Two extremely interesting afternoon ballgames are playable in Early contests at DraftKings; enter before 1:07 Eastern. We focus instead on the 13-game evening slate at 7:05 in today’s Short List and sample lineup. Turbo (8:05; 2 games) and Late (9:10; 2 games) contests are also offered.
There aren’t as many expensive aces to choose from tonight, but you need only one. Jake Arrieta $11600 dominated the White Sox when they met at Wrigley July 12 and seems most capable of a 40-PT start. Johnny Cueto $10800 threw a 4-hit shutout in his first home game as a Royal and Chris Archer $11200 seems likely to outpitch Colby Lewis $7400.
In the middle class of SP, Collin McHugh $7800 vs. Justin Verlander $7200 might be low-scoring. Cheaper still are Chris Bassitt $6400 and Jon Gray $5200. The latter, though a risk at Coors Field, has excellent stuff and improved a lot from his first career start to his second.
Saving at C is often a good idea. Yan Gomes $3600 will rest today or tomorrow but is worth that price if he starts. DH John Jaso $3300 is an even cheaper alternative, more certain to play.
The Braves may pitch around Paul Goldschmidt $5700 or he might mash a couple of fastballs. Eric Hosmer $4300 is very good value. I wish there was a Util spot for teammate Kendrys Morales $4000 but both are eligible only at 1B.
2B/3B D.J. LeMahieu $4500 was hot on the road and smacked two doubles last night in the Rockies’ first home game in nine days. 2B/3B Matt Duffy $3400 had a walk, single, double and homer on Friday, while Chase Utley $2900 rolled back the calendar with a 4-for-5.
I struck out with 1B/3B Todd Frazier $4100 last night but will give him another chance against a lefty. Lonnie Chisenhall $2900 qualifies only at 3B though he’s actually the larger part of a RF platoon now, with nine hits in his last five games.
Those rotten Tigers walked Carlos Correa $4600 three times last night, delaying his power surge. Francisco Lindor $3800 and all the Indians have a favorable matchup. We touted OF/SS Kiké Hernandez $2400 (3-for-4) on Friday and will be using him somewhere.
The exact words in yesterday’s Spin were, “Bryce Harper $4700 is on the verge.” His 30th HR wasn’t enough to beat the Giants but we’ll double down. Carlos Gonzalez $5500 was the hottest hitter in baseball until the Mets co0led him off. Home cooking should fix that. Adam Jones $4200 has now homered in three of his last four. For a rock-bottom salary, we still like Abraham Almonte $2000 after a double and a triple extended his hit streak. Khris Davis $3600 is on a bit of a homer binge (five in eight games) and Yasiel Puig $3500 faces an inexperienced lefty.
| Pos | Premium | Bargain |
| SP1 | Jake Arrieta $11600 | Chris Bassitt $6400 |
| SP2 | Johnny Cueto $10800 | Jon Gray $5200 |
| C | Yan Gomes $3600 | John Jaso $3300 |
| 1B | Paul Goldschmidt $5700 | Eric Hosmer $4300 |
| 2B | D.J. LeMahieu $4500 | Matt Duffy $3400 |
| 3B | Todd Frazier $4100 | Lonnie Chisenhall $2900 |
| SS | Carlos Correa $4600 | Kiké Hernandez $2400 |
| OF1 | Bryce Harper $4700 | Abraham Almonte $2000 |
| OF2 | Adam Jones $4200 | Khris Davis $3600 |
| OF3 | Carlos Gonzalez $550 | Yasiel Puig $3500 |
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.