MLB DFS Picks: Sunday, August 24th has a robust eleven games on the “main slate” for Yahoo, DraftKings, FanDuel and FantasyDraft. Before you lock in your fantasy baseball lineups and MLB DFS baseball picks, make sure to check out check out Awesemo’s DFS baseball MLB rankings and projections. Not a member? Sign up HERE and use Promo Code: MLBSTACKS for 50% off any one month subscription.
For today’s Spotlight Hitters and Stacks article click here
I wanted to put a different spin on Spotlight Pitchers, so I’m giving everyone a peek behind the curtain on how I look at them. Below you’ll find three tables, one each for DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo, with the pitcher pool for today’s slate. In the table, you’ll find the pitcher’s name, salary, my projection and my percentage likelihood that they hit a particular target score.
This is the information that helps me make my decisions for which pitchers to roster. Using my projected stat line for a pitcher, I can estimate their chances of scoring 45+ FD points or 30+ DK points. These targets ignore the points acquired for getting the win, as I use the Vegas odds to set those scores for my pitchers.
Since I am a strict MME player in baseball, these are the thresholds I’ve determined I want on a day-to-day basis to try and win a tournament. Because of the difference in roster construction between the sites, I end up with a concentrated pool on FanDuel and a more spread out pool on DraftKings.
FanDuel MLB
[table id=1177 /]
DraftKings MLB
[table id=1178 /]
Yahoo MLB
[table id=1201 /]
Aaron Nola
With five relatively similar pitchers at the top of the main slate, matchup is going to carry a bit more weight than normal. Given that, Nola looks to be my favorite arm. He gets the benefit of facing the Marlins in Miami. The Marlins are tied with the Royals for the lowest implied total of the slate. They happen to be a much better strikeout matchup than the Royals, though. Between the matchup and the extra salary you save from going to Nola from Bieber, he seems like the easiest guy to prioritize.
Shane Bieber
While Bieber is clearly expensive, his matchup is much safer than the rest of the pricey crop ( other than Nola, of course). The Royals don’t strike out a ton, but they have been a below average offense in both wRC+ and ISO against righties. He is projecting to be the second most owned arm behind Nola, which means that a pivot in large-field tournaments is valid. I’ll still be loading him up, though, as he is currently my top projected starter overall.
Other Options
The cupboard is bare at the bottom. Michael Wacha is probably the best pay-down option, but the ownership is already there. You can pivot to Dario Agrazal or Zach Davies, but that’s not going to help with your blood pressure. I think that Elieser Hernandez is the guy I’m looking at if his ownership stays low. Because of the lack of options at the bottom, I’ll be looking to be different when paying down. I have little confidence in the pitchers at the bottom, so that makes for an easy place to be different.
