MLB DFS Value Vault August 24: Lars Nootbaar is Still Too Cheap
Good morning, FAmily! Happy “Split-Slate Wednesday “in major league baseball. Wednesday is a day that is split between day and night games across the baseball landscape. For MLB DFS purposes we will be covering this evening’s eight game slate that locks at 7:05pm ET on all three sites- DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo Fantasy. We finally get a night away from Coors Field but with stud pitchers like Shane McClanahan and Framber Valdez on the mound we will need to find some value. To get the big arms and bats in your lineups you will need to find some value plays and that’s where we come in. I have spent the morning researching and coming up with the best point per dollar plays on the slate. Also, the weather forecast looks pretty good but make sure to check our MLB Weather Center before lock. We also have MLB Lineups, MLB Vegas Odds plus projections and a lineup builder in our Fantasy Alarm MLB Tools page. So, let’s get right into it and open Wednesday’s MLB DFS Value Vault...
MLB DFS VALUE PITCHERS
Mike Mayers (LAA) $5.0K DK/5.6K FD/$26 Yahoo
Pitching value on tonight’s MLB DFS slate is few and far between. Mike Mayers is in play if you are multi entering GPPs due to his rock bottom price on all three slates. Touki Toussaint could not hold on to his spot in the Angels rotation after getting hit up pretty bad in his last start against Seattle. Angles manager Phil Nevin turned to the veteran righty Mayers in that game and the setup man turned long reliever wound up bridging the gap from the third until the ninth inning throwing over 90 pitches. Mayers made his return to the Angels on Aug. 6 after spending over two months with Triple-A Salt Lake. He spent that time re-working some of his pitches and adding to his repertoire in the hopes that he could re-capture some of the magic from his elite 2020 season where he had a 2.10 ERA/0.90 WHIP. With a new slate of off-speed pitches (he added a curveball and changeup to his arsenal) Mayers tossed 3.1 shutout innings in his first game back from Triple-A in which he allowed just one hit and two walks, while striking out four batters. Tonight, he will be in a pitcher’s park (The Trop) against a rays team with a low .290 team wOBA against RHP.
Miles Mikolas (STL) $7.9K DK/$42 Yahoo
Miles Mikolas is back to being a solid SP after getting thrashed in Coors three starts ago. After allowing 14 hits in 2.2 innings in Colorado he has bounced back and pitched eight innings at home against the Brewers and then another eight on the road in Arizona. In those two starts he has allowed only six hits total and three earned runs and it marked the third and fourth time this year he went at least eight innings with two or fewer earned runs allowed. Mikolas, an All Star for the second time this season, is a work horse as he is third in the NL with 157 innings pitched to go along with his 10 wins. Tonight, he will be facing the Cubs in Wrigley, a team that is striking out 27% to right-handed pitching – highest rate on the slate. He is in play in all formats tonight.
MLB DFS VALUE HITTERS
Lars Nootbaar (STL) $2.6K DK/$3.2K FD
Nootbaar’s summer turnaround continues with a .318 batting average (31 for 99), four homers, and more walks (25) than strikeouts (20) in his past 31 games. It's led to him batting leadoff against right-handers and tonight he is righty Luke Farrell who will be making his first MLB start of the season. Farrell was not exactly lighting up Triple-A in Iowa as he had a 3-4 record with a 5.03 ERA/1.46 WHIP. Nootbaar, meanwhile, has been smoking right-handed pitching to the tune of a .244 ISO/.371wOBA and 43.5% hard contact rate. He is in play on all sites but especially on DraftKings where he remains a much too low sub-$3K.
Eloy Jiménez (CWS) $3.8K DK/$2.8K FD
We need to monitor Jimenez’ status since he got hit in the elbow by a 102-mph fastball yesterday (X-rays negative) but if he starts Eloy Jiménez is a near lock for me at this price on DraftKings. He is sub $4K yet is hitting .310 over the last seven days and .352 over the last 20 games with a .417wOBA and 168.5 wRC+. Tonight, he will be facing Spencer Watkins who has a horrible 5.52 xFIP and does not miss bats with a 13% strikeout rate to right-handed hitting.
Nick Castellanos (PHI) $2.9K FD
Nick Castellanos is finally starting to rake and FanDuel is asleep at the wheel. The Phillies lineup is red hot, and they are being led by Casty who over his last 25 games, has hit .347 with six doubles, four homers and 12 RBI. He is currently on a 13-game hit streak (fourth highest in the majors) and during that span is slashing .364/.364/.545 plus since the calendar flipped to August, Castellanos is hitting a much better .320/.363/.533 with four home runs. TJ Zeuch, who will be on the mound for the Reds has a 6.55xFIP and 11% strikeout rate plus a hard-hit rate north of 50%. FanDuel players- get Casty in your lineups tonight.
Other Top Value Picks:
José Abreu (CWS) $3.9K DK
Alex Verdugo (BOS) $3.5K DK/$3.2K FD
Nick Senzel (CIN) $2.2K DK/$2.5K FD
David Peralta (TAM) $2.9K/$2.7K FD DK
Alejandro Kirk (TOR) $2.9K FD/$13 Yahoo
Jonathan India (CIN) $2.7K FD
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (TOR) $2.8K FD/$12 Yahoo
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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.