DraftKings MLB Picks June 5: Should we use MadBum or CarMart?

BALTIMORE, MD – MAY 29: A general view during the sixth inning of the Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on May 29, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB Picks June 5: Should we use MadBum or CarMart?

The Twins and White Sox have a doubleheader at Target Field today, so we are left with 14 games for our main DraftKings tournament instead of 15. DraftKings is leaving both games of the double dip out of the tournaments tonight. That doesn’t matter. We still have a whole lot of good pitching options going today, including the return of CarMart and MadBum. Are either of them worth using for the price? Let’s see what we can find out!

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Watch out for some rain in Washington and Pittsburgh, but it shouldn’t be enough to threaten the game finishing. We could also be dodging some rain in New York.

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

BALTIMORE, MD – MAY 30: Max Scherzer #31 of the Washington Nationals pitches against the Baltimore Orioles during the first inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on May 30, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Max Scherzer ($13,300): Maybe the Rays should face Scherzer all the time. They are hitting .444 with two homers and four runs in just 18 at bats! Far more likely is that this is a fluke culled from these players facing Scherzer with other teams and not this same lineup. Scherzer has seven strikeouts in those 18 at bats, which speaks louder than the runs he has given up. The strikeout potential is elite, as is the win potential. If there is such thing as a bargain at this price, Scherzer is it tonight.

Corey Kluber ($12,600): The Brewers are only hitting .243 against Kluber with two homers and three runs to go with eight strikeouts in 37 at bats. Not huge numbers, but they are good enough when you measure what Kluber has done this year. Scherzer has more strikeout potential, but I think Kluber gets close to as many points as Max tonight.

Patrick Corbin ($9,900): Corbin’s numbers against the Giants aren’t great, but he has been racking up so many strikeouts this year, that he hasn’t really had a bad game points wise. Just look at his last start against the Reds. Corbin gave up six runs in six innings, but still came up with 16.1 DraftKings points. The huge strikeout potential mitigates any risk here. And there is the little part about Corbin putting up 63.8 DraftKings points in two games against the Giants so far in 2018.

Ross Stripling ($9,600): Stripling has 28 strikeouts over his last three starts, and has only allowed three runs (two earned) in that span. Clayton who? The Dodgers wont forget about Kershaw anytime soon, but us as DFS players underestimating Stripling could be a mistake. He gets a Pirates team that is only hitting .208 off of him in 24 at bats in what is a better pitcher’s park than Stripling’s home digs. There is very good potential here.

Sean Newcomb ($9,200): This is a cavernous ballpark with a relatively weak team hitting inside of it. The Padres are only hitting .238 against Newcomb with one runs and five strikeouts in his only start against them. Newcomb has also been impressive on the road this year, putting up a 2.06 mark in seven road starts. The Padres do hit lefties a lot better than righties, but the potential is still high for Newcomb here. He isn’t overpriced like Teheran was last night.

Middle Tier:

Andrew Heaney ($8,600): The Royals are bad. Andrew Heaney is not. That alone should be enough. The Royals have managed to hit a solid .278 against Heaney, but they have no homers and only two runs to go with seven strikeouts in 18 at bats. The strikeout potential here is enticing. So is Heaney’s 3.07 home ERA. The Royals may not strike out at the rate that Heaney has been racking up the K’s, but they should get out plenty of times with little or no damage done.

Kyle Hendricks ($8,300): The splits on Hendricks are pretty severe so far. He has a 2.38 ERA in six home starts compared to a 4.50 ERA on the road. The Phillies are only hitting .241 off of Hendricks in 29 at bats with only one run to show for it, but only four strikeouts. There is solid potential here for a mid range arm, but the Phillies are still a pretty dangerous team.

Sean Manaea ($7,700): His no hitter looks like a distant memory since Manaea has allowed four or more runs in six straight starts. That streak could end tonight. Texas is hitting just .212 with one homer and four runs in 85 at bats with 18 strikeouts. There is serious potential for Manaea to get back on track here. Facing Matt Moore gives him a great shot at a win as well.

Joe Musgrove ($7,500): Musgrove has been brilliant over his first two starts at a Pirate. It’s not like they were against bad teams either. Musgrove held the Cardinals and Cubs combined to only one run in 14 innings. This Dodger offense is decent, but is not a lot better than either team Musgrove has faced so far. Musgrove looks a little too cheap tonight.

Bargain Pitchers:

Anthony DeSclafani ($6,200): Remember him? DeSclafani will have to knock a little rust off since he has not pitched in a major league game since the end of the 2016 season. However, he did post a 3.28 ERA in that season. The Rockies aren’t nearly as potent on the road, so there is decent potential here, but also sizeable risk. This is still the Rockies we are talking about.

Jason Vargas ($5,000): Vargas is very familiar with the Orioles from his time in the American League. The O’s are only hitting .193 with just one homer and four runs in 109 at bats with a decent 27 strikeouts against Vargas. If you need to save some money on pitching, this is a good place to do it.

Alex Cobb ($4,800): Cobb has been better lately, but that isn’t saying much. He still has allowed three or four runs in each of his last four starts, but that still counts as an improvement. Cobb gets a reprieve there though since now he gets the other New York team, as opposed to a Yankees team that has crushed him. The Mets have not. The current Mets are only 8-40 with two runs and 14 strikeouts. There is good potential here against an offense that is missing a huge piece with Cespedes out.

ANAHEIM, CA – MAY 02: Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels celebrates his solo homerun with Justin Upton #8 for a 1-1 tie with the Baltimore Orioles during the first inning at Angel Stadium on May 2, 2018 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

Washington Nationals vs. Nathan Eovaldi:

Nathan Eovaldi is one of the best Rays pitchers, and has good strikeout upside, but there is also serious potential for a blowup against the Nationals. The Nats are hitting .400 in 50 at bats so far against Eovaldi. Bryce Harper is 7-16(.438) with a solo homer and four runs. Mark Reynolds is 3-4 with a run. Anthony Rendon is 8-21(.381) with two doubles and a RBI off of Eovaldi. Matt Adams is 2-6 with a pair of RBI. You could even use this as a full stack if you want since Turner has never faced Eovaldi.

New York Yankees vs. Marco Estrada:

Estrada is pitching better lately, but the Yankees have always had his numbers. The Yankees are hitting .254 against Estrada with a staggering 21 homes and 39 runs in only 209 at bats. That is better than a homer every ten at bats! Tyler Austin and Gregorius have three homers each. Stanton and Gary Sanchez have slugged four each! Andujar, Aaron Hicks, and Gardner all have homers off of Estrada as well. Judge and Neil Walker have two. Only Sanchez and Garnder are under the Mendoza line against Estrada, so just about every Yankee is safe tonight.

Boston Red Sox vs. Artie Lewicki:

Lewicki posted a 5.06 ERA at AAA Toledo this season. He has been marginally effective out of the major league bullpen, but none of that has prepared him for starting in Fenway. Benintendi, J.D. Martinez, and Bogaerts are favorites. Mitch Moreland and Eduardo Nunez are worth a look as well. Even a cheap Rafael Devers could be a cheap contrarian play to see if he can bust out of his slump against an average at best pitcher.

Cincinnati Reds vs. Kyle Freeland:

The Reds are hitting a robust .382 with three homers and nine runs in just 34 at bats against Freeland. Playing him in either Coors Field or Coors Field East has helped. This is a great situation for Jose Pereza, Scott Schebler, and Joey Votto, all of whom have homered off of Freeland so far. I prefer Suarez to any of them though. Even Billy Hamilton is worth a look. He is 3-6 with two steals and two RBI off of Freeland. The power potential of Adam Duvall is tempting as well.

Los Angeles Angels vs. anyone in powder blue:

Starting Brad Keller has become code for bullpen day in KC. Only one problem: their bullpen isn’t all that good. Trout, Upton, Pujols, and Andrelton Simmons are all in play here. So are Kinsler and Cozart.

Next: Other notes for 6-4

CLEVELAND, OH – OCTOBER 06: Jose Ramirez #11 and Francisco Lindor #12 of the Cleveland Indians celebrate scoring on a hit by Carlos Santana #41 in the first inning against the New York Yankees during game two of the American League Division Series at Progressive Field on October 6, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Cleveland has been decent against Junior Guerra over their careers, but Guerra has managed to avoid major damage. Still, I think Ramirez and Lindor are worth a look at the very least.

Count me as one of the people that doesn’t fully trust DeSclafani just yet. I’m a huge fan of Blackmon here. Same with Trevor Story and Arenado. I’m not ready to put a full stack out there just yet though.

Matt Moore’s stats against Oakland aren’t bad enough to really stack on him, but Jed Lowrie, Marcus Semien, Lucroy, and Chapman look like good plays. Khris Davis is only 1-8 in his career against Moore.

Jordan Lyles has been good enough, especially at home, to not stack against him. However, I still like Freeman as a play here. Ender Inciarte and Nick Markakis are good picks as well.

Zach Eflin has pitched well enough lately that stacking against him could destroy your lineup. However, the Cubs have hit him well enough that I want some exposure. Rizzo is on a tear, so he’s in there. Bryant is 3-4 against Eflin, so count him in as well.

Jose Urena always seems to do a great job of escaping trouble, but I still like Pham, Matt Carpenter, and Greg Garcia against him tonight. Garcia is the only current Cardinal to homer off of Urena so far.

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Middle Tier:

I don’t trust CC right now, but I don’t really trust the Blue Jays offense either. The best approach is to get some exposure, preferably by guys that have hit him well. Kendrys Morales is one of those. Morales is 9-25(.360) with a homer and six RBI against CC. Justin Smoak is 10-31(.323) with two homers and seven RBI. Russell Martin has a homer and three RBI off of Sabathia as well.

Travis Shaw has both homers and all three RBI off of Corey Kluber for the Brewers. The rest of the team is 4-23 with no counting stats.

Shin-Soo Choo is the only current Ranger to homer against Manaea. Adrian Beltre has driven in the other three runs.

The Tigers have hit knuckleballer Steven Wright pretty hard. Miggy and McCann have both taken him deep before. V-Mart has three RBI in seven at bats. Castellanos has two in six at bats. There is potential here as well, though it is worth noting that Wright has a 2.25 ERA out of the bullpen this year.

There is no part of me that trusts MadBum at this price in his return. Especially when you have a guy like Goldy that has three homers against Bumgarner already in his career. I’ll wait until Bumgarner has a couple of starts under his belt before I start trusting him against offenses like this.

Yes, Alex Cobb has pitched better lately, and I’m even considering using him against the Mets. However, I still really like Brandon Nimmo here. Bruce, AGon, and Conforto could be worth a look as well.

I know that the Phillies have struggled against Hendricks some, but I still like Cesar Hernandez and Odubel Herrera here tonight.

I like James Paxton, but I think I like the depressed price of some of the Astros more. After all, they have scraped together 12 runs in 125 at bats even though the Astros have yet to homer off of Paxton. For that reason, I am more inclined to use guys like Altuve and Correa over Springer and Gattis. Jake Marisnick is a nice way to save some cash as well.

Nelson Cruz is 11-33 with seven walks, four homers, and seven RBI in his career against Dallas Keuchel already. Kyle Seager and Jean Segura have homered off of Keuchel as well.

I do like Carlos Martinez, but I also don’t want to pay $11k for him in his first major league game in a month. Playing Derek Dietrich or Realmuto sounds much safer since the Cardinals will take every opportunity to pull Martinez with a comfortable lead.

Bargain Shoppers:

Jordy Mercer is the only Pirate to homer off of Ross Stripling so far. it was a two run shot.

Both Matt Duffy and Brad Miller have homered off of Max Scherzer in the past. They are good punt options at fairly weak positions if you need to save some cash.

Surprisingly, Chris Davis has the Orioles’ only home run against Jason Vargas. Vargas’s stats are good partially because he has never faced Manny Machado. If you have the capital, that is about the only Oriole that is really a must-have for me tonight.

I like Alcides Escobar as a cheap punt against Heaney tonight, but not much else from the Royals side.

Hunter Pence has slugged four homers off of Patrick Corbin, and is 15-38 against him overall. Brandon Crawford actually has two homers off of Corbin as well.

Next: DFS MLB Game by Game Breakdowns

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