Early/Turbo DraftKings MLB Picks April 17: Get your lineup Pearced

ARLINGTON, TEXAS – APRIL 16: Mike Minor #23 of the Texas Rangers throws against the Los Angeles Angels in the first inning at Globe Life Park in Arlington on April 16, 2019 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

Early/Turbo DraftKings MLB Picks April 17: Get your lineup Pearced

As per usual, the DraftKings MLB tournaments are split on getaway day. The early tournament only has four games, but the pitching isn’t as thin as you may think. We don’t have a true ace, but there are some very intriguing options out there.

Three games are trapped in turbo DraftKings MLB limbo. But, it’s another slate, so what the hell? Let’s give you some picks anyway. That’s why you’re here, after all.

DraftKings MLB Early Pitcher Plays:

Top Tier:

Walker Buehler ($9,300): Only five current Reds have faced Buehler with little success. This is a good matchup with the light hitting Reds, and Buehler needs it. The sophomore slump is destroying Buehler right now. Part of me wants to wait for him to get on track, but this is the kind of matchup where it could pay off big time to use him. Strangely enough, Buehler’s only quality start was at Coors Field. His stuff is hiding in there somewhere.

Middle Tier:

Brad Keller ($8,500): Sure, the price looks a little steep, but look at Keller’s numbers against the White Sox. They are only hitting .211 against him in 95 at bats with one homer, four runs, and 20 strikeouts. Those are plenty good enough for the price. Unlike most of the pitcher on the early slate, Keller is actually off to a good start this year. I’m liking this play quite a bit.

Jake Arrieta ($8,000): The Mets are hitting a solid .263 against Arrieta in 76 at bats, but they haven’t hit a homer off of him. The 16 strikeouts is a solid rate for a mid range pitcher. I can see a case for an against Arrieta, but the biggest thing he has going for him is that Wilson Ramos, who is 4-7 against Arrieta, likely wont be in the lineup. Ramos has also scored three of the eight runs.

Bargain Pitchers:

Sonny Gray ($7,400): Gray is off to a strong start this year. He is never going to be a big strikeout pitcher, but we know that. This matchup with the Dodgers is scary due to all of the lefty power, but this isn’t as much of a hitter’s park as you think. Gray keeps the ball on the ground, so he could be a good way to leverage a chalk Dodgers stack. His numbers are strong enough to think he isn’t a fluke, and the Dodgers only have three runs off of him in 35 at bats so far.

Lucas Giolito ($6,400): Giolito as the cheapest pitcher on the slate? Nothing like putting him at 100% owned! The Royals are only hitting .154 in 78 at bats against Giolito with four homers, seven runs, and an eye popping 22 strikeouts. Even before I looked at the pricing, Giolito was probably my favorite arm on the truncated slate. Now he definitely is. I don’t think we can fade for this price. We all have to be chalk gobblers here. However, there could be a one off homer or two here, which is gold on a small slate.

My picks: Keller, Giolito. No, I don’t care that they are playing each other.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – APRIL 16: Yonder Alonso #17 of the Chicago White Sox celebrates a solo home run during the eighth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Guaranteed Rate Field on April 16, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB Early Notes

I like Zack Wheeler, but I wont be going out of my way to use him against the Phillies. They are hitting .260 with four homers and 14 runs in only 96 at bats against him. McCutchen, Bryce Harper, Odubel Herrera, and Maikel Franco have the homers, but Harper is just 5-26(.192) against Wheeler. Realmuto would be a solid substitute if he’s in the lineup.

Travis d’Arnaud and Jeff McNeil have hit Arrieta the hardest among current Mets, and I will probably limit my exposure to them. Cano and Conforto are a combined 7-32.

Michael Wacha has been decent against the Brewers, but he is off to a slow start this year. I’ll use the Brewers against him instead, especially in Milwaukee. Yelich, Jesus Aguilar, and Yasmani Grandal have all homered against Wacha in the past and have driven in eight of the 11 runs against Wacha. These are the guys you want.

David Freese has the best history against Sonny Gray so far, but Gray has not faced Seager, Bellinger, or Max Muncy. This really isn’t an accurate sample. Just keep in mind that Gray doesn’t give up a ton of long balls. Hits, on the other hand….

Corbin Burnes was not sharp against the Cardinals in the first meeting, and that was his best start of the season so far. Matt Carpenter, Paul DeJong, and Goldy all homered off of him in that game. This looks like the stackable place of the afternoon. The Cardinals may even be a better stack than the home team!

Ryan O’Hearn, Jorge Soler, Lucas Duda, and Merrifield have the homers against Giolito, so someone may launch one off of him. However, whoever doesn’t isn’t going to bring much to the table.

If you want to leverage the high Keller ownership, Yonder Alonso has the homer off of him. Leury Garcia is 4-8 with a pair of RBI and a steal.

If you don’t trust Buehler, I would go after this with former Dodgers Matt Kemp and Yasiel Puig. Joey Votto is always a decent play, but I just think it’s a big risk to go after Buehler. There are better places to attack today.

PITTSBURGH, PA – APRIL 06: Trevor Williams #34 of the Pittsburgh Pirates delivers a pitch in the first inning during the game against the Cincinnati Reds at PNC Park on April 6, 2019 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB Turbo Pitchers:

Top Tier:

Carlos Carrasco ($9,100): The Mariners are hitting .257 with four homers against Carrasco in 70 at bats, but they only have six runs while striking out 21 times. Carrasco has been rough at times this year, but Seattle’s offense has been quieted by the Tribe’s pitching so far in this series. There’s reason to believe that Carrasco can keep it up. There is also reason to stack against him. Two Mariners have an ISO over .600 against Carrasco. Two more top .200

Middle Tier:

Trevor Williams ($8,400): Williams is the safest play on this slate, and it really isn’t close. The Tigers offense is toothless and Williams is picking up where he left off last year with a 2.46 ERA over his first three starts. It doesn’t hurt that the wind is blowing in from left at 10mph in what is already a pitcher’s park. Lock and load with Williams!

Spencer Turnbull ($8,200): I used both pitchers from this game yesterday with moderate success, and that’s the plan of action right now as well. Not only are they the only two pitchers averaging double digit DraftKings points per game, but their respective offenses reside near the bottom of the league in most categories. Why take the risk with Carrasco when you can have this?

J.A. Happ ($8,000): Happ’s numbers against Boston are not as poor as you might expect. The Sox are only hitting .208 against Happ in 260 at bats. They do have 11 homers, but one guy has more than half of them. The 53 strikeouts are a solid total too. I don’t see Happ getting blasted here, but I’m still using Boston righties even if I use Happ. Three of the players have all 11 homers off of him.

Bargain Pitchers:

Nathan Eovaldi ($7,000): The healthy Yankees are only 8-40 against Eovaldi with one run and seven strikeouts. On a three game slate, we don’t have a lot to choose from, and honestly, Eovaldi has enough strikeout upside that so long as he gets a quality start, we’re going to be happy with our $7,000 investment.

Erik Swanson ($6,100): Swanson will make his first major league start in T-Mobile (Safeco) Park (Field). That’s a plus. Having it come against the Indians is not. Swanson surrendered two runs in two innings to the Royals in KC in relief in his first appearance. No thanks on this one. Nothing good can come of this, but it does make for some interesting offensive decisions.

My Picks: Williams, Eovaldi

Daily Fantasy Baseball: TOKYO, JAPAN – MARCH 18: Designated hitter Jay Bruce #32 of the Seattle Mariners flies out in the top of 4th inning during the preseason friendly game between Yomiuri Giants and Seattle Mariners at Tokyo Dome on March 18, 2019 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Masterpress/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB Turbo Notes:

Honestly, I don’t know that I like any bats from the Detroit/Pittsburgh game. Maybe Adam Frazier leading off for the Pirates, but that’s about it. I’m kind of expecting to be scared off of Eovaldi by the time these games start, so I’m preparing for a pivot to Turnbull by not taking any hitters here.

More from FanSided

No Yankees have hit Eovaldi well yet. The best has been Aaron Judge at 2-7. LeMahieu has the only RBI.

Steve Pearce is the lock of this slate and the all day slate. Pearce is 11-32(.344) with six homers and a staggering 16 RBI against J.A. Happ. Dustin Pedroia has three homers and seven RBI despite a .219 average. Mookie is just 7-34(.206), but he has two homers and five RBI. All I know if that Pearce will be in every lineup he’s offered in.

Former Indian Jay Bruce is 3-9 with two solo homers against former teammate Carlos Carrasco. Mitch Haniger has popped him too, going 5-7 with two doubles and a homer. Ryon Healy has the other homer. Omar Narvaez has hit Carrasco well as well.

Cleveland’s lineup is showing signs of life, so I kind of thing they’re going to pound on Swanson. Jose Ramirez is too cheap. Jason Kipnis has hit the ground hitting so far. Leonys Martin, Carlos Gonzalez, Jake Bauers, and Tyler Naquin are all worth a look as well.

Next. FanDuel PGA Picks 2019 RBC Heritage. dark

We promised some big news for Fantasy CPR, right? Well here it is! We are now looking for PAID writers to join our team to write about fantasy sports. Seasonal or DFS, any sport you want – get your voice heard and get paid for talking fantasy sports. Apply today HERE!