MLB DFS Playbook August 11: Top Plays for DraftKings and FanDuel
Published: Aug 11, 2023
Happy Friday! Let’s kick off the weekend right with some winning MLB DFS lineups! We have a great full slate of games today, with the only games not on the main slate being the Cleveland Guardians vs Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees vs Miami Marlins, both of which start at 6:40 PM EST, and then the 13-game main slate on both DraftKings and FanDuel will start at 7:05 PM EST. Some great matchups taking place today with great division showdowns with the Cincinnati Red and Pittsburgh Pirates facing off for the NL Central, the Los Angeles Angels and Houston Astros matched up for the AL West, and the Colorado Rockies trying to take down the NL West division-leading Los Angeled Dodgers. Plenty of great pitchers and hitters to look at today with endless ways to build a winning lineup whether you are playing gpp tournaments or cash games, so let’s dive into today’s playbook! Be sure to check in with our MLB DFS Tools, with the daily MLB projections, MLB DFS rostership projections, and our MLB DFS Lineup Generator when building those lineups today to help you decide which players you should be targeting!
MLB DFS Playbook August 11
MLB Weather Updates
Looks like a clear sunny day all the way across the league today!
DFS Lineup Construction Thoughts
The three top-priced pitchers today are Luis Castillo, Corbin Burnes, and Blake Snell. They are easily the best three pitchers on the slate today, so I have no problem paying up for any of them. My favorite of the trio is Luis Castillo, and he will be my go-to for the top end alongside my favorite pitchers listed down below (I would consider Castillo a “favorite” as well and endorse Burnes and Snell, but those three are fairly obvious picks so not writing them up with the others). On the offensive side, we have some quality offenses in good matchups to target today, with some of my favorites including the Texas Rangers, Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals, Toronto Blue Jays, Atlanta Braves, and San Diego Padres.
Recommended DFS Starting Pitchers
Top Options for Strikeouts
Blake Snell vs Arizona Diamondbacks
Luis Castillo vs Baltimore Orioles
Lance Lynn vs Colorado Rockies
Best Odds for a Win
Lance Lynn vs Colorado Rockies
Justin Verlander vs Los Angeles Angels
Charlie Morton vs New York Mets
Corbin Burnes vs Chicago White Sox
Favorite Starters to Use for DFS Lineups
Tarik Skubal has looked great since his return to the Tigers. He has a 3.67 ERA, but a 2.30 xERA and a 1.37 FIP make it look like he has been even better than that ERA suggests. All his earned runs have come in just two starts, where he gave up 7 to the Kansas City Royals and 4 to the Miami Marlins. He just shut down the Tampa Bay Rays, striking out 6 through 5.1 innings and not giving up an earned run. Boston’s offense has been slumping lately, and I am expecting Skubal to attack them today.
Kyle Gibson, Baltimore Orioles
Kyle Gibson is always a steady pitcher but usually doesn’t provide much upside with low strikeout rates. He is suddenly getting swinging strikes and providing that upside we haven’t really seen in the past. He has struck out 39 through 37.1 innings over his last 6 starts, and that includes only 1 strikeout through 5.1 innings against the Miami Marlins back on July 15th. He has 3 games with 8 or more strikeouts over that stretch, including a high of 11 against the Minnesota Twins. He should be able to handle Seattle today and hopefully continue to pile up strikeouts.
Recommended DFS Hitters
Highest Expected Run Totals
St. Louis Cardinals vs Dylan Coleman / Angel Zerpa
Atlanta Braves vs Tylor Megill
Philadelphia Phillies vs Dallas Keuchel
Los Angeles Dodgers vs Austin Gomber
Favorite Hitters to Use for DFS Lineups
The homers had been pretty sparse for Pete Alonso since his injury back in June. He has now hit 4 homers over his last 3 games and looks to be back to the Polar Bear we have grown to know and love. He has been the best home run hitter since joining the league, and with him showing the power is back, I am easily ready to jump back in on Pete Alonso as a top first base option.
Jose Altuve, 2B Houston Astros
Jose Altuve is on a 12-game hitting streak. Over that streak, he has slashed .420/.482/.700 with 3 homers and 6 steals. He also has 7 hits over his last two games, with 3 extra-base hits and a steal. He is completely locked in at the plate, and nothing should change today facing Reid Detmers. He is reasonably priced on FanDuel but still worth rostering there, but on DraftKings as the 5th-priced second baseman, he is an easy roster right now.
Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B Pittsburgh Pirates
Ke'Bryan Hayes only played one game in July, spending a large amount of time on the IL. Since returning to the lineup on August 2nd, he had a few games without much to start his return, but over his last 3 games has 7 hits with 2 homers, a triple, and a double stacking up 9 RBIs as well. It looks like he is finally back and locked in at the plate following his absence, and you can still get him around the lowest price he has been all season.
Cody Bellinger, OF Chicago Cubs
Cody Bellinger has been the best he has been since 2019, when he won the NL MVP with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He has a 1.133 OPS since July 1st, behind only Freddie Freeman in that time, and is leading the league in AVG over that stretch, batting .410. He is doing everything well right now as he is hitting for average, hitting homers, stealing bases, and not striking out. I am fully bought into what he is doing and don’t see him slowing down any time soon.
Player Pool
| $ Tier | SP | 1B | 2B | 3B | SS | OF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High |  Luis Castillo  $10,600 |  Pete Alonso $3,700 |  Jose Altuve $4,200 |  Austin Riley $3,900 | Francisco Lindor $3,700 |  Cody Bellinger $4,200 |
 Corbin Burnes $10,800 | Ronald Acuña $4,900 | |||||
 Blake Snell $11,000 |  Adolis García $4,100 | |||||
| Medium |  Kyle Gibson $9,600 |  Joseph Votto $3,300 |  Ha-Seong Kim $3,400 |  Nolan Arenado $3,300 |  Dansby Swanson $3,200 | Lars Nootbaar $3,200 |
 Nick Castellanos $3,100 | ||||||
| Michael Harris $3,000 | ||||||
| Low |  Tarik Skubal $8,800 |  Joey Meneses $2,900 |  Michael Massey $2,400 |  Ke'Bryan Hayes $2,800 | Orlando Arcia $2,800 | Joc Pederson $2,800 |
| Cristopher Sánchez $8,600 | MJ Melendez $2,900 | |||||
| Tyler O'Neill $2,600 |
Stacks
| Royals | Bobby Witt | Freddy Fermin | MJ Melendez | Salvador Perez | Michael Massey |
 DraftKings | 5800 | 3400 | 3300 | 4400 | 3000 |
| Fanduel | 3900 | 2700 | 2900 | 2700 | 2400 |
| Braves | Orlando Arcia | Ozzie Albies | Austin Riley | Ronald Acuña | Michael Harris |
| DraftKings | 4300 | 5600 | 5900 | 6700 | 4400 |
| Fanduel | 2800 | 3800 | 3900 | 4900 | 3000 |
| Cubs | Dansby Swanson | Cody Bellinger | Jeimer Candelario |
| DraftKings | 4700 | 5300 | 4400 |
| Fanduel | 3200 | 4200 | 3300 |
| Phillies | Nick Castellanos | Alec Bohm | J.T. Realmuto | Bryce Harper |
| DraftKings | 4800 | 4700 | 5000 | 5600 |
| Fanduel | 3100 | 3200 | 2900 | 3400 |
Player News
Daulton Varsho picked up three hits, three RBI and a homer in a win over the Angels on Thursday.
Varsho has only played in seven games this year, but they’ve been seven good ones. He’s homered three times already, and his slugging percentage is a remarkable — and entirely unsustainable — .727 over 22 at-bats. Varsho has been a mediocre offensive player in his two seasons with the Blue Jays, but it’s possible at the age of 28 he’s having a breakout campaign. Far from a guarantee, but possible.
Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer in a loss to the Blue Jays on Thursday.
Ward, 31, gave the Angels a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer off Chris Bassitt in the first inning. He’s now gone deep in two of his last three games, and it ‘improves’ his slash to .181/.224/.391. Ward has been one of the most hot/cold players players in the sport over the last few years, so fantasy managers who can afford to make some roster moves may want to look at Ward while the going is good.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. picked up three hits and scored twice in an 8-5 win over the Angels on Thursday.
Guerrero also drew a walk. It gives the first baseman multiple hits in back-to-back games, and it’s the third time in May that he’s reached that mark. That’s helped raise his average from .268 to .295, and the only thing fantasy managers can be disappointed with is his .432 slugging percentage. That number should continue to climb as the season unfolds, but Vladdy Jr. has had some inconsistent seasons when it comes to power production.
Chad Green picked up his first save of 2025 with a scoreless ninth against the Angels on Thursday.
Green got the save after Jeff Hoffman worked in back-to-back games — and struggled — in the first two contests against the Angels. He struck out two and looked the part while needing just nine pitches to get through the inning. Hoffman should remain the closer, but Green is on his tail if the struggles were to continue.
Chris Bassitt allowed five runs — four earned — while working six-plus innings against the Angels on Thursday while picking up a win.
Bassitt allowed three runs over the first two innings on a pair of homers, but settled down over his next four frames. He came out to work the seventh, but ended up being charged for two more runs after leaving the contest. The 36-year-old veteran has forged a 3.35 ERA and outstanding 49/8 K/BB ratio over the first quarter of the season, but this wasn’t him at his best. He’ll get the Rays next week if the rotation order stays the same for Toronto.
José Soriano allowed three runs over five innings while not factoring in the decision Thursday against the Blue Jays.
Soriano left with a 4-3 lead, but it was erased quickly after his departure. The 26-year-old was not exactly dominant in his outing with eight hits allowed and four free passes, but he did strike out six to help balance things out a smidgen. Soriano takes an even ERA of 4.00 into a scheduled start against the Padres in San Diego on Tuesday. There should be better options for that one.