A busy Sunday of baseball gets under way at 1:05 Eastern, with DraftKings offering All-Day (15 games) and Early contests (8 games). There are other DFS opportunities with smaller player pools — Turbo (2:10; 3 games) Late (4:05; 6 games) Later (5:05; 2 games) — but we’ll examine the full schedule.
Max Scherzer $13200 has been very good in his last few starts, just not as great as he was in June. For that salary, you need another complete-game shutout. Chris Archer $12300 has a slightly easier matchup for a few dollars less.
Two SP who combine a high ceiling with more reasonable cost are Jake Arrieta $11400 and Felix Hernandez $10500. Off two sub-par efforts (one at Coors Field) it’s quite possible we’ll see the dominant King Felix.
Plays of the Day
New to DK? Your first deposit earns a FREE entry into the Early $10K Moonshot — the winner gets $800 and 780 teams out of a maximum 3,833 earn cash. All prize money is guaranteed even if it doesn’t fill. It’s normally a $3 buy-in, and multiple teams are allowed. Enter by 1:05; you can make lineup changes until each player’s game begins.
For cheaper pitching, Alex Wood $7600 and Bartolo Colon $7400 are worth considering, along with Henry Owens $6600, who needs only slight improvement on his MLB debut to be profitable. We’re kind of loyal to the underrated Chris Bassitt $5500, who spun 7 IP of shutout ball and fanned seven Orioles last time; he keeps improving while the price stays low.
The hot C is rookie Kyle Schwarber $4400, whose .352/.436/.625 slash line can’t be ignored. I like “catchers” who avoid wear and tear at other positions, so 1B/C Jesus Montero $3000 is excellent value.
At 1B, Jose Abreu $4800 hit two homers on Saturday and continues to improve after a slow start to his sophomore season. Chris Davis $4200 is also heating up, and 1B/OF Nick Swisher $2400 had a surprisingly good debut in Atlanta (11 PTS.)
Ian Kinsler $4300 won us some cash with a 3-for-4; his .472/.515/.627 over the last ten games has salvaged a disappointing campaign. Robinson Cano $4100 is another solid 2B option and Philly 2B/SS Cesar Hernandez $2800 is quite often a bargain.
Another good choice last night was Matt Carpenter $4700, who belted his sixth HR in nine games and is thriving as the Cardinals’ leadoff man. Manny Machado $4200 went 4-for-5 with a homer; that’s seven hits in two days. 2B/3B Jonathan Schoop is a Spin favorite in the lower salary range.
Carlos Correa $5000 deserves to be the #1 SS but we’re hoping Bassitt keeps him from taking over. Given that we used Ian Desmond $3500 yesterday (2-for-3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 SB) it’s very tempting to double down against a stretched-out lefty reliever.
As usual, there are OF possibilities for every budget. Bryce Harper $5700 and Mike Trout $5500 can justify their cost at the top end. Nelson Cruz $5200, a rested Brett Gardner $4800 and J.D. Martinez $4700 are all good value. Andrew McCutchen $4500 might provide the best bang for the buck in the national TV game. We touted Rajai Davis $3200 yesterday (HR, 16 PTS) and he faces another lefty. Rusney Castillo $3000 is batting near the top of the order for Boston and having a good weekend. We’ve also used 3B/OF Adonis Garcia $2000 fairly often; the 30-year-old Cuban rookie was 3-for-4 last night.
| Pos | Premium | Bargain |
| SP1 | Felix Hernandez $10500 | Henry Owens $6600 |
| SP2 | Jake Arrieta $11400 | Chris Bassitt $5500 |
| C | Kyle Schwarber $4400 | Jesus Montero $3000 |
| 1B | Jose Abreu $4800 | Nick Swisher $2400 |
| 2B | Ian Kinsler $4300 | Robinson Cano $4100 |
| 3B | Matt Carpenter $4700 | Manny Machado $4200 |
| SS | Carlos Correa $5000 | Ian Desmond $3500 |
| OF1 | J.D. Martinez $4700 | Rajai Davis $3200 |
| OF2 | Bryce Harper $5700 | Andrew McCutchen $4500 |
| OF3 | Nelson Cruz $5200 | Rusney Castillo $3000 |
The Fantasy Spin features DFS advice every day of the NBA season and we’re turning our attention to baseball for the summer. Follow Kent Williams @SheridanFantasy for updates.