MLB DFS Playbook September 26: Top Plays for DraftKings and FanDuel
Published: Sep 26, 2023
Happy Tuesday! After a strange day yesterday with only four games and a three-game slate, we are back to a normal day with a full slate this evening. We get an 11-game main slate on DraftKings starting at 7:07 PM EST, with it being only a 10-game slate on FanDuel as it doesn’t have the Los Angeles Dodgers vs Colorado Rockies. All eyes are on the final postseason races as we have some exciting matchups involved, including the Houston Astros facing the Seattle Mariners and the Texas Rangers facing the Los Angeles Angels that will be closely watched to see how the AL West shakes out. There are also multiple teams fighting for the final NL Wild Card spots, including the Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago Cubs, and Miami Marlins, all playing on this slate as well. Even for teams whose hopes of making the postseason are gone, there are still plenty of great players to target to help us build some winning MLB DFS lineups, whether you are playing cash games or gpp tournaments. Let’s get right into today’s playbook! 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 Playbook September 26
MLB Weather Updates
Miami Marlins vs New York Mets: Still raining there this morning, but should be fully cleared up well before game time.
Arizona Diamondbacks vs Chicago White Sox: Rain showers throughout the day with some scattered thunder as well. Should be light enough to avoid any postponements, but some delays are certainly possible.
DFS Lineup Construction Thoughts
There are some pitchers that are criminally underpriced today, in my opinion. You could go for some of the higher-priced pitchers, but I think you get some great pitchers with awesome upside that are a better route today, with my favorite two written up below. On the offensive side, some of my favorite lineups to target today include the Arizona Diamondbacks, Toronto Blue Jays, Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals, Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago White Sox, Texas Rangers, and Tampa Bay Rays.
Recommended DFS Starting Pitchers
Top Options for Strikeouts
Kevin Gausman vs New York Yankees
Justin Steele vs Atlanta Braves
George Kirby vs Houston Astros
Best Odds for a Win
Bailey Ober vs Oakland Athletics
Cody Bradford vs Los Angeles Angels
Kevin Gausman vs New York Yankees
Adrian Houser vs St. Louis Cardinals
Favorite Starters to Use for DFS Lineups
Michael King, New York Yankees
The price for Michael King is egregious. He has been absolutely incredible in his last few starts, with 30 strikeouts through 16.2 innings with a 1.62 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. In his last outing, he struck out 13 through 7 innings against the Toronto Blue Jays, giving up 1 run, making it his third straight start with at least 8 strikeouts and only giving up 1 run. You are getting ace-level stuff from him and not having to pay for it.
While Seth Lugo hasn’t quite been as good as Michael King, he has still been solid and is also far underpriced. He has 7 strikeouts in his last two outings, giving up 3 earned runs and 2 earned runs through 6 innings. Getting to pitch in San Francisco today should be a great chance for him to keep it up and give another good start.
Recommended DFS Hitters
Highest Expected Run Totals
Atlanta Braves vs Justin Steele
Arizona Diamondbacks vs Jose Urena
Minnesota Twins vs Paul Blackburn
Tampa Bay Rays vs Tanner Houck
Favorite Hitters to Use for DFS Lineups
Favorite Hitters to Use for DFS Lineups
Brandon Drury, 1B/2B Los Angeles Angels
The Los Angeles Angels offense sure isn’t the same without Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, but Brandon Drury has still been providing some great offensive production for them recently. He has 10 hits through his last 6 games, along with 2 homers, and is in a good spot today to continue to produce against Andrew Heaney as the Angels will look to help out the Astros and Mariners today by pinning a loss on the Rangers.
Marcus Semien, 2B Texas Rangers
The Texas Rangers are clicking right now as they are currently on pace to win the AL West, and Marcus Semien has been a big part of that. He is coming off a two-homer game on Sunday, which was his third two-homer game in September. He is also slashing .292/.370/.596 this month, and while he isn’t cheap, his ability to provide such huge games makes him worth rostering.
Xander Bogaerts, SS San Diego Padres
Xander Bogaerts has continued to dominate through the end of the season for the Padres. He has now slashed .427/.472/.744 in September, and only TJ Friedl is beating him in any categories this month with a slightly higher OBP and SLG. While I like Kyle Harrison long-term, I do still think the Padres will be able to get to him a bit today, and I don’t see Xander slowing down before the season ends.
Juan Soto, OF San Diego Padres
Juan Soto has been following Xander’s lead recently and has also been crushing the ball recently. Over his last 12 games, Soto has slashed .457/.527/.870 with 5 homers, and he has two 3-hit games over his last three. Soto is also one short of his career high in both homers and steals, so maybe he will be trying to break both of those this week and give us some extra fantasy value.
Player Pool
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