DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Sunday 8/16/20

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Sundays are always one of the toughest days to navigate because we have games spread all throughout the day. What makes it even tougher is the fact that we have many teams playing back-to-backs on Saturday. That could cause chaos in terms of who will play and it means that you guys need to check lineups before hitting the submit button for DFS!

Pitchers

Max Scherzer FD 11100 DK 10800
Opponent - BAL (John Means) Park - BAL
FD - 40.87 DK - 23.32

The obvious play of the day. Scherzer is by far the best pitcher on the slate in a perfectly fine match-up against the Orioles. With 37 FanDuel points in each of his starts (and double digit strikeouts in two of those) he's in the same Cy Young level form that we're used to, and as a -184 favorite there's no need to belabor the issue: he's the play of the day.

Lance McCullers Jr. FD - P 8800 DK - SP 8700
Opponent - SEA (Justus Sheffield) Park - HOU
FD - 33.84 DK - 17.95

While McCullers doesn't necessarily pop up highly in our projections, this is a great spot for him to succeed. We'll go ahead and start by talking about that matchup, facing a Seattle team who sits 22nd in runs scored and 26th in OPS. It's simply one of the worst lineups in baseball and it has the Astros entering this matchup as a -240 favorite. The talented righty is coming off his best start of the year too, allowing just one hit across seven scoreless innings earlier in the week. McCullers actually faced the Mariners once this season too, providing 40 FanDuel points in yet another gem.

Adam Plutko FD - P 6500 DK - SP 6400
Opponent - DET (Michael Fulmer) Park - DET
FD - 24.95 DK - 13.09

Using pitchers against Detroit is always a profitable endeavor. This is a team that ranked 29th or 30th in runs scored, OBP, OPS and K rate last season, currently sitting 27th in K rate and 23rd in OBP this season. That is really no surprise when you consider where the Motor City Kitties play, owning one of the most spacious ballparks in baseball. That big park is better for a guy like Plutko, who's only weakness is his swing-and-miss stuff. That low K rate doesn't really matter when you consider his 0.90 ERA and 0.90 WHIP this season which is really not far off of his impressive career averages. He's clearly just a pitcher 2 play on DraftKings, though, since the lack of K's will hold him down on FD.

Also considered: Robbie Ray, though obviously it hasn't been pretty this season.

Catcher/First Base

Paul Goldschmidt FD - 1B 3400 DK - 1B 4700
Opponent - CHW (Dallas Keuchel) Park - CHW
FD - 11.75 DK - 8.82

Goldy has spent a lot of time on the sidelines because of the COVID situation in St. Louis but he's typically an amazing DFS option whenever he faces a lefty. Since 2018, Goldschmidt has a .400 OBP, .563 SLG and .963 OPS with the platoon advantage in his favor. That's actually below his career averages and it's scary just how well he sees the ball from that side. We're certainly not concerned about a guy like Keuchel either, with the southpaw amassing a 4.21 FIP, 1.31 WHIP and 17 percent K rate over the last three years.

Ji-Man Choi FD - 1B 2500 DK - 1B 3400
Opponent - TOR (Matt Shoemaker) Park - TOR
FD - 12.35 DK - 9.27

Choi almost always finds his way into these articles when he faces a right-hander and it's really strange that these sites keep his price so low in these circumstances. We're talking about a guy who leads off or hits third in one of the most dangerous lineups in baseball whenever they face a righty. It's really no surprise when you see his splits, totaling a .370 OBP, .490 SLG and .860 OPS against them since 2018.

If you're in need of a catcher on DraftKings, Yasmani Grandal and Mitch Garver both have great matchups.

Second Base

Howie Kendrick FD - 2B 2700 DK - 1B 3800
Opponent - BAL (John Means) Park - BAL
FD - 9.29 DK - 7.16

Kendrick found his way into this article on Saturday and we're going to go right back to the well as long as he remains this cheap. Since 2017, the righty slugger has generated a .323 AVG, .508 SLG and .878 OPS. That's sustained success for a long period of time and it makes these price tags truly mind-boggling. The reason we like him today is because he gets to face a lefty, posting a 1.036 OPS against southpaws last season. Means does look better this year but a 3.97 career ERA isn't gonna stray us away from Kendrick at this price tag.

Luis Arraez FD - 2B 2200 DK - 2B 3600
Opponent - KC (Brady Singer) Park - MIN
FD - 9.94 DK - 7.81

Arraez is always way too affordable on these DFS sites. One of the best parts about using him is that you know he's going to get the ball in play, posting an 8.9 percent K rate for his career. That's an astounding mark in this day and age, backed by a .320 career average and .346 wOBA. That makes him very dangerous in one of the most potent lineups in baseball, with the Twins projected for six runs against Brady Singer. We'll talk more about that tasty matchup a little later!

Shortstop

Corey Seager FD - SS 3500 DK - SS 4700
Opponent - LAA (Julio Teheran) Park - LAA
FD - 12.4 DK - 9.39

Seager has missed a few games recently because of an injury but it's lowered his price to a number where it shouldn't be. The stud shortstop is performing to a $4,000-level on FanDuel, generating a .576 SLG and .935 OPS so far this season. Those are the stud numbers we have been waiting for and it's got him right in the heart of this scary Dodgers lineup. We also like that he gets the platoon advantage against Julio Teheran, owning an .879 OPS against right-handers since 2018.

Jorge Polanco FD - SS 2700 DK - SS 4200
Opponent - KC (Brady Singer) Park - MIN
FD - 12.81 DK - 9.81

The Twins are going to be a major theme in this article and it's easy to see why when you look at their projection. This is a team that can drop double-digits on any occasion but facing Singer is an absolute treat. This is a guy who has one year of minor league experience, never pitching above Double-A before this season. Some may be fooled by his first solid start against this team but that puts him at a major disadvantage now that these hitters have seen him once. Not to mention, Polanco has a .378 OBP and .868 OPS against righties since 2018.

Third Base

Manny Machado FD - 3B 3300 DK - 3B 4600
Opponent - ARI (Robbie Ray) Park - ARI
FD - 12.75 DK - 9.64

Machado was in Saturday's article as well and we're going right back to him against a left-hander. Since 2018, Machado is hitting .300 against southpaws, accruing a .387 OBP, .594 SLG and .981 OPS against them. That obviously makes him a great option against any left hander but Robbie Ray is absolutely sucking right now. The Diamondbacks southpaw is currently pitching to a 10.59 ERA and 2.12 WHIP this season and will likely struggle getting through this righty-heavy lineup.

Jedd Gyorko FD - 3B 2200 DK - 1B/3B 3400
Opponent - CHC (Jon Lester) Park - CHC
FD - 9.38 DK - 7.07

The Brewers lineup is a shell of what it used to be but it has forced Gyorko right into the heart of it. In 15 at-bats against lefties this season, Gyorko has an OPS north of 1.200. Obviously, that's a small sample size but an OPS north of .900 against them in 2018 proves that it's no fluke. Many people may be scared to start hitters against a hot pitcher like Jon Lester but he's still a guy who had a 4.03 ERA and 1.37 WHIP between 2017-19. That looks even worse when you consider his 14 percent K rate and 5.74 xFIP, screaming for negative regression.

Outfield

Nelson Cruz FD - OF 3800 DK - OF 5600
Opponent - KC (Brady Singer) Park - MIN
FD - 14.69 DK - 10.98

This guy is absolutely amazing. It feels like he's about 60-years-old but he's still one of the best hitters in baseball. After homering twice on Saturday, the slugger now has an OPS north of 1.000 for the season. That happens to follow up a 2019 campaign in which he provided a 1.039 OPS, batting in the heart of this scary lineup. That makes Cruz hard to fade with the Twins projected for such a big game and it wouldn't be surprising to see Cruz continue his homer streak here against an inexperienced Singer.

Joc Pederson FD - OF 2700 DK - OF 4100
Opponent - LAA (Julio Teheran) Park - LAA
FD - 12.38 DK - 9.22

Joc Jams is always a great pick whenever he faces a right-hander. What we really like is that he gets to bat atop this scary Dodgers lineup. Pederson actually has a .340 OBP, .550 SLG and .890 OPS against right-handers since 2018. That means he should be a lot higher priced on both sites and we're definitely not concerned about him facing Julio Teheran and his 13.50 ERA and 2.36 WHIP.

Franmil Reyes FD - OF 2700 DK - OF 4200
Opponent - DET (Michael Fulmer) Park - DET
FD - 12.08 DK - 9.05

Reyes has had a little trouble getting going this season but it's hard to fade a guy with so much power potential at such an affordable price tag. For his career, Reyes has a .242 ISO and .346 wOBA. That's very impressive from someone so cheap and his exit velocity averages are even more impressive. The slugger is starting to get hot right now too, totaling a .441 AVG, .765 SLG and 1.251 OPS over his last nine games. Don't worry about Fulmer, who's got a 4.73 ERA and 1.33 WHIP since last season.

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