This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
First Sunday of the MLB season and the last day of March shake hands today. You can end the month on a high note and find success on a day synonymous with baseball. The DFS schedule is afternoon focused with 10 games on the docket and the first starting at 1:35 p.m. EDT. Here are my DFS recommendations.
Pitching
Bailey Ober, MIN at KC ($9,000): Ober secured a role in the Twins rotation last season, and justified it with a 3.43 ERA and continued high-level walk rates (1.81 per nine innings over his career). The Royals have Bobby Witt and made a surprising number of additions this offseason, but they ranked 23rd in runs scored in 2023 so a lot of improvement would be needed for this to be a matchup to avoid.
Jack Flaherty, DET at CWS ($8,900): The Tigers are betting on Flaherty finding some of his old form from his peak St. Louis days. He needs to get his walks under control, though he also posted a .357 BABIP last season and that's bound to improve. The Athletics will likely have the worst offense in baseball, but there's a real chance the White Sox challenge them. After all, they registered a .291 OBP last season, and it feels like their 2024 roster has regressed.
Chris Sale, ATL at PHI ($8,800): Let us dream of a healthy Sale. It'd be nice to see, all things considered. Last year, he sort of got to pitch a proper season in that he made 20 starts. While Sale listed a 4.30 ERA, he also managed a 3.80 FIP while striking out 10.96 batters per nine innings. Philly's lineup is good, but also lefty heavy, so Sale has an opportunity to make a splash in his Atlanta debut.
Top Targets
It wasn't his MVP form, yet Christian Yelich ($5,300) was really good in 2023 when facing righties with an .882 OPS, including a .393 OBP. He's not a great power hitter, but Tylor Megill happens to be a righty. And since 2022, lefties have gone .289 versus the Mets' hurler.
Last season, Marcus Semien ($5,100) looked more like the player the Rangers hoped for batting .276 with 29 homers, 40 doubles, and 100 RBI. After struggling at home in his debut campaign, he produced an .895 OPS in Texas during 2023. Jordan Wicks earned a rotation spot, but last season the lefty had a 4.69 FIP in seven MLB starts while righties hit .261 against.
Bargain Bats
The reunion between the Pirates and Andrew McCutchen ($4,100) was a bit more than just a nice story. His power is gone, but he still produced a .378 OBP with 12 homers and 11 stolen bases. McCutchen is going to be the DH pretty much whenever a lefty is on the mound. Trevor Rogers hoped to rebound from his 5.47 ERA in 2022, and then he posted a 4.00 ERA in only four starts before injuries cut his season short. Until the southpaw shows something, I'm skeptical.
Second baseman Luis Garcia ($3,200) went .266 with nine homers, nine stolen bases, and four triples in 122 games for the Nationals in 2023. This is a rebuilding team, so he's comfortably positioned to keep his spot, especially since he's 23 and theoretically part of the franchise's future. Nick Martinez is now a Red, and currently a starter He's recorded a career 4.89 FIP, and that's with him spending a lot of time in the bullpen.
Stacks to Consider
Mets vs. Brewers (Colin Rea): Brandon Nimmo ($4,500), Jeff McNeil ($3,500), Francisco Alvarez ($3,200)
It was a surprise when Rea regularly factored into the Brewers' pitching plan as he didn't appear in MLB during 2022 and hadn't been a regular since 2016. Sure enough, he struggled to a 4.89 FIP, and yet he's back in the rotation again. Since Rea is a righty, I have two lefties from the Mets in this stack plus a catcher with power.
Nimmo has slashed .269/.380/.446 over his career and swatted a personal-best 24 homers. Of course, facing righties helps as he slugged .501 against them in 2023. McNeil has alternated between great and decent seasons, which would make this year the one he steps it up. All in all, he's batted .298 during his career with a .763 home OPS since 2022. As a rookie, Alvarez's value came in power and homers. He went deep 25 times in 123 games, and that's remarkable for a catcher. Alvarez is a righty, though he's slugged .489 versus right-handers.
Atlanta at Phillies (Ranger Suarez): Austin Riley ($5,600), Ozzie Albies ($5,300), Marcell Ozuna ($4,600)
Suarez keeps the ball in the park, but his profile is lacking beyond that. That goes double in the scenario I'm attacking in this stack. Since 2022, Suarez has a 4.87 ERA at home while allowing righties to hit .269 against. That's why I'm recommending three right-handed hitters against the southpaw.
Here's a fun note: Riley and Shohei Ohtani are the only two players with 30 homers, 90 RBI, and 90 runs scored in each of the last three seasons. Atlanta's third baseman also has an 1.018 OPS against lefties since 2022. Albies is technically a switch-hitter, though he definitely prefers to bat versus lefties with a 1.023 OPS against southpaws last year and a .904 on the road. Ozuna was in fine form last year by hitting an even 40 homers while slugging .558. And yes, lefties were key as he registered a .980 OPS against.
