With a mere seven ballgames on the quietest MLB slate in over a month, DraftKings livens up the DFS action with a huge prize pool and multiple start times.
Turbo contests at 8:05 Eastern cover only LAD @ CHC and CWS at MIN — an extra chance to invest in Clayton Kershaw $12700. Late pools span just the two games at 10:05 if you want to double down on Felix Hernandez $10900 at home to the Royals or use anyone from HOU @ LAA.
Our focus is on the full card at 7:05, where the big money is up for grabs. Michael Pineda $9300 is the best alternative to the Cy Young winners. Beware of Drew Hutchison $7900 on the road, where he’s made just two quality starts out of seven. A well-rested Trevor Bauer $7500 figures to get some run support and a W.
Tommy Milone $6000 stymied the Cards and Rangers in his last two and though he is unlikely to beat Kershaw, Tsuyoshi Wada $6700 became a “badass” vs. Cleveland. Ultra-cheap Joe Blanton $4100 might go 6-7 quality innings against King Felix.
DK matches your first deposit 100% (up to $600) with bonus funds that convert to cash. You also get a FREE entry into the massive $250K Swing For The Fences, with 18,230 guaranteed cash prizes — $100,000 for first — and a maximum of 95,825 teams. Second place wins $10K, third $5K, tenth $1 K. It’s a $3 buy-in and you can enter multiple teams.
One of the reasons to use Milone is the Twins’ hitters love John Danks $5300. They knocked him out in the third inning on May 3 and up to six of them is an affordable stack. The Yankees’ LH batters might feast on Kevin Correia $5000 and I also like the Angels’ RH power vs. Brett Oberholzer $6500.
At C, Yasmani Grandal $3400 homered twice last night but does not hit southpaws nearly as well. Brian McCann $4200 is a strong play and Kurt Suzuki $3100 might join a rally or two.
1B is usually deeper. Mark Teixeira $4700 and Albert Pujols $4500 are my top picks, and though it’s lefty on lefty, Joe Mauer $3600 knows Danks very well.
Brian Dozier $5000 gets the nod over Jason Kipnis $5100 at second. Off a 2-HR day, 2B/SS Stephen Drew $3200 could stay hot.
1B/3B Miguel Cabrera $5100 is always worth considering but tonight I’m going with one of two Twins at the hot corner. Trevor Plouffe $4000 has a great matchup but so does 3B/OF Eduardo Nunez $3200 at a stellar price.
Jose Reyes $4400 has a nice matchup but is due for a rest one of these nights. Rookie SS Carlos Correa $3900 is extremely talented and Didi Gregorius $3500 has been slashing line drives to RF in Yankee Stadium all weekend — two of them left the yard.
It’s not often I use the two highest-priced OF, but Mike Trout $5300 and Brett Gardner $5200 have excellent matchups and are affordable because I’m saving money elsewhere. George Springer $4600 is another strong play vs. a lefty and so is Yasiel Puig $4000 at a sweet price. Potential bargain Torii Hunter $3800 has 4 HR and a .993 OPS in 52 AB off Danks. he’s heating up early. Remember you can use Nunez here and that Ryan Raburn $2800 has value against southpaws.
| Pos | Premium | Bargain |
| SP1 | Clayton Kershaw $12700 | Michael Pineda $9300 |
| SP2 | Felix Hernandez $10900 | Tommy Milone $6000 |
| C | Brian McCann $4200 | Kurt Suzuki $3100 |
| 1B | Albert Pujols $4500 | Joe Mauer $3600 |
| 2B | Brian Dozier $5000 | Stephen Drew $3200 |
| 3B | Trevor Plouffe $4000 | Eduardo Nunez $3200 |
| SS | Jose Reyes $4400 | Didi Gregorius $3500 |
| OF1 | Mike Trout $5300 | Yasiel Puig $4000 |
| OF2 | Brett Gardner $5200 | Ryan Raburn $2800 |
| OF3 | George Springer $4600 | Torii Hunter $3800 |
The Fantasy Spin features DFS advice every day of the NBA season and we’re turning out attention to baseball for the summer. Follow Kent Williams @SheridanFantasy for updates.