Whether you want to play early or late contests on Saturday, there are plenty of top options available to help you succeed in daily fantasy baseball. Although it’s difficult to sort through all the players in 15 MLB games, here is a look at some of the best picks to help you on your way.
Pitchers to Draft
Yordano Ventura, Kansas City Royals ($7,500)
Watching Yordano Ventura has been frustrating this season as the talented young pitcher seems to be all over the place. Every time it seems like he’s ready to break out, he falls back into a rut and ends up allowing too many runs.
However, Ventura can help fantasy teams with his consistent ability to get swings and misses. In each of the last three starts he has gone at least seven innings while striking out at least six. With the Chicago Cubs striking out more than anyone else in baseball, the Royals starter can at least put up decent numbers with the potential for a truly great day.
Wade Miley, Boston Red Sox ($6,300)
After a couple of poor starts earlier in the season, Wade Miley has gotten back on track with three straight impressive performances. He has allowed just three runs in the past 21.2 innings and hasn’t given up a home run in this stretch.
Although the Texas Rangers have an intimidating lineup at times, Miley could provide some sleeper value if he keeps the ball in the park.
Kyle Gibson, Minnesota Twins ($5,700)
The morning contests might be better spent putting a lot of money on your hitters, which means you will have to save money on pitching. This makes Kyle Gibson a quality option thanks to his 1.32 ERA in May. In four out of five starts this month he has allowed just one run or fewer.
Against a right-hand heavy Toronto Blue Jays lineup and pitching at home, he could provide some more big numbers for a small cost.
Pitcher to Avoid
Tyson Ross, San Diego Padres ($9,400)
The Pittsburgh Pirates have been one of the hottest teams in baseball over the past week and are getting it done both offensively and defensively. This could be bad news for Tyson Ross, who got away with a quality start last time out despite giving up a season-high 10 hits.
With Ross surprisingly having worse stats at home (4.70 ERA compared to 3.28 on the road), you might be better off avoiding the high-priced pitcher for someone with better value.
Hitters to Draft
Jose Altuve, 2B, Houston Astros ($4,700)
A relatively unproductive May has seen Jose Altuve‘s cost drop a bit, but this means it’s a good time to get more value for the second baseman.
Chicago White Sox left-handed starter Jose Quintana has terrible splits against righties (.318 batting average versus .154 against lefties), and Altuve has consistently crushed left-handed pitchers over the past few years. This could all equal at least a few hits on Saturday.
Kyle Seager, 3B, Seattle Mariners ($4,100)
Nelson Cruz is finally getting some help in the Seattle Mariners offense in the form of Kyle Seager, who has shown plenty of power over the past week. A matchup against Shaun Marcum—who has allowed five home runs in three starts this season—could lead to a couple more home runs for the 27-year-old third baseman.
Billy Burns, OF, Oakland Athletics ($3,200)
With Coco Crisp on the disabled list, Billy Burns has taken over as centerfielder and leadoff hitter for the Athletics and doesn’t want to give it back. He has hit for average, hit for power and stolen bases, giving fantasy owners production in a variety of ways.
Although he is hard to trust with just six career at-bats coming into the season, you can keep picking him until he slows down.
Hitter to Avoid
Edwin Encarnacion, 1B, Toronto Blue Jays ($5,300)
While teammate Josh Donaldson can provide home runs as well as consistent hitting, Edwin Encarnacion is pretty much long ball or bust. This is not worth the high cost when you can get a safer pick, especially against a right-hander who has fared well this year like Kyle Gibson.
Team to Stack
Arizona Diamondbacks
Milwaukee Brewers starter Kyle Lohse has struggled for much of the season, allowing at least four earned runs in six of his 10 starts. This doesn’t bode well for his chances against one of the more underrated lineups in baseball in the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Paul Goldschmidt is always worth the high price while guys like A.J. Pollock, Ender Inciarte and Yasmany Tomas have high averages and good chances to get hits, runs and RBI.
Note: All prices courtesy of DraftKings. Unless otherwise noted, all stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.
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