Need something to get you through your Wednesday? Nothing better than some daytime baseball games. With a ton of early games today be sure to get your MLB DFS lineups done with the main slate locking by 1:05 PM EST. Every team has now finished their first time through their rotation which means we are seeing a ton of aces back on the mound today as well as a Grayson Rodriguez debut. Offenses have continued to be hot and it has also been coming from a ton of different players, not just the usual stars. This gives us the chance to find value to put into DFS lineups all over the place, so let's dive into today's playbook. As you blow off work this morning using today’s DFS Playbook, be sure to check in with our MLB DFS Tools, with the daily MLB projections, MLB DFS Ownership projections, and our MLB DFS Lineup Generator. With all these tools you are set up to make some money on FanDuel or DraftKings before most people are even clocking out for the day. 

MLB DFS Playbook: April 5

MLB Weather Updates

DFS Lineup Construction Thoughts

With a lot of aces back on the mound there are a ton of pitchers that could be great today all across the slate. While normally I think there are only three or four viable pitchers I am choosing from for my lineups, today there are over ten pitchers that I would feel comfortable building my lineups around. Don't worry with that said there are still plenty of pitchers I am excited to target for the hitters as well. The most intriguing piece available for lineup constructions is in the call-up of Grayson Rodriguez who will be making his debut against the Texas Rangers tomorrow and is available for $4,000 on DraftKings, but not yet available on FanDuel. That $4,000 price tag is too low to not consider, but he will also likely have a very high roster percentage with his debut hype and the low price tag that pivoting away from him with the plethora of other intriguing arms is also an option. There are plenty of hitters to go for as well with some good matchups for the strong offenses of Houston, Atlanta, St. Louis, and Boston but also a route to take advantage of some good matchups for some less frequently rostered players as well.

Recommended DFS Starting Pitchers

Top Options for Strikeouts

Best Odds for a Win

Bullpens Most Likely to Blow Your Starters’ Win & Boost Your Stacks

Favorite Starters to Use for DFS Lineups

Shane McClanahan, Tampa Bay Rays

You get a Cy Young candidate against the Washington Nationals, do I need to say more? I will anyway. Shane had a great first start against Detroit with 6 shutout innings with 6 strikeouts. The most important thing out of that start for me was that he went a full 6 innings and threw 86 pitches. It seems like he is fully healthy and the Ray's shouldn't be holding onto the reins too tight. I would be willing to pay up for McClanahan in this start even if he was the most expensive pitcher, which he is not. 

Aaron Nola, Philadelphia Phillies

I understand why the price is lower today for Nola. He is facing the New York Yankees in New York and he had a bad first start of the season against the Rangers where he went 3.2 innings with 5 earned runs. If you go with him you have to understand that there is still risk with him going against a strong offense in a hitter's park, but Aaron Nola is an ace and you don't have to pay an ace price here. When he is on it doesn't matter where he is or who he is facing, and I am happy to bet on him bouncing back from that first start and managing to shut down the Yankees.

Christian Javier, Houston Astros

His overall line on opening day was fine but not great. He went 5 innings, gave up 3 runs off 8 hits, and had 6 strikeouts. He looked better than that line sounds though. He still settled in great and had 19 swinging strikes. Now he gets to face the Detroit Tigers, who we have already seen can strike out plenty. There are likely going to be a ton of strikeouts today with the likes of Cole, deGrom Burnes, McClanahan, Cease, and Nola, but I will not be the least bit surprised if Javier manages to get the most strikeouts of the day. 

Grayson Rodriguez, Baltimore Orioles

We have one of the top pitching prospects in baseball making their debut. This pick is high risk but has the potential for a super high reward. Grayson's first start of the season down in AAA was far from special. He threw 4 innings in which he gave up two earned runs off 4 hits including a home run, walked 4, and only struck out 2. That was against the Ray's AAA affiliate the Durhum Bulls now he gets to face the Texas Rangers. That being said the ceiling is still sky-high for Rodriguez and you never know what will happen in a debut like this so for $4,000 on DraftKings it could be worth a shot. 

Recommended DFS Hitters

Highest Expected Run Totals 

Favorite Hitters to Use for DFS Lineups

Yandy Diaz, 1B/3B Tampa Bay Rays

Yandy crushes lefties and is getting to face Patrick Corbin today. Patrick Corbin had a 1.79 HR/9 against righties last year. While Yandy hasn't typically been a big home run guy he has already hit two this year and against Corbin even if he doesn't hit a home run he should have plenty of fantasy value. 

Isaac Paredes, 2B/3B Tampa Bay Rays

If you can't tell I am all over the Rays today. Their offense has been red hot and the last couple of days it has been their left-handed bats who have been feasting, but today I see the lefty killers doing some extra damage and Paredes is one of the best hitters against lefties on the team. I think he is viable any time a lefty is on the mound, but especially against a not-very-good one like Patrick Corbin he has huge value. I think the entire top 5 of this Rays lineup could have great value today in this matchup.

Masataka Yoshida, OF Boston Red Sox

Yoshida has looked great so far. This Red Sox outfield is another place where I see all of them being viable today, but Yoshida is my favorite against Mitch Keller. We have already seen that he can handle major league pitching and I see a monster multi-homer game on the horizon so maybe we get that today in what is projected to be the highest-scoring game of the day. 

Bryan Reynolds, OF Pittsburgh Pirates

I am going to the other side of this Boston vs Pittsburgh matchup for my final pick. B-Rey has hit 3 homers in the last two games and I think he will keep it up against Kluber. Kluber looked rough in his first start and I don't see him turning it around. Reynolds can hit everyone, but against a righty who isn't throwing very well, he should easily contribute to what should be a slugfest in Boston. 

Player Pool

$ Tier {{pos.alias}}

Stacks

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