DraftKings Main MLB Picks April 25: Play Kershaw!

PITTSBURGH, PA – SEPTEMBER 4: A general view after rain falls before the game between the Houston Astros and the Pittsburgh Pirates on September 4, 2012 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Main MLB Picks April 25: Play Kershaw!

DraftKings mutilated the slate again today. The Braves-Reds and Yankees-Twins are chopped off of the main slate again for starting a half hour earlier. They are only available in pick em and arcade modes. We still have nine games in the main tournaments, but only two sure aces going. Are they both worth using? Let’s check some stats for help!

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We lost the Pirates-Tigers to rain last night, which really hurt one of my lineups. You know, the won where I had Story and Blackmon and the two best pitchers. Oh, what might have been! Only Philly has a real threat of a cancellation tonight.

There is some wind to speak of though. It will be blowing in from left in Cleveland and out to right center in Arlington. That’s a game I was going to stack anyway!

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

PHOENIX, AZ – MARCH 31: Zack Greinke #21 of the Arizona Diamondbacks delivers a pitch in the first inning of the MLB game against the Colorado Rockies at Chase Field on March 31, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Clayton Kershaw ($14,000): Kershaw actually looked human at Dodger Stadium in his last start. Don’t count on that happening against the light hitting Marlins. The current Marlins are just 10-67(.149) with one homer and two runs to go with 17 strikeouts. Kershaw could border on untouchable here.

Zack Greinke ($10,000): Greinke has held the Phillies to a .184 average in 38 at bats with just one solo homer and 11 strikeouts. Those are the kind of numbers you want from an ace. Greinke has dominated this incarnation of the Phillies, and Citizens Bank Park is better than his home park as far as pitchers are concerned.

Middle Tier:

Jake Arrieta ($8,500): The Diamondbacks are only hitting .203 in 74 at bats against Arrieta with only one homer, eight runs, and 21 strikeouts. If the starting pitchers can dodge the rain in this one, there is serious potential for a pitcher’s duel. Greinke’s numbers are better, but Arrieta doesn’t look bad here either.

Alex Cobb ($6,700): Cobb gets to take on his former team. This is a good spot for Cobb on an extra day’s rest after last night was rained out. The strikeout potential on the Rays is pretty high. High enough to roll Cobb out there for this low price.

Bargain Pitchers:

Michael Wacha ($6,300): The Mets are hitting just .147 against Wacha in 109 at bats, so it’s not really a fluke. The 33 strikeouts may be a little bit of a fluke, but maybe it just magnifies the strikeout problems of the Mets. Oh, and the Mets have scored just six runs in those 109 at bats. There is outstanding potential for this price here.

Aaron Sanchez ($6,000): How brave are you? Sanchez has held the Red Sox to a .202 average in 89 at bats with only two homers and 23 strikeouts. The bad part is the ten runs. However, with the strikeout total that high, there is some potential here. Eduardo Rodriguez has struggled against the Jays, so you may even get a win out of Sanchez here.

LOS ANGELES, CA – APRIL 13: Cody Bellinger #35 of the Los Angeles Dodgers flips his bat after flying out in the 8th inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium on April 13, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

I definitely like Cody Bellinger against young right hander Trevor Richards. The Dodgers don’t have a bunch of lefties left, but Bellinger is my big target in this game.

Paul Goldschmidt is only 4-17(.235) against Arrieta, but he has three walks, a double, a homer, three runs, and two RBI off of him.

Middle Tier:

Edwin Encarnacion is only 9-42(.214) against Jon Lester, but he has four walks, five doubles, two homers, seven runs, and seven RBI off of him.

Joey Gallo is 3-12 with two walks, two runs, and a solo homer in his career against Kendall Graveman. Adrian Beltre is 5-18 with a walk, two doubles, a homer, three runs, and four RBI off of Graveman.

Todd Frazier is 7-26(.269) with two walks, two doubles, two homers, four runs, and four RBI in his career against Michael Wacha. If it weren’t for Frazier, the Mets’ stats would truly be awful here.

You can stack the A’s side of this as well. Matt Olson is 1-4 with a walk and a two run homer against Doug Fister. Bruce Maxwell is 1-3 with a walk and a RBI double. Matt Chapman is 2-4 with two runs so far against Fister. If Lucroy starts over Maxwell, Lucroy is 3-10 with a walk, a double, a homer, two runs, and two RBI against Fister.

Bargain Shoppers:

Lucas Duda is a solid bet against Jhoulys Chacin. I don’t know that I would trust any other Royal though besides maybe Whit Merrifield. Even Salvador Perez could be a risk in his first game off the DL.

Kendrys Morales is 5-16(.312) with two doubles, a homer, two runs, and three RBI in his career against Eduardo Rodriguez. Russell Martin is 4-12 with four walks, a double, a homer, five runs scored, and three RBI in his career against Rodriguez. Steve Pearce could be worth a look against a lefty as well. Even though Pearce is only 2-11 against Rodriguez, he has a homer off of him.

OAKLAND, CA – APRIL 02: Jed Lowrie #8 of the Oakland Athletics hits a two run double against the Texas Rangers during the seventh inning at the Oakland Coliseum on April 2, 2018 in Oakland, California. The Oakland Athletics defeated the Texas Rangers 3-1. (Photo by Jason O. Watson/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Jed Lowrie is 9-29(.310) with a walk, four doubles, a triple, five runs, and four RBI in his career against Doug Fister. Add him to the A’s stack!

Middle Tier:

Corey Seager in this tier against a right handed rookie seems a bit unfair. I will gladly add Seager to my Dodgers stack. Chase Utley at just $2,900 is worth a look as well.

Paul DeJong is perfect in four tries against Steven Matz. He has a walk, a single, and two solo homers in his career against Matz. Matt Carpenter is 1-3 with two walks, a double, and two runs against Matz.

Bargain Shoppers:

The Brewers have actually done a lot of damage to Jason Hammel, few more than Hernan Perez. Perez is 7-15(.467) with a walk, two doubles, a run, four steals, and a RBI against Hammel. The best part is that he is eligible at second base!

Next: Top Outfield Plays

ANAHEIM, CA – APRIL 17: Mookie Betts #50 of the Boston Red Sox is congratulated in the dugout after hitting a solo homerun during the eighth inning, his third of a game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Angel Stadium on April 17, 2018 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Mookie Betts is 5-18(.278) with three walks, two doubles, three runs, a steal, and two RBI in his career against Aaron Sanchez. Jackie Bradley is 4-11 with a walk, a homer, a steal, and four RBI off of Sanchez.

Tommy Pham is also perfect against Steven Matz. In five plate appearances, he has a walk, two singles, a homer, a steal, two runs, and two RBI against Matz. Marcell Ozuna is 4-13 with two walks, a double, a run, and two RBI against Matz.

I do like Kyle Schwarber against Trevor Bauer in Cleveland. Rizzo is probably worth a look as well, but Jason Heyward is 0-6 lifetime against Bauer.

Khris Davis is 6-17(.353) with two runs and a RBI against Doug Fister. Surprisingly, all of those hits are singles. Stephen Piscotty is 2-6 with a double, a run, and two RBI against Fister.

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Middle Tier:

It may be worth stacking the entire Brewers outfield. Christian Yelich is 5-15 with a double and a solo homer against Jason Hammel. Ryan Braun is 11-31(.355) with three walks, a double, four homers, a steal, six runs, and eight RBI against Hammel. Both Domingo Santana are hitting .500 against Hammel, but have no real counting stats.

I know that Yasiel Puig doesn’t have the platoon advantage against Trevor Richards, but Puig is an equal opportunity masher. He hits righties hard as well. Joc Pederson is also worth a look if you need to save cash.

Yoenis Cespedes is 2-6 with a walk and a solo homer off of Michael Wacha. Michael Conforto is 2-4 with a double off of him already, but has no counting stats.

David Peralta is 5-17(.294) with three doubles, a steal, three runs, and five RBI in his career against Jake Arrieta.

If the game in Baltimore happens, Adam Jones and Trey Mancini have both homered off of Jake Faria. They are a combined 6-18, so there is value here.

Bargain Shoppers:

Rajai Davis has torched Jon Lester so far in his career. Davis is 14-46(.304) with four walks, three doubles, three triples, a homer, seven steals, 14 runs, and six RBI off of Lester. That’s a lot of production for $2,800! Brandon Guyer could be worth a look as well because of his prowess at hitting lefties.

You may want to stack what is left of the Rangers outfield. Delino DeShields is 4-7 with two runs, a steal, and a RBI. Drew Robinson is 3-7 with a walk. Nomar Mazara is 7-18(.389) with a double and three runs. One is bound to take him deep, right? Shin-Soo Choo has……twice, but he is also just 3-16 against Graveman lifetime.

Kevin Pillar is 5-15 with two doubles, a steal, two runs, and three RBI in his career against Eduardo Rodriguez.

If you want to play the only Phillie that has homered off of Zack Greinke, he will only set you back $3,500. Odubel Herrera is 3-10 off of Greinke lifetime, so that homer isn’t the only thing Herrera has.

Next: Early DraftKings MLB Picks

Good luck out there, and check out our picks for FanDuel baseball, along with our PGA picks. Still in NBA mode? No worries, we have the NBA DFS covered for the playoffs as well!