This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
The first Friday of June is loaded down with evening MLB action. There are 12 games on the slate, which gives you a ton of DFS options. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. ET. Here are my daily fantasy recommendations for you.
Pitching
Gerrit Cole, NYY vs. DET ($10,900): Cole has been exactly the pitcher we expect, with a 2.83 FIP and 11.24 strikeouts per nine innings. Now he gets to face the team that is scoring the fewest runs in MLB by a considerable margin.
Shane McClanahan, TAM vs. CWS ($9,600): McClanahan showed promise as a rookie, posting a 3.30 ERA. This year, he's arguably in the Cy Young race. The lefty has a 2.01 ERA and have struck out a whopping 12.50 batters per nine innings. Meanwhile, the White Sox are surprisingly in the bottom five in runs scored.
Merrill Kelly, ARI at PIT ($6,800): Kelly was having a strong season until he was absolutely lambasted by the Dodgers a few starts ago. Even with that, though, he still has a 3.29 FIP. The Pirates are an easier matchup than the Dodgers, obviously, as they rank 29th in runs scored.
Top Targets
Wherever he's playing and whoever he's facing, Jose Ramirez ($5,800) rakes. He's slashed .292/.393/.632 with 13 homers and seven stolen bases. Plus, last season he hit 36 home runs and 27 swiped bags. Bruce Zimmermann has been giving up an incredible number of home runs recently, a whopping 12 over his last four starts.
He was already a good hitter, but Ty France ($4,800) is taking things to a new level in 2022. The Mariners hitter might win a batting title, as he's hit .347. This year, he's also added more power with a .500 slugging percentage. Dane Dunning, for his part, has a career 4.37 ERA and a 4.31 ERA this year.
Bargain Bats
Ji-Man Choi ($4,100) has slashed .262/.374/.456 this year. Also, since 2020 he's posted an .839 OPS at home. Vince Velasquez was moved to the bullpen, but he's back in the rotation again in spite of his 5.30 ERA. That comes after he had a 6.30 ERA last season.
Like a lot of lefties, David Peralta ($3,600) has struggled against southpaws and hit better against righties, but this year it's up to a new level. He's posted an .892 OPS against right-handed pitchers in 2022 and all eight of his home runs have come in those matchups. JT Brubaker has a 4.15 ERA, which is actually below his career 5.01 ERA.
Stacks to Consider
Yankees vs. Tigers (Elvin Rodriguez): Aaron Judge ($5,700), Anthony Rizzo ($4,400), Matt Carpenter ($3,300)
Rodriguez remains in the Tigers' rotation for now, even though he's been dealing with a lower-body issue. Also, he's been dealing with the fact he has a 6.17 ERA. Now, he has to pay a visit to Yankee Stadium and face their homer-happy lineup.
Judge has a career .947 OPS, and this year he's been the best he's been since his rookie campaign. The slugger has 19 home runs to go with a .303/.374/.659 slash line. Rizzo has 11 home runs and three stolen bases, and he's done most of that at home. He has a .985 OPS in home contests. Since Carpenter is a lefty, I expect him to be in the lineup at DH on Friday. He's only played in six games, but he's hit three home runs already.
Red Sox vs. Athletics (James Kaprielian): Rafael Devers ($5,400), Xander Bogaerts ($5,200), Alex Verdugo ($3,400)
Kaprielian has a 5.93 ERA, in part because he's allowed 1.92 home runs per nine innings. That's even with playing his home games in Oakland's pitcher-friendly ballpark. He'll be on the road at Fenway for this one, which is less amiable to pitchers.
Devers has hit over 30 home runs in each of his last two full seasons and has 11 this year. The lefty also has a .970 OPS against righties since 2020. Bogaerts has a .323 average and is likely to hit .300 for the third time in four seasons. Also, since 2020 he has a .902 OPS at home. Verdugo has a .844 OPS against righties since 2020, and Kaprielian has allowed lefties to hit .272 against him in his career.
Angels at Phillies (Zach Eflin): Shohei Ohtani ($5,600), Jared Walsh ($4,000), Brandon Marsh ($3,500)
Eflin has a 4.60 ERA, even though he's only allowed 0.84 home runs per nine innings. In his career he's allowed 1.42 homers per nine innings, so that number will likely increase. This year lefties are hitting .302 against Eflin, so I am stacking three southpaw hitters.
Ohtani has 11 home runs and seven stolen bases after hitting 46 homers and stealing 26 bases in his MVP season. He has an .894 OPS against righties since 2020 as well. Walsh broke out with 29 home runs last season, and this year he's hit 11. Also, since 2020 he has a .967 OPS versus right-handed pitchers. Marsh has hit .270, and his .385 slugging percentage is mostly an issue against lefties. He has a .460 slugging percentage against righties this year.
