MLB DFS Value Plays July 23: Top DraftKings and FanDuel Picks
Dominate your MLB DFS contests this week with our DFS Playbook, Podcasts, Lineup Generator, Player Projections, & Draft Percentage Forecaster.We have a ten-game MLB DFS main slate on Sunday, July 23rd, and it’s a very solid slate to take a look at. We have elite pitching options in Aaron Nola and Jesus Luzardo we’re going to want to spend up on as well as Ronald Acuna Jr., Matt Olson, Mookie Betts, and Corbin Carroll at the dish. That’s why we need to dig into the depths of the MLB DFS value plays and pick some winners. Be sure to check out all of our tools including the MLB Lineups page, MLB DFS Projections – powered by FanJections – MLB DFS Ownership, and all of the rest of our tools HERE! Let’s dive into our favorite daily fantasy baseball value plays of the day.
MLB DFS Value Pitchers
Mackenzie Gore, Washington Nationals (DraftKings - $8,300, FanDuel - $8,800)
As the year has progressed, the Giants’ numbers against left-handed pitching have continuously gotten worse and worse. They now rank 25th in OPS, 26th in wOBA, 29th in ISO, and have the eighth-highest K-rate against southpaws on the year. Gore has definitely struggled far more lately than he had been after a fast start to the year, but we’ve seen on many occasions what his strikeout ceiling is. Through 96 innings this year, Gore’s posted a 27.5% K-rate, which is elite. I expect the strikeouts to be on full display here.
Luis Severino, New York Yankees (DraftKings - $7,200, FanDuel - $7,000)
Look, I know. I know. I understand. Why go back to this well when nothing has seemingly gone well for Severino this year? Well, the Royals are a different type of bad. The Royals are 28th in OPS, 30th in wOBA, and have the fifth-highest K-rate against right-handed pitching across the league. Severino is coming off one of his better starts this year firing six innings of one-run baseball. He’s accomplished that feat twice over his last four starts but the two in between the good ones were awful. Severino could very well put together back-to-back solid starts and be a great SP2 on this slate on DraftKings and viable SP2 spend down on FanDuel.
MLB DFS Value Hitters
Brendan Donovan, St. Louis Cardinals (DraftKings - $3,400, FanDuel - $2,900)
The Cardinals' full-time DH has been very good at the dish for a long stretch now and continues to check in under-priced on a slate-to-slate basis. He faces Jameson Taillon here and Taillon has been awful against left-handed bats all year long. Lefties have a .303 ISO, .421 wOBA, and a 50.4% flyball rate. 11 of the 14 homers Taillon’s allowed have been to lefties. After hitting .307 in June, Donovan’s hitting .362 in July through 13 games and has a season-high 1.061 OPS this month as well. He’s hitting .297 with an .854 OPS, and .370 wOBA against right-handed pitching this season.
CJ Abrams, Washington Nationals (DraftKings - $3,300, FanDuel - $2,900)
When does the industry realize what Abrams is and has been doing for quite a while now? The reigning National League player of the month might mess around and win two straight because over his last 10 games, he’s slashing .419/.444/.698 with three home runs, 13 runs scored, and SEVEN stolen bases. He’s homered in back-to-back games, has three straight multi-hit outings, and is setting the table better than almost anyone right now. Through 11 games as a leadoff hitter, Abrams is batting .413. He’s getting moved from that spot again.
Alek Thomas, Arizona Diamondbacks (DraftKings - $2,900, FanDuel - $2,400)
Thomas has been back up with the Diamondbacks for 23 games and over that span, he’s been much better than he was before being sent down. He’s hit .289 with a .518 SLG%, .816 OPS, and .345 wOBA. He faces off against Luke Weaver in this game and gets to do so in Great American Ballpark. He has a .196 ISO and .337 wOBA against right-handed pitching this year and that correlates well against Weaver who’s allowed a .216 ISO and .357 wOBA to lefties. Thomas hitting ninth correlates well with the top half of the lineup too.
Billy McKinney, New York Yankees (DraftKings - $2,100, FanDuel - $2,400)
It’s been a season in which McKinney was thrust into an everyday role for the Yankees due to all the injuries and the release of Aaron Hicks and he’s responded pretty well posting a .790 OPS through 31 games. He’s had back-to-back big games against the Royals at home posting 16+ DKP in each game. He’s been good against right-handed pitching this year, especially in the power department posting a team-leading .274 ISO and has a .333 ISO to boot. He faces Jordan Lyles, king of allowing power as he’s let lefties post a .242 ISO and 12 home runs.
Dominate your MLB DFS contests this week with our DFS Playbook, Podcasts, Lineup Generator, Player Projections, & Draft Percentage Forecaster.
Player News
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde told reporters that Zach Eflin (lat) is likely to return and start Sunday against the Angels
It was assumed that Eflin would be back this weekend, but now we have a concrete date. The 31-year-old may not be at full strength after throwing fewer than 60 pitches in his rehab start, but the Orioles feel confident enough to have the right-hander back on the bump for the series finale against the Angels.
Riley Greene is not in the lineup for the first game of a doubleheader against the Rockies on Thursday.
Greene will get a break and likely return to the lineup for the second game of the twin-billing. Zach McKinstry will get the start in left field while Greene rests.
Yu Darvish (elbow) is facing live hitters on Thursday.
Darvish has been throwing bullpen sessions and traveled to the team’s complex in Arizona to face live hitters on Thursday. It will be his first time facing live batters since a spring training appearance on March 13th. He will likely need a few sessions like this before the Padres can map out a rehab appearance timeline for him.
Adael Amador is starting at second base and batting ninth for the Rockies on Thursday.
Amador has now started three of the last four games at second base for the Rockies. He’s gone just 7-for-43 this season with 15 strikeouts in 16 games. He’s just 22 years old, so there is plenty of time for him to adjust to the MLB level, but he doesn’t need to be on redraft radars right now.
Jackson Holliday is playing second base and batting second for the Orioles on Thursday against the Twins.
With Cedric Mullins sitting out on Thursday, Gunnar Henderson will bat lead off, and Holliday will jump up from sixth in the order to second. Holliday is riding a hot streak right now, and the Orioles are taking advantage. This is likely just a one-game sample with no Mullins or Adley Rutschman in the lineup, but Rutschman has been struggling, so perhaps it could become a more permanent spot in the lineup for Holliday moving forward.
Endy Rodriguez (finger) had his splint removed this week.
Rodriguez suffered a lacerated right index finger on April 14th. Now that he is out of his splint, he “is playing catch and doing a slightly modified swing.” Once he can progress to taking full swings, we’ll have a better sense of the timeline for his return.