Tuesday, Aug. 17, brings a loaded slate filled with excellent hitting matchups and a game at Coors Field. Let’s get into the top MLB DFS picks for pitchers and stacks for Yahoo, DraftKings and FanDuel daily fantasy baseball lineups.
MLB DFS Picks: Spotlight Pitchers and Top Stacks, Tuesday, Aug. 17
Yahoo Stack of the Day: Toronto Blue Jays at RHP Erick Fedde — 5.7 implied runs
In this series the Blue Jays will be without the designated hitter, as they are guests of the Nationals. However, they are still a formidable lineup, and that likely will be accentuated by Erick Fedde. Fedde has been providing fireworks to the tune of a 7.00 ERA, 1.722 WHIP and six home runs in his eight outings since July 4.
George Springer ($27) left Saturday’s game after running into the wall while trying to make a catch. If he is out of the lineup once again, there will be an opportunity for one of the extra outfielders to make the lineup. While Teoscar Hernandez ($25) is getting a lot of love from the Yahoo salary algorithm, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. ($14), Corey Dickerson ($12) and Randal Grichuk ($12) all are discounted by comparison.
The primary players to target are Vladimir Guerrero Jr. ($19), Marcus Semien ($21) and Bo Bichette ($17). Semien is particularly interesting, as a lot of gamers will likely pivot to Jose Altuve ($16) for a significant savings in a matchup against rookie southpaw Daniel Lynch. Adam Frazier ($13) has a tough matchup against German Marquez, but he too should attract a lot of attention playing in Coors Field. These alternatives will almost assuredly allow for relatively unique Toronto stacks just by sticking with Semien at a premium.
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Houston Astros at LHP Daniel Lynch — 5.6 implied runs
Last night the Astros disappointed their DFS backers despite hitting three home runs and plating six. This was due to a home run coming from the backup catcher and the bottom third of the order accounting for most of the production. Tonight, however, the pitching matchup plays to their favor. Rookie southpaw Daniel Lynch has talent, but his control issues are resulting in walks, inconsistent strikeouts and power surrendered. The Astros are not a lineup to let many mistake pitches go, and they have a 120 wRC+ against left-handed pitcher.
Yordan Alvarez is expected to be in the lineup tonight after exiting in the late innings on Monday with an upset stomach. Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa and Yuli Gurriel make up the rest of the core four. For differentiation, look to the bottom of the order with Chas McCormick, Jake Meyers, Aledmys Diaz and Martin Maldonado, who should all see decent pitches.
Late Slate
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. LHP Wil Crowe — 5.7 implied runs
Speaking of disappointments, the Dodgers definitely did not even remotely live up to fantasy expectations last night in their 2-1 victory against Pittsburgh. But like the Astros, they get another favorable matchup, this time with Wil Crowe. Aside from a decent strikeout rate and consistently taking the ball every five days, he is an innings eater at best. Walks are an issue, as he is suffering one every other inning, which is compounded by his two home runs per nine innings.
There is a decent chance that Billy McKinney will be at the back of the order with a righty on the mound, and he provides much-needed salary relief at the near minimum on every DFS site. It would also not be a surprise to see Justin Turner with a day off, which would provide a boost for someone in a more prominent position in the order.
Trea Turner, Max Muncy and Corey Seager are the trio to target tonight, and with their salaries being comparable to those in Denver, they are unlikely to gain a lot of traction on the main slate. On the three-game late slate they will be one of the top teams, but that is where McKinney and whoever is playing catcher can provide some differentiation options. Chris Taylor and Cody Bellinger are also in play, though they tend to have the most movement in the batting order depending on Dave Roberts’ whims and the opposing pitcher.
Spotlight Pitchers
Top MLB DFS Picks Target: RHP Corbin Burnes at St. Louis Cardinals — 4.0 implied runs
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $55 | FanDuel $11,500 | DraftKings $10,200
This is an apex salary for Corbin Burnes, though it has been well earned by his performance this season. Burnes is in the top three with his 2.23 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 172 strikeouts. While the Cardinals do not strike out a lot against right-handed pitchers (22%), they are in the bottom third of the league from a power perspective and are creating runs 10% less efficiently than the baseline. This will be the third time that Burnes has faced the Cardinals, though the last meeting was in early May.
Secondary MLB DFS Picks Target: RHP Alek Manoah at Washington Nationals — 3.9 implied runs
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $45 | FanDuel $9,900 | DraftKings $8,600
This is a fair salary across the board for rookie Alek Manoah as he takes on the Nationals in Washington. The only concern is a slight weather risk, which should be monitored up to first pitch. For pivots, Logan Webb taking on the Mets in San Francisco would be the easiest swap at a similar salary.
The Nationals bats are very inconsistent outside of Juan Soto and Josh Bell. Literally everyone else in the lineup, other than the rare Ryan Zimmerman appearance, is an inexperienced or below-replacement-level veteran. Something in the six-inning range with six strikeouts is a solid expectation for Manoah. There is some upside with strikeouts, and the Blue Jays are 2-to-1 road favorites to garner the win.
Wild Card MLB DFS Picks Target: RHP Huascar Ynoa at Miami Marlins — 5.0 implied runs
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $44 | FanDuel $8,400 | DraftKings $7,300
It has been three months since Huascar Ynoa fractured his right hand while punching a bench in the dugout. Prior to this tantrum, he had put together a nice run of 50 strikeouts, a 3.02 ERA and 1.052 WHIP in 44.2 innings. In his three rehabilitation starts in the minors he saw an increasing pitch count, culminating in 83 last Wednesday, with seven strikeouts among his 17 batters faced.
There is no real need to go with Ynoa on Yahoo or FanDuel, but he is quite intriguing on DraftKings as a second pitcher. Though he is unlikely to go beyond five innings, the matchup against the Marlins is a favorable one.
Final Thoughts for the Tuesday, Aug. 17 MLB DFS Picks Slate
The weather does not seem to be a problem today, though mid-week showers are expected in several cities across the country. Tournaments should be particularly exciting given the potential for fireworks in Coors Field and seven teams with five-plus implied run totals.
