Sunday, Aug. 1, has some rain creeping back into the East Coast forecasts. 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, Sunday, Aug. 1
Yahoo Stack of the Day: New York Mets vs. RHP Vladimir Gutierrez — 5.2 implied runs
Vladimir Gutierrez will be on the mound for the Reds this afternoon, and he can be targeted for his lack of strikeouts and propensity to allow power. In his last 16.1 innings, he had only six strikeouts and allowed four home runs. While the Cincinnati bullpen is adequate, they used two of their lefties yesterday and are likely to bring a righty into the game once Gutierrez hits the showers.
Brandon Nimmo ($16) is expected to be back after dealing with a tight hamstring, and if he is leading off, this is a nice matchup for him. Jeff McNeil ($15) and Dominic Smith ($15) are solid options, and their lack of flashy names generally keeps the masses at bay. Pete Alonso ($22) and recently acquired Javier Baez ($18) are the primary focus of any full stack, and they are the best bets for home runs. Finally, Michael Conforto ($10) and Jonathan Villar ($8) can help average down the cost of any Mets stack.
There is the potential for rain, so if this game looks worrisome closer to first pitch, then pivot to the Blue Jays.
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Seattle Mariners at RHP Mike Foltynewicz — 5.0 implied runs
July was not kind to Mike Foltynewicz, who pitched 19 innings across four starts while allowing a dozen home runs. Foltynewicz leads this category with 31, and the next closest has 25. Making matters worse is his lack of strikeouts, with just 6.75 per nine innings.
The Seattle offense really picked up in July, going from the bottom third of the league to nearly average. The addition of Abraham Toro has given them a spark, and he has four home runs in his last six games. Mitch Haniger and Kyle Seager continue to hold things together from each side of the plate. Ty France has mediocre power, but he puts most ball in play. In the unlikely event any of the aforementioned players get a day off, look to J.P. Crawford, Jarred Kelenic and Tom Murphy depending on positional needs and their spot in the batting order to round out a full stack.
Late Slate
Los Angeles Dodgers at LHP Caleb Smith — 5.9 implied runs
This has been a lost season for Caleb Smith, as he has bounced between the rotation and the bullpen with mercurial results. In July he was hammered for eight home runs, nine walks and 21 earned runs across 19.2 innings in four starts. The lone bright spot is an elite 10.2 strikeouts per nine innings, but that was not nearly enough to save him from himself.
Mookie Betts is slated to return from the injured list, which makes an already formidable lineup even tougher. The Dodgers are still awaiting the debut of Trea Turner, who is in the health and safety protocol. Look to the righties in the lineup with Chris Taylor, Justin Turner and A.J. Pollock. If Albert Pujols draws the start, he is a fine option as well at a near minimum salary across the DFS sites. Cody Bellinger, Corey Seager and Max Muncy are all adequate options in lefty/lefty matchups, though not all three are likely to be in the lineup. Finally, whoever is behind the dish between Will Smith and Austin Barnes deserves a look on sites that require a catcher.
Spotlight Pitchers
Top Target: RHP Jose Berrios vs. Kansas City Royals — 3.7 implied runs
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $43 | FanDuel $9,000 | DraftKings $8,600
Sunday marks the Blue Jays debut for Jose Berrios, who was acquired from the Twins at the trade deadline. While the Royals are not a pushover, the back half of their lineup is not particularly daunting by any stretch of the imagination. Kansas City on the whole does not strike out a lot against righties (21.6% rate), but they are a bottom-five team with regards to power and are scoring 10% less efficiently than league average. While it is folly to predict a victory for a starting pitcher, Toronto is a 5-2 favorite to garner the win today in the Rogers Centre.
Secondary Target: Kyle Gibson at Pittsburgh Pirates — 3.9 implied runs
- DFS Salary: Yahoo N/A | FanDuel $9,000 | DraftKings $6,900
Clearly the Phillies getting Kyle Gibson and Ian Kennedy from the Rangers has slipped through the cracks of the various DFS salary algorithms. Yahoo does not have Gibson in their player pool today, and DraftKings has him at $6,900. This season Gibson has a 2.87 ERA, 1.18 WHIP with just nine home runs allowed in 113 innings. Even on FanDuel the $9,000 salary leaves room for fantasy upside in this matchup against a dilapidated Pirates squad.
Wild Card: RHP Reynaldo Lopez vs. Cleveland Indians — 3.4 implied runs
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $26 | FanDuel $5,500 | DraftKings $4,000
While it has not officially been announced, Reynaldo Lopez is slated to start for the White Sox this afternoon. He has been working out of the bullpen since being called up from Triple-A after the All-Star break, but he should be stretched out enough to go around 50 to 60 pitches. This makes him an intriguing option on DraftKings where he could flirt with double-digit fantasy points. Lopez made 10 starts for the Charlotte Knights, with pitch totals of 81, 92 and 92 in his last three appearances. The main factor capping his workload is that he threw 42 pitches against the Royals on Thursday.
Final Thoughts for the Sunday, Aug. 1 MLB DFS Slate
Keep an eye on the East Coast weather, with potential precipitation in Atlanta, New York, Pittsburgh and Washington. This should be a fun tournament slate with several questionable pitchers going against some bare offenses after the flurry of trades made on Thursday and Friday.
