DraftKings Early MLB Picks June 20: Kluber should dominate Sox

CINCINNATI, OH – AUGUST 19: General view as rain delays the start of the game between the Cincinnati Reds and Kansas City Royals at Great American Ball Park on August 19, 2015 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Early MLB Picks June 20: Kluber should dominate Sox

We have an even split on our Wednesday with seven early games and seven prime time games. the Angels and Diamondbacks are both off today. That means lots of action on both slates! This one will focus on the afternoon breakdown. There are a couple of aces on tap here, and a fairly solid middle tier. Which hitters do we go after with Coors off the table? Let’s take a look!

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Pitchers are going to be tough to use in Cincinnati today. They are going to be lucky to get this one in, but with this being an interleague game and harder to make up, expect a lengthy delay later in the game, so starting pitchers are out for me. They are going to be dodging showers in Cleveland, but the weather looks to clear up as the afternoon goes on. This may be delayed, but should play as normal.

There is a 18 mph wind blowing out to left center in San Francisco, but the Ballpark is built to neutralize that. Wind shouldn’t be much of a factor this afternoon.

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 $20 in free 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

LOS ANGELES, CA – JUNE 15: Ross Stripling #68 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches to the San Francisco Giants during the first inning at Dodger Stadium on June 15, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Corey Kluber ($12,600): The White Sox career numbers against Kluber look pretty good. They are hitting .234 off of him in 141 at bats with six homers, 15 RBI, and 54 strikeouts. However, if he just walks Abreu three times, the rest of the team is hitting just .181 in 94 at bats with one homer, three RBI, and 39 strikeouts. There is enough potential here for Kluber to be your ace. He carries far less risk and far more strikeout upside than anyone else this afternoon.

J.A. Happ ($10,100): I have moved off of Happ lately, and I’m glad I have. He has only gone past the fifth inning once in his last three starts. That is uncharacteristic of Happ, but with the limited options afforded on a short slate, I’m inclined to chase Happ and the sure win despite his subpar numbers at home. I’m not a huge fan here, but for the price and the lack of better options in the middle tier, I might throw Happ out there and see what happens.

Middle Tier:

Ross Stripling ($9,700): Okay, I know this is a small sample size, but the Cubs are 0-18 against Stripling with six strikeouts. Not one Cubbie has reached base against Stripling yet, and the entire starting lineup has faced him at least once. Stripling isn’t going to pitch a no hitter here, but as good as he has been since joining the rotation coupled with the Cubs’ ineptitude against him has me willing to move out of the top tier.

Tyson Ross ($8,100): Ross has limited experience against Oakland, but he has the ability to put together a strong game here. Oakland strikes out quite a bit, and Ross’s calling card has always been his strikeout ability. The problem with Ross lately has been going deep into games. He has only made it to six innings once in his last four starts. He should break that streak here.

Michael Wacha ($7,800): Wacha’s price took a huge dip after he was blistered by the Cubs last week. Wacha did pick up 25.3 DraftKings points against the Phillies earlier this year, but that game was in St. Louis. Wacha’s career numbers against the Phillies aren’t great, and that has a lot to do with his career marks at Citizens Bank Park. Wacha has a 7.00 ERA in two career starts there, lasting only a combined nine innings in both of those games. In fact, he gave up ten runs, but only seven were earned. There is huge risk here, but with a desolate middle tier and Wacha’s breakout season, he still may be worth a look at a depressed price.

Bargain Pitchers:

Jake Arrieta ($6,800): Arrieta has actually been brilliant at home this year. He owns a 1.69 ERA in six home starts, and he has actually handled the Cardinals well in his career. The Cardinals are hitting only .222 against Arrieta with five homers and 13 runs in 162 at bats, but they only have 46 strikeouts. You can deal with the lower strikeout numbers at this price. With Arrieta’s dominance at home this year, he is worth a flier today.

Frankie Montas ($6,700): Montas has pitched well against weaker offensive teams, but he had his troubles with Houston. Hey, who hasn’t? We can’t fault him for that. Montas gets a tasty matchup against the light hitting Padres in San Diego today. Only Houston has scored more than two runs on Montas in four starts. I expect the Padres to be held under two as well.

Tyler Mahle ($6,300): Those of you who gambled on Sal Romano last night were rewarded with a solid game. We should see something similar from Mahle, who is averaging 6.2 more DraftKings points per game in home starts. This Detroit offense is having trouble putting anything together, so the potential is there. I like Mahle quite a lot at a SP2 if the showers steer clear of Cincinnati.

CINCINNATI, OH – AUGUST 20: Adam Duvall #23 of the Cincinnati Reds celebrates with Joey Votto #19 of the Cincinnati Reds after hitting a home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Great American Ball Park on August 20, 2016 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) /

Cincinnati Reds vs. Michael Fulmer:

I don’t trust Michael Fulmer in any road stadium, let alone a hitter’s park like this. I could see stacking the Reds here, but I can’t find enough of them that I want to use. However, I like Suarez and Joey Votto for sure. Curt Casali is a great, cheap option at catcher, and the power of Adam Duvall is always in play. Okay, I’m stacking. Gennett and Billy Hamilton are looking better and better today.

Toronto Blue Jays vs. Anibal Sanchez:

The Braves are hitting a robust .292 against Sanchez with five homers and 16 runs in only 89 at bats. Teoscar Hernandez has two homers and five RBI off of Sanchez in his only game against him, so yeah, I want him in there. Kendrys Morales is 10-31(.323) with a homer, four RBI, and eight runs off of Sanchez. Granderson has also taken him deep. To cap this thing off, I’m looking the direction of Kevin Pillar and Russell Martin if he is in the lineup.

Miami Marlins vs. Derek Holland:

We can’t just ignore Holland’s poor performance at home, even against a team like the Marlins. This wont be a popular stack because the likelihood of home runs here is frighteningly low, but we saw a Nationals stack pay off big without homers from Rendon or Harper. Lewis Brinson is starting to hit, so building around him and Starlin Castro looks like the place to start. Miguel Rojas is worth a look, and so is Brian Anderson. If the Marlins start Realmuto, he is a no-brainer as well. If Realmuto sits, Justin Bour may even be worth a look here against a guy with a 5.55 ERA in five home starts. Does that increase to 6.66 in six starts? It very well could.

Next: Other notes for 6-20

HOUSTON, TX – MAY 20: Francisco Lindor #12 of the Cleveland Indians, center, celebrates with Edwin Encarnacion #10, Jason Kipnis #22 and Jose Ramirez #11 after defeating the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park on May 20, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Reynaldo Lopez has held his own against Cleveland so far, but I still don’t trust it. Edwin Encarnacion, Lindor, and Jose Ramirez are all worth a look here. The White Sox pitching staff has had issues in this series.

I know that I mentioned Tyson Ross up there, but Oakland has too many left handed pitchers to just ignore the platoon advantage. Dustin Fowler and Matt Olson are for sure in play here. Khris Davis is 4-7 with four walks and a solo homer off of Ross so far.

I don’t trust the Giants enough to stack against anyone, but it is worth noting that they are hitting .324 against Jose Urena. Brandon Belt and Nick Hundley are in play for sure. So is McCutchen. After that, it gets a bit dicey, especially if Posey in not in the lineup.

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Middle Tier:

Tommy Pham and Yadier Molina have both homered against Jake Arrieta. Matt Carpenter has done it twice. Marcell Ozuna also has a homer off of Arrieta, but that is his only hit in 12 at bats. All of these Cardinals options are reasonably priced if you don’t trust Arrieta’s home success so far.

The only Tiger I would really even consider right now is Leonys Martin, and I’m not all that crazy about him. There are plenty of other options until this offense starts producing with consistency again.

Surprisingly, the current Phillies have yet to hit a homer off of Michael Wacha. Odubel Herrera does have six RBI in only 13 at bats though. He and Maikel Franco are my target Phillies for this one.

Jose Abreu is enjoying a discounted price against Kluber, but he has clobbered Kluber in his career. Abreu is 16-47(.340) with five homers and 12 RBI against Cleveland’s ace. The rest of the team is just 17-94 (.181) with one homer and three RBI with 39 strikeouts.

The only Padre I’m really interested in today, and most days for that matter, is Eric Hosmer.

Bargain Shoppers:

It should come as no surprise that the biggest Jon Lester killer for the Dodgers is Enrique Hernandez. Kike is 4-14 with two homers and six RBI off of Lester, and will only set you back $3,300. Cody Bellinger has also homered off of Lester, but Hernandez is the Dodger I really want this afternoon. Matt Kemp is worth a look as well until he cools off.

Tyler Flowers is the only current Brave with a homer against Happ so far. Even if he doesn’t start at catcher, Flowers should DH in the AL Park. The Braves need his bat, and as many other righties as they can find. Albies is a decent option, but I’m not all that interested in anyone other than Flowers.

Next: DFS MLB Game by Game Breakdowns

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