The featured slate we’re looking at today is a bit later in the day, so you have a bit more time to set your lineups. DraftKings’ featured slate begins at 5:05 Eastern Time and includes 11 games. FanDuel has a nearly identical slate. It also starts at 5:05 Eastern Time, but only contains 10 of the games. It does not include the Cleveland and Kansas City matchup. It’s too bad because there are some interesting options in that game that you can only use on DraftKings.
Saturday’s Top MLB DFS Picks & Player Props
Saturday’s Starting Pitcher Rankings (7/26)
| PLAYER | DraftKings Salary | FanDuel Salary |
| Garrett Crochet | $11,000 | $10,600 |
| Joe Ryan | $10,200 | $10,500 |
| Trevor Rogers | $7,900 | $9,700 |
- This isn’t going to be a slate where you want to skimp on starting pitching with the options available. The option that stands out to me is Garrett Crochet. Some may see that matchup against the Dodgers and back off, but you don’t have to. Since the start of June, the Dodgers have the third worst wRC+ at only 83. Crochet leads baseball in strikeouts with 165.
- Joe Ryan has a matchup with the Washington Nationals. Over his past five starts, Ryan has a 36:3 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He has has only given up five earned runs in 31 innings. The Nationals have a bottom 10 offense per wRC+ against right-handed pitchers.
- While he isn’t super cheap, if you are looking for an option below the top tier look at Trevor Rogers. His price is especially interesting on DraftKings. While Colorado has been better offensively recently, they are still the second worst offense in road games. They also have the highest strikeout rate in road games at 28.5%. While Rogers’ strikeout rate is down to 21.9%, he is getting groundballs over 50% of the time which has helped to keep the earned runs in check.
Suggested Lineup Stacks
Houston Astros Projected Lineup (7/26)
| POS | PLAYER | DraftKings Salary | FanDuel Salary |
| OF | Cam Smith | $4,000 | $3,000 |
| 2B/OF | Jose Altuve | $4,800 | $3,100 |
| 1B (DK)/C | Victor Caratini | $3,900 | $3,000 |
| 1B | Christian Walker | $3,700 | $3,000 |
| OF | Chas McCormick | $2,100 | $2,300 |
| C | Yainer Diaz | $3,100 | $2,800 |
| 3B/SS
2B/OF (FD) |
Mauricio Dubon | $3,500 | $2,500 |
| 2B/SS (FD) | Brice Matthews | $3,300 | $2,700 |
| SS/
2B/3B (FD) |
Zack Short | $2,600 | $2,400 |
- The Houston Astros have the second best team OPS against left-handed pitchers behind only the New York Yankees. The Astros are facing Athletics’ left-handed pitcher Jacob Lopez. There was a stretch in early June when Lopez looked like he was going to be a breakout starting pitcher for the Athletics. However, over his last four starts he has allowed 25 baserunners in only 18 innings which has led to an ERA over 7.00 in that span.
- Victor Caratini has been a journeyman catcher throughout his career, but he is trending towards a career season. Part of the reason is his performance against left-handed pitching. He has three home runs against left-handed pitching in only 29 at-bats which has lead to a 1.099 OPS against left-handers.
- Cam Smith has moved to the leadoff spots against left-handed pitchers. It’s no surprise given his performance against them. Smith has a .999 OPS against left-handed pitchers, and only a .660 OPS against right-handed pitching.
- If you are looking to the ride hot hand, consider either Christian Walker or Brice Matthews. Walker is batting .333 with an .853 OPS in July. Matthews’ strikeout rate is scary, but he has three home runs in only eight games with an expected slugging percentage of .613.
Chicago Cubs Projected Lineup (7/26)
| POS | PLAYER | DraftKings Salary | FanDuel Salary |
| 1B | Michael Busch | $5,500 | $3,200 |
| OF | Kyle Tucker | $6,100 | $3,800 |
| OF | Seiya Suzuki | $5,400 | $3,700 |
| OF | Pete Crow-Armstrong | $5,900 | $4,100 |
| C | Carson Kelly | $4,200 | $2,800 |
| OF | Ian Happ | $4,800 | $3,100 |
| SS | Dansby Swanson | $4,100 | $2,900 |
| 2B/SS (FD) | Nico Hoerner | $4,000 | $2,700 |
| 3B | Matt Shaw | $3,400 | $2,500 |
- You are going to need to be a bit thrifty with your starting pitcher choice if you want to stack Chicago Cubs. Only the Arizona Diamondbacks and New York Yankees have a higher OPS against right-handed pitchers than the Chicago Cubs. Today, there are opposed by their crosstown rival in the Chicago White Sox and their starting pitcher Aaron Civale. Civale has an ERA of 4.76 which is actually lower than his FIP and expected FIP over 5.
- Michael Busch has moved to the leadoff spot against right-handed pitchers. It stands to reason as 34 of his 38 extra-base hits have come against right handed pitchers including 18 of his 20 home runs.
- After a bit of a slow down in June, Pete Crow-Armstrong is back at it in July. He already has 12 extra-base hits this month including six home runs. He has a .951 OPS against right-handed pitchers, with only a .679 OPS against left-handed pitchers.
- If you can find the money, Kyle Tucker, Seiya Suzuki, and Carson Kelly are all playable options. If you are looking for a cheaper option, Matt Shaw has come off the All-Star break looking more comfortable. He has hits in all six games including three home runs.
Core Studs
- Vinnie Pasquantino’s history against Tanner Bibee can’t be ignored. He is 7-for-11 against Bibee in his career with four extra-base hits including two home runs.
- Jose Ramirez is always an option, but even moreso against left-handed pitchers. He has a .942 OPS against left-handed pitchers. Today, he is opposed by Royals starter Kris Bubic. While he doesn’t have a home run against him yet, Ramirez is 5-for-9 against Bubic with a double in his career.
- Cal Raleigh has slowed a bit with only a .159 batting average in July. That still comes with six home runs. He has been better against left-handed pitchers this season with a 1.177 OPS against them. Today, he gets to take on left-hander Tyler Anderson who he already has one home run against in his career.
Value Plays/Punts
- Angel Martinez is a switch hitter who is considerably better from the right side. Against left-handed pitchers, he has an OPS of .894. Against right-handed pitchers, it is only .602. Today, he is against left-handed starter Kris Bubic.
- Agustin Ramirez hit a home run yesterday at American Family Field. It’s not uncommon for him as he has been much better on the road than at home. Eleven of his home runs have come on the road and only four at home. He is against left-handed starting pitcher Jose Quintana.
- Salvador Perez won’t be able to be a value play much longer as his value keeps climbing. That’s what happens when you’ve already hit nine home runs in July. Add in that 17 of his 18 home runs have come against right-handed pitching like he sees today in Tanner Bibee and he is a definite target.
Saturday’s Top 3 Underdog Player Props
Nick Kurtz (1B – ATH) – Over 0.5 Total Bases
Nick Kurtz had one of the most remarkable games you’ll ever see yesterday. He finished 6-for-6 with four home runs and 19 total bases. It’s his 12th consecutive game going over 0.5 total bases. Ride the hot hand again today.
Ryan Pepiot (SP – TB) – Over 5.5 Strikeouts
Ryan Pepiot faces the Cincinnati Reds today who strike out 22.8% of the time. Going back to the start of June, Pepiot has gone over 5.5 strikeouts in 6-of-9 starts. He missed in one of the starts as he only managed 1.2 innings. Another game he missed, he still had five strikeouts.
Kyle Stowers (OF – MIA) – Over 0.5 Total Bases
Kyle Stowers has had at least one total base in nine of his past 10 games. Today he faces left-handed pitcher Jose Quintana. While Stowers is better against right-handed pitching, he does have a .290/.375/.377 triple slash line against left-handed pitching still.
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