Happy Sunday gang! Hope you all have had a great weekend so far. We have a nice 10-game slate this afternoon, so let's jump right into it and see how we can optimize our DraftKings MLB DFS for this beautiful Sunday.
Since the All-Star Break we've had plenty of weather issues, .
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 7/18/2021. 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, contact me on Twitter.
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DraftKings DFS Starting Pitchers
Hyun-Jin Ryu - TOR vs TEX ($7,600)
Ryu hasn't consistently shown his Cy Young form, but that's not to see he hasn't pitched really well throughout most of this season. He's 8-5 with a 3.56 ERA coming off of a fantastic start against Baltimore where he went 5 innings and struck out seven. He now gets another soft matchup against Texas who tends to struggle against lefties, with Robbie Ray dominating them just two nights ago.
Zach Wheeler - PHI vs MIA ($9,500)
If Jacob deGrom didn't exist, it's hard to think that Zach Wheeler wouldn't be the favorite in the NL Cy Young race. Wheeler has been an absolute horse for the Phils this season, leading the NL in innings pitched while managing a 6-5 record and a 2.26 ERA. He loves pitching against the Marlins, with current Miami hitters hitting just .159 against him in over 100 at bats. He's certainly the top pitching option today in my opinion.
Other Options: Corbin Burnes ($10,000), Johnny Cueto ($7,200)
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DraftKings DFS Infielders
Jake Rogers - C, DET vs MIN ($3,300)
As per usual, going to dig in the value bin at the catcher position with Jake Rogers today. Rogers has a nice matchup against J.A. Happ, one of everyone's favorite pitchers to stack against. Rogers crushes southpaws this season, with a 40% hard contact rate and over an .800 wOBA + ISO.
Carlos Santana - 1B, KC vs BAL ($5,300)
It's Matt Harvey day! Santana comes into this one with a +25.7% hard-to-soft contact ratio against right-handed pitchers this season. We'll be looking to stack against Harvey today as usual.
Jean Segura - 2B, PHI vs MIA ($3,800)
A guy who's just too cheap and has been hitting exceptionally well this season (.318 batting average) and now has the platoon advantage against Miami's Braxton Garrett. I'm a big fan of playing good hitters at cheap prices, especially when they're hitting in the leadoff spot in a soft matchup.
Hunter Dozier - 3B, KC vs BAL ($3,300)
Dozier has been smashing the ball around this month with a +42.4% hard-to-soft contact ratio against right-handers over the last 30 days. He's gotten a bump in the lineup as well, hitting in the five-spot. He'll fit in nicely with the Royals stack and won't break the bank either.
Dansby Swanson - SS, ATL vs TB ($4,400)
With a series of unfortunate events knocking down the Braves roster one by one, they've needed guys to step up and take over. Dansby is doing just that, really coming into form over the last two weeks. Dating back to before the ASB, Swanson has had six consecutive games of 7+ points, with five of them being double-digit performances.
DraftKings DFS Outfielders
Whit Merrifield - 2B/OF, KC vs BAL ($5,000)
Our third Royal of the day is Merrifield, who can do it all for us from a DFS perspective. His hard contact numbers aren't as high this year as we typically see them, but he's still hitting to a .275 average and sets the table for his teammates, swiping bags at a high rate. He's been a bit cold lately but expect him to "get right" this afternoon against Harvey.
Andrew Benintendi - OF, KC vs BAL ($4,200)
Our final Royal of the day, the 2o15 Golden Spikes winner has had somewhat of a resurgence in Kansas City after an underwhelming start to his career in Boston. He's got a hard-to-soft contact ratio around +30% to pair with his .513 wOBA + ISO, and will fit right into our stack as he should hit in the cleanup spot once again today.
Andrew McCutchen - OF, PHI vs MIA ($3,400)
Another cheap Phillie with a nice platoon advantage and soft matchup. I love McCutchen here as he has a +32.4% hard-to-soft contact ratio against southpaws this season to pair with a whopping .662 wOBA + ISO.
DraftKings DFS Stacks
- Kansas City Royals vs. Matt Harvey
- Philadelphia Phillies vs. Braxton Garrett
- Toronto Blue Jays vs. Kolby Allard
- Detroit Tigers vs. J.A. Happ
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