Jacob deGrom Is A Must Play In The Early DraftKings Tournament July 29

NEW YORK, NY – NOVEMBER 12: The New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues skate in front of a dasher board advertising the betting website DraftKings at Madison Square Garden on November 12, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Early MLB Picks For July 29

There are only four early games today, but two of the best pitchers are going in the afternoon games. Can we concoct a lineup that includes both of them? Should we? Let’s check out some stats!

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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.

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NEW YORK, NY – JULY 28: Lucas Duda #21 of the Tampa Bay Rays bats in the first inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on July 28, 2017 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

P: Jacob deGrom ($12,900): If you are only taking one ace today, it needs to be deGrom. He has held the Mariners to a .108 average in 37 at bats with one run and 15 strikeouts. It isn’t even close today. deGrom is the closest thing to a must play as we have anywhere on this short slate.

P: Rich Hill ($12,400): Hill has allowed 20 hits in 53 at bats(.377) to the Giants, but they have only scored three runs. There is a lot of luck involved in that, but one thing remains the same: the Giants don’t really have the power to take advantage of all of those base runners. I thought about going cheaper on a pitcher here, but on a short slate, the pickings are slim. The only mildly appealing one is Petit, who has no chance at a win since he is only going 50 pitches. The rest of the hurlers are too risky or have a bad matchup or both. I will hedge my bets and pay up.

C: Rene Rivera ($2,100): I want as much exposure to Yovani Gallardo and his 5.58 ERA as I can get at a bargain price. That includes the backup catcher. Rivera wont hit high in the order, but he has a decent bat on him.

1B: Lucas Duda ($3,700): Caleb Smith was good for three innings in his first start, then things got messy. There is a good chance that happens again, and Duda will be looking to impress for his new team. I like him a lot at this price. A lot of Rays are too expensive to stack if you spend on pitching like I did, but Duda is not.

2B: Neil Walker ($3,500): Walker’s price is still down from his stint on the disabled list, and I plan to take full advantage of it today. He is priced too low against Gallardo, and should provide good production for this price range.

3B: Kaleb Cowart ($2,100): Cowart is dirt cheap, and he just keeps hitting. He struggled last year, during his callup, but this year he already has five hits in 12 at bats this time around. That isn’t counting his two hit cup of coffee back on June 25th. Cowart looks to be a mainstay for the Angels, or at least he will be so long as he keeps hitting like this.

SS: Ryan Goins ($2,500): Troy Tulowitzki left last night’s game early, which should open up more playing time for Goins and Darwin Barney in the middle infield. Yusmiero Petit has been very good out of the bullpen this year, but the Angels just plan on throwing six relievers out there in this game. This could be a good situation for Blue Jays hitters, so I’m taking some cheap exposure.

OF: Clint Frazier ($4,100): Frazier has seven RBI in his last four games, and gets to face a lefty today in Blake Snell. Snell has been solid in his career at Yankee Stadium, but he still walks a lot of batters, and the Yankees hit a lot of home runs here. Frazier promises to be in the middle of the action from the two hole this afternoon.

OF: Enrique Hernandez ($3,600): Kike continues to batter left handed pitching. He is hitting .269 with nine homers and 19 RBI in just 93 at bats against lefties. Today he draws an average one in Ty Blach, who has struggled lately. Hernandez should give a nice return for his investment today.

OF: Kole Calhoun ($3,100): Calhoun si 3-8 with a walk, a homer, three runs scored, and two RBI in his career against Francisco Liriano. Calhoun has struggled at the plate this year, but he is starting to come around lately, and he doesn’t have huge splits. He has always held his own against lefties, and Liriano is a shadow of his former self right now. I want some Angels exposure here.

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!