Main DraftKings MLB Picks April 14: Can we fade Max?

CHICAGO, IL – APRIL 7: Workmen from the Wrigley Field grounds crew shovel snow from the infield of the park in Chicago, Illinois April 7, 2003. The Chicago Cubs were to play their home opener against the Montreal Expos today but the game was cancelled due to the snow. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) /

Main DraftKings MLB Picks April 14: Can we fade Max?

The early slate is the main slate for our DraftKings MLB Sunday. There are eight early games and five in the late afternoon. Those will be in the late slate. The early slate is loaded with good pitching options, so it’s going to be hard to pack two aces in there. Can it be done?

Main DraftKings MLB Pitcher Plays:

Top Tier:

Max Scherzer ($10,700): I’m not going to sit here and tell you not to play Max Scherzer. Most of the time I wont do that. He is the most likely pitcher to strike out 20 on any given day. He may allow three runs, but so it goes. I will tell you it’s okay to fade Scherzer though. The Pirates are hitting .282 in 71 at bats with a homer and five runs and only 17 strikeouts. That’s not a ton of upside. You run a risk any time you fade Scherzer, just as you did by fading Verlander last night. However, if he means getting that super stack in your lineup, it may just be worth it.

Jose Berrios ($9,900): On one hand, Berrios is 19-10 in his career at home and is guaranteed a win with Zimmerman throwing BP on the other side. On the other, the Tigers are hitting .283 with two homers and five runs in 46 at bats. They have struck out 14 times though. Honestly, I can see Berrios getting very close to Scherzer numbers here at nearly $1,000 less. This is an acceptable fade option.

Charlie Morton ($9,700): Snellzilla dominated Toronto yesterday, but the bullpen spoiled it for him. The Jays are a solid 6-21 against Morton, but don’t even have a run to show for it and have struck out eight times. I’ll chase the strikeouts here and ride the dominant front end of the Tampa rotation. Morton has at least 21 DraftKings points in all three starts, so you know what you’re getting.

Middle Tier:

Masahiro Tanaka ($9,300): The White Sox are hitting a solid .278 against Tanaka in 72 at bats, but they have not homered and only have five runs to show for it. They have also struck out 15 times. Tanaka is off to a great start, having allowed only one earned run in each of his three starts. That streak could continue today and surprise no one. Sabathia dominated the White Sox yesterday. Don’t be shocked if Tanaka does the same.

Jameson Taillon ($8,300): Taillon has held the Nats to a .220 average in 41 at bats with one homer and four runs, but only has eight strikeouts. The Nationals offense is still pretty potent even without Harper, but Taillon has handled them so far. Still, he’s not going to beat Scherzer. At least Rodon has a puncher’s chance at a win.

Bargain Pitchers:

Carlos Rodon ($7,600): This Yankees offense is not the juggernaut that it is when totally healthy. The healthy Yankees are hitting just .212 against Rodon in 33 at bats with two homers, three runs, and seven strikeouts. Those are decent enough numbers, and Rodon should come with low ownership. Rodon isn’t going to rack up the strikeouts, but at this price, you can’t really expect it either.

My picks: Berrios, Tanaka; Berrios, Rodon

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – MARCH 28: Nelson Cruz #23 and C.J. Cron #24 of the Minnesota Twins celebrate scoring against the Cleveland Indians during the seventh inning of the Opening Day game on March 28, 2019 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Twins defeated the Indians 2-0. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB: Main stack options

Boston Red Sox vs. John Means:

This was a high scoring game yesterday and promises to be against John Means was decent against Oakland, but decent wont cut it today. Boston is 5-11 off of Means in relief last year with a homer and four runs. J.D. Martinez had that homer. Mookie, Mitch Moreland, and Benintendi scored off of him. The other RBI belonged to Devers. That’s a pretty strong stack right there.

Minnesota Twins vs. Jordan Zimmerman:

Nelson Cruz breaks StatCast against Zimmerman. Not only is Cruz a perfect 4-4 with a walk, but his average exit velocity is 101.2 mph with a 25.2 degree launch angle. That’s home runs, folks. He has also driven in four. The Twins as a whole are hitting .330 with six homers and 20 runs in 100 at bats against Zimmerman. Eddie Rosario has homered twice and is hitting .278 while driving in five. C.J. Cron, Byron Buxton, and Marwin Gonzalez have the other homers. That’s a very affordable stack with only Cruz topping $4,200.

Cleveland Indians vs. Jake Junis

Stacking against Homer Bailey didn’t work, but I’m willing to go back to the well. Junis has a 5.75 ERA in three starts. The only thing keeping him afloat is the elevated strikeout totals. We don’t care about hitters striking out on DraftKings. We care about Cleveland hitting .317 with five runs in 41 at bats against him. They haven’t homered yet, so I may not go too crazy, but Cleveland is going to score early and often today. Jose Ramirez, Leonys Martin, Hanley, Carlos Santana, and Brad Miller all look good to me.

Los Angeles Angels vs. Tyler Chatwood:

If by some miracle this game plays, stack against Chatwood. I’ve seen pitching machines with better stuff than he has.

DETROIT, MI – APRIL 7: Alex Gordon #4 of the Kansas City Royals grounds out scoring Whit Merrifield during the first inning of the game against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park on April 7, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images) /

Main DraftKings MLB daily notes:

Baltimore hits lefties pretty well, and David Price has surrendered four runs in each of his first two starts. There is some goodness in the Baltimore offense too, but I don’t know if I would stack it. Trey Mancini and Chris Davis both have a pair of homers against Price. Renato Nunez‘s only hit off of Price is a three run homer. Joey Rickard is 5-14, but has no counting stats.

More from FanSided

Gleyber Torres and Austin Romine have done all of the damage against Rodon for the Yankees. That said, I wouldn’t blame you for taking a shot with Voit or Judge. Just keep in mind that Rodon hasn’t allowed a homer in three starts this year.

Marcus Stroman is off to a good start for the Jays so far, but the Rays have hit him hard. Kevin Kiermaier has two homers and five RBI against him with a .290 average in 31 at bats. Mike Zunino homered off of Stroman in the only game he played against him. Avi Garcia is 5-9 lifetime against Stroman, but has no counting stats.

Marlins Park has not been kind to Vince Velasquez, and honestly, if I’m spending this much on a pitcher, I’m finding the extra few hundred to get a much better one. There isn’t much leverage in using Marlins today, but Granderson and Starlin Castro are worth a look.

Most of the Phillies damage on Jose Urena has been done by two guys, and they are both cheap. Nick Williams is only 3-12, but he has two homers and four RBI. Cesar Hernandez is 7-26(.269) with two homers and six RBI. Odubel Herrera has scored six runs in only 18 at bats, so he’s worth a look too.

Brian Dozier has the only Nats homer against Taillon. JB Shuck has the only Pirate homer against Scherzer. You have to be desperate to play either one. Melky Cabrera is cheaper than both of them, and is 7-18(.389) with two RBI against Scherzer.

If you want to go after Berrios ownership, Niko Goodrum and Nick Castellanos are a combined 7-19 with all of the counting stats against Berrios. Those two are the way to go.

I wouldn’t stack Royals against Corey Kluber, but I wouldn’t throw Kluber at them either. They have 19 runs in 151 at bats. Alex Gordon is one of the hottest hitters on the team and has already homered twice and driven in six against Kluber. Chris Owings, Lucas Duda, and Whit Merrifield have taken him deep as well.

Next. MLB DFS value plays 4-14. dark

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