DraftKings Main MLB Picks August 23: Can we trust Hamels as the ace?

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

DraftKings Main MLB Picks August 23: Can we trust Hamels as the ace?

Calling this the main DraftKings slate is a bit misleading. It has the same number of games as the early slate with the Coors game left for limbo and the all day slate. First off, this is easily the worst of the two slates when it comes to pitching. Those of you toiling in the all day tournament will likely leave all of these arms alone. Without Coors or Boston to stack, where do we spend all of that extra cash? Don’t worry, I will find you someplace!

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Rain wont bother the night slate either, but the roof may be closed in Miami, which should make for a little less carry. There is a crosswind blowing at 13 mph towards left in Minneapolis that could kill some fly balls.

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!

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OAKLAND, CA – AUGUST 18: Trevor Cahill #53 of the Oakland Athletics pitches against the Houston Astros in the top of the first inning at Oakland Alameda Coliseum on August 18, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Cole Hamels ($10,400): Hamels has been brilliant with the Cubs. He has allowed just three runs (two earned) over 25 innings in four starts, winning three of them. The only one that he didn’t win was at Wrigley. Hamels gave up just one run on one hit and a walk through seven innings. The Reds offense is decent, and has some right handed power, but I have a hard time going against Hamels right now. He is really cruising.

Trevor Cahill ($9,200): Cahill has a brilliant 0.85 ERA and 0.76 WHIP in eight home starts this year. I wouldn’t start him away from home, but here, and especially against the Twins, Cahill borders on an elite option. He has 57 strikeouts in 52.2 home innings, and the Twins are pretty free swinging. There is a lot of potential here, but I can’t say for sure that he will outscore Hamels.

Middle Tier:

Tyler Glasnow ($8,400): Glasnow struggled a bit against the Red Sox, but hey, who hasn’t? The Royals offense is nowhere near as potent, and this is at home. For whatever reason, the Rays pitchers sure do love to pitch at the Trop. It isn’t because of fan ambience, that’s for sure. Whatever the reason, it has affected Glasnow as well. He has a 2.57 ERA in two home starts. A date with the Royals could lower that.

Sean Newcomb ($7,800): Newcomb is hitting that rookie wall, posting a 5.24 ERA over his last ten starts. That said, in three starts against the Marlins this year, Newcomb has racked up 67.2 DraftKings points. One of those outings was in the last ten games when Newcomb came up with 20.7 DraftKings points in Miami. I chalk it up to the offenses of the Brewers and Rockies that have made him look bad lately. This should be a solid bounceback outing for Newcomb here. The Marlins that are left are hitting just .182 off of him this year with 11 strikeouts and two runs.

Bargain Pitchers:

Danny Duffy ($6,400): I usually avoid pitchers in their first start off the DL, but Duffy only missed the minimum ten days. Before landing on the shelf, he was getting mauled again, but that was mostly at home. Duffy has a 3.68 ERA on the road. That’s not great, but it’s solid for the price. The Rays also strike out at a healthy clip and have little power to speak of. There is decent potential here. The current Rays are just 4-24(.167) against Duffy so far with one run and ten strikeouts.

Elieser Hernandez ($4,100): Unfortunately, the Marlins took away my favorite stack by replacing Straily with Hernandez. Hernandez struggled some in the majors this year, but not at home and not against Atlanta. He threw five scoreless innings in his last two appearances against the Braves, and has allowed just one run to them total in eight innings. The problem with Hernandez is that he isn’t really stretched out. The 2.43 home ERA looks really nice, but the fact that he probably wont go five innings takes a lot of the luster off. That said, he could hit double digit DraftKings points at the minimum price.

ATLANTA, GA – AUGUST 18: Ronald Acuna, Jr. #13 of the Atlanta Braves hits a sixth inning double against the Colorado Rockies at SunTrust Park on August 18, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

I still like Ronald Acuna here against Elieser Hernandez. Freddie Freeman is worth a look too if you have the money.

Khris Davis is a lock against Kohl Stewart right now. This is a dangerous offense that gets on base a lot against a guy with a WHIP north of 2. Stewart is going to be in trouble all night long. Nick Martini and Ramon Laureano are both still really cheap. Matt Olson could be just as dangerous as Davis, though Stewart has shown an inability to get anyone out thus far. All A’s are in play. Plug and play where you need them in your lineup.

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Middle Tier:

If you want to take a run at Danny Duffy, I wouldn’t blame you. He is going to give up a run or four. C.J. Cron and Willy Adames are my favorite places to take a shot here. Duffy has allowed 22 homers in 25 starts.

Anthony DeSclafani has been awful against the Cubs. Ben Zobrist has homered off of him twice. Daniel Murphy has a homer and five RBI, and had a nice Cubs debut. Contreras has taken him deep as well. The only Cub I’m off of for sure is Rizzo. He is just 2-22 lifetime against DeSclafani.

No Twins play has hit a home run off of Cahill, but they are hitting .290 off of him. If someone is going to get to Cahill, it will likely be Mauer or Eddie Rosario. Maybe Kepler, but I don’t want much exposure to this. Cahill has been superb at home.

Bargain Shoppers:

If you want to take a run at Newcomb, I would do it with Brian Anderson and J.T. Riddle on the cheap. No one on the team has hit Newcomb well.

It becomes increasingly more difficult to find a Royals hitter than I actually want to use. I looked through the lineup top to bottom, and the only one I really want to take a shot with is Lucas Duda for the power potential. The rest are really…..blah.

The only Red that I am really considering tonight against Hamels is Billy Hamilton, and that’s just because he does nothing but steal against the Cubs. Hamilton has a whopping 38 steals in 64 games against the Cubs. You can bet Billy will be running at some point, so long as he gets on base.

Next. MLB Game by Game breakdown August 23. dark

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