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Sunday afternoon’s schedule sets up nicely for a great afternoon of fantasy baseball fun. The main slate on DraftKings gets started at 1:10 p.m. ET and includes the 10 games starting between then and 2:15 p.m. ET. The Red Sox and Angels will play tomorrow on Marathon Monday, but the other nine games are series finales. It’s a slate packed with top pitchers, including some excellent head-to-head matchups of aces.
There are a number of weather concerns to monitor closely in this 10-game set, so as always, make sure to keep a close eye on pregame lineups and the latest player news by installing the DK Live app and following DK Live on Twitter (@dklive). I’m also on Twitter (@ZT_Sports), where you can keep up with all my picks as the season continues.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $250K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
For up-to-the-minute news, analysis, and lineups, download the DK Live app. You also can follow DK Live on Twitter @dklive.
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PITCHER
Stud
Dylan Cease, Chicago White Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles ($9,200) – On a slate stacked with aces, Cease stands out as one of only two options who has produced over 20 DKFP in each of his three starts this season—Shane McClanahan ($9,900) is the other. Cease gets a good matchup at home against the Orioles and brings a very high ceiling due to his strikeout upside. In his first three starts of the season, he has 24 strikeouts in 16 1⁄3 innings against the Astros, Giants and Twins.
He has allowed just one earned run in each of those three starts, but has issued seven walks, which has kept him from going any deeper into the games. Cease did go exactly five innings in each of his last two starts and got a pair of wins. He has started the year with a 13.2 K/9 rate, 1.65 ERA and 3.07 FIP, and he should be able to help Chicago get the win in the rubber game of this three-game series.
Other Options – Gerrit Cole ($10,900), Zac Gallen ($8,000)
Value
Logan Webb, San Francisco Giants at Detroit Tigers ($7,700) – Webb is 0-3 and has given up four home runs in his three starts, but the Giants still handed him a five-year, $90 million contract extension this past Friday. He has actually been pitching better than those numbers indicate too and has piled up 22 strikeouts in 17 innings and finished with at least 19.9 DKFP in two of his three outings as a result.
In his three starts, he has a 4.76 ERA and 4.37 FIP, but his bullpen hasn’t helped and he’s had some bad luck on balls in play. Webb has also faced three strong lineups in starts against the Yankees, the Dodgers and the White Sox. Things should be significantly easier on Sunday afternoon against the Tigers. Detroit has scored the second-fewest runs per game in the Majors, hit the third-fewest home runs per game and struck out the second-most times per game of any team in the Majors. Webb should be in a favorable spot to improve on his 0-3 record and comes at a very affordable rate under $8K.
Other Options – Mitch Keller ($7,000), Grayson Rodriguez ($6,700)
INFIELD
Stud
José Ramírez, Cleveland Guardians at Washington Nationals ($5,800) – Ramírez connected on his first homer of the season on Saturday and is 18-for-58 (.310) with a .378 wOBA, a 142 wRC+ and four stolen bases as well. Last season, he hit 23 of his 29 home runs against left-handed pitchers while putting together a .383 wOBA and .255 ISO in the split. In a great matchup against a lefty (highlighted below), Ramírez should have a good chance to build on his first homer of the year with another big game in Washington.
Stud
Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals vs. Atlanta Braves ($5,100) – Witt has hit safely in five straight games and went 11-for-21 (.524) in those games with a triple, a walk and four stolen bases. In the first four games of that run, he averaged 16.0 DKFP and went off for 33 DKFP in one of those games with three stolen bases. He has five stolen bases on the season to go with a .330 wOBA and brings both power and speed upside to his favorable matchup against the Kyle Wright ($7,200), who looked rough in his first start of the season last week against the Reds.
Other Options – Wander Franco ($6,000), Alec Bohm ($4,200)
Value
Josh Bell, Cleveland Guardians at Washington Nationals ($3,600) – Like Ramírez, Bell is a switch-hitter who will get to hit righty in a great matchup on Sunday. Bell only has eight hits this season but four have gone for extra bases, including two doubles and a home run already in this series against his former team in Washington. Last season, 10 of Bell’s 17 homers came against lefties, who he posted a .340 wOBA against. Most of his power has historically come as a righty, and getting that power potential at this price makes him a strong option to consider at 1B.
Value
Rodolfo Castro, Pittsburgh Pirates at St. Louis Cardinals ($2,700) – Castro made headlines by running the bases with a phone in his pocket last season, but this year he has been contributing by getting on base regularly for the Pirates. In his past seven games, Castro is 10-for-20 with two doubles and a home run. He has double-digit DKFP in four of his past seven games after going 3-for-5 with a double and 15 DKFP Saturday in St. Louis. Castro and the Pirates are in a great spot to be a value stack against Miles Mikolas ($6,300), as detailed below.
Other Options – Ke’Bryan Hayes ($3,700), Vaughn Grissom ($3,200), Zach Neto ($2,000)
OUTFIELD
Stud
Bryan Reynolds, Pittsburgh Pirates at St. Louis Cardinals ($5,900) – Reynolds has had a great start to the season showcasing the skills that could make him in extremely high demand if the Pirates choose to honor his trade request from this past offseason. He is hitting .322 (19-for-59) in his first 15 games for the season with five home runs, 14 RBI and three stolen bases. He has averaged 11.3 DKFP per game on the season and can put up big games with his power, his speed or both, giving him an extremely high ceiling in favorable matchups like his one with Mikolas Sunday.
Stud
Hunter Renfroe, Los Angeles Angels at Boston Red Sox ($4,900) – Renfroe was on base twice more on Saturday and is hitting .283 (15-for-53) in his first season with the Angels. He has an impressive .396 wOBA over his first 14 games and has enjoyed his return trip to Fenway Park with 16 DKFP over the first two games of the series. He has averaged 14.9 DKFP over his past seven games and gets a good matchup against Garrett Whitlock ($6,200) in the series finale.
Other Options – Ronald Acuña Jr. ($6,500), Mike Trout ($5,700), Andrew McCutchen ($4,200)
Value
Andrew Benintendi, Chicago White Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles ($3,700) – Benintendi has moved into the leadoff spot for the White Sox while Tim Anderson (knee) is sidelined, and he has reached base twice in each of the first two games of this series. On the season, he’s hitting .276 with a .293 wOBA and two stolen bases. He has hit safely in nine of his past 10 games, while producing 7.5 DKFP per contest. Orioles rookie Grayson Rodriguez ($6,700) has struggled against left-handed hitters, so Benny should be in a good spot Sunday afternoon.
Value
Sam Hilliard, Atlanta Braves at Kansas City Royals ($2,400) – Hilliard didn’t play on Saturday but has been part of the Braves’ plan to fill in while Michael Harris (back) is sidelined. Hilliard hit his first homer of the season on Friday in Kansas City and stole his second base of the season in his previous start on Wednesday. He’s hitting .348 (8-for-23) in his nine games with three doubles and that home run. His .459 wOBA shows he brings upside, and if he gets on base from the bottom of the lineup, he’s followed by the heart of the Braves order.
Other Options – Lars Nootbaar ($3,600), Myles Straw ($3,400), Rob Refsnyder ($2,700)
STACKS
Cleveland Guardians at Washington Nationals – The Nationals are planning to start veteran lefty Patrick Corbin ($5,400), so it’s another great chance for fantasy owners to stack against him. In his three starts, he has gone 1-2 with a 7.71 ERA and 6.16 FIP and only a 5.79 K/9 rate. He has given up three home runs, all to right-handed hitters. Last year he was also hammered, especially by righties. Amed Rosario ($4,500) will try to set the table ahead of the power bats of Ramírez, Josh Bell and possibly Oscar Gonzalez ($2,800). Myles Straw ($3,400) and Mike Zunino ($3,800) also bring boom-or-bust value upside.
Pittsburgh Pirates at St. Louis Cardinals – The Pirates are a great value stack to consider as they take on Mikolas. In his three starts, Mikolas has been knocked around for 29 hits and four home runs in just 14 1⁄3 innings. He has given up a 43.9% hard-hit rate and multiple barrels in each of his three starts. Pittsburgh has already beaten the Cardinals twice in this series and scored six runs on Saturday behind homers from Andrew McCutchen ($4,200) and Ke’Bryan Hayes ($3,700). McCutchen, Hayes, and Reynolds are a strong middle of the lineup with Ji Hwan Bae ($3,900) expected to hit leadoff. Castro, Canaan Smith-Njigba ($2,300) and Jack Suwinski ($2,600) are also good plays under $3K.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $250K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.