This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
Baseball, as the sport most at the whims of the weather, fittingly throws us the occasional curveball. They didn't even bother seeing what the weather looked like in New York on Thursday night, moving the game between the Yankees and the Guardians to Friday afternoon. That means, instead of two MLB games on the docket, there are three. This, of course, changes the DFS landscape. If you want to get in on the action when the games begin, first pitch is at 1:07 p.m. ET. Here are some lineup recommendations.
Pitching
Nestor Cortes, NYY vs. CLE ($8,200): I liked Cortes on Thursday, and I like him just as much one day later. He had a 1.95 ERA at home, and a 2.07 ERA over his last 12 starts. The Guardians are the worst team offensively of these six, so if there is a "good" matchup available, it's this one.
Tony Gonsolin, LAD at SD ($7,500): Gonsolin lost all of one game in 24 starts. I know win-loss record is passé in terms of judging a pitcher's acumen, but it does speak to his run support and his pitching to some degree. His 2.14 ERA tells us more, and even if he had a 2.66 ERA on the road, this is Petco Park. It's as pitcher friendly as Dodger Stadium, and maybe even moreso. I'm not worried about Gonsolin in this one.
Top Targets
Though Mookie Betts ($5,600) hits pretty much everybody well all the time, he had a .983 OPS versus lefties this year. That includes 11 home runs in 174 plate appearances. Blake Snell is a lefty, and he actually did not benefit from Petco as much as you might think. He actually had a 3.56 ERA at home.
I'm doing a bit of bumping picks from Thursday to today, but what I felt was true about the Yankees and Guardians has not changed. Anthony Rizzo ($4,800) still had 32 home runs this year, and 19 of them came at home. He had an .840 OPS at Yankee Stadium, which often caters to lefty power hitters (and power hitters in general, considering Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton's numbers). I'm not knocking Shane Bieber, but even with a third game on the docket Friday, having only six teams from which to pick players is not exactly robust.
Bargain Bats
I'm not getting all that charged up by Matt Olson ($4,400) beginning the playoffs with three hits in six at-bats including a home run. However, he did hit 34 homers this year with an .824 OPS versus righties and an .819 OPS on the road. Aaron Nola had a 3.53 ERA at home and allowed 1.1 home runs per nine innings there. No, that isn't a lot, but it's more than the 0.6 he allowed on the road.
A lot of Padres have it tough at home or feast on lefties, making Gonsolin a tough matchup. Jurickson Profar ($3,800) may have a fighting chance as a bargain bat, though. Since 2020, the switch hitter has a .718 OPS versus righties. He also had a .764 OPS at home, which, believe it or not, is notable for this Padres lineup. At this point in the season, it's hard to avoid gambles in your lineup. Profar is worth a shot.
Stack to Consider
Phillies vs. Braves (Charlie Morton): Bryce Harper ($6,000), J.T. Realmuto ($5,000), Brandon Marsh ($2,900)
The Braves are dragging their feet on naming a starter as they wait on the health of Spencer Strider. However, since this series is guaranteed to go at least four, why rush back the rookie? We have Morton pegged to start Game 3, which makes for a better matchup. Either way, though, you are getting a righty, so it won't be that stark of a swing if it ends up not being Morton. Which, again, would be a surprise. As for Morton, well, he had a 5.72 ERA on the road and allowed 1.47 home runs per nine innings this season.
Since 2020, Harper has an 1.026 OPS against righties and an 1.000 OPS in home games. Also, left to DH due to his health, Harper has been able to focus on hitting and has started the playoffs red hot (in four games to be fair). Realmuto holds down the catcher spot with a .272 average, 22 home runs and 21 stolen bases during the regular season. He also had a .909 OPS at home. Marsh is another lefty, and he had a .774 OPS after being dealt to Philly. All in all, he had a .735 OPS against righties this season.
