DraftKings Early MLB Picks May 27: Strasburg is worth the money

PHILADELPHIA, PA – MAY 27: A baseball sits on the floor of the Colorado Rockies dugout during a rain delay before the start of their game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on May 27, 2014 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Early MLB Picks May 27: Strasburg is worth the money

We have 11 games in the top heavy early DraftKings tournament. This is the big action for the day, so this is the one you want in on!

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Rain is possible across Pennsylvania once again. There is a greater rain chance in Boston and New York, but all of these game should get played. Any delays should be fairly minor.

There will be stiff winds blowing in in both Boston and New York. For those of you thinking about power stacks in those smaller parks, you may have to rethink that a bit.

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

HOUSTON, TX – MAY 22: Gerrit Cole #45 of the Houston Astros pitches in the first inning against the San Francisco Giants at Minute Maid Park on May 22, 2018 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Stephen Strasburg ($12,600): The Marlins are hitting a decent .242 against Strasburg, but they only have two homers and six runs in 91 at bats. There is a good chance that Strasburg turns in a dominant performance here. Miami has had a couple of solid games so far in this series, but they had good past histories against Scherzer and Roark. Not the case with Strasburg. Sit back and watch the point roll in!

Gerrit Cole ($11,600): I am little nervous about using Cole here because Cleveland is hitting .320 off of him in 25 at bats. They have seven RBI, but only one run. How does that work? Yonder Alonso did it with the Reds when he was very, very young. I will go with what Cole has done this year. He has dominated everyone, posting a 1.86 ERA in ten starts.

J.A. Happ ($10,300): The Phillies have failed to bring in a run in 24 at bats against Happ so far. The Phillies have enough right handed power to make us think about this, but I’m still not all that impressed by the offense lately. Add in Happ’s road dominance (1.93 ERA in three starts), and you have a recipe for a strong game here.

Middle Tier:

Cole Hamels ($9,900): Hamels has absolutely dominated the Royals. The Royals are hitting a miserable .134 off of Hamels in 82 at bats with a staggering 25 strikeouts and just one run. ONE! Hamels has not been all that consistent this year, but this is one place where I trust him unconditionally. Not all past stats lie.

Nick Pivetta ($9,600): Pivetta has turned in three strong starts in a row, and he has posted a brilliant 2.00 ERA in six home starts. This isn’t a fluke. This was a pitcher’s duel yesterday, highlighted by Nola taking a no hitter into the seventh. I’m expecting another pitcher’s duel here today. One more little nugget for you: Pivetta has 43 of his 60 strikeouts at home.

Miles Mikolas ($9,500): Mikolas racked up 21.6 DraftKings points in his start against Pittsburgh earlier this season. Mikolas has a strong 2.24 ERA and a 6-0 record in his nine starts this season. This is a strong middle tier this afternoon. Strong enough to consider fading the figure guys all together.

Kevin Gausman ($8,100): The Rays are hitting a strong .293 off of Gausman, but they only have two homers and four runs in 82 at bats with 23 strikeouts. That’s a strong line from Gausman, who isn’t usually a strikeout pitcher. Gausman is a suitable alternative if you are fading the upper tier and stacking Coors.

Bargain Pitchers:

Masahiro Tanaka ($6,700): This may be the cheapest that we ever see Tanaka, and he is way too cheap. Tanaka strung up this same Angels team about a month ago for 31.1 DraftKings points. He likely wont perform that well in New York, but there is serious potential here. The Angels are hitting only .208 against Tanaka in 101 at bats with three homers, nine runs, and 33 strikeouts. The career numbers show that Tanaka should be well worth the price here.

Zack Wheeler ($5,500): Ownership on Wheeler is going to be very low after what the Brewers did to them last night. That could be good for those of us willing to take a chance. Wheeler has a solid 3.27 ERA on the road this year, but his awful 7.36 home ERA has destroyed his total numbers.

Jason Hammel ($4,000): Hammel finally picked up his first win of the season last week against the Cardinals in what was easily his best start of the season. The Rangers are only hitting .196 against Hammel in 51 at bats with just one run and 14 strikeouts. It looks like there is plenty of potential for Hammel in this one as well. Still, that 5.70 ERA this year is really hard to ignore. The price tag will help with that.

CHICAGO, IL – MAY 19: Jose Abreu #79 of the Chicago White Sox is congratulated by Matt Davidson #24 after hitting a home run against the Texas Rangers during the seventh inning at Guaranteed Rate Field on May 19, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jon Durr/Getty Images) /

Boston Red Sox vs. Mike Foltynewicz:

Folty racks up enough strikeouts to salvage a decent score. Usually. This is one time where he may not. The Red Sox are hitting .389 off of him with four runs in only 18 at bats. That’s a small sample size, but this is a truly dangerous lineup. I’m all over Benintendi and Mitch Moreland. Mookie, J.D. Martinez, Dustin Pedroia, Xander, and Rafael Devers are all worth considering.

New York Yankees vs. Garrett Richards:

The Yankees only have 24 at bats against Richards. They have scored a staggering 11 runs. Perhaps more impressive is the fact that they have done it without hitting a home run! Both Aaron Hicks and Brett Gardner have driven in three against Richards. Judge, Sanchez, and Stanton are all worth using as well. Didi Gregorius too.

Chicago White Sox vs. Blaine Hardy:

Hardy has been okay against the Sox so far, and here in Detroit, the Sox sluggers could have problems getting the ball out of the park. Not into the gaps though. A stack is still a good idea. Matt Davidson and Jose Abreu both have homers off of Hardy. Tim Anderson and Yoan Moncada are worth a look as well.

Baltimore Orioles vs. Sergio Romo and relievers:

Valencia is the only one with a homer against Romo, and Romo has done very well against the Orioles. However, Romo is only going to last one innings. Then the Orioles get to the lefties in the Rays bullpen. Adam Jones and Manny Machado are worth a look at the very least. Trey Mancini and Jonathan Schoop are worth using as well.

Cincinnati Reds vs. German Marquez:

Marquez has been stellar on the road, but atrocious at home. He’s at Coors, so stack his opponent! Eugenio Suarez, Joey Votto, and Adam Duvall are all worth a look. So are Scooter Gennett, Billy Hamilton, and Jesse Winker. Anyone with a bat in their hands is a good play against Marquez at home right now.

Next: Other Notes for 5-27

WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 05: Bryce Harper #34 of the Washington Nationals looks on during the eighth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Nationals Park on May 5, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

I’m not going to stack against Sale, but I will admit that I was pretty disappointed that the prices were still this high on some Braves. The Braves are hitting .348 against Sale in 46 at bats. Tyler Flowers has only faced Sale twice. He has a double, a homer, and three RBI. Freddie Freeman has one hit in three at bats off of Sale. It’s a solo homer. Nick Markakis is 5-14 wtih a homer and four RBI. Kurt Suzuki has six RBI off of Sale and a .320 average in 25 at bats.

Elieser Hernandez has turned in some solid outing so far in his brief career, so I’m not going to stack against him. However, Bryce Harper and Matt Adams are definitely worth a look. So is Trea Turner.

Matt Harvey has pitched very well as a Red, but now he’s at Coors. Can we still trust him? I’m benching him in my points league, and that’s saying a lot. Charlie Blackmon is certainly worth a look here. Trevor Story as well. However, Ian Desmond is the only current Rockie to hit a home run against Harvey.

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Middle Tier:

Trevor Bauer has allowed 14 runs in 96 at bats to the Astros, so there are some decent options here. Evan Gattis and Brian McCann both have two career homers off of Bauer, so whoever starts, we are covered. Carlos Correa and Yuli Gurriel both have hit solo homers off of Bauer as well.

Shin-Soo Choo, Nomar Mazara, and Joey Gallo are worth a look for the huge power potential against Jason Hammel.

If you don’t trust Zack Wheeler, I understand. Christian Yelich has the Brewers’ only home run off of him so far. Travis Shaw is worth a look for the power potential as well.

Jhoulys Chacin has pitched very well lately, but the Mets have hit him very hard. Michael Conforto, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Adrian Gonzalez have all hit home runs off of Chacin already. Brandon Nimmo is worth a look so long as he is leading off as well.

I really don’t think that Detroit is worth stacking against anyone. Yes, even against James Shields. Victor Martinez could be worth a look since he is 17-57(.298) with five walks, five doubles, a homer, and eight RBI off of Shields. Nick Castellanos and Jeimer Candelario have also homered against Shields.

C.J. Cron and Wilson Ramos have the two home runs so far off of Kevin Gausman. Honestly, Cron is about the only one I would roll out there against Gausman. That’s only because he has good power at a reasonable price.

Gregory Polanco hit a homer against Miles Mikolas earlier this year. He could be worth a look again, but there may be better options at this price.

The Cardinals have hit Taillon hard, but not hard enough for a five player stack. Jose Martinez, Jedd Gyorko, and Matt Carpenter all hit home runs off of Taillon last year. Carpenter even scored four runs! Tommy Pham is worth a look with the way that he’s been playing.

Bargain Shoppers:

It has been the really cheap Angels that have hit Masahiro Tanaka. Ian Kinsler, Zack Cozart, and Kole Calhoun are the three that have hit homers against Tanaka. Kinsler has four RBI as well. Mike Trout is 4-10 against Tanaka, but has no counting stats.

You know what? Yonder Alonso is cheap enough to take a chance on against Cole tonight, but I don’t know that I trust anyone against Cole right now.

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 some EPL picks coming your way. And don’t forget, Fantasy CPR has something big coming your way in June. Stay tuned for that!