MLB DFS Picks: Stack Slants for DraftKings + FanDuel

A first glance at the MLB DFS stacks tool today is revealing some clear-cut selections up at the top of the rankings. With the sites pricing things with such dramatic differences, we’re seeing some significant separation on the top teams on the board today between DraftKings and FanDuel. One common thing: You guys are all ignoring the Yankees in a great spot, and I can’t figure out why. We won’t hit the Yankees here, but I wrote them up in Quick Hits last night, and they’re the second-ranked team on both sites tonight, while drawing less than a third of the ownership that they should be. This is a spot to take advantage of tonight if things don’t change, as are the two teams below.

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Stack Slants

Los Angeles Dodgers – Dodgers – 1-2-4-6-7 – Betts – Seager – Bellinger – Pollock – Pederson (if you can make salary work)

The Dodgers are trending slightly under-owned as the top MLB DFS team on FanDuel, and they’re drawing only about half the appropriate ownership on DraftKings where their salaries make them much harder to get to. Regardless, I think we can definitely exploit the matchup against this version of Johnny Cueto. The veteran starter hasn’t actually been terrible in 2020. His strikeouts are up a tick in the low 20% range and he’s limited quality contact well so far, but he’s now a soft tosser with no slider who relies on changing speed and getting by on his 91-mph heat. This Dodgers lineup should jump all over him.

The Dodgers have the dual threat of former MVPs in their lineup in Cody Bellinger and Mookie Betts. At .300/.369/.664 with a .364 ISO and a WRC+ 75% above league average, Betts is more than earning that massive extension he signed. His 11 home runs, 25 runs scored, 24 RBIs and five stolen bases are the kind of counting stats that win GPPs. Bellinger has been cooler to start the season, putting up just a .211/.291/.447 slash with eight home runs and a WRC+ 3% below average. If that keeps people off of him I want to get to more, the 47 home runs and .305/.406/.629 slash from 2019 are more in-line with who this hitter is. Getting both in your lineup on DraftKings is difficult given their pricing. On FanDuel, just click the little plus sign next to their names and move on.

Corey Seager‘s big lefty bat should be hitting near the top of the lineup again as well. Seager has made blistering contact so far in 2020, sitting in the 97th percentile in hard hit rate and exit velocity. He’s also 99th percentile in xwOBA. This is a player we definitely want to include against a shaky right-handed starter, and FanDuel makes it easy enough. On DraftKings we’re going to have to do some complex salary gymnastics to get to all of these guys, with Seager’s $5,100 price tag. If you can make it work it’s worth doing.

Justin Turner is a quality right-handed veteran bat in a same-handed matchup that doesn’t need to be skipped over in this lineup. Turner has done nearly everything better in same-handed matchups through the course of his career and makes a great option at just $3,000 on FanDuel, his $5,000 salary on DraftKings makes him a bigger challenge and we’re going to have to make some choices on that site.

Looking for some salary savings on DraftKings we can take on Chris Taylor or Will Smith from later in the lineup in same-handed matchups. Both hitters are under $4,000 on DraftKings and should be a good way to offset some teammate salary. The catcher is more likely to be the popular choice, so zeroing in on Taylor could set you apart from a large swath of the competition.

Outfielders Joc Pederson and A.J. Pollock are two additionally important parts of this Dodgers attack. Pederson obliterates right-handed pitching to the tune of a .263 ISO and a WRC+ 30% above average. Pollock is at .275/.316/.516 with five home runs to start the year. Neither hitter will be over 2% owned on DraftKings, and both are trending around 5% on FanDuel. You know what to do.

Oakland Athletics – 9-1-2-3-4 – Murphy – Semien – Laureano – Olson – Chapman

The A’s look like they’re going under-owned on DraftKings and around level ownership on FanDuel. For an alternate second team on FanDuel, you can take a peek at the Padres, although I expect their popularity to rise and that of the A’s to fall as we get closer to lock, so I think this will all come out in the wash. The A’s are in a matchup with Kyle Gibson here, and I’ll actually own some Gibson as well. He’s by no means a bad pitcher.

With Ramon Laureano hitting second this order after serving his suspension, they’re back to the interesting dynamic order that we saw starting out the season. Laureano hits behind Marcus Semien and ahead of the two big power Matts, Matt Olson and Matt Chapman. That quartet makes a terrific stack just off the top of this lineup as a four-man, and the A’s have a number of serviceable lower-owned players that we can connect to roll the differentiation dice a bit.

DraftKings is asking a ~~king’s ransom~~ fortune for the two Matts at $5,300 each, but the rest of the team becomes immediately affordable and we can pay up for the combined 18 home runs the pair have hit so far (nine each). Everyone on this team is under $4,000 on FanDuel, which explains some of the increased popularity on that site. Semien is at just .219/.275/.352 to start the year, though he’s struggling a bit with just a .261 BABIP which could explain the surface slump. I am absolutely not worried about a hitter who has given us multiple 15-10 seasons and has cracked the 30 home run ceiling as recently as last year.

Mark Canha is an underrated hitter who has done everything well so far in 2020. In his 126 plate appearances, Canha is at .290/.413/.470 with three home runs and three stolen bases. The capable right-handed hitter should be in the middle of the lineup behind these other mashers, but offers little rest for the weary with his ability to draw a walk in addition to the power and contact tools on display. Canha is trending for under 2% ownership on DraftKings and around 5% on FanDuel.

Robbie Grossman and Stephen Piscotty are two outfield differentiation options that we’ve touched on in this space before. Neither is anyone’s favorite MLB DFS player to choose, but they’re both putting up quality seasons and rewarding people who do. Piscotty has hit five home runs so far this year and is at .264/.313/.484 with a .220 ISO. Grossman has four homers, a .276/.427/.579 slash and a .303 ISO over his 96 plate appearances. At $3,900 and $3,200, respectively, both players are in play for A’s stacks on DraftKings where they project for under 1% ownership as the two least popular players on this team.

Catcher Sean Murphy draws a fair amount of attention on DraftKings when this team is popular, but given their largely ignored status tonight, he could be a sneaky play behind the plate. We’re still waiting on Murphy’s bat to fully arrive; he’s sitting at just .222/.347/.365 on the season with two home runs and a .143 ISO. The Athletics’ third-ranked prospect should hit eventually; when he makes contact the ball travels. Murphy is currently sitting in the 94th percentile in exit velocity and 100th percentile in hard-hit rate. That’s a catcher bat that I can easily roster when he’s below 5% ownership on a catcher-mandatory site, and I’m happy to work some of him into my FanDuel lineups at just $2,200 on no ownership.

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Author

Terry McBride

Terry used to do other things, now he writes words on the internet. He hopes his more than 20 years’ experience in season-long and daily fantasy sports and his custom models for MLB, NBA, and NFL don't steer you too wrong when he writes columns and makes picks on Awesemo.com. A lifetime of experience keeping odd hours make Terry ideal to cover KBO baseball overnight until the world returns to normal. Most of those late night hours have been spent on the couch watching sports, T.V., and movies; just try to shut him up about any of the above. You can find his pop-culture ramblings and more on Sideaction.