DraftKings Early MLB Picks May 16: Can Mikolas keep it up?

BALTIMORE, MD – APRIL 24: Fans watch action as rain falls in the fourth inning during a game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 24, 2017 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Matt Hazlett/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Early MLB Picks May 16: Can Mikolas keep it up?

We have 14 games today with the Padres and Rockies getting the day off. Nine games are in the afternoon, which makes this the larger tournament of the day. We also have the return of the all day tournament for those of you wanting to make a day of it. Late swap is a wonderful thing!

More from DraftKings

We warned you about Baltimore yesterday, and that one ended up being rained out. Today it’s the same story in Baltimore and New York. Watch the weather closely there. I doubt either one of them gets played, but they are going to try harder to get the Baltimore game in since last night was rained out. Rain is likely in Pittsburgh at well, but they may be able to get that one in.

If the Mets get the game in, there is going to be a brisk wind blowing in from right. The wind will be blowing out once again in San Francisco.

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 bonus for signing up, 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 – MAY 10: J.A. Happ #33 of the Toronto Blue Jays delivers a pitch in the first inning during MLB game action against the Seattle Mariners at Rogers Centre on May 10, 2018 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Miles Mikolas ($11,000): Mikolas has been brilliant this year, going 5-0 with a 2.51 ERA with 35 strikeouts to just three walks in 46.2 innings. That’s right……three walks. His sparkling WHIP has kept Mikolas out of trouble. The Twins have a decent offense, but Mikolas has dominated decent so far this year. And he has the added incentive of helping his team avoid being swept in the four game season series against the Twins today. I trust Mikolas a lot more than Bauer lately.

J.A. Happ ($9,300): The current Mets are only hitting .186 against Happ in 93 at bats with two homers, seven runs, and a strong 24 strikeouts. Happ has a strong 3.09 ERA on the road this season. I expect ownership to be down after Happ was brutalized by Seattle in his last start. I’m on him today though, but the threat of inclement weather has me with plan B on speed dial. Watch the radar closely on this one.

Middle Tier:

Jameson Taillon ($7,600): We saw Trevor Williams shut out the White Sox last night. Taillon could have similar success against them today. Taillon has been better at home, posting a 3.86 ERA in four starts. The 0.91 WHIP is very encouraging. Taillon’s home average is 12.5 DraftKings points higher than on the road. There is good potential here today.

Matt Koch ($7,400): Koch has been a solid addition to the Arizona rotation, posting a 2.43 ERA in five starts. He doesn’t rack up a bunch of strikeouts, but the Brewers are a pretty free swinging crew, so there is solid potential here. Don’t expect miracles from Koch, but 15 or so DraftKings points is very possible.

Nick Pivetta ($7,200): Pivetta has good potential at this price, but his road struggles have me apprehensive. That said, his road games were in Washington and in Atlanta twice. Those are very tough for pitchers. It should be easier going in Camden Yards today, but the huge rain chance is hard to ignore. The Orioles and Phillies really want to get this in, so if the game is called off, it will likely be after lineups lock.

Bargain Pitchers:

Bartolo Colon ($7,000): Colon has held the Mariners to a .228 average in 123 at bats with only two homers, but 11 runs to just 14 strikeouts. This price is a little too high for me to bank on someone older than I am. Colon’s low strikeout totals also make him a risk since he can’t recoup points like high strikeout guys can. That said, there is good potential for a win against Christian Bergman.

Jason Hammel ($4,900): We saw Skoglund shut down the Rays on Monday, and though Hammel has an awful 6.13 ERA and 1.45 WHIP on the season, His ERA is a respectable 3.86 at home. On top of that, the Rays are only hitting .210 against Hammel in 81 at bats with three homers, six runs, and a solid 16 strikeouts. There is very good potential here for Hammel facing the Rays tonight. Especially when you consider how cheap he is.

MIAMI, FL – MAY 2: Rhys Hoskins #17 of the Philadelphia Phillies hugs Odubel Herrera #37 and Aaron Altherr #23 after defeating the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park on May 2, 2018 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images) /

Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Hector Santiago:

Sanitago has a 5.60 ERA in 27.1 innings this year. He has not had success as a starter or a reliever this year, so is it reasonable to expect him to struggle here. Especially when you consider how well the Pirates hit Lopez last night. I’m big on Starling Marte if he plays, Josh Bell, Jose Osuna, and Jordy Mercer for sure. Even Corey Dickerson hits lefties well enough to give him a go here.

Philadelphia Phillies vs. Andrew Cashner:

Odubel Herrera is 6-14 with two homers and three RBI off of Cashner already. Cesar Hernandez is 5-11 with four walks, a triple, two runs, and a steal. The rest of the current team hasn’t had much for experience against Cashner, but I really like Carlos Santana and Rhys Hoskins here too. The only thing that could stop the Phillies today is the weather, but with all of these interleague games, there is a lot of incentive to get those games played.

Cleveland indians vs. Ryan Carpenter:

The 27 year old lefty has struggled in the major league bullpen this year during his brief call ups. There is huge potential for any Cleveland batters today. I will start with Edwin if he is healthy enough to play. If not, platoon warriors Brandon Guyer and Rajai Davis are great cheap options. Jose Ramirez looks really good as well. Even though Brantley and Lindor don’t have the platoon advantage, I still like them here. They are good enough to hit Carpenter, and there is a good chance that Carpenter wont last very long this afternoon.

St Louis Cardinals vs. Lance Lynn

Lance Lynn has been awful, but he has the incentive to pitch well against his former team. Dexter Fowler is 5-14 with three walks, a double, a homer, two runs, and two RBI in his career against Lynn while he was a Cub. You can add Matt Carpenter, Tommy Pham, Paul DeJong, and Marcell Ozuna to this stack. Lynn’s ERA is more than double what he posted in his three years in St Louis. Don’t expect his former team to go easy on him.

Toronto Blue Jays vs. Zack Wheeler:

Wheeler has an awful 8.25 ERA at Citi Field this season. With a lineup that includes Josh Donaldson, Justin Smoak, Russell Martin, Curtis Granderson, and Teoscar Hernandez, there is a ton of power here. Long balls haven’t been the issue for Wheeler this year, it has been the walks. Using Blue Jays who walk a lot looks like a good idea today.

Kansas City Royals vs. Jake Faria:

Faria has an awful 8.55 ERA on the road, so a Royals stack is affordable and could pay off. I like Moose, Alcides Escobar, and Whit Merrifield for sure. Jorge Soler if he is in the lineup looks like a great pick as well. Recent call up Hunter Dozier is also worth a look.

Texas Rangers vs. Christian Bergman:

Bergman has a solid 3.40 ERA at AAA Tacoma this year, but he posted a 5.00 ERA last season. Texas is slowly getting healthy. Guys like Rougned Odor, Shin-Soo Choo, and Delino DeShields make nice cheap options for a Rangers stack. And you can use the raw power of Joey Gallo to polish it off!

Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Brandon Woodruff:

Paul Goldschmidt has been awful in May with a .079 average, but this kind of talent at his price point is hard to pass on. Nick Ahmed, David Peralta, Steven Souza, and Chris Owings are in play here as well.

San Francisco Giants vs. Matt Harvey:

Harvey was solid in his Reds debut, but the current Giants are hitting .291 with three homers and 11 RBI in only 55 at bats against him. Buster Posey is 5-8 with a walk, two doubles, a homer, two runs, and four RBI against Harvey already. Andrew McCutchen is 4-9 with two walks, a homer, and two RBI against Harvey. Brandon Belt is only 2-8 against Harvey, but he has a homer and two RBI. And look out for Brandon Crawford. He may have finally found his stroke.

Next: Other Notes for 5-16

BALTIMORE, MD – AUGUST 22: Jonathan Schoop #6 and Manny Machado #13 of the Baltimore Orioles talk before the start of the game against the Oakland Athletics at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on August 22, 2017 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Nick Pivetta has really struggled on the road, so Manny Machado and Jonathan Schoop are worth using to get a piece of the action just in case. I’m not big on a full stack though, because there is a huge risk of another rain out today.

I’m not in any hurry to stack against Matt Koch, but Christian Yelich and Lorenzo Cain are worth a look in a hitter’s park.

More from FanSided

Middle Tier:

Trevor Bauer has not been particularly sharp in his last two starts, and his career numbers against the Tigers aren’t good. I’m not about paying up for Bauer, but I don’t want to stack against him either. That said, Nick Castellanos and Victor Martinez have past stats that you just can’t ignore. Castellanos is 9-29(.310) with two doubles, a homer, four runs, and eight RBI against Bauer. Martinez is 9-33(.273) with four walks, a double, a homer, four runs, and six RBI off of Bauer.

Wilson Ramos is 4-12 with two walks and two solo homers in his career against Jason Hammel. If Ramos is in the lineup, start him. Brad Miller is 2-8 with a homer and two RBI against Hammel.

Dee Gordon and Nelson Cruz have the two career homers against Bartolo Colon along with six of the 11 RBI off of Big Sexy. And they can both be yours for $8,400!

Andrew Suarez has been good enough that I’m not going to stack against him, but guys like Adam Duvall, Billy Hamilton, and Eugenio Suarez is worth a look as well.

Bargain Shoppers:

Wilmer Flores is in play any time a lefty is on the hill, and he is finally eligible at 3B as well, so he doesn’t burn your first base slot. Yoenis Cespedes has a homer and five RBI against Happ, but there is no guarantee that he will be in the lineup today.

Next: MLB DFS Picks and Pivots

Good luck out there, and check out our picks for FanDuel baseball, along with our PGA picks. We will also have picks for the EuroLeague Final Four as well!