.3K FD)
Take your pick here with Kerry Carpenter or Greene, but the lefties look great in this matchup against Bowden Francis, who has allowed nine home runs to southpaws already this season and an ugly .568 SLG.
Riley Greene hit his 10th HR last night
On the season:
.273/.326/.497
10 HR
25 R
27 RBI
.356 wOBA
132 wRC+#RepDetroit
pic.twitter.com/jlYEIH5XAk— DataBase Hit (@DatabaseHit) May 15, 2025
Greene is affordable on both sites and makes for a great one-off if you're hunting for cheaper home runs or a valuable piece of a sneaky Tigers stack.
Heliot Ramos, OF - SFG vs. ATH ($4.1K DK; $3.3K FD)
Ramos is finally back to doing what we have seen from him in the past, smashing lefties. He started the year slowly, but has been hot of late and has worked his way back into the leadoff spot against LHP.
JP Sears has been better this year than in the past, but he's still a fly-ball pitcher who is vulnerable to the long ball. Our RotoBaller matchup ratings for hitters has Ramos as one of the top plays on the day, and it's easy to see why with his history against lefties and Sears' checkered past with allowing hard contact and barrels.
Corbin Carroll, OF - ARI vs. COL ($6.0K DK; $4.5K FD)
Carroll is the other top spend-up on this slate in my mind, other than Freeman. He's been hitting for elite power this year with 14 home runs while also hitting for a solid average and scoring runs as the leadoff hitter.
He's facing German Marquez, who has struggled with lefties throughout his career. This game is in Arizona, but the Snakes are still implied for over six runs as they are a top-7 offense against righties this season and facing one of the worst starters on the board.
Also Consider: Trevor Larnach - OF ($3.8K DK; 3K FD), Josh Lowe - OF ($4.1K DK; $3K FD), James Outman - OF ($2.1K DK; $2.5K FD)
DraftKings, FanDuel MLB DFS Stacks
Los Angeles Dodgers (6.2 implied run total) vs. Jack Kochanowicz (LAA)
The Dodgers are one of two teams that feel rather obvious tonight, with the Snakes being the other team with a 6+ run total. I like the Dodgers the most because Kochanowicz is not only extremely hittable but also backed by the worst bullpen in baseball, as the Angels' pen has a 6.97 ERA and 1.75 WHIP this season. Load up on the lefties with Freeman and Ohtani being must plays here.
Arizona Diamondbacks (6.2 implied run total) vs. German Marquez (COL)
Arizona's wRC+ of 128 vs. RHP over the last two weeks is just a tick behind the Dodgers, and they have a very hittable opposing pitcher of their own with Marquez and his 94.2% Z-Contact% on the bump.
SNEAKY STACK: Detroit Tigers (4.4 implied run total) vs. Bowden Francis (TOR)
Francis has been very bad this season, and his batted ball metrics are even worse than his surface stats. His 12% barrel rate is the third-worst on the slate, and he's sporting a 6.25 ERA. The Tigers' offense is heating up again, and they have posted the third-best wRC+ over the last two weeks against righties.
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