Happy Wednesday, everyone! We have another great day of baseball in store for us today. Baseball will be happening all day long with a fun George Kirby vs. Ryan Pepiot matchup already underway, starting what should be a fun 5-game early slate, but we will be focused on this evening’s slate of games for today’s playbook with a chance to make some more winning MLB DFS lineups!

 

 

 

This evening’s slate will be a bit smaller with a handful of earlier games. A 6-game main slate starts at 7:10 PM ET on DraftKings and FanDuel has only a 5-game slate as they are not including the Atlanta Braves vs. St. Louis Cardinals game, with it becoming a double-header. There is a lot to talk about, so let’s waste no time and dive right into today’s playbook and my favorite MLB DFS picks for the slate.

MLB DFS Picks & Daily Fantasy Playbook Today, June 26

MLB Weather Today, 6/26

There are some thunderstorms rolling in this evening. I think they will be able to sneak the game in before they hit but keep an eye on this one in case things change. Maybe they will move up the start time as well. 

It's the same conditions as the above game; should play, but keep a close eye on it.

The thunderstorms here are happening this morning; everything should be clear by game time. 

MLB DFS Lineup Construction Thoughts

Today, the pitching options are limited. I am paying up for pitching because the options get rough very quickly. My favorite pitchers are all in the top four highest-priced pitchers, and the only guys I am considering if you want to try cheaper options are Erick Fedde and Simeon Woods Richardson. However, I do not trust them and am personally sticking with only my three favorites today. 

The limited pitching options mean there are more offensive options than usual for a small slate. Some of my favorite lineups to target today include the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Minnesota Twins, Atlanta Braves, and Chicago Cubs. 

 

 

 

Recommended MLB DFS Starting Pitchers

Top Options For Strikeouts

Best Odds For A Win

 

 

 

Core MLB DFS Pitchers

Luis Gil, New York Yankees

Luis Gil is by far the most expensive pitcher on today’s slate, but I am willing to pay his price because his upside is far above that of anyone else on this slate. He is coming off his worst start of the season, where he only made it 1.1 innings, giving up 7 runs against the Orioles. I am willing to bet on the bounce-back today, even with the high price. 

In his 6 starts before the Orioles blowup, he had a 1.46 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, and a 34% strikeout rate. I expect him to get right back to that level of dominance today, and we will see the last start as an anomaly. 

Kutter Crawford, Boston Red Sox

Kutter Crawford has been pretty shaky after his dominant start to the season, but he appears to have righted the ship some with three straight quality starts in tough matchups against the Phillies and Yankees in Fenway and the Reds in Cincy. He also struck out 8, 9, and 7 in those three starts. 

Toronto is a decently tough matchup, and they don’t strikeout much against righties (19.7 K%), but considering what Kutter has managed in his last three outings in tough matchups, I am going to trust him to keep it up today against Toronto, especially on a slate where quality pitching is hard to find. 

Gavin Stone, Los Angeles Dodgers

Gavin Stone is quietly having a great season so far for the Dodgers with a 3.04 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP and gets a solid matchup today against the Chicago White Sox. Granted, the strikeouts have been lacking, with only a 19.1% strikeout rate on the season, but that has spiked up to 23.3% over his last 6 starts. 

The White Sox have the 5th lowest OPS and the 8th highest K% against righties in June. While I prefer Luis Gil and Kutter Crawford to Gavin Stone, if one of those games ends up facing weather issues (which is possible), I will turn to Gavin Stone. 

 

 

 

Recommended MLB DFS Hitters

Highest Expected Run Totals 

Core MLB DFS Hitters

*Note: Will Be Updated As Official Starting Lineups Are Released

Shohei Ohtani, 1B/OF Los Angeles Dodgers

I am not writing up Shohei Ohtani because you all know he is good; I am not shedding new light on his incredibleness, but he is definitely one of my favorites today, even considering that he costs more than any other hitter (and more than a few pitchers). 

Ohtani has 7 homers over his last 9 games. He has settled into the leadoff spot nicely in the absence of Mookie Betts, and when you have a lineup as good as the Dodgers, you can’t afford to just walk Ohtani from the leadoff spot every time he is up so he is getting pitched to and he is sending the ball out of the park at an insane rate. You have to find some cheap options to fit him into your lineup, but it is worth it. 

Austin Riley, 3B Atlanta Braves

The top end of third base is incredible. You can’t go wrong with any of Royce Lewis, Rafael Devers, and Austin Riley, but in a day where you need some extra salary for pitching (or if you’re trying to fit Ohtani in), you might as well take the cheapest of this top end in Austin Riley now that he has finally started hitting.

Over his last 10 games, Riley has 5 homers and is slashing .441/.513/1.000; yes, that is a 1.000 slugging, giving him a 1.513 OPS over the last 10. The Braves are a great team to stack today, facing Andre Pallante, and if you’re stacking them, I think Austin Riley has to be included. 

Alec Burleson, OF St. Louis Cardinals

Alec Burleson has 4 straight multi-hit games and 5 in his last 6, along with 3 homers over that stretch. He has been solid all of June as well. This month, he is slashing .302/.341/.581 with 7 homers and is batting second in the lineup every day. 

His price has climbed this month after sitting around $3,000 at the end of May, but not enough. He is still hitting far above his price of $3,900 right now, and in a solid matchup today against a struggling Bryce Elder, he is going to be a lock in my outfield.  

Brendan Donovan, OF St. Louis Cardinals

Deja Vu, another Cardinals outfielder being underpriced. Donovan also has 5 multi-hit games in his last 7, along with 3 homers (sound familiar). He has also been great all of June, slashing .329/.354/.519 (and that cuts off the 5 hits he had in the two games to end May). 

Donovan is even cheaper than Burleson and has been hitting even better over the last week. Knowing there are other places I need to spend money today, it is unlikely that I will build a lineup without this Cardinals duo in the outfield. 

 

 

 

Player Pool

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