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DraftKings Main MLB Picks For July 8, 2017

By Mike Marteny

DENVER, CO - JUNE 16: Starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija
DENVER, CO - JUNE 16: Starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija /
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DraftKings
NEW YORK, NY – JULY 07: Jesus Aguilar #24 of the Milwaukee Brewers celebrates after hitting a second inning 2-run home run against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on July 7, 2017 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Main MLB Picks For July 8

We have eight games for the main DraftKings tournament, but all of the good pitchers pitched this afternoon. Who can help us in our lineups tonight? The pickings are pretty slim, but there are a couple of gems hiding. Let’s find out where!

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The money line last night was pretty high at 141.05. I created six different lineups since I liked all of the stack options. They ranged from 207.95 down to 137.3. All of the lineups did well. One that I published did not make it, but still had a good score of 140.75.

The winning lineup was at 241 DraftKings points. He used Cole Hamels and James Paxton, and even managed to place without George Springer. Jesus Aguilar made up for that at a much lower price!

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

DraftKings
DETROIT, MI – JULY 2: Justin Verlander #35 of the Detroit Tigers heads for the dugout after being pulled during the fourth inning of a game against the Cleveland Indians at Comerica Park on July 2, 2017 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images) /

P: Jeff Samardzija ($9,400): Shark has had an up and down, mostly down, year. However, the Marlins are only hitting .200 against him in 95 at bats with two homers and seven RBI to go with 24 strikeouts. AT&T Park is a pitcher’s park, but he hasn’t been much better there either. Using Samardzija is a big risk this year, but he looks like clearly the best option of the night, which should tell you something about this slate.

P: Brandon McCarthy ($6,900): The Royals are only hitting .246 against McCarthy in 69 at bats with no homers and only five runs. The Royals are striking out a little more than normal, and this offense really isn’t the finely tuned machine that it was a couple of years ago. McCarthy is a better option than most of the pitchers priced above him. The only concern is whether he will be on  a pitch count or not.

C: Alex Avila ($3,800): Avila continues to be a strong play against right handed pitching. He is hitting .317 with all 11 of his home runs and 26 of his 29 RBI against them in 167 at bats. Mike Clevinger has pitched well lately, including allowing only one run in six innings to these same Tigers in Detroit last week. However, his ERA is nearly two runs worse at home.

1B: Miguel Cabrera ($3,600): Miggy is 2-4 with a walk, a double, a homer, and five RBI already against Mike Clevinger. I’m not sure I would put players against him on the road, but at home he has been very hittable.

2B: Rougned Odor ($4,200): Odor is 5-11 with two doubles, two homers, three runs scored and five RBI in his career against Jesse Chavez. Odor has also been on fire lately, hitting .353 with five homers and nine RBI in the last ten games. He has even stolen two bags in that time!

3B: Jose Ramirez ($5,300): I am stacking Indians against Justin Verlander. Cleveland is hitting .269 with eight homers and 41 RBI in 324 at bats. However this season, Verlander has allowed 18 runs in just 14.1 innings against Cleveland. He has surrendered five home runs and only struck out nine. I am benching him in my points league as well. He can’t be trusted against Cleveland, and he can’t be trusted on the road, where he has a 6.22 ERA in nine starts. As for Ramirez, he has been hot for nearly a month now, and is 11-25(.440) with four walks, three doubles, two homers, seven runs scored, and five RBI in his career against Verlander.

SS: Francisco Lindor ($4,100): Most Cleveland bats are still too cheap. They came up big in a stack last night, and should again. Lindor is 9-26(.346) with three walks, a double, a triple, a homer, eight runs scored, and seven RBI in his career against Verlander. I definitely like Lindor at this price.

OF: Scooter Gennett ($4,500): Arizona will be a popular stack tonight, and rightfully so. However, I think some Reds could be in play against Taijuan Walker as well. Gennett is hitting .364 with three homers and six RBI in the last ten games. A hot hitter in a hitter’s park? Sure, why not!

OF: Lonnie Chisenhall ($4,100): Chisenhall is 15-44(.341) with three walks, three doubles, a triple, three homers, seven runs scored, and an impressive 10 RBI against Justin Verlander. He leads the Indians in RBI against Verlander. Not quite the one you would expect for that, but he isn’t priced like it either. That makes Chisenhall a nice value tonight.

OF: Michael Brantley ($4,000): Brantley is 21-73(.288) with four walks, a double, a triple, six runs scored, five stolen bases, and nine RBI off of Verlander. He looks like the perfect leadoff man for tonight, at a price that is still way too low.

Next: DraftKings Main Lineup 2

DraftKings
MIAMI, FL – JUNE 22: Jake Arrieta #49 of the Chicago Cubs throws a pitch during the first inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park on June 22, 2017 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images) /

P: Jose Quintana ($8,100): Only on a slate like this would you consider using Quintana at Coors Field. His trade value has taken a massive hit this year with his 4.46 ERA. So why use him? Well, he has a respectable 3.93 road ERA, and he only gave up two runs in seven innings in his only career start at Coors Field. He will hold a platoon advantage over all the huge bats in the Rockies lineup. Every pitcher on the night has some amount of risk attached. Quintana at least has strikeout upside.

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P: Jake Arrieta ($8,400): We are already taking a huge risk with Quintana, so why not double down with Arrieta? He is much better at Wrigley than on the road, and he could use some home cooking right now. His last four starts have come on the road, but he has only allowed more than three runs in one of those, and that was against the Nationals. The Pirates aren’t a prolific offense, and Arrieta picked up 16.3 DraftKings points against them in Pittsburgh three weeks ago. He looks to be turning his season around. We will find out if he really is there yet tonight!

C: Tucker Barnhart ($2,600): He’s cheap. Sometimes that is the only good reasoning I have. That and he is playing in a hitter’s park against an inconsistent pitcher, but yeah. He’s cheap.

1B: Jose Abreu ($4,600): Jeff Hoffman has been solid this year, but he also has a 6.85 ERA at Coors Field. I don’t know how many White Sox I actually trust, but Abreu and Matt Davidson are on the short list.

2B: Robinson Cano ($4,700): Cano walked, doubled, and scored in his first game against Chris Smith. Now he gets to face Smith in Safeco Field, which is much more of a hitter’s park. I want some exposure to this game, so I will go with Cano.

3B: Jake Lamb ($5,300): 12 of Lamb’s 20 home runs have come at home. 16 have come off of right handed pitching, where he is also hitting .326 with a 1.042 OPS. Lamb is in play against any righty, especially a rookie.

SS: Corey Seager ($4,700): Seager could be a bargain here. I am not intimidated in the least by Ian Kennedy, and I haven’t wielded a wooden bat in a couple of decades. I don’t imagine Seager is either.

OF: Cody Bellinger ($4,200): Is it just me, or is Bellinger cheaper than he has been since the week of his call up? And what for? Ian Kennedy and his 4.44 ERA? Bellinger is super cheap for the amount of power that he is. He isn’t quite Aaron Judge at Yankee Stadium, but he does have 14 homers in 38 home games.

OF: David Peralta ($4,000): Peralta is always a strong play with a right handed pitcher on the mound. Maybe more so that it’s a rookie right hander. Luis Castillo is going to be a really good one, but he isn’t quite there yet. I think he struggles in his first trip to Chase Field. All Diamondback lefties and Goldschmidt are in play tonight.

OF: Jurickson Profar ($3,300): Profar’s first two games back in the majors have gone much better than his salary would suggest. Jesse Chavez isn’t a lot better than the pitcher that the Rangers teed off on last night. Profar seems to be finally reaching the promise that shot him to the top of prospect lists some three years ago. Play him with Elvis Andrus out!

Next: FanDuel MLB Picks and Pivots

Good luck out there, and check out our picks for FanDuel baseball, along with our PGA picks. We also have plenty of NFL stuff to get you ready for football!