Early DraftKings MLB Picks July 27: Who Should You Pair With Scherzer?

PHOENIX, AZ – JULY 26: J.D. Martinez #28 of the Arizona Diamondbacks hits a two-run homer during the fourth inning of the MLB game against the Atlanta Braves at Chase Field on July 26, 2017 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Early MLB Picks For July 27

We only have three games today, but five of the six pitchers are worth using. That should help create separation across the lineups. Who are the best bets? Let’s check out some stats!

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The money line yesterday afternoon was all the way up to 137.9 thanks to the Diamondbacks beating up on Atlanta. My lineup missed because I failed to swap J.D. Martinez in for Judge in time.

The winning lineup was a tie at 204.9 DraftKings points. They used Chris Sale and Jeff Samardzija instead of Trevor Williams. They both employed a Red Sox/Diamondbacks hybrid stack to take the top prize.

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 Early Lineup

CLEVELAND, OH – JULY 25: Luis Valbuena #18 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim celebrates as he rounds the bases on a two-run home run during the fifth inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field on July 25, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

P: Max Scherzer ($13,800): Scherzer is easily the best pitcher of the day, not just of the early slate. Only four current Brewers have faced him before. They are 7-33(.212) with one run and 11 strikeouts. Expect that kind of day for Scherzer here this afternoon. One run and double digit strikeouts. You are taking a big risk if you fade him today.

P: Trevor Bauer ($7,700): The Angels are hitting a solid .273 against Bauer in 66 at bats, but they have not hit a homer off of him, and have only scored four runs. Bauer’s ERA is nearly two runs better at home, and the Angels are in the bottom five in the league against right handed pitching. Some of that has to do with Trout being out for so long, but Trout hasn’t hit Bauer all that hard either. This looks like a solid spot for Bauer, and I’m not sure that Marcus Stroman is worth his jacked up price this afternoon, and it is definitely not plausible to play both him and Scherzer. I trust Bauer more than Manaea or Ramirez right now, so here we go with Bauer!

C: Jose Lobaton ($2,300): Whomever the Brewers throw out there, presumably Michael Blazek, to replace Matt Garza is easily the weakest link this afternoon. Unfortunately for them, the Nationals are full of big hitters. Unfortunately for us, most of them have big price tags. Lobaton should be given the nod in a day game after a night game. He hit Garza well in his career, but he has never faced Blazek. Few have. Blazek has pitched well in relief, but don’t expect him to stick around more than five innings today, leaving the Nationals to feast on the Brewers’ pen.

1B: Luis Valbuena ($3,800): Valbuena is really sticking it to his old team in this series. He has two homers and five RBI in the first two games. Even though he is facing my pitcher, I definitely want this hot hand in there. It’s not like I expect Bauer to pitch a shutout anyway.

2B: Daniel Murphy ($5,400): Murphy does nothing but hit. He is hitting .333 over the last ten games, which has actually lowered his average, but he has homered twice and driven in ten. I definitely want him in there against an inexperience guy like Blazek.

3B: Giovanny Urshela ($3,000): Urshela hit his first homer of the year in game one of this series before receiving a day off last night. Ramirez is a solid pitcher, but using cheap bats against him is not a bad idea. Especially when it allows you to pay up for Nationals.

SS: Troy Tulowitzki ($2,800): Tulo has fallen on hard times for much of the season, but he is 2-5 with a homer and two RBI in his career against Sean Manaea. Manaea still struggles against righties, and his ERA is worse on the road. Tulowitzki is too cheap not to take a chance on this afternoon.

OF: Bradley Zimmer ($4,400): JC Ramirez has had a pretty solid season, but Zimmer has eight RBI and two steals over the last five games. He is arguably the best hitter in the Cleveland lineup right now, yet his price doesn’t reflect it. On a day when I’m paying top dollar for Scherzer, I will gladly take it!

OF: Steve Pearce ($3,000): Bautista is still not really coming around even in the leadoff spot, so I will save some money and go with Pearce. Pearce once again is hitting lefties well, so I will put another right handed struggling Blue Jay in there in hopes of something good today.

OF: Khris Davis ($3,800): Stroman is easily the second best pitcher of the day, and the A’s hitters are priced accordingly. However, I think Davis is a bit too low considering that he is 2-3 with a homer and three RBI against Stroman in his career. Davis could be a nice value at this price point.

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!