Saturday, April 16, brings an intriguing six-game main slate on Yahoo, DraftKings and FanDuel. Let’s get into the top MLB DFS picks for pitchers and stacks for Yahoo, DraftKings and FanDuel daily fantasy baseball lineups. As always, you can head over to the Awesemo MLB DFS & Fantasy Baseball home page for all the fantasy baseball content you need for any given slate.
MLB DFS Picks Today: Spotlight Pitchers and Top Stacks | Saturday, April 16
Yahoo Stack of the Day: New York Yankees at RHP Tyler Wells — 5.3 implied runs
Aside from scattered showers in the vicinity of the game, this is a perfect opportunity to go back to the Yankees. On Friday, the Orioles slipped by New York 2-1 in an eleven-inning marathon. This offense is far too powerful to be held in check for long so do not despair. Tonight Tyler Wells will be taking the bump for Baltimore and he saw his development delayed by Tommy John surgery which caused him to miss 2019 and then the pandemic curtailed the minor league action in 2020. The 6’8″ 27-year-old still has a solid fastball, though he will need more than that in his bag of tricks to survive a meeting with New York. Wells was roughed up on Sunday lasting just 1.2 innings in Tampa Bay allowing four earned runs with one home run, two walks and a pair of punch-outs.
Though the Yankees projected lineup is loaded with strikeouts, they also have an abundance of power. Over the last two seasons, Aaron Judge (0.238), Anthony Rizzo (0.222), Giancarlo Stanton (0.260) and Joey Gallo (0.262) all have .220-plus ISOs against right-handed hurlers. That is the core four to target with Josh Donaldson, D.J. LeMahieu and Aaron Hicks being on the short list to complete full-stacks.
Late Slate: Cincinnati Reds at LHP Julio Urias — 3.5 implied runs
On the six-game main slate clearly the Coors Field Extravaganza and the Los Angeles Dodgers will be players to target. In turn on the two-game late slate the Dodgers and Astros will be the popular team to target. So in tournaments, we are going to be looking for a leverage opportunity which means targeting either veteran Justin Verlander or youngster Julio Urias. Cincinnati projects to have the better power hitters in the lineup so it is fine to roll the dice against the phenom.
In his debut, Urias struggled in Coors Field allowing six runs in two innings against the Rockies. While only three of the runs were earned, it’s a little concerning that Urias’ fastball was 4.1 mph slower on average than last season when he hovered around the 96 to 97 mph range. While it is still very early in the season and spring training was compressed due to the labor lockout, this could provide a unique path to success – with some luck.
Now that Nick Castellanos, Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez are no longer in Cincinnati, a couple of part-time players are now seeing prominent roles in the offense. Aristides Aquino has massive power, though he also strikes out in nearly one-third of his plate appearances. Tyler Stephenson and Kyle Farmer also have light-tower power and are live for home runs in this matchup.
Spotlight Pitchers
Top MLB DFS Picks Target: RHP Justin Verlander at Seattle Mariners — 3.5 implied runs
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $49 | FanDuel $10,500 | DraftKings $9,700
Since the end of the 2019 season, Justin Verlander has made two starts. One in 2020 where he injured his elbow and then his return from injury last Saturday. One week ago he held the Angels in check allowing one run with seven strikeouts across five innings. Verlander was able to finish with 80 pitches and tonight he likely will be able to go closer to 90 pitches. If Verlander is able to navigate Mitch Haniger and Jesse Winker, he should be in line for a solid performance.
Secondary MLB DFS Picks Target: RHP Jameson Taillon at Baltimore Orioles — 3.9 implied runs
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $40 | FanDuel $8,600 | DraftKings $7,000
It looks like Jameson Taillon is an easy choice on DraftKings as the second pitcher to be paired with Verlander or even Urias. Taillon has a 23.4% strikeout rate across the last 600 batters he has faced from both-sides of the plate. The Batters of Birdland are not an overly imposing offense after the top half of their order and Saturday’s projected lineup has a 25.9% strikeout rate against right-handed pitching over the last two seasons.
Final MLB DFS Thoughts + Weather Notes for the Saturday, April 16 Fantasy Baseball Slate
Tonight we will want to keep an eye on the weather in Baltimore which has scattered showers nearby. It will be cold and likely drizzling in Seattle, however, keep in mind that T-Mobile Park has a retractable roof that covers the field, but it is like a carport so the cool temperatures will still impact the game.
