MLB DFS action on Sunday, April 4, features 12 games across three slates with giant contests on Yahoo, DraftKings and FanDuel. Before locking in lineups, make sure to check out Awesemo’s daily fantasy baseball top stacks, picks, rankings and projections. Let’s dig into some MLB DFS and daily fantasy baseball stacks including the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros.
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MLB DFS Picks: Spotlight Hitters and Stacks, Sunday, April 4th
Yahoo Stack of the Day: Boston Red Sox vs. LHP Bruce Zimmerman — 5.5 implied runs
Though these are not quite the mighty Red Sox of recent seasons, Boston is going to be a team to target when facing southpaws. Bruce Zimmermann is one of the better Baltimore prospects, though given the state of their pitching staff, that is not much of an endorsement. Zimmermann is in his age-26 season, having spent a couple years with Atlanta before coming to the Orioles. While he displayed good strikeout stuff, it has fallen off as he ascended the farm system. Last year he made his debut during the abbreviated season, pitching seven innings. Most projection systems have him with a K/9 between 7.1 and 7.4, a shaky BB/9 between 3.7 and 4.1, and a HR/9 between 1.6 and 1.9. These rates do not portend positive performance moving forward.
Two of Boston’s notable offseason acquisitions have had sustained success against lefties. Enrique Hernandez is going to be leading off today, and Hunter Renfroe will be batting sixth. Both have reasonably salaries on Yahoo, which will allow for desired pitching options to be included in lineups.
J.D. Martinez and Xander Bogaerts are going to be in the heart of the order, and they are the last of the Red Sox mainstays from their last successful era. Christian Vazquez is a boom-or-bust option, but he is helpful on sites that require rostering a backstop.
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Main Slate
Chicago Cubs vs. RHP Mitch Keller — 5.0 implied runs
Mitch Keller got his first cup of coffee in 2019 after working his way through six minor league seasons. In his debut season he was solid with a 12.2 K/9 rate, but he was also very unlucky with a 7.13 ERA against a 3.47 xFIP through 48.0 innings. Last year was a different story, as he saw his K/9 cut nearly in half to 6.7. This time luck was on his side, with a 2.91 ERA against a 6.57 xFIP. The truth lies somewhere in the middle.
There is no wind to worry about in Chicago today, though it will be on the chilly side with temperatures in the upper-50s at first pitch. The Cubs have replaced Kyle Schwarber with Joc Pederson, who should enjoy his new ballpark. Ian Happ is a strong play leading off as the switch-hitter, and he will always have the platoon advantage even if a lefty comes in for Keller. Willson Contreras, Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant and Javier Baez have light-tower power, which bodes well against Keller, who is more of a fly-ball pitcher. The Cubs make for a strong full stack on Sunday’s main slate.
Afternoon Slate
Houston Astros at LHP Sean Manaea — 4.3 implied runs
It is going to be a cool day in Oakland with game-time temperatures in the mid- to upper-50s. The Astros are always live against lefties, and that is no exception today. Sean Manaea has 547.2 innings under his belt across five seasons in The Show, and he has mediocre strikeout stuff. That said, he does tend to limit the longball with a career 1.13 HR/9, and he has a lower 2.28 BB/9 rate that helps keep the bases empty for the inevitable mistake. Reports out of spring training indicate his velocity is up, though his fastball is still going to be in the low-90s.
Alex Bregman received yesterday off, as he has been recovering from a hamstring injury. Hopefully he will be in the lineup today even with the cooler temperatures. If he is taking the field, then he should definitely be in lineups. Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker tend to be overlooked as DFS gamers shy away from lefty/lefty matchups. Do not fall for this error in judgement — both thrive against same-handed pitching. Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa round things out, and even Yuli Gurriel is playable, as he has really improved against lefties over the last two seasons. The Houston batsmen are not cheap, which should help keep their popularity in check Sunday.
Final Thoughts for the Sunday, April 4th MLB DFS Slate
Now four days into the season, pitching talent is getting more uneven. Tomorrow it is likely couple teams will use relievers as openers, though today only Texas is going that route. Keep in mind that salaries and scoring formats differ across the various fantasy sites, and a home run play on Yahoo may be a below-average MLB DFS pick on DraftKings or FanDuel.
