When setting your lineups for today’s DFS slate, make sure to check the weather because severe weather is forecasted in different areas of the country. For DraftKings, we are going to look at the largest slate, which starts at 11:05 a.m. ET and includes 11 games. FanDuel doesn’t match the slate exactly, so to cover as many teams as possible, we’ll use their slate of games, which includes all 15 games throughout Saturday.
Saturday’s Top MLB DFS Picks & Player Props
Saturday’s Starting Pitcher Rankings (4/19)
- After what Garrett Crochet did when I recommended him last week against the White Sox, how can I go anywhere else for the top option? Crochet has prevented earned runs in each of his four starts, with only four earned runs over 26 innings. The strikeouts have been strong in two of those games, including his last start against the White Sox, when he struck out 11 over 7.1 innings.
- Much like last season, Logan Gilbert’s win-loss record of 1-1 doesn’t reflect how good of a pitcher he is. The surface 2.38 ERA is fully supported by a 2.42 FIP. He has the best strikeout percentage in all of baseball at 38.1%. His opponent today, the Toronto Blue Jays, are the third toughest team to strike out. That’s part of the reason Gilbert is cheaper than you would expect.
- Unlike some of the other names on this list, Casey Mize has only made three starts. His last start was his worst start of the season, but before that, he had put together two starts of 26 and 23 fantasy points. The biggest change from Mize so far has been limiting hard contact, with only two barrels allowed all season. If you’re looking for an affordable option, seeing if he can keep it up against the Kansas City Royals and their league-worst OPS versus right-handed pitchers isn’t a bad idea.
Suggested Lineup Stacks
Los Angeles Dodgers Projected Lineup (4/19)
| POS |
PLAYER |
DraftKings Salary |
FanDuel Salary |
| 2B/OF |
Tommy Edman |
$4,700 |
$3,300 |
| SS |
Mookie Betts |
$6,100 |
$4,000 |
| 1B |
Freddie Freeman |
$5,200 |
$3,700 |
| OF |
Teoscar Hernandez |
$5,100 |
$3,500 |
| OF |
Michael Conforto |
$4,300 |
$2,800 |
| C |
Will Smith |
$4,600 |
$3,100 |
| 3B |
Max Muncy |
$4,700 |
$2,700 |
| DH |
Eddie Rosario |
N/A |
$2,000 |
| OF |
Andy Pages |
$3,000 |
$2,600 |
- Finding the money to get even three Dodgers hitters into your lineup likely means you need to take a lower-tier pitcher. With their histories against Nathan Eovaldi, that may be worth it.
- A lot of Dodgers stars have extensive, impressive resumes against Eovaldi. Freddie Freeman is 12-for-25 with two extra-base hits. Teoscar Hernandez is 6-for-16 with four extra-base hits. While Mookie Betts has only one extra-base hit against Eovaldi, he is a combined 5-for-17 against him. Getting all three in your lineup will be costly.
- If you want a cheaper Dodgers option, check their lineup and see if Miguel Rojas is listed. Shohei Ohtani is off on paternity leave, so the designated hitter position is open. Eddie Rosario was recalled to fill that position yesterday, but Rojas has a nice track record against Eovaldi — 4-for-5 with a double. If he is in the lineup, he is minimally priced at only $2,000.
Pittsburgh Pirates Projected Lineup (4/19)
| POS |
PLAYER |
DraftKings Salary |
FanDuel Salary |
| OF/SS (FD) |
Oneil Cruz |
$5,600 |
$3,700 |
| OF |
Bryan Reynolds |
$4,500 |
$2,900 |
| OF |
Andrew McCutchen |
$4,000 |
$2,600 |
| C |
Joey Bart |
$4,100 |
$2,800 |
| 1B/2B/OF (FD) |
Enmanuel Valdez |
$3,100 |
$2,400 |
| 3B |
Ke’Bryan Hayes |
$3,800 |
$2,700 |
| OF |
Tommy Pham |
$3,200 |
$2,500 |
| 2B/OF/3B (FD) |
Adam Frazier |
$3,100 |
$2,400 |
| SS/3B/2B (FD) |
Isiah Kiner-Falefa |
$3,000 |
$2,600 |
- One way to save money from with stack is to target a relatively cheap team in the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates are only the 23rd-ranked offense by runs scored, but they have an appealing matchup with Ben Lively.
- Lively’s surface numbers don’t look that bad with a 4.87 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 20 innings. What’s intriguing for DFS is the flyballs he allows. Lively is only getting ground balls at a 31% rate. That’s a bottom-10 mark in the league. He’s only given up three home runs, but that could change in a hurry.
- Would you believe the Pirates’ offense has four batters in their lineup with a hard-hit rate over 48%? One is, of course, Oneil Cruz, who is off to a phenomenal start, but is costly. More affordable options include Andrew McCutchen (52.9%), Ke’Bryan Hayes (50%) and Tommy Pham (48.8%).
Core Studs
- It’s been a slower-than-expected start to the season for Salvador Perez, but a matchup with Casey Mize could be exactly what turns his season around. Perez is 12-for-25 in his career against Mize with three extra-base hits, including a home run.
- George M. Steinbrenner Field has been a hitter’s park. It’s currently in the top 10 in park factors for home runs. Brandon Lowe doesn’t even necessarily need that help against Carlos Carrasco. Lowe is 4-for-10 against Carrasco in his career, with all four hits being extra-base hits.
- Kyle Schwarber only has three career hits against Cal Quantrill. In true Schwarber fashion, all three of those hits are home runs. He has a career .870 OPS against right-handed pitchers as opposed to a .756 OPS versus left-handed pitchers.
Value Plays/Punts
- Austin Hays is one where the price has not yet caught up to the production. He returned from his calf strain earlier this week and immediately slotted into the middle of the Reds’ lineup and already has two home runs.
- Matt Mervis could give you nothing, or he could give you two home runs when he faces a right-handed pitcher. Five of his six home runs this season have come against right-handed pitching. He has a .936 OPS against right-handed pitching. Today, he takes on Taijuan Walker, who has had 60% of the batted balls against him go into the air.
- Kyle Farmer is the last recommendation. It’s not just that he is off to a good start to the season with a .346 batting average. It’s that he has always been a good option against left-handed pitching with a career .819 OPS against left-handers. He faces left-handed pitcher MacKenzie Gore at Coors Field.
Saturday’s Top 3 Underdog Player Props
Jung Hoo Lee: 1.5 Hits + Runs + RBI – Higher
Jung Hoo Lee is fully recovered from his shoulder injury and proving he belongs in the Majors. He has started 18 games this season. He has exceeded a combined 1.5 hits + runs + RBI in 14 of those games. Today’s matchup against Kyle Hendricks is another good opportunity for him to keep it up.
The starting pitcher ranks already mentioned Logan Gilbert, but he needs to be mentioned again. As mentioned above, the Toronto Blue Jays can be tough to strike out.
Trust the pitcher with the following track record… Going back to the start of July last season, Gilbert has started 20 games. He has cleared 5.5 strikeouts in 19 of those games. If you need more confidence, he has exceeded this mark in three of his last four starts against Toronto.
Brendan Donovan leads the league with 30 hits. He is also third in batting average at .380. He is currently riding a 14-game hitting streak and has hits in 18 out of 20 total games. Today’s opponent is the New York Mets. He has hits in his last 12 games against them.
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