DraftKings Early MLB picks for June 22

Jun 5, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Jon Gray (55) pitches against the San Diego Padres during the first inning at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

DraftKings Early MLB picks for June 22

The early tournament today has 7 games, which still gives us a lot of options to choose from. Who are the best ones? Let’s check out the past stats.

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NOTE: these picks are based solely on statistics. Some players have never faced their opponents, or have very little experience against them. I am not saying that none of those are good picks. The highest scorer of the day could be someone with no experience against his opponent. This is based on statistical analysis only. If you have a gut feeling, then by all means, follow that. This is not an exact science. The best lineups usually have a mix of proven stats and hot players.

Rookie Daniel Mengden has sparkled in his first two starts. He has given up only three runs on 10 hits in 12 innings with striking out 12. Now he has a Brewers team coming to town that is in the bottom ten in nearly every offensive category. He looks like a strong play this afternoon.

Jon Gray has never faced the Yankees, and it looks like he is finally starting to settle into the bigs. He has given up only ten runs in his last five starts after giving up 11 in the two before that. He has also racked up 33 strikeouts in that span. He is a solid play against the Yankees, but I doubt he gets the win against Sabathia with the way the big man is pitching.

Robbie Ray has never faced the Blue Jays. His 4.44 ERA strongly suggests that you don’t gamble on his first time.

31 year old rookie Junior Guerra has never faced Oakland, and he has put together a solid 3.81 ERA so far this year. The knock is that Mendgen has pitched very well and the A’s don’t strike out a lot. There is risk involved, but Guerra should be a solid middle option.

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Next: Pitcher Picks

Jun 16, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher CC Sabathia (52) delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

Best Bets:

Jake Arrieta ($12,800): Yes, it’s a rivalry game, but Arrieta has dominated the Cardinals so far. They are only hitting .197 against Arrieta in 147 at bats with one homer and nine RBI. The 40 strikeouts is not an elite total, but if no one is getting on base, they wont score runs either. That said, Arrieta struggled (for him) against the Cardinals on May 25th. He had his worst start of the year, giving up four runs in five innings while tallying only four strikeouts. The good news? The guy that did most of the damage, Randal Grichuk, is in Louisville, not St. Louis.

Noah Syndergaard ($13,000): Thor was brilliant against the Royals on Opening Night, throwing six scoreless innings. He gave up only three hits and a walk to go with his nine strikeouts. He was also the only Met to beat the Royals during the World Series last year. He allowed three runs on in six innings in that one, but still struck out six. He has a proven track record against the Champs.

Honorable Mention:

CC Sabathia ($8,500): Don’t look now, but CC has trimmed his ERA down to 2.20. The Rockies are also hitting just .172 against him in 64 at bats with just one homer and 19 strikeouts. They have eight RBI, and most of the damage is against Ryan Raburn and Mark Reynolds, but this game is at Yankee Stadium, and CC is hot right now. He has given up just four runs since May 1st. FOUR.

J.A. Happ ($8,400): Happ has a limited history against Arizona from his time in the National League. They are only hitting .216 against him in 51 at bats with two homers and three RBI (all by the same person) and an impressive 16 strikeouts. He has a high-powered offense behind him, which makes him look like a strong play again today.

Lance McCullers ($8,200): His matchup with Shoemaker is going to scare a lot of people off, but the Angels are only hitting .220 against McCullers in 50 at bats with two homers, four runs, but only nine strikeouts. That said, the Angels are still having problems scoring runs lately. McCullers should be a solid option.

Dark Horse:

Danny Duffy ($7,400): Duffy has never started against the Mets, but he has piled up some solid stats against them in his relief appearances. The Mets are hitting only .192 off of Duffy in 27 appearances with only a Michael Conforto post-season homer to show for it and nine strikeouts. He has his hands full against Syndergaard, but he could put up numbers well above his price range even if he doesn’t earn the win.

Next: Who Are The Best Stacks?

Jun 21, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo (44) hits a sac fly during the first inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports

You have heard our FanDuel experts Matt Rogers and Brian Tulloch talk about “stacking” pieces of a lineup against certain pitchers. Here are the stacks that could work well on DraftKings today, based on past statistics.

Anthony Rizzo ($5,400) is 11-25(.440) with a walk, two homers, and four RBI against Michael Wacha. Kris Bryant ($5,100) is 5-13(.385) with a walk, a double, a triple, a homer, and four RBI against Wacha. Luckily for Wacha, Jorge Soler is on the disabled list. Soler is 3-6 with two homers and four RBI against Wacha.

The Marlins have hit Matt Wisler well so far. Derek Dietrich ($3,600) is 1-2 with a walk and a solo homer against Wisler. Martin Prado ($3,800) is 1-2 with three RBI. Christian Yelich ($4,500) is already 3-4 with a double and a RBI off Wisler.

Next: More Notes For 6-22

Jun 21, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Arizona Diamondbacks left fielder Rickie Weeks (5) reacts after striking out during the ninth inning in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. The Arizona Diamondbacks won 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports

Colby Rasmus ($3,300) is 4-10 with a walk, a homer, and two RBI against Matt Shoemaker. Jose Altuve ($4,400) is 5-12(.417) with a double and a solo homer against Shoemaker.

Matt Adams ($3,000) is one of the few that can claim to hit Jake Arrieta well. Adams is 6-18 with two walks, two doubles, and four RBI against the Cubs ace. Here is an interesting stat: Matt Carpenter has five walks against Arrieta, but no hits in 16 at bats.

Rickie Weeks ($3,000) is 8-19(.421) with two walks, three doubles, two homers, and three RBI against J.A. Happ.

Mike Trout‘s ($4,900) only hit off of Lance McCullers in seven at bats is a two run homer. Albert Pujols ($3,200) is 4-11 with a walk, a double, and a solo homer against McCullers.

Adonis Garcia ($3,800) is 2-3 with a walk, a double, a homer, and three RBI against Adam Conley. If he is in the Braves lineup, he looks like a strong play.

Be sure to check out the FanDuel picks from out experts in that area! Brian Tulloch provides the picks, while Matt Rogers tells you where to save in his FanDuel Economics articles. Don’t play an FanDuel without them!

Next: DFS Strategy - Take Your Game to the Next Level

Good luck out there, and check out our picks for FanDuel baseball!