Main DraftKings MLB Picks August 23: Can Kluber Still Help Against Boston?
By Mike Marteny
DraftKings Main MLB Picks For August 23
We have 13 games in the main DraftKings tournament tonight. Most of the good options are tonight, so we have to find bargains somewhere to roster difference makers. Let’s check some stats!
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The money line last night was back up to 123.8. I had a lineup at 125.5 thanks to Patrick Corbin and Danny Duffy along with Ryon Healy.
The winning lineup was up back over 200 after a couple days off at 214.6. He paid up for Chris Archer and stacked Angels and Yankees.
We will provide you with several options to build your lineup here. Want to spend all your money on pitchers and play bargain bats? We will highlight who is worth the money. Want to punt arms and pay up for the big boppers? We can help you with that as well, and everything in between!
For you first time players, if you would like a bonus of 25% of your first deposit, use this link for the referral bonus! Then continue reading for tips on how to turn those DraftKings dollars into more!
Next: DraftKings Pitcher Plays
Top Tier:
You may be afraid to use Corey Kluber against the Red Sox. Don’t be. Kluber has a 2.09 ERA in 12 home starts this year. He has a 2.11 ERA over his last ten starts with a ridiculous 103 strikeouts in just 72.2 innings pitched. He has 14 complete games and five shutouts this year! And now the kicker: the last time he faced the Red Sox was in last year’s ALDS. He allowed just three hits in seven innings. Boston has hit him fairly well in his career, but I doubt it happens tonight in Cleveland. When the Tribe make the trip to Boston, I may think twice, but here the choice is easy.
The only ace I would consider moving off of Kluber for tonight is Marcus Stroman. He has dominated lately, with a 2.03 ERA in his last ten starts. He also has a 2.62 career ERA in five starts at Tropicana Field. Oh, and he shut down the Rays in his last start, picking up 22.9 DraftKings points along the way. He isn’t going to outscore Kluber, but he will save you $1,200 and should be within shouting distance at much lower ownership.
Luis Severino is only $400 cheaper than Kluber tonight. At that price, he isn’t really in consideration for me. The Tigers are hitting .279 off of him, but have only scored three runs. Still, with that many balls being put into play, bad things can happen in the Comerica outfield. And he doesn’t have near the strikeout upside that Kluber does.
Rich Hill sports a 2.59 ERA over his last ten starts, but he has only gone six or more innings twice in his last five. He will rack up the strikeouts, and gets a nice pitcher’s park in Pittsburgh, but there is no guarantee that he will last very long. For me, his price is still pretty high given that those sub-six inning outings have kept him under 20 DraftKings points every time.
Middle Tier:
Patrick Corbin nearly hit 30 DraftKings points against the Mets last night. Zack Godley is pricey ($9,700), but he could pitch like an ace in Citi Field. Especially with that shell of the Mets lineup that has been awful against right handed pitching lately. Don’t be surprised if he outperforms everyone but Kluber.
Don’t look now, but Andrew Cashner has a 3.23 ERA over his last ten games, and a 3.31 ERA on the season. His peripherals aren’t all that great, but at some point, this isn’t a fluke. The Angels are also only hitting .174 against him in 46 at bats with just three runs scored and nine strikeouts. The “Big A” earns it’s name. It plays mostly as a pitcher’s park, which could help Cashner be a really good value here. He doesn’t strike out many batters, but you aren’t going to get that at this tier anyway.
Bargain Pitchers:
Luke Weaver is only $6,900 tonight facing a Cardinals team that struggles against righties. He has a 3.31 ERA in 16.1 innings so far this year with 16 strikeouts as well. The Padres will provide an elevated strikeout rate with not a lot of power. You aren’t going to find a better bargain than Weaver tonight, but beware of high ownership.
Austin Pruitt only gave up three runs to the Jays in 6.1 innings over three relief appearances this year. However, he doesn’t pick up enough strikeouts to take the risk away, and Toronto’s offense is better than it was in May and June when Pruitt faced them. Still, this is a pitcher’s park, and the Blue Jays still aren’t a team full of good hitters.
It goes without saying that any pitcher in this tier is a risk. Now that we have that out of the way, Antonio Senzatela could be an interesting play here. He has a 3.86 ERA over his last ten games (three starts) with nearly a strikeout per inning. He has done this by limiting walks and allowing just a .198 batting average against over that span. Of course, the bad news is that Senzatela likely wont go deep into the game, and the Royals aren’t a team that strikes out a ton. However, Kauffman Stadium helps keep offenses in check, so Senzatela could put up around 15 DraftKings points here.
Top Tier:
Gary Sanchez has five homers in his last ten games with 12 RBI in that span. Jordan Zimmerman has a 6.00 ERA at home. Sanchez may not hit one out of this huge park, but he will have plenty of chances to drive in runs. This could be like some extra batting practice for the Yankees.
The Cubs sent 22 batters to the plate in just 3.1 innings against Asher Wojciechowski in Wrigley two weeks ago. The Reds rookie gave up seven runs. Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant hit both homers and drove in five. They could have an equally big day in Cincy tonight.
Chris Flexen has been better lately, but all that means for him is eight runs in his last 16 innings. That isn’t going to get it done against Arizona. Paul Goldschmidt and Jake Lamb are elite plays once again.
Erasmo Ramirez has been solid for a Mariners team that desperately needs something solid in the rotation. However, it’s SunTrust Park, so Freddie Freeman is in play. So is Matt Adams if you are pinching pennies for pitching.
Middle Tier:
Ryan Zimmerman is 2-5 with a homer and two RBI in his career against Mike Fiers. Fiers has decent numbers, posting a 4.32 ERA. The dirty little secret here is that only one pitcher has allowed more home runs this year than Mike Fiers. This may be the only time you see Ricky Nolasco‘s name along with Fiers, but the upside to stacking Nationals is clear. There could be long balls aplenty in Houston tonight.
Matt Carpenter is still underpriced because of his role atop the Cardinals lineup. Jhoulys Chacin has been dominant at home, but he has been Wade Miley on the road. Chacin has a 6.90 ERA in 12 road starts. It wont get easier against a Cardinals team that has hit .286 off of him in his career. At the top of this list is Carpenter, who has the only homer off of him so far. Yadier Molina and Jedd Gyorko are in play too for nearly the same price.
There is a lefty on the hill. That means Mike Napoli is never a bad play, especially for his price. Adrian Beltre is more expensive, but Andrew Heaney has allowed 12 hits to the Rangers in just 29 at bats. He may not get battered to that tune tonight, but any Rangers right hander is worth a look.
Bargain Shoppers:
The Phillies are facing an average lefthander at home – still a hitter’s park, mind you – and Maikel Franco is just $3,000. $3,000! Rhys Hoskins at $3,800 looks like a great bargain as well. Most Phillies are underpriced tonight, so they are an under the radar stack option. If Tommy Joseph is in the lineup, he is just $2,500! Even Cameron Rupp and Jorge Alfaro are $3,000 or under. Crazy!
What’s good for the goose (Phillies) is good for the gander (Marlins). Tyler Moore is just $3,100 and is facing Mark Leiter, Jr. Leiter has not been terrible, but with Moore and Derek Dietrich also very cheap, they can help you save money for big names.
Todd Frazier is only 5-21(.238) with three walks, a double, two homers, three runs scored, and five RBI in his career against Jordan Zimmerman. The Yankees are stack worthy given Zimmerman’s 5.87 ERA. If you can afford them, that is. Frazier is about as cheap as you will get.
Evan Longoria is 9-30 with two walks, two doubles, two homers, four runs scored, and four RBI in his career against Marcus Stroman. And he only sets you back $3,200.
Danny Valencia may or may not get to play against knuckleballer and right hander R.A. Dickey tonight. He is only 2-9 against him, but both of those hits are home runs. Yonder Alonso is also worth considering due to SunTrust Park and his 5-12 career mark against Dickey.
Drew Butera is still the starting catcher for the Royals, and is a solid punt play against Senzatela.
Top Tier:
Jose Altuve hasn’t been gaining as much attention because he is only hitting .324 with two homers and four steals over his last ten games. There is no way he is worth $5,200 against Edwin Jackson. No way at all. He may be worth $6,200 though…..
Chris Taylor singled and homered against Trevor Williams the first time he faced him while driving in four runs. PNC Park does take away some power, but this offense just keeps getting better. Taylor could wind up being a bargain for $4,600. Also, Corey Seager for $4,400 seems too low. Williams hasn’t been giving up gopher balls, but there are runs to be had here.
Brian Dozier has pounded James Shields. Dozier is 12-32(.375) with four walks, five doubles, four homers, seven runs scored, and ten RBI in his career against Shields. Anyone in the Twins starting lineup is a solid play tonight. A few of them will even save you money!
Daniel Murphy doesn’t have quite the dazzling stats of Dozier or the strong ten game run of Altuve or Taylor, but I will let you in on a little secret: Mike Fiers has allowed two home runs in each of his last four starts. Fiers is going to give up a few runs, most via the home run. That makes Murphy a strong play.
Middle Tier:
Dee Gordon is leading off for a Marlins lineup that could score some runs tonight in Philly. He is also 2-2 with a run scored and a RBI in his career against Mark Leiter, Jr.
Robinson Cano has been quiet lately, which is to say that he has been normal. His average over the last ten days is in line with his season total. However, he is 9-30 with six runs scored and four RBI in his career against R.A. Dickey. Getting that much contact is a great thing for Cano in a park that caters to left handed power.
Didi Gregorius has homered off of Jordan Zimmerman once in his career already. He should at the very least get one or two in the gaps before the Yanks chase Zimmerman to the showers.
Marwin Gonzalez is still eligible at shortstop, which is nice for us DFS players. He is the only current National to hit a home run against Edwin Jackson. Don’t be surprised if that statement is no longer true after tonight’s game.
Bargain Shoppers:
Freddy Galvis and Phillies leadoff hitter Cesar Hernandez are dirt cheap as well. Justin Nicolino‘s numbers have been boosted by Marlins Park this year. That 4.11 ERA is misleading. He has a 6.00 road ERA, and one of those games was against the Mets after they performed their August fire sale.
Yoan Moncada is still ridiculously cheap. This is not the Ervin Santana of April and May. This is the normal Ervin Santana. He is a solid pitcher, but the upside on Moncada is enormous. He could be a great bargain tonight.
Next: Top Outfield Plays
Top Tier:
Giancarlo Stanton needs no explanation. If the 46 homers doesn’t speak for itself, then there isn’t anything I can do to persuade you.
Nelson Cruz is only a .200 career hitter against R.A. Dickey, but he has homered off of him twice. That is at least worth consideration in a park that spoils power hitters rotten.
Aaron Judge has cooled off considerably, but he could heat back up in a hurry against Jordan Zimmerman. Brett Gardner is also worth a look batting leadoff in this one.
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Middle Tier:
Great American Ballpark doesn’t cater as much to right handed power, but it is still friendly. Adam Duvall is 3-7 with a homer and four RBI in his career against Mike Montgomery. Of course Billy Hamilton is in play because, you know, it’s the Cubs. Hamilton looks like Rickey Henderson on the basepaths against the North Siders.
Kyle Schwarber‘s power is hard to ignore no matter how bad his batting average is. Especially going into a hitter’s park like Cincinnati. He is also hitting .333 with two homers and five RBI in 39 career at bats there.
The White Sox offense wont strike fear into the heart of anyone, but Ervin Santana needs to watch out for Avisail Garcia. He is 6-22 with a double, two homers, five runs scored, and three RBI against Santana and is batting cleanup against him for a very reasonable price. Nicky Delmonico is also too cheap for what he has done with the bat so far in the majors.
I’m not really an advocate of stacking Rockies away from Coors. Their struggles on the road are well documented and aren’t getting any better. However, Gerardo Parra is 4-8 with a walk, a double, a homer, and five RBI against Ian Kennedy. Carlos Gonzalez is only 5-28 off of Kennedy, but he has homered twice.
Bargain Shoppers:
Yasiel Puig hits righties hard, but he has been sitting some games against righties. He shouldn’t against this one, considering he homered off of him back in L.A. For the record, Curtis Granderson is a .162 career hitter in PNC Park. Puig seems a better fit and costs much less.
Corey Dickerson is still in a stunningly awful tailspin, but for those of you brave enough to roll him out there, it could be worth it. Dickerson is 8-24 with a walk, three doubles, two homers, four runs scored, and three RBI in his career against Marcus Stroman.
If Max Kepler is out there, he should be in your lineup. He is hitting .282 with all 16 of his home runs against right handed pitching this season. James Shields has given up 15 homers in his last ten starts with a robust 7.14 ERA. Even the right handed, and red hot, Byron Buxton deserves consideration here. It doesn’t hurt that Buxton is 3-8 with a walk, a double, two homers, three runs scored, and four RBI in his career against Shields.
Jose Bautista is just $3,100. I get that he is in a slump, but that is what I would expect his price to be against someone like Chris Archer, not Austin Pruitt. He is an excellent outfield punt.
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!