DraftKings Main MLB Picks For May 18

The last five games are in the evening slate on DraftKings. It’s the same size as the early one, but without the favorite stacks. At least it has better pitching options! Should we stack a lesser offense, or just roll with a patchwork offense? Let’s check some stats!

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The money line last night was down to 107.6 DraftKings points. My Tiger stack lineup made it in despite Jose Iglesias and Victor Martinez going scoreless. It was Matt Shoemaker and Andrew McCutchen who carried the lineup. Neither plays for the Tigers. Go figure. The other two were derailed by spotty pitching.

We had a tie for first at 175.1 DraftKings points. They rode Jose Abreu, Mike Trout, and an unlikely gem from Jhoulys Chacin.

These picks are based mostly on statistical analysis . 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. Check out this post from Matt McGarvey for great tips about whether to use a hot player in DFS or not.

For you first time players, if you would like $10 worth of free entry tickets, use this link for the referral bonus! Then continue reading for tips on how to turn that $10 into more!

Next: DraftKings Main Lineup 1

P: Marcus Stroman ($11,300): The Braves have actually hit Stroman pretty well. The ones that have faced him anyway. However, they have no extra base hits and just one run in 24 at bats with five strikeouts. He also wont have to deal with Freddie Freeman, which makes this an even more enticing matchup. Aside from a start at Yankee Stadium and a start against Boston, Stroman has at least 20 DraftKings points in the rest of his starts.

P: Sam Gaviglio ($5,100): The White Sox are among the league’s worst when it comes to offense. And Gaviglio gets the advantage of making his first major league start in one of the friendliest parks for pitchers. He struck out four in two innings in his debut against Toronto a week ago. He did give up a run, but even at that rate, if he strikes out 12 and gives up three runs in six innings, we’ll take it!

C: Gary Sanchez ($4,800): Danny Duffy has had issues with right handed power, something the Yankees have a lot of. My Yankees stack starts with Sanchez. They have destroyed the Royals in this series, even veteran Jason Vargas, who had the lowest ERA in the majors until last night. Look out in the left field bleachers!

1B: Chris Carter ($4,000): Carter is an all or nothing guy, but he has got far from nothing in the first two games of this series. Carter has racked up 31 DraftKings points in the first two games of the series. A homer would sustain that average, and that seems like a distinct possibility. Carter’s only hit in six at bats against Duffy is a home run.

2B: Dustin Pedroia ($3,800): Pedroia is 3-9 with a RBI in his career against Sonny Gray. Gray has struggled this year, and even in a cavernous park like Oakland, the Red Sox can still knock him around. There are a lot of runs to be had in this lineup.

3B: Chase Headley ($3,500): Headley has hit left handed pitching better for his career. Duffy is no exception. Headley’s only hit in three at bats against him is a three run home run,

SS: Xander Bogaerts ($4,200): He will be hitting near the top of a potent lineup facing a struggling pitcher. That’s good enough for me!

OF: Aaron Judge ($5,100): Judge may have the most power of anyone in the Yankee lineup. If the likes of Headley, Carter, and Hicks have all hit Duffy well, it stands to reason that Judge should be able to do the same. Stack away!

OF: Andrew Benintendi ($4,300): Benintendi’s recent slump (0-21) has dropped his average to .280 and dropped his ownership off the map. However, he drove in a run and scored a run in the series against the Cardinals, so there are signs of life. He may come back to life against the A’s tonight.

OF: Aaron Hicks ($3,900): Hicks is 2-5 with a solo homer in his career against Danny Duffy. Kauffman Stadium is not a great hitter’s park, but it isn’t a bad one either. Not that is matters with this team. Almost everyone on the team can hit it out of any confines in the league!

Next: DraftKings Main Lineup 2

P: Julio Teheran ($8,800): Teheran has held the Blue Jays to a .222 average in 36 at bats, but they have hit three home runs. Teheran has done a great job of limiting the damage done, giving up only four runs on those three homers. The five strikeouts are a little low and he has a much lower chance at a win with Freeman out, but he is still one of the better options for the night.

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P: Jordan Montgomery ($8,100): The Royals offense is mostly toothless, and they were dominated by CC Sabathia earlier in the series. Montgomery hasn’t given up more than four runs in a game. The Yankees look like they are going to score far more than that.

C: Yasmani Grandal ($3,800): Grandal is a career .272 hitter at Dodgers Stadium with 33 homers in 482 at bats. Edinson Volquez has a 4.88 ERA in Dodger Stadium in six starts. This sound like a stackable opportunity to me!

1B: Mitch Moreland ($3,600): Moreland is 5-18(.278) with a walk, three homers, and five RBI in his career against Sonny Gray. Moreland has all three of the current Red Sox homers against Gray. That will likely change by the end of the night. I couldn’t fit my whole Red Sox stack into one lineup, so we have a bit of cross hybridization with the Dodgers and Yankees stacks.

2B: Chris Taylor ($3,700): Taylor can actually hit righties pretty well, something that he couldn’t do while with Seattle. This is going to lead to him sticking in the lineup. Given the history of Volquez at Dodger Stadium, I like Taylor and his spot in the lineup to give me something.

3B: Justin Turner ($3,900): Turner is 6-12 with two doubles, a homer, three runs scored, and four RBI already against Volquez. It seems safe to count on Turner for a big night tonight, so he is definitely in my Arcade mode lineup as well!

SS: Corey Seager ($4,500): Seager has not faced Edinson Volquez yet. I have a feeling that he will like what he sees.

OF: Mookie Betts ($5,300): Why Mookie? Because I can. And because he is a huge part of this offense that I think will score a lot of runs tonight. He is only 1-6 with a double and a RBI against Sonny Gray, but I have a feeling those stats will improve.

OF: Cody Bellinger ($4,400): Same thing for Bellinger as for Seager. They have never faced Volquez, but his career ERA at Dodgers Stadium is cause enough for me to stack hitters with power against him.

OF: Ben Gamel ($3,900): A underused stack tonight could be the Mariners against Dylan Covey. Covey hasn’t been all that great in his time in the majors so far. Safeco Field will help his cause some, but not enough to keep the speedy Gamel from getting on base once or twice. If you don’t trust the Dodgers or Yankees, the Mariners are a great contrarian pivot.

Next: FanDuel MLB Picks and Pivots

Good luck out there, and check out our picks for FanDuel baseball, along with our PGA and EPL picks!