DraftKings Main MLB Picks April 7: Cole is the clear top option

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – APRIL 09: General view of AT&T Park with a tarp covering the infield during a rain shower before the game between the San Francisco Giants and the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 9, 2016 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Jason O. Watson/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Main MLB Picks April 7: Cole is the clear top option

We have yet another split slate early in the MLB season. The larger slate is earlier in the day, and the main slate is made even smaller by the two 6:05 Eastern games being left out of the main tournament. That leaves five games for this later slate.

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San Fran was rained out yesterday, but none of the 15 games are threatened by rain as of right now. It’s April though. Keep an eye to the weather before first pitches.

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

TORONTO, ON – APRIL 1: Marcus Stroman #6 of the Toronto Blue Jays delivers a pitch in the first inning during MLB game action against the New York Yankees at Rogers Centre on April 1, 2018 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Gerrit Cole ($12,300): Cole has held the Padres to a .203 average in 59 at bats with a homer and just four runs scored. Add to that a staggering 15 strikeouts, and you have a really good reason why Cole is so expensive tonight. No other pitcher can touch the past stats, or has the potential against the rebuilding Padres.

Marcus Stroman ($9,700): The Rangers are only hitting .182 in 33 at bats against Stroman with one homer, four runs, and six strikeouts. Stroman struggled in his first start of the season, and this is a solid Rangers team, so there is risk here. However, those are good past numbers.

Middle Tier:

Andrew Triggs ($7,700): Triggs has held the Angels to a pathetic .184 average in 38 at bats. The problem is that the Angels has a homer, four runs scored, and only six strikeouts. Triggs has good potential here, but if he gets into trouble, he doesn’t strike out enough batters to put up a solid stat line. Therein lies the risk.

Chad Kuhl ($7,200): You need to take a long look at Kuhl today. The Reds are only hitting .233 off of Kuhl in 43 at bats with just one solo homer to show for it. On top of that, Kuhl racked up 12 strikeouts in those 43 at bats. There is huge potential here as the Reds aren’t nearly as potent away from Cincinnati.

Bargain Pitchers:

Sal Romano ($5,800): Romano had some good games as a rookie last year, and they were almost exclusively on the road. The Pirates are hitting a solid .255 against Romano, but they only have one homer and two runs in 47 at bats. Romano only had seven strikeouts, so there isn’t much for upside here. However, if you want to spend on hitting, Romano is a decent punt.

MILWAUKEE, WI – SEPTEMBER 28: Jesse Winker #33 of the Cincinnati Reds hits a RBI single scoring Joey Votto during the sixth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park on September 28, 2017 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Mike McGinnis/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

There were a lot of runs in Denver yesterday, but most of them were inflicted by Atlanta. That may not be the case tonight. Nolan Arenado is 3-6 with a double and a solo homer in his career against Sean Newcomb.

Joey Votto is 3-4 with two walks, a double, and a solo homer against Chad Kuhl. He is probably the only Red I could recommend here.

Josh Donaldson against a questionable lefty is always a good idea. So is Russell Martin. The power is legit.

Middle Tier:

Josh Bell is 3-7 with two walks against Sal Romano, but he has no other counting stats. Romano gets a boost in Pittsburgh, but he can still be hit.

Bargain Shoppers:

Robinson Chirinos is 1-4 with a solo homer in his career against Marcus Stroman. Adrian Beltre could be worth a look as well at $3,100. Beltre is 2-5 with a double, a run scored, and a RBI.

Kurt Suzuki is cheap, and he is 2-5 with a walk, a double, and a solo homer off of Chad Bettis. While Freddie Freeman looks good on the surface, he is just 1-17(.059) in his career against Bettis. Don’t pay the premium for him.

LOS ANGELES, CA – NOVEMBER 01: Carlos Correa #1 and Jose Altuve #27 of the Houston Astros celebrate defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-1 in game seven to win the 2017 World Series at Dodger Stadium on November 1, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Tim Bradbury/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa deserve a look here against Bryan Mitchell. Mitchell is quite possibly the worst pitcher on the slate, and he is facing the most potent offense in the league. The Astros make a lot of sense as a stack. That means George Springer, Josh Reddick, and Alex Bregman have great potential as well.

DJ LeMahieu is 2-6 with a solo homer in his career against Sean Newcomb. Trevor Story is 2-5 with a walk, a double, a homer, and three RBI off of Newcomb. Will this end his early season slump?

Middle Tier:

Dansby Swanson is off to a fast start, and now he gets the added benefit of going to work in Coors Field. He is also cheaper than the slumping Story. Ozzie Albies is expensive, but he is already 2-5 with a double and a run scored off of Bettis.

Elvis Andrus is only 1-4 against Marcus Stroman, but he has two walks, two steals, and a run scored. There is potential here, especially considering the speed aspect for Andrus.

Yangervis Solarte is 4-7 with a homer and two RBI in his career against Mike Minor.

Bargain Shoppers:

Andrelton Simmons is only 2-7 with no counting stats against Andrew Triggs, but he is off to a very fast start on the season. That could make Simmons worth a look.

Marcus Semien is 2-3 with a walk, a homer, and two RBI in his career against JC Ramirez. Jed Lowrie could also be worth a look since he is 2-6 with a walk and a RBI against Ramirez.

Freddy Galvis is only 3-12 against Gerrit Cole, but he has a walk, a double, a homer, two runs scored, and two RBI. Galvis could be a sneaky play here since he is the only Padre with much success against Cole.

Jordy Mercer is only 1-7 in his career against Sal Romano, but that hit is a solo homer.

Next: Top Outfield Plays

ANAHEIM, CA – APRIL 03: Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim grounds out during the fourth inning of a game against the Cleveland Indians at Angel Stadium on April 3, 2018 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Starling Marte is 2-6 with a double and two runs scored against Romano. Marte is a little pricey here, but he may be worth it. However, by price Romano is not the worst pitcher on the slate. You may be able to find a better option.

Mike Trout is 2-5 iwth a walk and a solo homer against Andrew Triggs so far.

Look out for Khris Davis again. Davis is 4-6 with a walk, a homer, three runs scored, and two RBI in his career against JC Ramirez. If you can fit both Trout and Davis in your lineup, it may be a good idea. We could be in for another high scoring affair out west.

A Rockies outfield stack could be in order for all of their left handed hitters against Anibal Sanchez.

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Middle Tier:

Despite not having the platoon advantage, Curtis Granderson is 4-15 with a homer and two RBI in his career against Mike Minor. With a lefty on the mound, Steve Pearce is always worth a look.

Preston Tucker is 2-3 with a walk, a run scored, and a RBI in his career against Chad Bettis already. Ender Inciarte is 5-14 with two walks, a double, a triple, four runs scored, and two RBI off of Bettis. Nick Markakis is also in play at this price.

Bargain Shoppers:

Adam Duvall and Billy Hamilton this cheap are very intriguing right now. They aren’t facing an ace here.

Matt Szczur is 2-5 with two walks and two RBI in his career against Gerrit Cole. If Szczur is in the lineup, he is definitely worth a look.

Next: MLB DFS Picks and Pivots

Good luck out there, and check out our picks for FanDuel baseball, along with our PGA picks. We also have the NBA still winding out the season, but DFS is still going strong!