Monday night’s MLB DFS main slate is highlighted by some very shaky pitcher options for the seven-game main slate. Aaron Nola against Detroit is the de facto top pitcher on the slate because of his raw skills, but he has been very shaky this season. His past seven starts have produced four games with exactly 11 fantasy points and two starts with more than 30. Nola has been much better at home, so he will be my most-rostered pitcher, but it gets very interesting after that. There are plenty of offenses to go around with Toronto, Houston, Philadelphia, and a gamer at homer-friendly Great American Ballpark on tap.
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MLB DFS Picks and Plays for June 5
Today’s analysis covers the seven-game main slate on DraftKings and FanDuel at 6:40 PM ET.
Weather Concerns:
- There are no significant weather concerns for any game on the main slate on Monday.
Best Hitter’s Parks:
- Great American Ballpark
- Citizens Bank Park
- Rogers Centre
Best Pitcher’s Parks:
- Petco Park
- loanDepot Park
DraftKings Top Plays
High-Dollar Pitcher
Aaron Nola ($10,200) vs. Detroit Tigers – Nola as the top pitcher on Monday is a pretty simple equation. He has the second-highest strikeout rate and SIERA of all pitchers going on Monday. The Tigers, on the other hand, have the worst wOBA against that handedness and have the ninth-highest strikeout rate against them this year (23.6%).
Value Pitcher
Braxton Garrett ($8,300) vs. Kansas City Royals – Admittedly, $8,300 isn’t as much value as we would really like in an SP2, but below Braxton Garrett it really gets scary at pitcher. Garrett has more than 20 DK fantasy points in three of his last four starts thanks to at least seven strikeouts in all of those games. The Royals rank just 19th this season with a .413 slugging percentage against lefties.
High-Dollar Infielder
William Contreras ($4,400) vs. Andrew Abbott – Andrew Abbott is a great pitcher through his stops at AA and AAA ball this year, but now he moves to Great American Ballpark for his first major league start against a Brewers’ lineup with quite a bit of pop at the top. Contreras is smoking left-handed pitchers this year with a .333 OBP and a .510 slugging percentage.
Value Infielder
Brian Anderson ($3,400) vs. Andrew Abbott – Through his 56 games in 2023, Brian Anderson already has more home runs and RBI than he did in 98 games with Miami last season. His walk rate is up, his slugging percentage is 60 points higher, and he is hitting 31% flyballs in 2o23.
High-Dollar Outfielder
Juan Soto ($5,800) vs. Kyle Hendricks – Let me draw your attention to what Kyle Hendricks is allowing to left-handed batters this year. He is giving up a .423 OBP and .354 wOBA against them. Hendricks has only gone five innings in each of his first two starts back from injury but has allowed 12 hits and five walks in that span. If there is anyone on the planet who knows how to get on base against a vulnerable right-handed pitcher, it’s Soto and his .459 OBP against them this year.
Value Outfielder
Corey Julks ($2,800) vs. Alek Manoah – There’s something about playing on the road that is bringing out the best in rookie Corey Julks this year. He slashes .299/.333/.429 on the road, which are all at least 70 points higher than his numbers at home in Minute Maid Park. With the Astros traveling to a much better park for power this week (Rogers Centre), look for Julks to be aggressive against Manoah who is allowing a .371 OBP and .434 SLG% to righties this year.
Best DraftKings Stack
Milwaukee Brewers vs. Andrew Abbott – With Luis Urias and Willy Adames on the IL, only three Milwauke regulars will be above $3,800 on Monday night. Even if you want to stack Christian Yelich, Rowdy Tellez, and Contrereas with Nola and Garrett, that still leaves you with more than $3,500 per batter for the other five spots. This Brewers/Reds game is tied for the highest implied total on the slate (10 runs) and should provide a lot of fire works at Great American “Smallpark.”
FanDuel Top Plays
High-Dollar Pitcher
Blake Snell ($9,500) vs. Chicago Cubs – Snell checks in at $500 less than Aaron Nola on FanDuel and makes for quite a bargain at $9,500, assuming he keeps he walks under control. That has been a problem for Snell the last few years, but four of his last six games have three or fewer. Also in Snell’s favor are the strikeout-prone Cubs, who are sixth in the league with a 24.3% strikeout rate.
Value Pitcher
Johan Oviedo ($8,400) vs. Oakland Athletics – I can’t say I’m in love with an $8,400 salary tag on Johan Oviedo tonight against Oakland, but he does have more than 20 FanDuel fantasy points in four straight games and gets the absolute best possible matchup in one of the best parks at suppressing home runs (PNC Park). The Athletics have the fourth-highest team strikeout rate and the worst slugging percentage of all teams in 2023.
High-Dollar Infielder
Corey Seager ($3,900) vs. Adam Wainwright – In his 16 games since returning from an injury, Corey Seager has been unstoppable with a .343/.361/.672 line including five bombs and 25 runs driven in. The Rangers’ offense is firing on all cylinders right now, and against a soft-tossing, pitch-to-contact pitcher like Wainwright in his old age, this could get ugly fast down in Arlington. Wainwright has allowed 20 hits+walks in his last two games and that was against the lowly Royals and Reds.
Value Infielder
Alex Bregman ($3,200) vs. Alek Manoah – Bregman has been hot lately with a .425/.500/.625 slash line since May 24, covering a span of 11 games. He also has two homers and 13 RBI in that span, raising his batting average by 40 points and his slugging percentage by 50 points in that span.
High-Dollar Outfielder
Yordan Alvarez ($4,300) vs. Alek Manoah – Yordan Alvarez has a .407 on-base percentage and a .529 slugging percentage against right-handers, so I’m not really sure what more evidence we need to start him in a hitters’ park like Rogers Centre. Alek Manoah is giving up over six walks and 1.6 home runs per nine innings this year, and my money is on Alvarez getting one of each on Monday.
Value Outfielder
Owen Miller ($2,800) vs. Andrew Abbott – We can’t forget about the Brewers on FanDuel either, especially someone like Miller who is just $2,800 and has become the no-doubt number two hitter for the Brewers no matter who is on the mound. Miller is eligible at second, third, and outfield and has nine hits and six RBI over his last seven games. At more than five implied runs, Milwaukee should be one of the highest-scoring teams on the slate and Miller at the top will be one of the catalysts.
Best FanDuel Stack
Houston Astros vs. Alek Manoah – The Astros are a patient team (8.5% walk rate) with plenty of pop throughout the lineup. If Jose Altuve should miss another game with an oblique issue, that would mean only Yordan Alvarez would be over $3,400 in this starting lineup, which allows us to stack them any way we want against Manoah. Alek Manoah has been simply awful at home with a 6.83 ERA and a .306/.438/.559 slash line allowed in Toronto.