Early DraftKings Picks August 19: Is Ryu The Best For The Price?

BALTIMORE, MD – AUGUST 18: Manny Machado #13 of the Baltimore Orioles celebrates with Jonathan Schoop #6 after hitting the game winning grand slam in the ninth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on August 18, 2017 in Baltimore, Maryland. Baltimore won the game 9-7. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Early MLB Picks For August 19

There are only three games this afternoon. For some reason, DraftKings omitted the Jays-Cubs tilt at Wrigley because it starts two hours before the other three games, but it’s still at 1:20 eastern! Not having those two offenses limits our pool, but there are still some pretty solid options out there. Let’s see what we can come up with!

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The money line last night was still up to 120.75 despite 6% still having Max Scherzer. Me? I switched to Matt Moore and at the extra $8,000, and rode that to above the cash line. The other lineup had weak hitting and Austin Pruitt.

The winning lineup was up a ways to 223.45. He stacked Cardinals and had the huge nights from Manny Machado (3.9% owned) and Nicky Delmonico to victory.

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 25% of your first deposit as bonus DraftKings dollars, use this link for the referral bonus! Then continue reading for tips on how to turn those DraftKings dollars into more!

Next: DraftKings Early Lineup

ST. PETERSBURG, FL – AUGUST 9: Jake Odorizzi #23 of the Tampa Bay Rays pitches during the first inning of a game against the Boston Red Sox on August 9, 2017 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images) /

P: Hyun-Jin Ryu ($11,200): Ryu doesn’t have much of a history against the Tigers, but the only ones that he really has to worry about are Upton and Kinsler. With the recent subpar outing from Michael Wacha, and the struggles of Michael Fulmer, it looks like the wise move to pay up for Ryu today. His home/road splits are nearly identical, and he has only allowed four homers away from Dodger Stadium in 43 innings.

P: Jake Odorizzi ($6,300): The past stats say to use Miranda instead of Odorizzi, but I don’t buy it. Miranda is giving out homers like Halloween candy, and Odorizzi has not given up more than three runs in a game since the All Star Break. Of course, he did spend a spell on the DL, but hey. I’m trying to be positive. Odorizzi only allowed four runs (three earned) to Toronto and Boston over ten innings in his two starts since his return. He should be able to provide a solid return for this price.

C: Jesus Sucre ($2,700): Being the day game after a night game in which Wilson Ramos started, Sucre should be out there again. Sucre is one of my favorite backups lately. He is hitting .318 over his last ten games. That will give us a handful of points for a backup’s salary. Not much to complain about there!

1B: Matt Carpenter ($3,700): Carpenter is batting leadoff because he makes good contact. Chad Kuhl has been solid lately, with a 3.70 ERA in his last ten games. He doesn’t allow homers, but that isn’t really Carpenter’s game anyway. A guy who makes solid contact against a pitcher who doesn’t rack up a lot of strikeouts is always a solid play.

2B: Kolten Wong ($3,700): Wong is on a tear lately, hitting .412 in his last ten games with a homer, a steal, and ten RBI. It sounds like the late scratch last night was a little soreness, so as long as he is in the Cardinals’ lineup today, he will be in mine as well!

3B: Evan Longoria ($3,800): Ariel Miranda has allowed a staggering 30 homers this year, including eight in his last four starts. The Trop isn’t known as a power park, but we all know that Longoria can get one out of there. The Rays still struggle against lefties since a lot of their pop comes from that side, but Longoria and Souza are very strong plays against Miranda today.

SS: Corey Seager ($5,300): I touched on Fulmer’s problems earlier. Now let’s really get into them. Since his priced climbed into quintuple digits on July 20th, he has allowed 23 runs (19 earned) in just 21.2 innings pitched with only 15 strikeouts. Two of those games were against the Royals, and one was in Yankee Stadium. I don’t expect him to be as bad today, but this is the Dodgers we’re talking about. They will get their runs. Maybe not one per inning, but close.

OF: Cody Bellinger ($5,200): Comerica Park isn’t much for power, but that outfield is enormous. Bellinger hits a lot of balls really hard, and could still pile up some points blasting balls into the gaps. And of course, he still has the power to get one out if he gets into one.

OF: Andrew McCutchen ($4,600): McCutchen is 12-28(.429) with two walks, two doubles, a triple, a homer, four runs scored, and three RBI in his career against Michael Wacha. Wacha struggled against the Braves in St. Louis his last time out. Those four runs weren’t terrible, but they were exacerbated by him only striking out one batter. His season numbers are still really good, but the Pirates have quietly hit .292 against Wacha in his career. They are a sneaky, albeit risky, stack if you can’t afford Dodgers.

OF: Yasiel Puig ($3,500): Puig has a reverse split thing going on this year. He is hitting .288 against righties to just .143 against lefties. 20 of his 21 homers have come against right handed pitching as well. Against a guy who is having issues finding his rhythm, Puig looks like a strong play at this price.

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!