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Zach's top DraftKings and FanDuel MLB DFS picks for today, Thursday, 6/5/25. His favorite daily fantasy baseball lineup sleepers and value picks for DFS on DraftKings and FanDuel.
Happy Thursday, RotoBallers! Major League Baseball brings another busy day on the diamonds with several afternoon matchups ahead of a solid evening slate. DraftKings includes the second game of the doubleheader for a five-game main slate, while FanDuel leaves off that game but still has a four-game slate under the lights.
On the pitching side, DraftKings gets two top arms with Cole Ragans and Matthew Liberatore facing off in St. Louis, but FanDuel still has the top two arms in play with Max Fried and Framber Valdez taking the bump. On the hitting side, the highest over/under of the evening comes from Washington D.C., where the Nationals host the Cubs.
This article will provide my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on 6/5/2025, with the slate starting on both sites at 6:40 p.m. EDT. I'll be sure to note when a pick is from the one game that is only available on DraftKings. 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
Max Fried, NYY vs. CLE ($10K DK/$10.1K FD)
The Yankees have gotten what they paid for when they brought in Fried as one of the offseason's biggest free agent signings. He has posted an excellent 1.92 ERA, 2.87 FIP, and 8.4 K/9 while going 7-1 in his 12 starts. Yankee Stadium has been no problem, and he has a 1.69 home ERA with just a .184 batting average against and 36 strikeouts in 37 1/3 innings over his six home starts.
The Guardians are a slightly favorable matchup with the 12th-lowest wRC+ and eighth-lowest wOBA in the majors. Over the last 14 days, they have the eighth-highest K% in the majors at 24.0%. Fried is one of the best of the limited options on Thursday's slate. Cole Ragans could challenge him for the top spot on DraftKings, but the Royals' lefty is higher risk since he is just coming off the injured list.
Framber Valdez, HOU at PIT ($9.3K DK/$10.3K FD)
Valdez is coming off a complete game masterpiece against the Rays. He only needed 83 pitches to win his third straight start by getting all 27 outs last Friday. He gave up three hits and one run while striking out nine on his way to 40.4 DraftKings points and 61 FanDuel points.
83 pitches later…
Framber Valdez threw a complete game last night in spectacular fashion. #BuiltForThis pic.twitter.com/mvet8dYaAQ
— Houston Astros (@astros) May 31, 2025
Valdez has posted five straight quality starts, going 4-0 with a 1.70 ERA, 2.64 FIP, and 26.5% K%. He has pitched at least seven innings in four of those five outings and has 36 strikeouts in 37 innings.
He should be in a great spot to keep rolling as he faces the Pirates in the series finale in Pittsburgh. The Pirates have scored the second-fewest runs in the majors this season and have the fourth-lowest wOBA and second-lowest wRC+ as a team.
Ryan Pepiot, TB vs. TEX ($6.8K DK/$9K FD)
Especially on DraftKings, where he's incredibly cheap, Pepiot is a great piece to build around for this home matchup with the Rangers. The weather in Tampa has already been wild this week, so check the forecast before the game starts. Pepiot will be a strong play after back-to-back dominant starts against the Blue Jays and Astros as long as he gets a full workload. He earned over 20 DraftKings points and over 33 FanDuel points in each of those two outings.
Overall, he is 3-5 in 12 starts with a 3.21 ERA, 4.23 FIP, and a 7.2 K/9, a sharp dropoff from last year, when he had a 9.8 K/9. While the strikeouts still haven't been quite as regular, he has thrown 13 2/3 scoreless innings in his last two starts, giving up just five hits and two walks while striking out a total of seven.
The Rangers have the third-lowest wRC+ and second-lowest wOBA in the majors, and they have the lowest wOBA in the league over the last two weeks while scoring only 3.2 runs per game with a .092 ISO and .192 team batting average. Pepiot is in a great spot to continue his resurgence at home against Texas.
Others To Consider (Cash/GPP):
- Matthew Liberatore, STL vs. KC ($8K DK only)
- Slade Cecconi, CLE at NYY ($7.3K DK/$7.5K FD)
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DraftKings, FanDuel Infielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Brandon Lowe, 2B - TB vs. Jack Leiter ($4.9K DK/$2.8K FD)
Lowe is a great bargain on FanDuel and a good play in either format as he comes into Thursday night's matchup swinging a hot stick. He has 12 homers in his 56 games this year and seems well on his way to a third straight season with 20+ homers. He homered on Wednesday night, giving him five long balls in his last 12 games.
Brandon Lowe goes to dead center for his 12th homer of the year!
He leads all 2nd baseman in home runs and RBI pic.twitter.com/41u9kcOdPW
— Just Baseball (@JustBB_Media) June 4, 2025
He has hit safely in 15 of his last 16 contests, going 21-for-61 (.344) with five doubles, five homers, a .455 wOBA, and a 48.9% hard-hit rate. Lowe has hit eight of his 12 homers at home and 10 of them against right-handed pitchers like Leiter. Leiter's splits also favor Lowe and the Rays' other lefties since he has allowed three homers to left-handed hitters, who have a .281 wOBA against him this season.
Jeremy Pena, SS - HOU at Mitch Keller ($4.4K DK/$3.1K FD)
Pena has also been playing very well and makes a sneaky-strong mid-range play, especially while he's hitting leadoff for the Astros. The 27-year-old has a 10-game hitting streak coming into Thursday's favorable matchup with Mitch Keller, and during that streak, he has six multi-hit games, three home runs, four stolen bases, two doubles, and an average of 12.3 DraftKings points per contest.
Jose Tena, 3B - WAS vs. Drew Pomeranz ($2.9K DK/$2.4K FD)
As a bargain option at the hot corner, Tena brings good potential to what looks to be the best offensive showcase of the night. He didn't play on Wednesday when the Cubs started a lefty. Still, he'll likely be back in the lineup Thursday since the lefty Pomeranz is just an opener in front of bulk reliever Colin Rea, who is a righty and should be a favorable matchup for the Nats the rest of the night.
Tena has played well on his side of the platoon at third base lately, going 13-for-41 (.317) with six doubles and a triple in his last 12 games. He also has a good plate approach and has drawn five walks in his last five games. He doesn't produce many home runs or stolen bases, but he can be a consistent contributor and can chip in some solid production at a cheap price if the Nats can get to Rea and stack up some runs Thursday night.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP):
- Bobby Witt Jr., SS, KC ($5.5 DK only)
- Nico Hoerner, (2B on DK) (2B/SS on FD), CHC ($4.2K DK/$2.9K FD)
- Ben Rice, 1B, NYY ($4.8K DK/$3.4K FD)
- Christian Walker, 1B, HOU ($3.7K DK/$2.8K FD)
DraftKings, FanDuel Outfielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
James Wood, OF - WAS vs. Drew Pomeranz ($5.7K DK/$3.9K FD)
While Wood will likely face Pomeranz in his first at-bat, he should get a chance against Rea in the matchup we're after by playing the young slugging lefty. Wood is hitting well on both sides of the splits this year with a .283 batting average, .402 wOBA, .278 ISO, and a 57.9% hard-hit rate. That hard-hit rate is the fifth-highest in the majors, and his bat speed, xSLG, and average exit velocity are all in the top five percent of qualified hitters.
Wood has five of his 16 homers this year in his last 16 games while hitting .328 with a .449 wOBA and 23.1% barrel rate. Since Rea has struggled against lefties (more below), Wood is a great pay-up bat to build around in the outfield.
Josh Lowe, OF - TB vs. Jack Leiter ($5.1K DK/$3.3K FD)
One way to avoid getting thrown off by B. Lowe and J. Lowe in the Rays lineup is to use both of them for fantasy in this matchup. Josh Lowe has moved into the leadoff spot against righties like Leiter and has been very productive since returning from an early-season oblique issue. This Lowe brings a little higher speed while Brandon has a little more power potential.
J. Lowe stole his third base of the season on Wednesday, and all have come in his last eight games, while he has gone 11-for-31 (.355) with a. home run and a double. He has multiple ways that he can contribute and can be part of a solid Rays-centered build on this slate.
Jacob Melton, OF - HOU at Mitch Keller ($2.2K DK/$2K FD)
Melton is a great salary cap stretcher this Thursday. He was ranked as the No. 2 prospect in the Astros system and got off to a good start to the season at Triple-A for the Sugar Land Space Cowboys.
Jacob Melton gets the call!
Melton has turned it around to start 2025 after a down year last season. He is exhibiting phenomenal batted ball metrics and is making a lot more contact than usual. The eye is sharp and the tools are intriguing
Congratulations! https://t.co/8LcBn14mf0 pic.twitter.com/oflNsvUhBW
— Thomas Nestico (@TJStats) June 1, 2025
He's only gone 1-for-8 in his first three games and went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts on Wednesday, but I expect him to bounce back, and this spot against Keller should be a matchup where his excellent batted ball metrics give him a chance to shine.
Others To Consider (CASH/GPP):
- Aaron Judge, OF - NYY ($6.5K DK/$5K FD)
- Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF - CHC ($6K DK/$4.2K FD)
- Ian Happ, OF - CHC ($4.3K DK/$3.2K FD)
- Jac Caglianone, 1B/OF - KC ($3.5K DK only)
DraftKings, FanDuel MLB DFS Stacks
1. Washington Nationals vs. Drew Pomeranz
I almost feel bad putting "Uncle Drew" in the headline for this stack since he's been so good as an opener. The matchup we are targeting is against Rea, who is expected to work multiple innings in relief. Rea has allowed 12 runs on 17 hits and five walks in only 10 2/3 innings over his last two games. Lefties are hitting .324 against him this season with a .387 wOBA.
Favorite Combo: Wood, Luis Garcia, Nathaniel Lowe, Robert Hassell III, Tena
2. Houston Astros vs. Mitch Keller
Keller has turned in five straight quality starts, but he's giving up a lot of contact and plenty of hits. He has avoided barrels well this season, but has a 41.5% hard-hit rate against him on the year and a 43.8% hard-hit rate in his last five starts. He has been able to work around trouble, but seems ready for some regression Thursday against the Astros, who are surprisingly affordable as a group.
Favorite Combo: Pena, Isaac Paredes, Walker, Melton
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