Zach Thompson gives his top studs and value plays for today’s fantasy baseball slate on DraftKings, which starts at 7:10 p.m. ET.
Major League Baseball has a few games in the afternoon on Saturday, but most of the action is under the lights with nine games on the main slate, which gets underway at 7:10 p.m. ET. Three games start right at 7:10 p.m. ET with three more just five minutes later. A few of the later matchups are intriguing, with Coors Field and Sutter Health Park bringing good home run environments, and the Diamondbacks and Dodgers meeting in an important NL West matchup. From the 18 teams in the player pool, some very interesting plays stand out at a variety of price points, so let’s dive in and take a look at my top MLB DFS picks for Saturday night.
On the whole, it looks like a very solid weather day in MLB parks across the country. There could be some potential precipitation in Kansas City and Denver, but nothing looks that serious at this point. The temperatures are starting to cool off for many locations, but the two late games from California still have warm temps and winds blowing out. Be sure to double-check the forecast and starting lineups for any updates before game time.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $125K Bat Flip [$25K to 1st]!
PITCHERS
Stud
Logan Gilbert, Seattle Mariners at Cleveland Guardians, $9,200: Gilbert was knocked around two starts ago in Philadelphia, but he bounced back with a dominant outing against the Athletics. He picked up a season-high 13 strikeouts in six innings while giving up three hits and one run and earning his fourth win of the year. Even though he’s 4-5, he has allowed two runs or fewer in three of his last four starts and earned 17+ fantasy points in four of his last five. He has averaged 19.8 fantasy points per game over his last eight outings with a 3.64 ERA, 3.10 FIP, and 59 strikeouts in 42 innings.
The Guardians should be a favorable matchup, although they did take the first game of the series against George Kirby. Over the last two weeks, they have scored an MLB-low 30 runs in 12 games while hitting .188 as a team. Cleveland has won three straight, but their offense remains a solid matchup for Gilbert, especially if he can carry over his momentum from his most recent start. He’s my favorite pay-up pitcher in Saturday’s MLB DFS picks.
Value
Shane Smith, Chicago White Sox vs. New York Yankees, $7,500: The low-cost starting pitchers are a very high-risk group on Saturday’s slate, but Smith has shown a high enough ceiling to be a strong option to consider even though he has a tough matchup against the Yankees. The Rule 5 Draft selection has put together an impressive first year with the White Sox, going only 4-7 but posting a 3.87 ERA, 4.31 FIP, and 8.3 K/9.
He has been better at home with a 3.31 ERA, 3.82 FIP, and he dominated the Royals in his last start at home, giving up just one hit in seven shutout innings with three strikeouts. He earned 24.55 fantasy points in that game and has at least 18 fantasy points in three of his last four outings.
While the Yankees always bring plenty of power, their offense can also be hit-or-miss lately. The matchup makes him much higher risk, but he has more potential than the other affordable starting pitchers, who haven’t had the kind of success Smith has been able to put together lately.
INFIELD
Stud
Dansby Swanson, Chicago Cubs at Colorado Rockies, $4,600: The Cubs are in a great spot against the Rockies at Coors Field. They opened the series on Friday with an 11-7 win, and Swanson went off for 46 fantasy points, going 3-for-5 with a triple, two homers, and six RBI. Swanson has been heating up a little bit over the last week, going 8-for-25 (.320) with a .503 wOBA, and a 57.1% hard-hit rate.
He and the Cubs will take on rookie McCade Brown ($5,500), who gave up four runs in 3 2/3 innings in his MLB debut last week. Brown skipped Triple-A entirely after going 4-2 with a 3.14 ERA in 11 games in Double-A. Brown doesn’t look quite ready for the majors, so the Cubs should pile up runs again on Saturday, and Swanson will be right in the middle of the mix again. The 31-year-old has a history of hot streaks throughout his career, and he looks like he might be ready to go on an extended tear, which would help give Chicago’s offense a much-needed jump start.
Stud
Christian Walker, Houston Astros vs. Los Angeles Angels, $4,000: Walker is another veteran who has been heating up lately and is in a good matchup to attack on Saturday. He’s hitting .240 on the season, but has hit .333 in his last eight games with a double, five homers, and nine RBI. He has a 20.8% barrel rate and 50% hard-hit rate over that short span and has averaged 13 fantasy points per game.
Walker is 7-for-27 (.259) in his career against Kyle Hendricks ($6,000) with three doubles and four walks. Hendricks has allowed 13 runs in 13 2/3 innings with a 2.05 WHIP over his last three starts. The converging trends make Walker and the Astros a nice spot to look at as a midrange first baseman Saturday.
Value
Blaze Alexander, Arizona Diamondbacks at Los Angeles Dodgers, $2,900: After the Diamondbacks moved multiple players at the trade deadline, they’ve been able to give younger players more of an expanded role. The 26-year-old Alexander took over at the hot corner in place of Eugenio Suarez, and he has been very productive, hitting .253 with seven homers, 15 runs scored, 15 RBI, and a .382 wOBA since August 1.
Alexander has hit safely in three straight games with homers in two of those contests and has averaged 11.1 fantasy points per game over his last seven. He’ll be taking on Tyler Glasnow ($9,400) and the Dodgers on Saturday night, and he brings a high ceiling for a player under $3,000.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Riley Greene, Detroit Tigers at Kansas City Royals, $5,300: While the Cubs outfielders will get plenty of deserved attention as pay-up plays in the outfield, don’t sleep on Riley Greene, who has shaken off a mini-slump from earlier this summer and gotten back to crushing the ball. He has hit safely in six of his last seven games, going 10-for-29 (.385) over those contests with a double and three homers.
Greene went 3-for-5 with 15 fantasy points on Friday in the series opener and has posted at least 13 fantasy points in five of his last seven games. He has an impressive 28.6% barrel rate over that span and brings plenty of power potential to today’s MLB DFS picks against righty Stephen Kolek ($7,100).
Stud
Brenton Doyle, Colorado Rockies vs. Chicago Cubs, $3,700: Doyle had an absolutely miserable stretch in June, hitting .151 with just one homer in 23 games. He turned things around with his batting average but still limited power in July, and has brought the power back while keeping his batting average high in August. In 25 games this month, he is hitting a robust .356 with seven doubles, seven homers, and a .449 wOBA.
Doyle’s splits are dramatic from place to place as well as from month to month. At home, Doyle is hitting .329 with 10 homers and a .394 wOBA on the season, but on the road, he’s hitting .163 with four homers and a .207 wOBA. Even with his home games at Coors Field, those splits are wild! Taking him at home as a play under $4,000 is a good option, though, since he’s been heating up lately and averaging 11.5 fantasy points per game over his last 10.
Value
Jeremiah Jackson, Baltimore Orioles at San Francisco Giants, $2,900: Jackson has slid into the second spot in the Orioles lineup as a regular over the last few weeks, and the 25-year-old righty has done a good job at making an impact. He has hit safely in 15 straight games in which he has had multiple at-bats, going 22-for-60 (.367) with three doubles, two triples, a home run, nine runs, and nine RBI.
Jackson scored twice on Friday with a single and a walk and has averaged 8.8 fantasy points in his last eight games. He and the O’s take on Carson Seymour ($7,200) and the Giants on Saturday, and he has proven that he can be a consistent contributor from under $3,000, even though he doesn’t bring a ton of home run potential. With all the injuries and disappointing performances in Baltimore, Jackson has been one of the few bright spots coming down the stretch, and he has been a reliable value play for MLB DFS picks lately.
