DraftKings MLB Picks April 12: Jose Berrios rules the night

KANSAS CITY, MO – APRIL 01: A general view of Kauffman Stadium on April 1, 2018 in Kansas City, Missouri. The scheduled game between the Chicago White Sox and the Kansas City Royals was postponed due to the bitter cold and expected snow accumulation. The clubs will play a day-night doubleheader on Saturday, April 28, with the makeup contest scheduled for 1:15 p.m. (Photo by Brian Davidson/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB Picks April 12: Jose Berrios rules the night

DraftKings somehow managed to shave an eight game slate down to four. I understand leaving the Wrigley as a stand alone showdown game. Kind of. Since baseball has late swap, there is no reason to leave the two games that start between 6 and 7 eastern as just an arcade or pick em tournament. There is no reason those other two couldn’t be added to the classic main tournament to make it seven games instead of four. The only way to get a piece of the Tigers-Indians or Cards-Reds is to play that arcade version. You can get the Giants-Padres on the night slate, but it is not also in the main one. Again, they lopped off the last game for no good reason. It amazes me how out of touch DraftKings remains to what their users want. If they read tweets with #DraftKings in them for one day, they would realize that 95% of their users hate this. The saga continues. Stay tuned.

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None of the games in the main tournament are affected by rain, but it could be another windy game in Kansas City.

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

WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 7: Starting pitcher Gio Gonzalez #47 of the Washington Nationals throws to a New York Mets batter in the second inning at Nationals Park on April 7, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Jose Berrios ($11,000): I’m a tad nervous about Berrios after his last start, but maybe I shouldn’t be. He has dominated the White Sox so far in his career. The Sox are hitting a pathetic .132 off of Berrios in 68 at bats with just one homer, four runs, and a staggering 29 strikeouts. You will have to go cheap somewhere else, but on a short slate, I think it’s worth it.

Gio Gonzalez ($10,100): I’m not a huge fan of Gio here, but the Rockies don’t hit well on the road. The Rockies are hitting a solid .273 off of Gio in 44 at bats with two homers, five runs, and ten strikeouts. Since DraftKings chopped up this slate with a Ginsu, Gonzalez has the most strikeout potential of the games offered here. After seeing the Red Sox hit, I’m not in any hurry to use any pitcher against them.

Middle Tier:

Rick Porcello ($8,100): Yes, I checked myself, but I’m afraid I may still wreck myself. Porcello is about as high risk as you can get, but he has managed to hold the Yankees to a .232 average in 112 at bats with five homers, but only 11 runs. The 22 strikeouts is nothing special, but again, there are only eight pitchers to choose from here. The pickings are kind of slim. There are plenty of reasons to like Porcello. The stats are much better than Gray’s against Boston, he has decent strikeout potential, and the Red Sox are scoring a ton of runs. Don’t expect a huge score, but Porcello should come out of this with high teens.

Ian Kennedy ($7,200): Kennedy is off to a great start this year, and there is huge potential for a win here. JC Ramirez was supposed to start, but he is now slated for Tommy John surgery. The Angels have yet to announce a replacement, but it is likely to be Nick Tropeano, himself making his first start back from Tommy John surgery. That essentially makes it a bullpen game for the Angels. The current Angels are hitting only .187 in 123 at bats off of Kennedy, but they do have six homers and 19 runs with 32 strikeouts. Those aren’t great numbers, but on a short slate, it’s not that bad either.

Bargain Pitchers:

Lucas Giolito ($6,300): Giolito struggled in his last start, but his one start against Minnesota last year was a good one. He gave up only two runs while striking our four in six innings. The Twins knocked around two really good Astros pitchers in the last two games though, so there is risk involved here.

Chad Bettis ($6,000): There could be some potential here with Bettis away from Coors Field. He has a 4.00 career ERA in three starts at Nationals Park. The team has hit him at a .286 clip and Bettis doesn’t strike out many batters, but he has only allowed one homer and five runs in 42 at bats. There are worse numbers out there on this slate.

TORONTO, ON – MARCH 30: Didi Gregorius #18 of the New York Yankees slides into third base with a triple in the second inning on Opening Day during MLB game action against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on March 30, 2018 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Anthony Rendon is only 2-7 against Chad Bettis, but both hits are doubles, he scored twice, and drove in two. The struggling Ryan Zimmerman is 2-6 with a RBI off Bettis if you think that he can get off his cold streak.

Didi Gregorius is only 5-23(.217) against Porcello, but he has two walks, two solo homers, and four runs scored. I would avoid stacking Yankees if you use Porcello, but stacking the batters in this game and going elsewhere for pitching is going to be a popular build tonight after the first two games of this series.

Middle Tier:

I’m just going to say that I would much prefer to stack against Sonny Gray than play roulette and use him. The Red Sox have 20 runs and only 21 strikeouts in 108 at bats against Gray. Hanley Ramirez is 5-14 with a double, a homer, three runs scored, and two RBI against Gray. Mitch Moreland is only 6-25(.240), but he has four of those eight homers and six RBI off of Gray.

Albert Pujols is 5-18 with two walks, a double, three homers, seven run scored, and six RBI in his career against Ian Kennedy.

Bargain Shoppers:

Lucas Duda is an all or nothing proposition here. If he doesn’t hit a homer, there is likely nothing, but given the fact that he should face at least three different pitchers, he is a solid punt.

There isn’t much available here for us cheapos, but Drew Butera and Omar Narvaez have recently been defaulted into starting roles. I like Butera a little more against the Angels bullpen.

WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 05: Trea Turner #7 of the Washington Nationals argues with the home plate umpire shortly before being ejected during the home opener for the Nationals against the New York Mets April 05, 2018, at Nationals Park in Washington, DC. The Mets won the game 8-2. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Trea Turner is 3-5 with a solo homer in his career against Chad Bettis. Howie Kendrick is also worth a look with his good start to the season and 3-12 career with three runs scored against Bettis.

Zack Cozart is 5-11 with three runs scored and two RBI in his career against Ian Kennedy.

Middle Tier:

DJ LeMahieu is 2-4 with a walk, a homer, and two RBI in his career against Gio Gonzalez. As with just about any time the Rockies face a lefty, I like DJ no matter the location. I wouldn’t jump to use anyone else though. Nolan Arenado is just 1-8 lifetime against Gio.

If you’re spending most of your money on pitching, you will need to save somewhere. Whit Merrifield and Alcides Escobar are solid bets with the wind blowing out again.

Bargain Shoppers:

Yolmer (don’t call me Carlos) Sanchez is only 2-10 against Jose Berrios, but he does have a solo homer off of him, the only one Berrios has surrendered to the White Sox.

Eduardo Nunez could be worth a look here. Nunez is 2-8 with a homer, a steal, and two RBI off of Sonny Gray.

Next: Top Outfield Plays

BOSTON, MA – APRIL 10: Giancarlo Stanton #27 of the New York Yankees runs towards first after hitting a single during the fifth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on April 10, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

I’m not entirely sure that Bryce Harper is worth the price, but he is 2-6 with a walk and a run scored against Bettis.

Giancarlo Stanton‘s only at bat against Rick Porcello resulted in a bases clearing double. Brett Gardner is 14-46(.304) with three walks, three doubles, two solo homers, six steals, and six runs scored against Porcello. Aaron Judge is just 1-10 off of Porcello, but the hit is a home run.

Shohei Ohtani will get a taste of the schizophrenic Midwest weather on the trip to KC. If the wind is blowing out again, which is should be, Ohtani has enough power to go opposite on Ian Kennedy. If you are thinking about Mike Trout, I would pass. Trout is just 1-10 lifetime against Kennedy. Justin Upton does have a homer and three RBI though.

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Middle Tier:

More of the Red Sox outfield please! J.D. Martinez is 3-7 with a walk, a double, a homer, and four RBI in his career off of Sonny Gray. Yankee killer Andrew Benintendi was given the night off last night. Don’t look for that to happen tonight. Benintendi is 4-6 with a solo homer against Gray.

Bargain Shoppers:

Eddie Rosario did the only damage to Lucas Giolito in his start against them last September. Rosario hit a two run homer off of Giolito, his only hit in three at bats.

There are some cheap outfielders that could be worth a look against Jose Berrios. Nicky Delmonico is 0-1, but he walked twice and scored twice. Avisail Garcia is 3-6, but only has one RBI to show for it.

Jackie Bradley Jr. is only 2-9 against Sonny Gray, but he has for RBI off of him.

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