Early DraftKings MLB Picks June 8: Use Gi-ELITE-o

BOSTON, MA – SEPTEMBER 7: Gerrit Cole #45 of the Houston Astros pitches in the first inning of a game against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on September 7, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

Early DraftKings MLB Picks June 8: Use Gi-ELITE-o

The early slate is the de facto main slate today for our DraftKings MLB tournaments. We have nine games that kick off at 1:05 eastern and run through the afternoon. The Rays-Red Sox tilt is showdown only, starting at 12:05 eastern and the second game of the doubleheader is left off of everything. The A’s- Rangers twin bill is in both slates since it’s a day-night doubleheader. The early game is part of the first nine. The night game is in the night slate.

DraftKings MLB Pitcher Plays:

Top Tier:

Lucas Giolito ($11,200): The Royals are hitting just .130 with four homers and nine runs against Giolito in 92 at bats with a staggering 28 strikeouts. Giolito has already faced the Royals three times this year, but he only allowed one of those homers in those three starts. In those three games, Giolito has 76.5 DraftKings points. We pretty much know what we’re getting here. Giolito is completely worth the price. It’s to the point where I’m not even going to chase the stray homer from the Royals. It’s just not worth it.

Zack Greinke ($10,100): Greinke has been nothing short of awful in Toronto in his career, but this team has far less pop than the ones Greinke faced in the A.L. Those Blue Jay teams had Troy Glaus, Alex, Rios, Vernon Wells, Adam Lind, and a young Edwin Encarnacion on them when Greinke regularly played in Toronto. He will find this lineup much easier to navigate, even with the DH present in the A.L. park.

Middle Tier:

Kyle Gibson ($9,700): Gibson has ramped up the strikeouts and slashed the walks. His numbers have vastly improved, as you may expect. So the 14 runs that the Tigers have in 103 at bats against Gibson should be taken with a grain of salt. The current Tigers are still hitting just .204 against Gibson. He has limited the big hits that ruined games for him earlier in his career. I see enough improvement to roll him out there, even at this price. This is a pitcher’s park after all, with a weaker offense inhabiting it.

Julio Teheran ($9,000): Teheran has quietly put up some really good numbers this year. He put up 18.5 DraftKings points on the Marlins with six shutout innings the first time around. The Marlins are hitting well right now, but Teheran has been mowing people down. Teheran has not allowed more than one earned run in a start since April 30th!

Framber Valdez ($7,400): Valdez went four innings in relief of the demoted Corbin Martin last week, so there’s reason to believe that he can go five innings here. There is enormous strikeout potential with the Orioles, but they are also poised to throw at least eight right handed batters at Valdez. I love the upside here, but it’s not without risk.

Bargain Pitchers:

Zach Davies ($6,700): The pricing on Davies is still all jacked up. Davies is 6-0 with a 2.20 ERA and 1.22 WHIP. Davies went eight innings, giving up just two runs against the Pirates last week. The bad news? Davies only netted 9.3 DraftKings points. The eight hits allowed and only three strikeouts highlight the problem with using Davies. I like him at the price, but just recording outs really limits his upside.

Brad Keller ($6,500): Keller struggled in both starts against the White Sox in Chicago, but he picked up 28 DraftKings points in his start against them in Kansas City. Keller has been scuffling some lately, but he turned in a solid start against Texas last week. I don’t expect him in the 20’s again, but if Keller can give us the 13.6 DraftKings point average he has against the Sox this year, we’ll be happy with that.

Aaron Sanchez ($6,200): Sanchez has a 3.10 ERA and 18.4 DraftKings points per game average at home. Only five current Diamondbacks have faced Sanchez, and none of them hit him well (.127 in 55 at bats). There is a lot to like about Sanchez here. I wouldn’t use him on the road, but this is a tempting place considering his favorable home splits.

Joe Palumbo ($6,000): Palumbo had a 3.38 ERA and 65 strikeouts in 50.2 innings at AA Frisco this year. The A’s work counts and don’t strike out much, but with Palumbo this cheap, we aren’t asking much. If he give five innings of 2 or 3 run ball with a half dozen strikeouts, we’ll be happy with that. Going by his minor league track record, that’s an attainable goal.

My picks: Giolito, Teheran; Giolito, Sanchez; Teheran, Davies

OAKLAND, CA – SEPTEMBER 21: Khris Davis #2 of the Oakland Athletics hits a two-run home run against the Minnesota Twins in the bottom of the first inning at Oakland Alameda Coliseum on September 21, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB daily notes:

You could probably game stack the first game of the A’s-Rangers twin bill. Paul Blackburn will take the hill for the A’s, so I’m all over the Rangers lefties. Odor, Asdrubral Cabrera, and Nomar Mazara stand out. Choo is a good pick if he’s in the lineup.

On the other side, we have rookie Joe Palumbo making his first major league start. Palumbo has been very good at AA, and I could see using him here. The bad part is that I usually don’t target A’s with pitchers, especially a guy making his first start. Khris Davis is still too cheap. The Matts (Olson and Chapman) are good picks as well.

The Tigers are throwing young lefty Gregory Soto out there against the Twins, so lock and load Nelson Cruz. Mitch Garver and Buxton look like excellent plays as well, as does switch hitter Jorge Polanco. Don’t forget about Miguel Sano either. This could be another eight homer day for the Twins.

The Phillies have hit Tanner Roark well, but not really hard. They only have two homers in 177 at bats. Hoskins and Segura have the long balls, and they are both hitting well over .300 against Roark. J.T. Realmuto also stands out. He is 13-29(.448) with six RBI against Roark.

Nick Pivetta has pitched well since returning from a month of exile with the Iron Pigs. Pivetta allowed only three runs combined to the Dodgers and Cardinals in 11 innings since his return to the majors. That said, this Cincy lineup is loaded with power, and all three of those runs were driven in via homer. Nick Senzel, Jesse Winker, and Puig are the guys I’m looking to use today.

Andrew Cashner had good career numbers against the Astros, but I don’t buy it. Bregman is the elite play, but as with last night, I think I like the Astros value bats better. I like Tony Kemp, Josh Reddick, and Jack Mayfield for sure.

Cleveland has not been kind to their former pitcher. They are hitting .368 with five homers against CC Sabathia in only 76 at bats. Plawecki, Leonys Martin, Jose Ramirez, Jason Kipnis, and Carlos Santana have the homers. Francisco Lindor is 6-15 off of CC. This Indians stack with the exception of Lindor is way too cheap. I will have 100% Jose Ramirez at this price.

Adam Plutko hasn’t pitched all that well, which is bad news for him. Didi Gregorius is going to smash if he’s in the lineup again. I also hope the Yankees DH Scary Gary so I can use him too. Beyond that, Aaron Hicks and Brett Gardner aren’t bad ideas either.

If you don’t think Davies can put up a repeat performance, Adam Frazier, Starling Marte, and Gregory Polanco are all hitting well over .300 against Davies. Jose Osuna has smacked both homers off of him. However, Josh Bell is just 2-14 lifetime against Davies, so look elsewhere.

BALTIMORE, MD – MAY 20: Hanser Alberto #57 of the Baltimore Orioles celebrates after hitting a home run during the third inning against the New York Yankees at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on May 20, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB one-off plays:

If you want to go after Keller, the only place I’m really comfortable with is Leury Garcia. Garcia is 7-15 with three RBI against him. The rest of the team is just 21-111(.189) with two homers and six runs.

You could run Biggio or Vlad Jr. at Greinke, but I’m not crazy about either of them here. This looks like a game Greinke can dominate.

More from FanSided

Eduardo Escobar and Adam Jones both have a homer against Aaron Sanchez. The bad news is that they are a combined 5-39(.128) against Sanchez.

The Orioles are loaded with one-off plays against young lefty Framber Valdez. Renato Nunez and Trey Mancini are the ones that stand out. I also love Hanser Alberto and Keon Broxton for their price. I will have 100% Alberto today.

Castellanos and Niko Goodrum are about the only Tigers I have any interest in today. Even then, it’s a passing interest. However, punting catcher with Grayson Greiner is looking better and better at just $2,300.

Gone are the days of Jordan Lyles value. The Brewers did well enough against him the first time around, but the thing turning me away from all the Milwaukee bats is the prices. I do like Eric Thames at $4,300. He is also the only Brewer to homer against Lyles so far. Beyond that, you can try a free Travis Shaw, but there’s a reason he’s free.

Curtis Granderson has three homers and five RBI against Teheran, but he was a dud against him the first time around this year. About the only Marlins I have passing interest in is Brian Anderson and Harold Ramirez. Even then, I wont have a lot of exposure to either of them.

Trevor Richards has been outstanding lately, but I don’t trust him against the Braves. Just look at the prices on Ozzie Albies, Ronald Acuna, and Dansby Swanson and tell me you don’t want to attack Richards in at least one lineup. Especially considering the Braves are hitting .357 against Richards.

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