DraftKings Early MLB Picks June 30: Verlander looks elite

MIAMI, FL – JUNE 12: A general view of the outfield with the roof and windows open at Marlins Park prior to the Miami Marlins taking on the Boston Red Sox on June 12, 2012 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Marc Serota/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Early MLB Picks June 30: Verlander looks elite

Our Saturday is all chopped up. There is a “turbo” tournament that takes the two early games. The next six afternoon games are the early tournament, followed by the remaining seven as the main slate. There is an all day tournament so we can get in on all of this. There are some good early options since deGrom was moved back to today. The middle tier is mostly barren, but we can find the value to pay up if we so choose.

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We have no rain for the afternoon, and the only wind of not is 12 mph out to right center in Oakland. If the roof is open in Miami, the balls will fly because its hot and humid.

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. We have plenty of writers on here who give you relevant information no matter which site you play on!

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

OAKLAND, CA – JUNE 15: Tyler Skaggs #45 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim pitches against the Oakland Athletics in the bottom of the first inning at the Oakland Alameda Coliseum on June 15, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Jacob deGrom ($13,600): deGrom is worth mentioning on a short slate, but his numbers against the Marlins aren’t great. They haven’t changed since yesterday. However, if he can stay away from Bour, the rest of the team has struggled against deGrom. The strikeout upside is easily the best on the slate. Skaggs is a very strong pivot, but I can see deGrom having a really good game today as well.

Justin Verlander ($13,400): I much prefer Verlander over deGrom, and past stats is only part of the reason. Verlander picked up 29.9 DraftKings points on the Rays earlier this year. Overall, the Rays are hitting just .171 off of Verlander in 82 at bats with one homer and two runs to go with 24 strikeouts. There are a couple of ways to attack this slate. Verlander and an Orioles stack are a bit more risky, but it may be about the only way that you can afford him.

Middle Tier:

Tyler Skaggs ($11,100): I keep looking for reasons to fade Skaggs, and I can only think of one: the fact that the Orioles are heavy with right handed hitters. I’m not sure it matters. Skaggs has only given up two earned runs in four June starts. On top of that, Skaggs, has a 2.14 ERA in nine road starts. The Orioles strike out a lot, and Skaggs has 94 strikeouts in 87 innings pitched this year. The righty heavy lineup is no reason to miss out on what could be the highest scorer of the afternoon.

Bargain Pitchers:

Jeremy Hellickson ($6,700): Only three current Phillies have faced Hellickson. They are a combined 2-15. Hellickson is not a big strikeout guy, so there is plenty of risk here. However, Hellickson put up a stellar 2.29 ERA in nine starts this year. Hellickson is a good SP2 option in his former home park.

Tyler Mahle ($6,400): Mahle has actually been a solid pitcher this year, which is surprising for those of us that remember his rough start. Mahle put up 12.7 DraftKings points against Milwaukee earlier this year, which is a decent return for this small of an investment. Mahle has only allowed ten runs (eight earned) in five June starts. That includes starts in Atlanta and against Colorado. I suspect that he puts together a solid outing here today as well.

Pablo Lopez ($5,300): We rolled the dice with Alcantara last night against the Mets, and that worked out pretty well. This could be another situation to do the same. Lopez had a 0.62 ERA in eight AA starts and a 3.38 ERA in four AAA starts. The Mets aren’t a lot better than most of those AAA offenses, and Lopez has the benefit of pitching in an extreme pitcher’s park. There is good potential here with not a ton of risk.

CINCINNATI, OH – AUGUST 5: Joey Votto #19 of the Cincinnati Reds celebrates with Adam Duvall #23 of the Cincinnati Reds after hitting a home run in the first inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Great American Ball Park on August 5, 2017 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) /

Los Angeles Angels vs. Andrew Cashner:

Cashner has put together three quality starts in three tries in June, but he still gave up three runs in each of those games. When you have a team that can hit like the Angels against an average pitcher, a stack is not a bad idea. Trout is an elite play. Upton and Kole Calhoun are just below that. Andrelton Simmons and Luis Valbuena are worth a look on the cheaper side of things.

Cleveland Indians vs. Edwin Jackson:

Jackson did very well against the Tigers, but this is an entirely different animal. I really like Jose Ramirez and Lindor here. Yan Gomes, Edwin Encarnacion, and Jason Kipnis are worth using as well. Of course, there is an outside chance that Jackson will handcuff these guys again, so I am probably not going with a full stack. Yonder Alonso has two homers and four RBI against Edwin Jackson already. He could be the sneaky play.

Cincinnati Reds vs. Jhoulys Chacin:

This has been a high scoring series already, and that isn’t going to change anytime soon. The Reds offense is firing on all cylinders right now, and Chacin doesn’t pitch well in hitter’s parks. Look at his numbers in Coors. The Reds have four homers and 12 runs to just 14 strikeouts in 67 at bats. Joey Votto has two homers and four of the RBI. Jose Peraza and Adam Duvall have also homered off of him. I also like Schebler leading off and Scooter Gennett batting cleanup.

Houston Astros vs. Matt Andriese and bullpen:

The past two days a Houston stack has come up empty. However, Andriese gave up three runs to Houston in 2.2 innings earlier this year. Jose Altuve hit a homer in that one. Reddick and Tyler White drove in the other runs. You can take a chance with cheap Astros here since they are mostly the ones that have been producing. George Springer is definitely worth a look after a day off though, and despite the team’s struggle to score against Tampa, Alex Bregman remains red hot.

Next: Other notes for 6-29

PHILADELPHIA, PA – JUNE 29: Bryce Harper #34 of the Washington Nationals hits a three-run home run during the fourth inning of a game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on June 29, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Adam Plutko has four win in six starts, but he also has a 4.65 ERA. Stacking against any pitcher in Oakland is a risk because of that huge park, but I definitely want some exposure to this. Khris Davis is an elite play here. I also like Dustin Fowler and Matt Joyce with the platoon advantage at the top of the order.

The Nationals beat up on Philly last night. Bryce Harper even got back going, so he is worth a look again today. Velasquez was very good against the Nationals in D.C. He also has a 2.79 road ERA. Velasquez has a miserable 6.23 ERA in nine home starts, so fire up Rendon, Daniel Murphy, and Juan Soto here as well. Even Wilmer Difo has homered off of Velasquez before.

Here’s a shocker: Eric Thames has Milwaukee’s only homer off of Tyler Mahle. Christian Yelich is worth a look as well if he is healthy enough to play.

Brandon Nimmo is definitely worth playing against a rookie. I’m not sure how much I trust the rest of the Mets offense though. Asdrubal and Conforto are usually worth a look, but they are both struggling. This may be another day to leave the Mets on the bench again.

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Middle Tier:

I don’t see any middle ground on Skaggs today. Either you are going to stack the Oriole righties against him, or you are going to use him. The reason is that most of the Orioles are cheap. If you are using the Orioles, Danny Valencia, Mark Trumbo, and Adam Jones are the ones to target for the power potential. I’m not sure that Machado is worth the price.

Bargain Shoppers:

Justin Bour is cheap, and he is 8-19(.421) with two homers and six RBI off of Jacob deGrom. The rest of the team is 21-98(.214) with no homers and five RBI with 22 strikeouts.

I don’t trust a lot of Phillies against Hellickson, and honestly, if you are going to spend the money for Hoskins or Hernandez, there are better options. That said, a guy like Nick Williams or Jorge Alfaro are nice punts here against Hellickson, He is still pitching above his head.

C.J. Cron has the only homer and both RBI for the Rays against Verlander. However, he is only 5-23(.217) overall, so there is the risk of a zero here as well.

Next: DFS MLB Game by Game Breakdowns

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