DraftKings Main MLB Picks May 23: Beware of overpriced pitching

NEW YORK – APRIL 13: A flag flies over Citi Field before opening day on April 13, 2009 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. This is the first regular season MLB game being played at the new venue which replaced Shea stadium as the Mets home field. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Main MLB Picks May 23: Beware of overpriced pitching

Ten of the 15 games make up the main DraftKings tournament tonight. We have one ace and a whole lot of questions making up the pitching choices here. Which ones are worth paying for? Are there any stack as good as the ones during the day? Let’s take a look at what we have here!

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We should be safe from rain tonight, but wind will be blowing in from right at Citi Field. It is (finally) a tame weather night. Enjoy!

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 $10 showdown ticket for MLB or the NBA, 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

NEW YORK, NY – MAY 18: Jacob deGrom #48 of the New York Mets pitches against the Arizona Diamondbacks during their game at Citi Field on May 18, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Jacob deGrom ($13,200): deGrom has been superb with a 1.75 ERA this season, so why am I on the fence about this? It’s the freaking Marlins! Well, deGrom’s worst start of the season happened against this same team. deGrom gave up four runs in six innings against the Marlins in his only start against them this year. In fact, the Marlins are hitting .264 against deGrom in 106 at bats with two homers and 13 runs. The 27 strikeouts are even below average for deGrom. I see no reason to pat the premium tonight.

Middle Tier:

David Price ($8,800): Price has not had a great year, but he sure has against the Rays. Price has already started against his former team three times this season. He has only surrendered six runs (five earned) in 19.2 innings in those three starts. The 15 strikeouts leave something to be desired, but Price has been pitching better lately. I’m buying stock tonight. The Rays are only hitting .177 against Price in 113 at bats with only two homers, seven runs, and 27 strikeouts.

CC Sabathia ($7,900): Sabathia’s all around numbers are still superb on the season, but he has had a rough go of it in the last two outings. One of those was against the Royals. I’m not all that crazy about CC against the Rangers, but they only have two homers and four runs despite a .264 average in 53 at bats. CC holds the advantage over Choo, Mazara, and Odor, which is pretty much the Rangers offense right now. There is enough potential here to take a chance.

Bargain Pitchers:

Jake Arrieta ($6,900): Arrieta has dominated at home this year. He has a 1.07 ERA and 0.83 WHIP in four home starts. Arrieta has been equally dreadful on the road this year, so there is always a chance that his luck runs out a home. Considering how low scoring the first games of this series have been, I think Arrieta is worth a look tonight due to the low price. Oh, and the Braves are hitting just .170 in 47 at bats off of Arrieta with five runs and nine strikeouts.

Luiz Gohara ($6,600): Gohara has looked strong out of the bullpen so far this year, and we all know what kind of potential he has. Philly is a pretty good hitter’s park, and this offense has been explosive at times. However, if Gohara taps into some of his potential, he could put up really good numbers in his five or six innings tonight.

Dan Straily ($6,300): You have to have a strong stomach to use someone like Straily with the peripherals he has. However, The Mets have scored just 16 runs in the last six games combined. Straily has held the Mets to a dismal .167 average with two homers and four runs in 48 at bats with a healthy 15 strikeouts. There is a lot of potential here. We all saw what Smith did last night, right?

WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 15: Giancarlo Stanton #27 and Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees warm up before the game against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on May 15, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) /

New York Yankees vs. Doug Fister:

Yeah, I know. Fister has a 3.43 ERA on the season, but his splits are drastic. Fister has a 5.14 ERA and 1.48 WHIP in Arlington compared to 1.90 and 1.27 on the road. Stacking the Yankees would look to be a great idea here. Gary Sanchez, Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, and Didi Gregorius are definitely in play. Brett Gardner and Aaron Hicks are worth a look as well.

Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Homer Bailey:

Bailey has an atrocious 7.11 ERA in six home starts this season. The Pirates have also hit .292 with three homers and 12 runs in 96 at bats against Bailey. David Freese has two of those homers, so he is a go if he starts. Gregory Polanco has the other, and I want him in there for sure. Cory Dickerson, Josh Harrison, and Josh Bell look very good as well.

Chicago Cubs vs. Adam Plutko:

Plutko was serviceable in his first start against Toronto, only allowing three runs. Now the bad news: all those came via the long ball. We all know that Wrigley is a long ball lover’s paradise as the season changes to summer. Wind wont be much of a factor here, but I guarantee you that Baez, Russell, Bryant, Rizzo, Schwarber, and Contreras can hit it out of there without the aid of mother nature.

Cleveland Indians vs. Jon Lester:

Hear me out. The Indians are hitting a robust .271 off of Lester with seven homers and a staggering 35 runs in 210 at bats with just 51 strikeouts. That’s it. Rajai Davis is cheap, and he is 14-49(.286) with four walks, three doubles, three triples, a homer, seven steals, 14 runs, and six RBI. That’s a lot of value! Edwin is only 10-44 against Lester, but he has three homers and eight RBI. Francisco Lindor and Brandon Guyer both have a solo homer against Lester. The cheaper Indians are the ones that have hit Lester the best.

Baltimore Orioles vs. Dylan Covey:

Covey got knocked around by the Royals a bit at the end of April in his first 2018 start. That ran Covey’s major league record to 0-9 with a 7.50 ERA between last year and this year. Hello, Manny Machado! Chris Davis, Adam Jones, Jonathan Schoop, Chance Sisco, and Mark Trumbo are worth a look as well. There could be a lot of balls flying around on the south side tonight.

Oakland Athletics vs. Marco Gonzales:

Gonzales has a 4.66 ERA so far this year. That’s not terrible, but Oakland has a lot of right handed power that could cause him trouble. Jed Lowrie, Marcus Semien, Chad Pinder, Jonathan Lucroy, and Stephen Piscotty are all worth a look. Unfortunately we get no Khris Davis, but Dustin Fowler and Matt Joyce are intriguing despite the lefty on the mound.

Seattle Mariners vs. Daniel Gossett:

Gossett has a bloated 11.05 ERA in two major league starts this year. Seattle blistered Gossett last year as well. Mike Zunino hit a three run homer off of him. Nelson Cruz did a two run job. Mitch Haniger is 4-7 with two homers and three RBI against Gossett. Jean Segura and Ryon Healy are worth a look as well.

Next: Other Notes for 5-23

ST PETERSBURG, FL – MAY 22: Mookie Betts #50 of the Boston Red Sox looks on during a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on May 22, 2018 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Chris Archer hasn’t been bad enough to stack against for the Red Sox, but it’s close. The only reason I’m not is because most of the damage has been done by one person: Mookie Betts. Mookie is 12-34(.353) with eight walks, two doubles, four homers, a steal, eight runs, and an amazing 10 RBI already. He might be worth that ridiculous $5,900 price. Rafael Devers is 3-5 with two doubles and two RBI against Archer. Eduardo Nunez and J.D. Martinez have both homered off of Archer as well. Xander Bogaerts has scored nine runs against Archer, so he could be worth a look as well.

I really don’t like Maeda at $9,800. Charlie Blackmon is 4-11 with a homer and two RBI against Maeda. Chris Iannetta is 3-6 with two homers and three RBI, but both of those homers were at Coors. David Dahl has homered off of Maeda already as well.

I’m not in favor of an all out stack on Aaron Sanchez, but his numbers are bad enough at home to roll a few Angels out there against him. Of course, Mike Trout tops this list, but who else? Kole Calhoun is the only current Angel to take Sanchez deep, so he is worth a look. Justin Upton is 5-7 off of Sanchez, but has no counting stats. That likely changes tonight.

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Middle Tier:

Again, I am chickening out on a stack, this time in Cincinnati. Kuhl’s stats aren’t that great against the Reds, but he has had a good season. Still, Joey Votto and Scott Schebler have homered off of him in their careers. Billy Hamilton is worth a look with his world class speed as well.

I do like Freeland, but not for a five digit price tag at Dodger Stadium. Cody Bellinger has three RBI off of him in as many at bats. Justin Turner is 6-11 against Freeland already. Kike Hernandez is worth a look as well.

Yes, Tyler Skaggs has looked good this year. So did Richards until the Jays got a hold of him. I’m not in favor of a stack on Skaggs, but Josh Donaldson and Teoscar Hernandez are hitting pretty well right now. Well enough to fade Skaggs and use them instead.

Jay Bruce‘s only hit against Dan Straily is a home run for those of you interested in the Mets offense. There aren’t many. Be proud!

Bargain Shoppers:

I’m really thinking about stacking against against Alex Cobb. However, Cobb has three quality starts in his last four tries, including beating the Red Sox last week. That’s not to say that Cobb has been great. He still gave up double digit hits to the Red Sox, so the wheels could fall off at any time. Surprisingly enough, Leury Garcia is the only White Sox player to homer off of Cobb so far. Tim Anderson, Welington Castillo, Yoan Moncada, and Jose Abreu are all worth a look here.

Ryan Rua is really cheap, and should be in the lineup against CC. Rua is 3-8 with a solo homer against Sabathia in his career. Robinson Chirinos is worth a look at a bargain price as well.

Maikel Franco has hit a home run off of Luiz Gohara already. None of this teammates have driven in a run off of the youngster yet. Rhys Hoskins and Cesar Hernandez are worth a look against the young lefty, but that’s about it.

Whoever the Braves throw out there at catcher is worth using against Arrieta. Suzuki and Flowers are a combined 3-13 with five RBI off of Arrieta.

Justin Bour is practically free, and he is 7-15(.467) with two homers, two walks, five runs, and six RBI in his career against deGrom.

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 sprinkle in a few EPL picks as well. We also have something big coming to Fantasy CPR in June. Stay tuned!