DraftKings MLB Picks August 28: Scherzer or Nola?

KANSAS CITY, MO – AUGUST 16: Kansas City Royals mascot Sluggerrr checks for rain during a delay prior to the start of the game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Kauffman Stadium on August 16, 2018 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB Picks August 28: Scherzer or Nola?

We have a full 15 games slate coming at you in the main DraftKings tournament. That means a whole lot of places to blow our allotted $50k. Where should we go? We have a staggering seven pitchers priced at $10,000 or more! At least we don’t have to figure out a Coors stack to go with it. The middle tier drops off in a hurry, and we need a bargain if we’re going to stack Red Sox. Let’s get into this behemoth!

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Rain could be a problem in the later innings at Wrigley. The starters should be okay, but if this game isn’t finished in two hours, there is a good chance that it doesn’t get finished at all. Rain is likely in Kansas City as well to the point where they could have a problem even getting the game started, let alone finished.

Which is a shame since the wind is blowing out to left at 14 mph in Kansas City. The same wind is happening across the state in St. Louis as well. The wind is a factor in Wrigley as well with a 12 mph wind blowing out to left. It’s not as strong as yesterday, but that right handed power is still going to see a boost there. We have a 12 mph wind in from right in Texas, but it is hot and humid, so the ball will still fly. Wind is blowing out at 12 mph to right in Fenway and 14 mph out to right in Cleveland. We could see some high run totals! Baltimore could get lost in the shuffle since the wind is negligible there, but the weather is almost as hot and humid as Texas. Expect an uptick in offense there as well.

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 a free shot at a million dollars, use this link for the referral bonus with your first deposit of $5 or more! You will receive a free entry into the Fantasy Football Millionaire contest on opening weekend!

NEW YORK, NY – AUGUST 23: Jacob deGrom #48 of the New York Mets pitches against the San Francisco Giants during their game at Citi Field on August 23, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Max Scherzer ($12,600): The Phillies are hitting just .194 against Scherzer in 247 at bats with three homers, just 15 runs, and 69 strikeouts. That strikeout total is actually a little low, but Scherzer has racked up 25 of those in just 13.1 innings against the Phillies this year. Max has 65.6 DraftKings points in only two games against the Phillies, and surprisingly, he hasn’t won either of those thanks to Nola. He is elite whether he gets the win or not, and is absolutely worth the price if you don’t mind spending on pitching tonight.

Jacob deGrom ($12,200): The Cubs are only hitting .226 against deGrom in his career with only one homer and three runs in 84 at bats with a staggering 23 strikeouts. I’m a little less crazy about this with the wind blowing out at Wrigley, but the ball can’t carry if you can’t hit it. deGrom is still an elite option here. Scherzer has higher strikeout upside, but deGrom has been arguably the better pitcher. There is no wrong answer to this question.

Aaron Nola ($10,600): The Nationals are still hitting .230 against Nola with four homers and 13 runs in 161 at bats, but he has 52 strikeouts. The fact is that Nola has owned the Nationals this year. He is 3-0 with a 1.25 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 21.2 innings against Washington this year. It’s acceptable to pocket the $2,000 and move off of Max here with the way Nola is pitching.

Clay Buchholz ($10,000): Last week, I decried using Buchholz at this price. He proceeded to put up 31.4 DraftKings points against the Angels. That was his second straight 30+ DraftKings point game. It’s time to say that Buchholz can be worth this price in the right situation. This is the right situation. The Giants are are hitting only .239 against Buchholz with three homers and seven runs in 88 at bats with 28 strikeouts. Those are some good numbers. Buchholz doesn’t have the strikeout upside that any of those above him do, so it is really tough to pay this price. However, against the Giants, he may be the safest pitcher out there.

Middle Tier:

Kyle Freeland ($9,200): I can’t believe that Freeland isn’t more expensive, but I’m glad he’s not. Freeland has a 2.40 ERA in his last ten starts with nearly a strikeout per inning in that span. Freeland has never faced the Angels before, but outside of Trout, there isn’t a lot to worry about in this lineup with Upton out. There is really good potential here if you want to drop out of the top tier.

Madison Bumgarner ($9,000): Bumgarner has a brilliant 1.71 ERA in seven home starts this year. On top of that, Bumgarner has actually pitched pretty well against Arizona this year. He has given up three runs in 15 innings, but only has eight strikeouts in that span. The lack of strikeouts put a damper on an otherwise good stat line. There is some danger in this lineup, but with as good as MadBum has been at home, I think he’s a pretty safe play here.

Julio Teheran ($8,200): Teheran struggled at home to begin the year, but now his home ERA is a half run lower than his road mark. Teheran dominated the Rays in Tampa earlier this year, holding them to just four hits in six scoreless innings while striking out seven. That was good for 29.1 DraftKings points. If he can come within five points of that tonight, we’ll be ecstatic. It is certainly possible consider the relative lack of lefty power on the Rays.

Bargain Pitchers:

Thomas Pannone ($7,300): Pannone just dominated the Orioles in his starting debut, surrendering just one hit in seven innings to this same Orioles team. Pannone picked up 23.4 DraftKings points in that one, but if Baltimore gets some hits, it will take a chunk out of that score in a hurry. He struck out only three Orioles in that one, which is a bit concerning since the Orioles strike out quite a bit.

Jake Junis ($7,100): I am completely avoiding this game for weather reasons, especially since this game looks to be a serious postponement threat. If the forecast changes though, put me down for an order of Junis. The Tigers are hitting just .173 off of him in 75 at bats with only four runs and 17 strikeouts.

LOS ANGELES, CA – AUGUST 24: Manny Machado #8 , Matt Kemp #27 and Yasmani Grandal #9 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate after defeating the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium on August 24, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. Players are wearing special jerseys with their nicknames on them during Players’ Weekend. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) /

Boston Red Sox vs. Jose Urena:

Urena will be back after serving his suspension for throwing at Acuna. His punishment (or reward since he didn’t have to face the Braves again) is an outing in Boston. Urena pitched well against the Red Sox earlier this year, but that was in Miami. Fenway is like half the size of that park! Boston hitters should feast here. Martinez, Mookie, and Benintendi are all in play here. I also like Xander Bogaerts if you can afford him with this stack. Mitch Moreland is somewhat reasonably priced as well. With the wind blowing out in Fenway, it could get awfully interesting, and not in a good way, for Urena.

Toronto Blue Jays vs. TBA:

Buck Showalter said that “someone” would be promoted to start tonight. As of now, we have no idea who that is. At any rate, with the favorable hitting conditions and the power that Toronto does have, there are hitters to target no matter who the appointed is. Justin Smoak and Kendrys Morales are both switch hitters, so they play either way. I like Teoscar Hernandez, Lourdes Gurriel, and either Granderson or Grichuk to finish off the stack depending on whether a righty or lefty takes the hill. Most of the Jays are affordable enough that we can still get some pretty good pitching with this stack.

New York Yankees vs. James Shields:

Shields has a dreadful 6.12 ERA on the road, and Yankee Stadium is a hitter’s paradise. Shields hasn’t faced the Yankees this year, and only Giancarlo Stanton has homered off of him before among the healthy, but Shields has allowed 16 homers in ten road starts. This could get really ugly! Miguel Andujar, Gleyber Torres, Aaron Hicks, and Brett Gardner are all worth stacking here. Shields is an equal opportunity homer distributor to both sides.

Cleveland Indians vs. Kyle Gibson:

Remember about, oh, exactly three weeks ago when I said that Gibson is worth using in Cleveland because of his great road splits? Gibson got bombarded in that game, and has allowed 11 runs (eight earned) in his three starts since. The Tribe are hitting .310 with 11 homers and 40 runs against Gibson in 232 at bats. Edwin has four of those homers and 10 RBI! Yan Gomes has homered twice off of Gibson, and is very reasonably priced. Jose Ramirez, Brantley, Kipnis, and Alonso have all homered off of Gibson as well. Don’t forget about Lindor! He hasn’t homered against Gibson yet, but e is 11-31 with six runs and three steals.

Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Ariel Jurado:

Here we go down the Dodgers rabbit hole again. Another spot that looks like a great spot to attack with their wealth of good hitters. How many times have they failed me? Just in the last month even? Half a dozen? Maybe more. We can’t think like that in the DFS world. Jurado has a 6.55 ERA and home and 6.40 overall, so in no way is he a good pitcher. Muncy, Bellinger, and Machado are all elite plays here. Yasiel Puig crushes righties, so use him as well. You can top this off with Joc Pederson leading off or with Yasmani Grandal. It really doesn’t matter. If I could start eight Dodgers, I would probably do it here.

New York Mets vs. Cole Hamels:

The Mets stack did pretty well last night, and they are even cheaper tonight! The wind isn’t blowing quite as hard, but the Mets get another lefty. Wilmer Flores is a must play against a lefty, and Kevin Plawecki looks to be the same. Todd Frazier is the most expensive at $4,100, but he has homered against Hamels before. Jay Bruce has slugged two off of Hamels. Bautista and Jose Reyes have clobbered Hamels as well. Ay right handed Met you want to throw out there is a good play here. So is Conforto.

St. Louis Cardinals vs. Ivan Nova:

The Cardinals are hitting .360 with four homers and 18 runs in just 75 at bats against Nova. They have also walked more than they have struck out. Matt Carpenter is an elite option, and so is Matt Adams. Gyorko has a homer and four RBI in just eight at bats. Yadi is 6-10 with a homer and five RBI. Even Kolten Wong has homered off of Nova. There really isn’t a bad play on the Cardinals side of this.

San Diego Padres vs. Felix Hernandez:

That’s right. Felix has been so bad, especially on the road, that I am advocating a stack against him. Felix’s road ERA is 7.46 in 11 starts, and this team has some serious power. Hernandez isn’t really striking out anyone anymore either. With all the balls in play, bad things are going to happen. Eric Hosmer, Renfroe, Wil Myers, Manuel Margot, Franmil Reyes, Travis Jankowski. Mix and match ones the lineups come out. They are all in play here.

Seattle Mariners vs. Jacob Nix:

Nix has had a rough start to his career with a 6.17 ERA in three starts. It wont get any easier here. Nelson Cruz has the light tower power that we all covet. Jean Segura, Cano, and Haniger look really good here as well. Kyle Seager has good power and can save you some money. This isn’t the sure fire late night hammer that we all covet, but there is serious potential in this game.

MILWAUKEE, WI – AUGUST 03: Eric Thames #7 of the Milwaukee Brewers celebrates a three run walk off home run against the Colorado Rockies during the ninth inning of a game at Miller Park on August 3, 2018 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

As good as Nola has been this year, Bryce Harper still hits him. Harper is 9-27 with two homers and five RBI against Nola in his career, but don’t think about using any of his teammates.

Junior Guerra usually doesn’t put up bad numbers anywhere…..except Cincinnati. Guess where he is tonight? Eugenio Suarez, Jose Peraza, and Billy Hamilton have all homered against Guerra and they have all hit him well. You could turn this into a stack with Scooter and Tucker, but those are the main three to look at.

Anthony DeSclafani is a pretty average pitcher in a hitter friendly ballpark. He has also struggled against the Brewers this year. Only Aguliar has homered off of him, but Eric Thames is a Red killer. Yelich is worth a look as well if you are going away from the well traveled stacks.

I’m a pretty big fan of Freddie Freeman and Nick Markakis against Yonny Chirinos here. Yonny has struggled some on the road, and this is a lefty friendly park. I certainly couldn’t blame you if you wanted to use Acuna either.

Mike Trout is the only Angel that I would even consider tonight, and honestly, I think we can do better for the price.

I’m really torn on what to do with MadBum tonight. On one hand, he has been great at home. On another, Arizona has hit him hard. Well, mostly just one. Goldschmidt has three homers and ten RBI against MadBum already. Pollock has three homers and six RBI as well.

Walker at the Texas Rangers? You can’t make this stuff up! At any rate, this likely wont be a good trip for Walker Buehler. The ball really carries in the heat and humidity of Texas in August, and the Rangers are loaded with lefty power. Joey Gallo and Shin-Soo Choo are my favorites, but Odor and Profar are worth a look as well if you are really looking to go after the rookie.

Those pesky A’s did enough damage to Gerrit Cole in the first inning to keep him from having a really big night. I’m not all that crazy about paying up for Morton for that reason. He has been solid against the A’s, but not enough for this price. I would much rather take a shot with Khris Davis, who has homered off of Morton twice. The red hot Matt Chapman is worth a look as well.

Honestly, the Angels bullpen is better than Despaigne, so I’m only really after Blackmon and maybe Arenado here tonight. The Rockies on the road are far from a sure thing.

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Middle Tier:

Brian Johnson‘s ERA is nearly 5 at home, so using Brian Anderson or Starlin Castro is not a bad idea here. I don’t know that I would trust any other righties though.

If you are going to play any Cub, it should be Anthony Rizzo. The N.L. player of the week is the only Cub to homer off of deGrom. He is also the only Cub to drive in a run off of him!

Carlos Carrasco continues to struggle against the Twins, so there is no reason to pay for him. However, I don’t trust many Twins right now either. Eddie Rosario is 8-21(.381) with a homer and two RBI. Mauer is 14-39(.359) with a homer and three RBI off of Carrasco. I would limit my exposure to them.

Lance Lynn has a 6.35 ERA in three starts at Yankee Stadium so far. You can take a shot at him with some power here like Delmonico, Palka, or Matt Davidson. You could even be contrarian and stack White Sox if you are okay with rolling the dice.

Jack Flaherty has been really good against the Pirates, but the strikeout upside just isn’t there, and with so many other great options just a couple hundred more, I see no reason to go for Flaherty. I would rather use Starling Marte since he has homered against Flaherty. Adam Frazier is worth a look too.

Bargain Shoppers:

The way to attack Edwin Jackson could be with the cheaper Astros. Martin Maldonado is 6-14 with two homers and seven RBI off of him already. Marwin has homered off of him as well. So has Alex Bregman if you want to pay up a little.

Steven Duggar homered last night, and has homered against Buchholz in his career. McCutchen is 4-7 with a homer against Buchholz as well.

Pannone did dominate the Orioles, but it’s hot and humid in Baltimore. I am going to take a shot with a couple of right handed power bats against him here. Tim Beckham and Mark Trumbo are my favorites.

I would at least consider throwing Ji-Man Choi at Teheran as a one off play, but anyone against Teheran is pretty risky tonight.

The Phillies are cheap for a reason, but Nick Williams, Odubel Herrera, and Asdrubal Cabrera have the homers off of Scherzer if you feel like playing roulette.

Next. MLB Game by Game breakdown August 28. dark

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