All we had to do was start college football to get DraftKings to put a semi-normal Saturday slate out there. The six-game early slate starts at 4:05 pm eastern. The main slate has the remaining nine games. Simple, huh? This piece will focus on the main slate. There is only one pitcher priced in five figures and plenty of nice ones to pick from for less.
Rain could be an issue in Minneapolis and Baltimore. There's also a slight chance in Pittsburgh. I would guess that all of these will be safe for hitters, but a lot can happen in the 12 hours before first pitch. Keep an eye on those. It's going to be really hot and humid in Texas. If rain stays away in Minneapolis and Baltimore, it will be warm and humid in both locales as well. It's going to be miserably humid in Chicago, which makes for great hitting weather. Atlanta looks good on the warm and humid front as well. We have plenty of great hitting environments tonight!
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 8/28/2021. 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
Adam Wainwright - STL at PIT ($9,200)
The Pirates have been striking out a lot more in the last couple of weeks and this is a team that must have said something about Wainwright's mother because he has absolutely dominated them this year. In 23 innings against Wainwright, the Pirates are hitting a pathetic .128 with 24 strikeouts and one run scored. One. In three games! Wainwright has racked up 109 DraftKings points against Pittsburgh this year. That's well over 35 per start. Come to think of it, this price actually seems a little low.....
Huascar Ynoa - ATL vs. SF ($8,200)
If price isn't a factor, it's worth considering Lance Lynn here since the Cubs scored their allotment of runs for the weekend last night already. Kidding aside, Ynoa is another guy that might be a touch underpriced. He has 39.5 DraftKings points in his two starts since returning from the IL. One of those was against the Yankees. Ynoa has a sparkling 2.15 ERA in five home starts this year. The Giants do have some left-handed power, so this is a bit of a risk. That said, Ynoa has racked up 39 strikeouts in 29.1 home innings. He's a shade under one per inning on the road. For whatever reason, he likes pitching at Truist Park. Who am I to question that?
Other Options: Framber Valdez ($10,200), Lance Lynn ($9,600), Adrian Houser ($7,700)
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DraftKings DFS Infielders
Mike Zunino - C, TB at BAL ($4,600)
Zunino has six homers in his last eight games. With the Rays facing another lefty, expect Zunino to be in there. The Rays were a disappointment last night the exception of Zunino. Don't rule out another homer. He's locked in right now.
Pete Alonso - 1B, NYM vs. WAS ($4,900)
Alonso is on one of those hot streaks again. He is hitting .350 with four homers, eight runs scored, and 10 RBI in that span. He even added a triple for good measure! Sean Nolin has given up seven runs in seven major league innings in his two starts this year. It was Brandon Nimmo that got the three-run homer against Nolin back on August 12. I like Nimmo again, but I'm going with the red-hot Alonzo tonight as well.
Tommy Edman - 2B, STL at PIT ($4,200)
Edman has only been below eight DraftKings points once in the last eight games and twice in the last two weeks. He is the catalyst leading off for the Cardinals right now. Edman has a homer and a pair of steals in the last four games and is averaging a cool 8.7 DraftKings points per game in 17 games against the Pirates this year. Chances that he reaches that eight-point threshold again are very good.
Justin Turner - 3B, LAD vs. COL ($5,400)
The Dodgers have smacked Jon Gray both at Coors and at Dodgers Stadium. Turner is one of the guys that has hit him best. Turner is 13-for-38 with two homers, nine runs scored, and six RBI against Gray in his career. The Dodgers are mixing and matching lineups to keep their players fresh since they have a deep bench, but you can use anyone on this team against Gray with the exception of Max Muncy. He is only 4-for-22 lifetime against Turner. The rest of the team is hitting .363 against Gray.
Jorge Polanco - 2B/SS, MIN vs. MIL ($3,900)
The Twins' offense has been a bit of a mess since Nelson Cruz was traded, but don't blame Polanco. He has more RBI (14) than strikeouts (11) in the last ten games and is hitting .310 over that span. Having Buxton back in front of him should only help, and Josh Donaldson finally starting to hit doesn't hurt either. If you need some salary relief tonight, the Twins are a good place to look for that.
DraftKings DFS Outfielders
Cedric Mullins - OF, BAL vs. TB ($4,900)
The Orioles offense has actually been decent of late. After a rough mid-August stretch, Mullins has six hits in the last five games with four runs scored, two homers, four RBI, and two steals. Add into that the fact that he is 5-for-9 with two doubles, a triple, a homer, three RBI, and a pair of runs scored against Michael Wacha in his career and Mullins feels like a priority whether you stack Orioles or not. Ryan Mountcastle has taken Wacha deep twice in just seven plate appearances if you're looking for a nice mini-stack.
Randy Arozarena - OF, TB at BAL ($4,200)
Arozarena has been leading off for the Rays of late, which just means more at bats against John Means. That's a good thing. Arozarena has six hits in 10 tries against Means with two doubles, four runs scored, and two solo homers against Means. I'm not going to go after Means hard, but I will definitely have shares of Arozarena.
Byron Buxton - OF, MIN vs MIL ($2,800)
Buxton played in his first game since the Summer Solstice last night and drew a walk. It wasn't a triumphant return, but Buxton was hitting .369 with ten homers and 19 RBI in 27 games when he went down with a finger injury. His price was up to $5,800 at one point and was still $4,800 when he went on the IL. This is a really cheap price for someone who is having a season like Buxton. I'll keep running him when he's this cheap.
DraftKings DFS Stacks
- St. Louis Cardinals vs. Steven Brault
- Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Jon Gray
- New York Mets vs. Sean Nolin
- Houston Astros vs. Kolby Allard
- Sneaky Stack: Tampa Bay Rays vs. John Means