Welcome to the Fantasy Alarm MLB DFS Playbook for Saturday, May 17th!

We’re diving into the action with an 8-game main slate on DraftKings and FanDuel, kicking off at 7:05 PM ET. With a packed day of baseball ahead, our expert analysis is here to guide you through the top pitchers, value plays, and stackable offenses to target.

Whether you’re hunting for GPP glory or locking in cash game success, we’ve got tailored insights to help you conquer today’s matchups. Let’s dive into the key plays and strategies to dominate the slate!

 

 

 

This season's MLB DFS picks and playbook will consist of a pitcher and hitter core players section with written analysis, player pool grid and core stacks section.

The core player section should be used as a starting point for all lineups, you may not be able to use all players in the same lineup, but those players should be the building blocks for you on a given night.

The player pool grid will feature both players from the core player section along with additional plays to help you build a complete lineup. The grid will be broken into top priced players, mid-priced players and value tier players.

The stacks section will bring you our favorite lineups stacks for the day and which players we would look to include in those stacks based on matchups and pricing.

There will also be a daily MLB DFS Show with a variety of hosts ranging from myself, Jon Impemba, Howard Bender, and James Grande. The MLB DFS Show will give you an initial outlook on the day's MLB DFS slate and should give you a good base for the start of your research each day! 

Make sure you subscribe to the Fantasy Alarm YouTube channel so you never miss a show! Also, join the Fantasy Alarm Discord to get your DFS lineup questions answered by our MLB DFS team! Plus, as always, be sure to check in with our MLB DFS Tools, with the Daily MLB Projections, MLB DFS Rostership Projections, and our MLB DFS Lineup Generator when building those lineups today to help you decide which players you should be targeting.

 

MLB DFS Picks & MLB Playbook

MLB Weather: Saturday, 5/17

Atlanta Braves vs Boston Red Sox

  • Chance of rain that could lead to a potential delay.

Seattle Mariners vs San Diego Padres

  • Chance of rain throughout the day.  Minimal impact expected.
 

 

Recommended MLB DFS Starting Pitchers

We have an interesting 8-game slate in terms of pitching today.  There is a good mix of past experience and inexperienced starters.  

High-end options include Nick Pivetta, Pablo Lopez, Tyler Mahle and Zac Gallen.  Ronel Blanco and Luis Severino are intriguing mid-price options with some upside.  

Core MLB DFS Pitchers

Ronel Blanco, Houston Astros - DraftKings $7,800 | FanDuel $8,500

Blanco has been hit or miss to start off the 2025 season.  He enters Saturday with 4.04 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 43 Ks in 42.1 IP.

He enters this matchup against the Texas Rangers with mostly good history against their hitters in the past.  This includes three starts against them in 2024. He put up 17.1, 14.7 and 22.5 DraftKings points and 31, 31 and 40 FanDuel points in those starts.

Tyler Mahle, Texas Rangers - DraftKings $9,600 | FanDuel $8,800

Mahle has been impressive to start the 2025 season.  He enters Saturday with 1.47 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 37 Ks in 49 IP.

Mahle enters this matchup against the Houston Astros with good, but limited history against their hitters in the past.  He had one start against the Astros during the 2024 season.  He put up 18 FanDuel Points and 9.6 DraftKings points.  Look for Mahle to continue his strong start to the season on Saturday.

Zac Gallen, Arizona Diamondbacks - DraftKings $9,000 | FanDuel $10,200

Gallen is coming off a rough start against a potent Dodgers lineup.  He enters Saturday with 4.59 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 54 Ks in 51 IP.  

He faces a Colorado Rockies lineup that he has fared well against in the past.  This includes two starts against them in 2024. He put up 17 and 17.9 DraftKings points and 34 and 30 FanDuel points in those starts.  Look for a bounce back performance out of Gallen on Saturday. 

Pablo Lopez, Minnesota Twins - DraftKings $9,700 | FanDuel $9,800

Lopez has returned to form after an up and down 2024 season.. He enters Saturday with 2.77 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 43 Ks in 39 IP.  

Lopez enters this matchup against the Milwaukee Brewers with decent, but limited history against their hitters in the past.  He had one start against the Brewers during the 2024 season.  He put up 43 FanDuel Points and 24.8 DraftKings points.  Look for Lopez to continue his success against the Brewers on Saturday.

Luis Severino, Athletics - DraftKings $7,700 | FanDuel $7,800

Severino is one of the interesting mid-range pitchers on Saturday’s slate.  He is looking to rebound after a rough start against the Yankees.  He enters Saturday with 4.70 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 40 Ks in 53.2 IP.  

He faces a San Francisco Giants lineup that he has fared well against in the past.  This includes two starts against them in 2024. He put up 22.8 and 13.9 DraftKings points and 40 and 28 FanDuel points in those starts.  Look for a bounce back performance out of Severino on Saturday. 

 

 

Recommended MLB DFS Hitters

It is a good slate for hitters as we have a good mix of past history in terms of hitters vs pitcher matchups and inexperienced starters.  Feel free to mix and match today across multiple lineups.  

Kansas City Royals, San Diego Padres, Atlanta Braves, Arizona Diamondbacks and Athletics should be the front runners in terms of top teams to stack.

Core MLB DFS Hitters

Matt Olson, Atlanta Braves - DraftKings $4,700 | FanDuel $3,000

Olson has had a slow start to the 2025 season.  He has hit safely in 9 of his last 12 games.  However, he has only 1 multi game during that time span.  He has also hit 3 HRs over those 12 games so the power upside is still there.

The good news is that Olson is 5 for 7 with 3 HRs against Lucas Giolito, the expected starting pitcher for the Boston Red Sox.  Look for a strong performance out of Matt Olson and the Braves lineup on Saturday.

Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks - DraftKings $6,100 | FanDuel $4,400

Carroll has been heating up of as late.  He enters Saturday with a modest 4 game hitting streak.  He has 3 multi hit games and 3 HRs during this stretch.

Carroll is 1 for 2 with 1 HR against Rockies expected starting pitcher German Marquez.  He looks like a solid one-of play or key piece to a Diamondbacks stack for Saturday’s slate!

Jonathan India, Kansas City Royals - DraftKings $3,300 | FanDuel $2,900

India has been turning the corner as of late. He has at least one hit in 10 of his last 12 games.  He has 5 multi hit games and 1 HR during this time span.  He offers some versatility as he qualifies at 3B and OF on DraftKings and 2B, 3B and OF on FanDuel.

He has fared well against Cardinals expected starting pitcher Miles Mikolas in the past.  He is 8 for 22 with 3 HRs against Mikolas in his career.  Look for another strong performance out of India on Saturday!

Josh Naylor, Arizona Diamondbacks - DraftKings $4,300 | FanDuel $3,100

Naylor is one of my favorite values for Saturday’s slate.  He is currently on an 8 game hitting streak.  This includes 2 multi hit games and 1 HR during that stretch.  

Naylor has good history in the past against expected Rockies starting pitcher German Marquez.  He is 3 for 9 with 2 HRs against Marquez in his career.  Look for Naylor to continue his success on Saturday!

 

Player Pool

$ Tier {{pos.alias}}

Stacks

{{stack.team.name}} {{player.name}}
DraftKings {{player.fantasy.price.value[8]}}-
Fanduel {{player.fantasy.price.value[6]}}-