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Happy Friday, Rotoballers! The final Friday of August treats us to the full 15 games on DraftKings featured slate. While it's a lot to navigate, there are some typical ground bats and pitchers we will want to slot in our lineups. The action begins with three East Coast games at 7:05 pm Eastern including the Phillies Aaron Nola trying to right the ship against the Diamondbacks. Then, we play baseball all night until the final four games on the West Coast throw out their first pitches between 9:30 pm and 10:10 pm Eastern. The Yankees-A's series is going to go a long way to determining who will claim one of those two precious AL Wildcard spots.
Fifteen games mean 30 pitchers to parse through. It'll be tough to whittle all the choices down to only two picks for this article, but it's a good idea to have five or six in mind to mix and match in your lineups on such a big slate. I'm looking at a couple of NL East pitchers as my go-to guys right now, but there are other hurlers in the mix for one of the two recommendations.
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 8/27/2021. The lineup will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. You can also check out today's FanDuel MLB DFS lineup picks and read more DFS advice and lineup picks for other sports too. It’s also important to monitor injury news and today's MLB starting lineups. If you have any questions or comments, find me on Twitter and ask away.
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DraftKings DFS Starting Pitchers
Shane McClanahan - P, TB at BAL ($10,700)
Tampa Bay's Shane McClanahan is a trendy pick for tonight's slate and one of the best options in any format. The Ray's southpaw has a 2.88 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, and a lovely 29 percent strikeout rate during the second half. In those same six starts, he's topped 23 fantasy points four times, and two of those games came against the Orioles. He should have no problem once again against a Baltimore outfit with a 25.1 percent K rate versus lefties while only producing a .218 batting average, .285 weighted On Base Average, and an 80 wRC+ in August.
Aaron Nola - P, PHI vs. ARI ($10,200)
Nola's season-long stat line sits at an unremarkable 7-7 record with a 4.33 ERA and 1.12 WHIP. While the 174 strikeouts in 143 1/3 innings are encouraging, the other surface numbers don't match the talent. However, he's been working on it since the All-Star break, and his second-half numbers are far more eye-catching. The 2018 All-Star has a 3.86 ERA with a 0.90 WHIP and a 28.7 percent strikeout rate in seven starts. Meanwhile, in August, the Diamondbacks strike out 27.9 percent of the time to righties on the mound and offers Nola a fantastic opportunity to continue his post-All-Star break bounce-back campaign.
Other options: Joe Musgrove at LAA ($9,600), Max Fried vs. SF ($8,700), Kyle Freeland at LAD ($7,000)
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DraftKings DFS Infielders
Jacob Stallings - C, PIT vs. J.A. Happ ($3,700)
It doesn't feel great to recommend a Pittsburgh Pirate, but I'm betting more against J.A. Happ than on Jacob Stallings. While the Pirates backstop has racked up six hits in his last five appearances, his season-long 93 wRC+ shows us he's been a below-average hitter in 2021. Still, Stallings is penciled in as Pittsburgh's fifth hitter, and that alone is worth a look at only $3,700. Especially against the Cardinal's pitcher, J.A. Happ. If you're not convinced, take a look at this stat fellow Rotoballer writer Jon Anderson put together.
Worst PA/HR rates by SP's since June 1st. League average PA/HR is around 28 (meaning an average pitcher will give up a homer every 28 batters faced)
Folty 13.1
Brubaker 14.7
Weathers 14.9
Bubic 15.1
Arrieta 15.4
Alzolay 16.6
Happ 16.9
Jax 17.0
Lyles 17.7
Darvish 17.7
Mize 18.3— Jon Anderson (@JonPgh) August 26, 2021
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. - 1B, TOR at Matt Manning ($5,800)
$5,800 isn't cheap for any position player, but Vlad Guerrero Jr. comes in as the fifth-most expensive first baseman on Friday, and I'm ready to jump on it. While the MVP candidate hasn't been his All-World self in recent games, it's complicated to fade someone that can change a slate with one swing of his bat. Over his last 10 games, Vladito sports a .673 OPS and a single extra-base hit, but I wouldn't be too discouraged if I was a DFS manager. Guerrero Jr. is averaging a home run every 12.8 at-bats during his breakout campaign, and he hasn't hit one in his last 23 at-bats. The Blue Jays slugger is a sleeping giant, and just like the Yellowstone Supervolcano, he's overdue for an explosion.
Jorge Polanco - 2B/SS, MIN at Eric Lauer ($3,900)
I've been harping about Jorge Polanco's low salary for a couple of weeks now, and he keeps bringing my lineups a positive return. So while DraftKings continues to underappreciated him, I will not be making that mistake. He's one of the few bright spots for an otherwise miserable Twins season and is turning into an excellent offensive infielder. Over his last 10 games, Polanco slashes .310/.375/.571 with seven runs, two doubles, three home runs, 14 RBI, and one stolen base. Don't let this excellent hitter continue to be passed over in your DFS roster construction.
Ke'Bryan Hayes - 3B, PIT vs. J.A. Happ ($4,100)
Not one, but two Pittsburgh Pirates make the DFS picks article on a massive 15-game slate. It's hard to believe until you realize I'm only picking on J.A. Happ. Many people picked Hayes as their NL Rookie of the Year winner in the preseason (myself included), but he hasn't lived up to the billing at all in his first full year. He's rocking a weak .702 OPS for the season, although we won't know until October if his early-season wrist injury is the cause for his lack of power. However, he has bagged a hit in six consecutive outings and tacked on three extra-base hits in the process. Hopefully, the end of the year flurry will win people over for the 2022 draft season. Meanwhile, I will grab another tweet from fellow Rotoballer Jon Anderson to demonstrate just how tempting it is to stack against J.A. Happ.
Highest barrel rates allowed since 6/1
Kikuchi 13.5%
Happ 12.2%
Plesac 12.2%
Bubic 12.1%
Jax 11.8%
Alzolay 11.8%
Chi Chi 11.7%
Odorizzi 11.7%
Mize 11.4%
Alexander 11.3%
Richards 11.2%
Snell 11.2%— Jon Anderson (@JonPgh) August 26, 2021
Brendan Rodgers - SS, COL at Andre Jackson ($4,800)
Colorado on the road is always a tough pill to swallow, but Rodgers has been good everywhere and deserves some recognition. The former top prospect has burst onto the scene since the All-Star break and looks like he will be here to stay as a piece of the Rockies' future (until they trade him in seven years). In the second half, Rodgers is slashing .319/.357/.521 with seven doubles, a triple, five homers, 19 runs, and 15 RBI. What's also impressive is the consistency he's showing at the plate. The 25-year old has recorded a hit in 25 of his last 28 starts, and this allows us to roster a player with a solid floor and a desirable ceiling.
DraftKings DFS Outfielders
Mitch Haniger - OF, SEA vs. Kris Bubic ($4,600)
Earlier, I showed two tweets about pitchers with the worst plate appearances per home run allowed and highest barrel rates. I used them to illustrate why I was picking on J.A. Happ. Well, now, I'm using them to mention how bad Kris Bubic has been. He appeared on both tweets with a 15.1 PA/HR metric and a 12.1 percent barrels allowed rate. This is important because while Mitch Haniger is in a slump (.645 OPS in his last 10 contests), three of his previous four hits have cleared the outfield walls. It feels a bit like I'm adding two and two together and getting 3.7 or 4.1, but the jigsaw pieces are fitting in my brain, and I have no qualms selecting Haniger as one of my three outfielders on Friday.
Giancarlo Stanton - OF, NYY at Sean Manaea ($4,100)
While my logic for Haniger was a bit of a detour down the narrative alley, there's no denying the case for having Giancarlo Stanton in your lineups. At $4,100, he's an absolute bargain for any DFS squad, and I expected him to have a very high rostership percentage despite the 15 games on tap. Over his last 10 games, the Yankee slugger is sporting a 1.292 OPS and is averaging 11.6. Heck, over his previous four games, he is 6-for-15 with four runs, two doubles, three home runs, and seven RBI. So if you're trying to keep up with the home run Jones tonight, there may not be a better pick than Stanton.
Kyle Tucker - OF, HOU at Glenn Otto ($3,600)
Houston Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker successfully returned to the plate on Wednesday against the Kansas City Royals. After being on the sidelines for almost two weeks due to a positive COVID case, Tucker went 2-for-5 with a strikeout in Minute Maid Park. It'll be tough to know if there are any lingering effects to impact Tucker's availability or on-field ability, but if he's in the lineup for the Astros, he'll be in some of my DFS lineups. Rostering a piece of this Astros lineup for $3,600 is usually a wise investment, and Tucker's 25 doubles and 22 home runs in 2021 show how quickly he can return value.
DraftKings DFS Stacks
- Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals (J.A. Happ, LHP)
- Tampa Bay Rays at Baltimore Orioles (Matt Harvey, RHP)
- New York Yankees at Oakland Athletics (Sean Manaea, LHP)
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