This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
We've got a dozen games on the DFS slate for MLB on Friday. That's a fine way to kick off the first weekend of June. The first pitch is at 7:05 p.m. ET. Here are my MLB DFS lineup recommendations.
Pitching
Kodai Senga, NYM at COL ($9,000): We are in a place where I am willing to recommend rostering some pitchers at Coors Field. That's how futile the Rockies' offense has been. Last in runs scored. A collective .635 OPS. Twelve wins compared to 50 losses. Colorado is having a woeful campaign. Senga, meanwhile, has an 1.60 ERA and has allowed more than two runs in exactly one start. In his career – admittedly just 41 starts – Senga has a 0.81 HR/9 rate, so he is built to manage at Coors.
Hayden Birdsong, SFG vs. ATL ($8,600): Last season, for a rookie pitcher in his age-22 campaign, Birdsong was fine. He had a 4.66 FIP with an 11.00 K/9 rate…and a 5.38 BB/9 rate. This year Birdsong started as a reliever, but he's looked better. He has a 2.37 ERA, a 3.43 FIP, and he's down to a 2.84 BB/9 rate. Birdsong's last three games have been starts, and he has a 2.45 ERA in that time. Atlanta, meanwhile, still sits in the bottom 10 in runs scored.
Bailey Ober, MIN vs. TOR ($7,700): I've said it a few times, but it is still early enough in the season that it bears relevance. Ober got rocked in his first start of the season. In 11 starts since then he has a 2.43 ERA. On the year he has a 2.32 ERA at home. Toronto has climbed out of its offensive hole from early in the season, but it is still below average in terms of runs scored and homers.
Top Targets
Let us enjoy Mike Trout ($5,200) being healthy again (for now) and hitting well again (for now). Since returning to the lineup he has an 1.208 OPS, and he continues to hit for a ton of power whenever he is able to play. Bryce Miller has a 5.36 ERA this year, and while he has been bad at home, he's also been bad on the road. The thing is, he's always been bad on the road. In his MLB career he has a 4.66 ERA in away outings.
Among all MLB players, Brice Turang ($4,900) lacks for power, but a second baseman with eight doubles and four home runs is sufficing on that front. Plus, his skill set is in his .277 average and 14 stolen bases over 60 games. After all, he first turned heads last season by stealing 50 bases. Turang should have an opportunity to steal a base or two against Randy Vasquez. Not only have lefties hit .311 against Vasquez in his career, but he's also walked 3.57 batters per nine innings.
Bargain Bats
This season, Adley Rutschman ($3,900) hasn't hit well, even for a catcher. However, in the past he showed an ability to hit lefties. In each of the prior two seasons he was in the vicinity of a .900 OPS against southpaws. JP Sears has a career 4.45 ERA, but the lefty's ERA is up to 5.05 this year. He's definitely not enjoying the Athletics' new ballpark either, as he has a 3.3 HR/9 rate there.
Over the last three weeks, Lourdes Gurriel ($3,800) has an .833 OPS, and on Thursday he hit his ninth home run of the year. Since 2023 he has an .845 OPS versus lefties, but this year he's also slugged .505 on the road. Menwhile, nobody, not even Colorado pitchers, do the home/road split thing like Nick Lodolo. Since 2023 the lefty has a 2.56 ERA on the road…and a 6.62 ERA in Cincinnati.
Stacks to Consider
Mets at Rockies (Antonio Senzatela): Pete Alonso ($5,800), Brandon Nimmo ($4,700), Brett Baty ($4,400)
Last season, Senzatela had a 6.57 ERA, but that was just in three starts. This year he's made 12 starts, but his ERA is also up to 7.14. The Mets are getting to face Senzatela at Coors Field on Friday, baby! I have two southpaws in the stack, given that lefties have hit .384 against Senzatela over the last three seasons.
Alonso is a righty, but he's also the foremost power hitter the Mets have. He's a must-roster player at Coors Field. Alonso has a career .518 slugging percentage and is on pace to have more than 30 home runs for sixth time in his career. Nimmo doesn't have Alonso's power, but he had over 20 home runs in each of the prior two seasons and he has 10 this year. Since 2023 he's slugged .443 against righties but also .450 on the road. Baty has never really clicked at the MLB level, but he's a lefty headed to Coors Field to face Senzatela. The guy who has left lefties hit .384 against him since 2023. Plus, he does have six triples and two doubles this season.
Red Sox at Yankees (Will Warren): Rafael Devers ($5,300), Wilyer Abreu ($4,200), Marcelo Mayer ($2,700)
Fenway Park is often kind to left-handed hitters, but so is Yankee Stadium. That's one reason why I have three Red Sox southpaws in this stack. Additionally, Warren has been kind to hitters in general. He has a career 6.75 ERA at the MLB level. The thing is, the righty also struggled at Triple-A last season. Warren had a 5.91 ERA pitching to minor leaguers, so it's not surprising that MLB has been hard for him.
Devers is having one of his best seasons, as he as a .408 OBP and has 12 homers, 17 doubles and 54 RBI. Since 2023, he's slugged .546 against righties. Abreu has cooled down, but he has 13 home runs, four stolen bases and a .483 slugging percentage. Furthermore, this season he has a .918 OPS on the road. Mayer is new to MLB and he hasn't done anything yet. However, he debuted as one of the top prospects in baseball, and he had an .807 OPS at Triple-A with 15 extra-base hits in 43 outings. You can roster the southpaws at second base, and there I think he's worth a roll of the dice.
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