Full Slate Breakdown for MLB DFS 5/14:
Get your MLB DFS research started with DFS Army’s Full Count! Pitching advice, stack strategy, home run calls, and everything you need.
Happy MLB Season and welcome to another year of the DFS Army MLB Full Count! You have to start your research somewhere, and oftentimes going game by game and breaking down every matchup and its key players is the first step in our process. My name is Eric, @Razzle11Grinds on Twitter, make sure to give me a follow as I’ll occasionally make updates to the advice in the article out on Twitter as well as inside our coaching forums. With that said, let’s get it started!
My Take on a Consistent MLB DFS Process – Looking at Pitchers
I always start an MLB slate by looking at pitching, not only do you get a grasp on who the pitchers are that you want to target, but gives you a holistic look at the slate as well. Breaking down pitching also gives you an idea of what offenses are in good spots against bad/vulnerable pitchers. I start my research by going straight to the MLB Carnage Report this is where we can analyze all the pitchers on the slate in a compact, yet detailed manner. Below are the three pitchers that jumped out to me at first glance, good or bad.
- Max Scherzer
- Tyler Glasnow
- Kevin Gausman
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Kansas City Royals @ Chicago White Sox – Game 1
Pitchers:
Royals – Brad Keller
White Sox – Lucas Giolito
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information. Remember that both games are just 7-innings.
KC 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Andrew Benintendi, Salvador Perez
GPP Note: Team ISO of .160 against RHPs this season.
CWS 5-star plays: Yermin Mercedes
4-star plays: Adam Eaton, Yoan Moncada
GPP Note: Team has an ISO of .216 over the last week.
Kansas City Royals @ Chicago White Sox – Game 2
Pitchers:
Royals – Jakob Junis
White Sox – Michael Kopech
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information. Remember that both games are just 7-innings.
KC 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Andrew Benintendi, Salvador Perez
GPP Note: Team ISO of .160 against RHPs this season.
CWS 5-star plays: Yermin Mercedes
4-star plays: Adam Eaton, Yoan Moncada
GPP Note: Team has an ISO of .216 over the last week.
Philadelphia Phillies @ Toronto Blue Jays (-145)
Pitchers:
Phillies – Vince Velasquez
Blue Jayes – Steven Matz
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 10.5. We get a couple of SPs that can throw gems or they can get knocked around early. The total is crazy to see for a non-Coors game but remember that TOR is playing their home games in FL yet. Velasquez can have an HR issue at times and that’s a dangerous thing, especially because he can give them up to RHBs.
PHI 5-star plays: Bryce Harper, Jean Segura
4-star plays: Rhys Hoskins, Andrew McCutchen
GPP Note: Team ISO of .163 against LHPs this season.
TOR 5-star plays: Teoscar Hernandez, Marcus Semien
4-star plays: Bo Bichette, Rowdy Tellez
GPP Note: Team ISO 0f .223 over the last week.
Cincinnati Reds @ Colorado Rockies (EVEN)
Pitchers:
Reds – Wade Miley
Rockies – German Marquez
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 10.5. Coors game is tied for the highest total on the slate. Cincinnati’s bats woke up late in last night’s game so we could see that carry over here, despite having to face a tougher pitcher. Miley is coming off of his no-hitter and now has to throw in Coors. That’s not exactly a recipe for continued success.
CIN 5-star plays: Jesse Winker
4-star plays: Nick Castellanos
GPP Note: Team ISO of .136 on the road this season.
COL 5-star plays: Josh Fuentes
4-star plays: Elias Diaz, Trevor Story
GPP Note: Team ISO of .195 at home this season.
Chicago Cubs (-140) @ Detroit Tigers
Pitchers:
Cubs – Jake Arrieta
Tigers – Tarik Skubal
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 8.5. We might have to consider Arrieta here as the Tigers are somebody we need to pick on with pitching. I hope that Bryant returns to the lineup here as I think the Cubs are a very solid stack option against a struggling LHP in Tarik Skubal.
CHC 5-star plays: Kris Bryant
4-star plays: Anthony Rizzo, Willson Contreras
GPP Note: Team ISO of .180 against LHPs.
DET 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Robbie Grossman, Jeimer Candelario
GPP Note: Striking out at a 28% rate against RHPs this season.
Cleveland Indians (-125) @ Seattle Mariners
Pitchers:
Indians – Aaron Civale
Mariners – Chris Flexen
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 8. We saw the debuts of Logan Gilbert and Jared Kelenic last night and while they weren’t great debuts, they definitely weren’t overmatched. Plesac nearly no-hit the Mariners and while Civale has solid stuff, I don’t think he has the same ability. Flexen has been giving up more and more contact so we probably should be considering CLE in our GPP stack pool.
CLE 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Jose Ramirez, Josh Naylor
GPP Note: Team ISO of .187 against RHPs this season.
SEA 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Kyle Seager, Jared Kelenic
GPP Note: Team ISO of .157 against RHPs this season.
St Louis Cardinals @ San Diego Padres (-160)
Pitchers:
Cardinals – Johan Oviedo
Padres – Joe Musgrove
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 7. Musgrove is a strong SP but has shown some kinks in the armor since his no-hitter. The issue I have with this game is the fact that it’s such a low total with SD missing multiple bats due to their COVID situation. Oviedo is a guy that I think has a solid future and he’s capable of picking up enough strikeouts to make himself viable tonight.
STL 5-star plays: Paul Goldschmidt
4-star plays: Tyler O’Neill, Tommy Edman
GPP Note: Team ISO of .162 against RHPs this season.
SD 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Jake Cronenworth, Victor Caratini
GPP Note: Team ISO of .131 against RHPs this season.
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Texas Rangers @ Houston Astros (-213)
Pitchers:
Rangers – Wes Benjamin
Astros – Zack Greinke
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 9. While I normally prefer HOU against RHPs, I think they are in a great spot here tonight. I don’t expect Benjamin to go super deep so they will get to face a pretty weak bullpen. Greinke is just a name at this point as I think he allows too much contact at this point. Texas isn’t a great team but they do have power in their lineup.
TEX 5-star plays: Willie Calhoun
4-star plays: Nick Solak, Khris Davis
GPP Note: Team ISO of .158 against RHPs this season.
HOU 5-star plays: Jose Altuve
4-star plays: Yuli Gurriel, Carlos Correa
GPP Note: Team ISO of .167 against LHPs this season.
Atlanta Braves @ Milwaukee Brewers
Pitchers:
Braves – Drew Smyly
Brewers – Adrian Houser
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information.
ATL 5-star plays: Freddie Freeman
4-star plays: Ronald Acuna, Ozzie Albies
GPP Note: Team ISO of .200 against RHPs this season.
MIL 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Avisail Garcia, Lorenzo Cain
GPP Note: Team ISO of .175 against LHPs this season.
Los Angeles Angels @ Boston Red Sox
Pitchers:
Angels – Griffin Canning
Red Sox – Nick Pivetta
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information.
LAA 5-star plays: Mike Trout
4-star plays: Jared Walsh, Shohei Ohtani
GPP Note: Team ISO of .166 against RHPs this season.
BOS 5-star plays: Xander Bogaerts
4-star plays: JD Martinez, Rafael Devers
GPP Note: Team ISO of .180 against RHPs this season.
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San Francisco Giants (-140) @ Pittsburgh Pirates
Pitchers:
Giants – Kevin Gausman
Pirates – Tyler Anderson
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 7. I really like this game from an SP standpoint as Gausman is very strong and Anderson has surprised me a bit with the Pirates this season. He gets to face his old team at home. The Giants bats have cooled off after a torrid start against LHPs but they do have a few guys who are still hitting them extremely well.
SF 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Buster Posey, Evan Longoria
GPP Note: Team ISO of .171 against LHPs this season.
PIT 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Gregory Polanco
GPP Note: Team ISO of .117 against RHPs this season.
New York Mets @ Tampa Bay Rays (-153)
Pitchers:
Mets – David Peterson
Rays – Tyler Glasnow
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 7. We get a great game for pitchers here as Glasnow is as elite as they come in terms of strikeout numbers while doing better overall against LHBs than against RHBs (and we know the Mets are LH-heavy). Peterson is a sneaky play despite being a large underdog thanks to the strikeouts that are in the TB lineup against LHPs.
NYM 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Dominic Smith, Francisco Lindor
GPP Note: Team ISO of .115 against RHPs this season.
TB 5-star plays: Yandy Diaz
4-star plays: Randy Arozarena, Mike Zunino
GPP Note: Team ISO of .142 against LHPs this season.
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Washington Nationals @ Arizona Diamondbacks
Pitchers:
Nationals – Max Scherzer
Diamondbacks – Riley Smith
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information.
WAS 5-star plays: Juan Soto
4-star plays: Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber
GPP Note: Team ISO of .128 against RHPs this season.
ARI 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: David Peralta
GPP Note: Team ISO of .156 against RHPs this season.
New York Yankees (-180) @ Baltimore Orioles
Pitchers:
Yankees – Corey Kluber
Orioles – Dean Kremer
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 9. Kremer has allowed 3 HRs in over 7 innings against the Yankees so far this season. We know that the Yankees have traditionally LOVED to hit BAL pitching. Kluber has seen a bit of a resurgence since a rough start to the season and he gets a struggling BAL squad.
NYY 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: DJ LeMahieu, Aaron Judge
GPP Note: Team ISO of .143 against RHPs this season.
BAL 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Ryan Mountcastle
GPP Note: Team ISO of .139 against RHPs this season.
Oakland Athletics (-111) @ Minnesota Twins
Pitchers:
Athletics – Frankie Montas
Twins – Matt Shoemaker
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 9. I love seeing this game with a high total but as a Twins fan, I do worry about their potential K issues against a guy like Montas. Shoemaker has had some struggles with the A’s bats but mostly against the guys from the right-hand side. I do think both offenses are worthy of full-stacks.
OAK 5-star plays: Mitch Moreland
4-star plays: Stephen Piscotty, Matt Chapman
GPP Note: Team ISO of .148 against RHPs this season.
MIN 5-star plays: Nelson Cruz
4-star plays: Josh Donaldson, Jorge Polanco
GPP Note: Team ISO of .181 against RHPs this season.
Miami Marlins @ Los Angeles Dodgers (-203)
Pitchers:
Marlins – Sandy Alcantara
Dodgers – Clayton Kershaw
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 7. Another really strong SP match-up but I think that Alcantara could find some struggles tonight as I seriously feel like the Dodgers are starting to heat up, ever so slightly. Once we see Seager get hot and Turner turns it back on, I think the top half of this lineup is going to explode. Kershaw is always strong but I do worry about how pesky the Marlins can be against him.
MIA 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Miguel Rojas, Garrett Cooper
GPP Note: Team ISO of .164 against LHPs this season.
LAD 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Justin Turner, Max Muncy
GPP Note: Team ISO of .177 against RHPs this season.
Stacks of the Day: Main Slate
- Toronto Blue Jays
- Boston Red Sox
- New York Yankees
MLB Dinger of the Day – Teoscar Hernandez, Toronto Blue Jays
As always I appreciate everyone who gave the article a read! Feel free to mix it up with me in our coaching forums as news breaks and lock approaches.
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