It is here, it is finally here! MLB Opening Day folks, what an exciting time! Unfortunately, we have already had two games postponed and it takes some of the excitement away from today, but there is still plenty of fun with this slate of games and we can make some money playing DFS!
Pitchers
(Yahoo – $25 / FanDuel – $6800)
Tylor Megill was not supposed to be the Opening Day starter for a team that has/had Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, but here we are. On the bright side, he is the cheapest pitcher on Yahoo and one of the cheapest on FanDuel as well. He pitched well as a rookie last season with a 4.52 ERA and 99 strikeouts across 89.2 innings of work. Today, he gets to face a Nationals lineup that is pretty terrible outside of Juan Soto. The Mets are favorites in this game and there could be an opportunity for a win.
(DraftKings – $7500)
Adam Wainwright is priced too low on DK and it’s a great spot to take advantage of it. He is coming off a great year in which he went 17-7 with a 3.05 ERA and finished seventh in the NL Cy Young voting. He was even better at home too, pitching to a 2.74 ERA and 1.01 WHIP – compared to a 3.58 ERA and 1.14 WHIP on the road. The Pirates have one of the worst lineups, if not the worst, in baseball and all around are just a very bad team. Fire him up.
Hitters
(Yahoo – $8)
Andrés Giménez is a great play on Yahoo at this price tag. He has a little bit of pop and good speed, as he has eight home runs and 19 steals in just 306 career big-league at-bats. Six of those home runs and 17 of those steals have been against right-handed pitching. He had a great Spring Training too, hitting .360 with a home run and FOUR steals across just 25 at-bats. Gimenez is one of my top overall plays for Yahoo today, based on this price. He faces Zack Greinke, who has posted an ERA north of 4.00 in back-to-back seasons.
(Yahoo – $8 / DraftKings – $2200)
Steven Kwan will be making his MLB debut today and, while his ceiling may not be incredibly high, I do like him at a near-minimum price. He hit .328 with 12 dingers and six steals last season across 77 minor league games, and he hit .469 across 32 at-bats in Spring Training. He faces Zack Greinke, who isn’t the same pitcher he used to be, as stated above in Gimenez’s section.
(FanDuel – $2100 / DraftKings – $2600)
J.D. Davis has hit well his entire time with the Mets with a .288 average and 33 home runs across 269 games with the club. He has also hit lefties well in his career, slashing .268/.356/.452 against them with 14 home runs across 325 at-bats. Davis now gets to face Patrick Corbin, who got shelled last season to the tune of a 5.82 ERA and 1.47 WHIP. Right-handed bats did nearly ALL the damage against him, slashing an absurd .302/.359/.562 with 35 home runs – compared to lefties who slashed .228/.294/.324 with just two home runs. Davis has also crushed Corbin over the years, facing him more than any other pitcher, and slashing .345/.406/.862 against him with four homers and three doubles in 32 PAs.
(FanDuel – $2900)
As mentioned above in Davis’ section, Patrick Corbin was really bad last year and got pummeled by right-handed bats. Well, Eduardo Escobar is another cheap right-handed bat (at least on FanDuel) that mashed lefties last year. He slashed .295/.340/.537 against southpaws with nine home runs in 149 at-bats – compared to a .238/.305/.448 slash line against righties with 19 home runs in 400 at-bats. Escobar is one of my favorite plays today but, unfortunately, he is only cheap on FanDuel. I also don’t mind that he is 2-for-8 with a home run against Corbin in his career.
Bobby Witt Jr., Royals (DraftKings – $2300)
Let’s just have a little fun, shall we? It’s Opening Day and we have a young stud making his debut! I don’t love this matchup against Shane Bieber obviously, but Bobby Witt Jr. is a superstar in the making with power and speed upside. So, at a near-minimum price on DraftKings, I don’t mind taking my chances in a GPP. He had an amazing Spring Training too, hitting .406 with three home runs and a pair of steals across 32 at-bats.
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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.