DraftKings Early MLB Picks April 3: Stack Red Sox in south Florida

NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 10: A tarp covers the field as a game between the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays was postponed due to rain at Yankee Stadium on September 10, 2015 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Early MLB Picks April 3: Stack Red Sox in south Florida

We have yet another split slate early in the MLB season. We have four early games and nine evening games. The Royals-Tigers is only available in showdown format if you want a piece of the really early one. Yet another early game was lost to rain early this season. So it goes with MLB in April.

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Speaking of rain, the Yankees-Rays game is threatened by rain again. The Cubs in Cincy also has rain in the forecast. Make sure you keep an eye on those.

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!

These tips are based mostly on past performance. This is a nice tool for building a lineup, but should not be the only pieces of information you use. Stacking against a bad pitcher is always a good idea!

For you first time players, if you would like a free $20 in DraftKings dollars, use this link for the referral bonus with your first deposit of $5 or more! Then continue reading for tips on how to turn those DraftKings dollars into more!

Next: DraftKings Pitcher Plays

ST PETERSBURG, FL – MARCH 29: Chris Sale #41 of the Boston Red Sox pitches during a game against the Tampa Bay Rays on Opening Day at Tropicana Field on March 29, 2018 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Chris Sale ($12,900): The current Marlins are just 8-44(.182) against Sale with just one run and 17 strikeouts. When you add to that that Sale has a potent offense behind him and he is in a pitchers park against a weaker offense, Sale is absolutely worth this price. He should get you about a dozen points in strikeouts alone!

Jon Lester ($10,700): The current Reds have hit Lester pretty hard, but Lester is 2-1 with a 3.66 ERA in six career starts at Great American Ballpark. Despite the decent park numbers, Lester’s struggles in the opener against the Marlins and the threat of rain are going to keep me off of this one today.

Middle Tier:

Jordan Montgomery ($8,300): The Rays had so much turnover that they only have 20 career at bats against Montgomery with just four hits, one run, and eight strikeouts. The Rays struggled against lefties last year, but Montgomery wasn’t really one of them. Montgomery was 1-1 with a 4.73 ERA in three starts against them last season. That makes him a little bit of a risk today, especially since a Tampa rainout allows them to start Archer instead of a bullpen game against Montgomery.

Chris Archer ($8,100): Archer has held the Yankees to a .191 average in 89 at bats with three homers, ten runs, but a staggering 30 strikeouts. Those strikeouts keep Archer as a pretty strong play here. Another thing that makes Archer intriguing is actually the stadium. Archer is 3-3 with a 3.13 ERA in nine career starts at New Yankee Stadium.

Bargain Pitchers:

Ty Blach ($6,300): Blach went punch for punch with Kershaw on Opening Day. He shouldn’t have much of an issue against a weaker Seattle lineup. There is also good win potential facing off against Marco Gonzales.

MIAMI, FL – MARCH 31: Willson Contreras #40 of the Chicago Cubs singles in the seventh inning during the game against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park on March 31, 2018 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Gary Sanchez is only 4-15(.267) against Chris Archer, but he has smacked two solo homers off of him already. If you have the money to spend at catcher, Sanchez is a good option.

Kris Bryant is 4-5 with three walks, a double, a homer, six runs scored, and two RBI in his career against Cody Reed. Willson Contreras is 4-6with a double, two homers, four runs scored, and six RBI. This could be a nice little Cubs stack!

Middle Tier:

Joey Votto is 9-33(.273) with a walk, three doubles, a triple, a homer, two runs scored, and six RBI in his career against Jon Lester. Eugenio Suarez is 8-27(.296) with a walk, three doubles, two homers, four runs scored, and five RBI off of Lester. If you need a cheap catcher, Tucker Barnhart is 3-5 with a walk and a run scored against Lester.

I like Rafael Devers with the platoon advantage against Jose Urena. Mitch Moreland may be worth a look even though he has struggled so far this year.

Bargain Shoppers:

Pablo Sandoval is really cheap, and he is 2-3 with a walk and a two run homer in his career against Marco Gonzales. Buster Posey is also 1-3 with a double, a RBI, and a run scored off of Gonzales.

Wilson Ramos has two of the four Rays hits off of Jordan Montgomery. Both hits are singles, but Ramos drove in two runs and is only $2,600.

ST. PETERSBURG, FL – MARCH 31: Xander Bogaerts #2 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates with Mitch Moreland #18 after hitting a home run during the second inning of a game against the Tampa Bay Rays on March 31, 2018 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Addison Russell is 2-6 with a walk, a homer, three runs scored, and two RBI in his career against Cody Reed. Ben Zobrist collected two singles and two runs in just three at bats against Reed. Javier Baez has never faced Reed, but holds the platoon advantage.

Xander Bogaerts looks like a really strong play against Jose Urena, especially when you consider his fast start.

Middle Tier:

Starlin Castro at $3,800 is a little pricey for my taste against an ace like Chris Sale. his 5-19(.263) career average against Sale is solid, but the lack of counting stats makes him not worth the price.

Joe Panik is off to a fast start, and could be worth a look here against Marco Gonzales. I don’t know about a full blown stack though considering the relative weakness of the Giants offense.

Bargain Shoppers:

Jose Peraza is 9-20 with a double, a triple, three steals, five runs scored, and four RBI in his career against Jon Lester. How keen are you on stacking against Lester? There could be potential here if you are willing to take some risk.

Next: Top Outfield Plays

PITTSBURGH, PA – AUGUST 01: Billy Hamilton #6 of the Cincinnati Reds rounds second after hitting a three run home run in the second inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on August 1, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Mookie Betts is starting to heat up, and gets a favorable pitcher in Jose Urena. J.D. Martinez has yet to really get going in Boston, but there is potential here as well. May as well go with Benintendi too for a full blown Boston stack!

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Middle Tier:

Brett Gardner is 12-45(.267) with five walks, two doubles, two triples, a homer, a steal, nine runs scored, and five RBI in his career against Chris Archer. If you are thinking about Judge and Stanton, I’m not sure that’s a good idea. They are a combined 1-15 against Archer.

Dee Gordon looks too cheap to me. He is 3-4 with two runs scored and a RBI against Ty Blach. Nelson Cruz could be worth a look if he is in the lineup. Mitch Haniger could be a nice cheaper option, but considering the Dodgers did nothing against Blach, I’m not going out of my way to use Mariners. Gordon would be the exception.

Bargain Shoppers:

Adam Duvall is 7-25(.280) with two walks, a double, a solo homer, and three runs scored in his career against Jon Lester. Billy Hamilton has done well against Lester in his career. Hamilton is 7-19(.368) with a walk, a double, two homers, six steals, six runs scored, and two RBI against Lester.

Austin Jackson and Hunter Pence are both value priced and hold the platoon advantage over Marco Gonzales. They are a combined 3-4 against Gonzales so far.

Next: DraftKings Main Slate MLB Picks

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!