Full Slate Breakdown for MLB DFS 5/8:
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
- Cristian Javier
We have a BRAND NEW update to our MLB Domination Station lineup optimizer with advanced user-controlled scoring systems inside. You control how the lineups are built from three main uses of our projections: Points-based, DFSA Grades, or the unique blend of Hybrid Scoring! The Domination Station will help you create 150 of the highest projected lineups in a matter of minutes. With features that allow you to Like 
Love 
or Dislike 
a player, you can create a fully unique pool of players to generate your lineups from every day. Combine the power of the Domination Station with our VIP Only Articles and the MLB Research Station to really take your game to the next level.
Minnesota Twins (-180) @ Detroit Tigers
Pitchers:
Twins – Jose Berrios
Tigers – Jose Urena
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 8. Berrios should be pretty popular going against a Tigers team that can strike out a ton and were just shut down by Matt Shoemaker. The Twins keep dealing with injuries as Garver left Friday night’s game with an injury. I am excited to see Trevor Larnach potentially make his MLB debut today.
MIN 5-star plays: Nelson Cruz
4-star plays: Josh Donaldson, Jorge Polanco
GPP Note: Team ISO of .186 against RHPs this season.
DET 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Robbie Grossman
GPP Note: Team has an ISO of .154 at home this season.
Philadelphia Phillies @ Atlanta Braves (-172)
Pitchers:
Phillies – Vince Velasquez
Braves – Ian Anderson
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 8.5. The Phillies jumped ALL over Charlie Morton on Friday night and I think that leads to people being gunshy with Ian Anderson. I think he has a very bright future in the MLB and he just needs to work on his command a bit as he can get 2 strikes on hitters and then he tries to be too perfect and the next thing you know it’s a full count.
PHI 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Bryce Harper, Didi Gregorius
GPP Note: Team ISO of .140 against RHPs this season.
ATL 5-star plays: Ronald Acuna Jr.
4-star plays: Ozzie Albies, Freddie Freeman
GPP Note: Team ISO of .198 against Velasquez.
Colorado Rockies @ St Louis Cardinals (-172)
Pitchers:
Rockies – Chi Chi Gonzalez
Cardinals – Carlos Martinez
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of just 8.5. We should see some offense here but I tend to always say that when Carlos Martinez takes the mound. I am torn on what to do with him as the Rockies have struggled a lot on the road but I just can’t trust him. Blackmon has absolutely owned C-Mart in his career. The Cardinals “should” carry some popularity as I don’t think very highly of Mr. Chi Chi.
COL 5-star plays: Charlie Blackmon
4-star plays: Raimel Tapia, Trevor Story
GPP Note: Striking out at a 27% rate on the road this season.
STL 5-star plays: Nolan Arenado
4-star plays: Paul Goldschmidt, Harrison Bader
GPP Note: Team ISO of .163 against RHPs so far this season.
Chicago White Sox (-172) @ Kansas City Royals
Pitchers:
White Sox – Lance Lynn
Royals – Daniel Lynch
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 8.5. Lynn is one of my favorites SPs in the majors for DFS purposes because of his ability to throw 100+ pitches every time out there. The match-up isn’t ideal but it’s not terrible either. Lynch looked decent in his MLB debut but he walked too many and I am very worried about those walks against a dangerous White Sox offense.
CWS 5-star plays: Tim Anderson
4-star plays: Nick Madrigal, Jose Abreu
GPP Note: Team OPS of .822 against LHPs this season.
KC 5-star plays: Andrew Benintendi
4-star plays: Salvador Perez
GPP Note: Striking out at a 24% rate against RHPs this season.
Cincinnati Reds @ Cleveland Indians (EVEN)
Pitchers:
Reds – Luis Castillo
Indians – Aaron Civale
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 8. Well, as I write this, the Indians were just no-hit for the second time in a month. This time it was by Wade Miley, of all people. Castillo is an arm that flashed so much upside previously but has really struggled in 2021. Civale is a decent arm and while the Reds have hit RHPs well this year, a lot of that has been at home.
CIN 5-star plays: Jesse Winker
4-star plays: Nick Castellanos
GPP Note: Team ISO of .202 against RHPs this season.
CLE 5-star plays: Eddie Rosario
4-star plays: Jose Ramirez
GPP Note: Team ISO of .191 against RHPs this season.
Watching the weather is half the battle when it comes to MLB DFS. The DFS Army Weather Station has you covered, from games that have delay and postponement potential, to games that could have significant winds that will play a roll in selecting a team to stack or a pitcher to use.
Los Angeles Dodgers @ Los Angeles Angels
Pitchers:
Dodgers – Clayton Kershaw
Angels – Dylan Bundy
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information.
LAD 5-star plays: Justin Turner
4-star plays: Mookie Betts, Max Muncy
GPP Note: Team ISO of .148 over the last week.
LAA 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Mike Trout, David Fletcher
GPP Note: Team is striking out at just a 21% rate against LHPs.
Milwaukee Brewers @ Miami Marlins
Pitchers:
Brewers – Adrian Houser
Marlins – Undecided
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information.
MIL 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Kolten Wong
GPP Note: Team ISO of .166 on the road this season.
MIA 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Jesus Aguilar, Corey Dickerson
GPP Note: Team ISO of just .116 against RHPs this season.
Boston Red Sox @ Baltimore Orioles
Pitchers:
Red Sox – Garrett Richards
Orioles – Undecided
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information.
BOS 5-star plays: Xander Bogaerts, JD Martinez
4-star plays: Rafael Devers, Alex Verdugo
GPP Note: Team ISO of .189 against RHPs this season.
BAL 5-star plays: Trey Mancini
4-star plays: Cedric Mullins
GPP Note: Team ISO of .140 against RHPs this season.
The MLB DFS Research Station is my #1 source for research every single day and is one of the VIP Only tools our members have access to daily. The info in the MLB ReSearch Station includes today’s
DFS Army Projection, Adjusted BVP matchups and much more. This tool will cut your daily research time in half. If you’re familiar with Ben you already know the time they’ve put into the “Sheets” and are extremely happy to provide them as apart of your DFS Army VIP Membership this year.
Pittsburgh Pirates @ Chicago Cubs
Pitchers:
Pirates – Wil Crowe
Cubs – Trevor Williams
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information.
PIT 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Colin Moran, Bryan Reynolds
GPP Note: Team ISO of .121 against RHPs this season.
CHC 5-star plays: Kris Bryant
4-star plays: Javy Baez, Willson Contreras
GPP Note: Team ISO of .206 at home this season.
Seattle Mariners @ Texas Rangers
Pitchers:
Mariners – Ljay Newsome
Rangers – Kohei Arihara
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information.
SEA 5-star plays: Mitch Haniger
4-star plays: Ty France
GPP Note: RHBs have an OPS of 1.044 against Arihara this season.
TEX 5-star plays: Joey Gallo
4-star plays: Nate Lowe
GPP Note: Team ISO of .152 against RHPs this season.
Washington Nationals @ New York Yankees (-121)
Pitchers:
Nationals – Max Scherzer
Yankees – Corey Kluber
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 8. I am shocked to see the Yankees favored against Scherzer. Kluber has turned things around a bit but I am not completely sold on the resurgence just yet. The industry was all over the Yankees on Friday night and basically, only LeMahieu showed up. Soto returned from the IL and hit a bomb so I think he’s going to draw a lot of ownership with that short porch.
WSH 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Juan Soto, Josh Harrison
GPP Note: Striking out at just a 23% rate over the last week.
NYY 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Giancarlo Stanton, DJ LeMahieu
GPP Note: Stanton and LeMahieu are a combined 9 for 27 with 3 HRs against Scherzer.
MLB season is upon us! DFSArmy VIP Members had a big season last year and are in for some big things again this season! We will have cheat sheets, breakdowns, and many other tools to help make you successful in one of the more volatile fantasy sports.
Arizona Diamondbacks @ New York Mets
Pitchers:
Diamondbacks – Merrill Kelly
Mets – Joey Lucchesi
Rundown:
Waiting on the Vegas information.
ARI 5-star plays: Carson Kelly
4-star plays: Nick Ahmed, Eduardo Escobar
GPP Note: Team ISO of .255 against LHPs this season.
NYM 5-star plays: Pete Alonso
4-star plays: Michael Conforto, Francisco Lindor
GPP Note: Team ISO of just .127 against RHPs this season.
Tampa Bay Rays (-140) @ Oakland Athletics
Pitchers:
Rays – Tyler Glasnow
Athletics – Frankie Montas
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 7.5. I really like this pitching match-up as we get a high floor with Glasnow thanks to his K ability while Montas offers us a very nice GPP ceiling. I prefer using LHPs against TB but Montas does intrigue me. Glasnow has been spectacular to begin his 2021 season and I LOVE that he’s finally trusting his third pitch to put him in better spots.
TB 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Brandon Lowe, Austin Meadows
GPP Note: Striking out at a 25% rate against RHPs this season.
OAK 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Ramon Laureano, Mark Canha
GPP Note: Team ISO of .180 at home this season.
San Diego Padres (-135) @ San Francisco Giants
Pitchers:
Padres – Joe Musgrove
Giants – Kevin Gausman
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 7. Gausman didn’t test positive, he just had a rough time with the vaccine so I think he should be good but I have to dig into more on starters returning from a COVID IL stint. We should see very little offense here as I really like both of these pitchers but each lineup is certainly capable of multiple HRs, even in a big park. The Giants look to be getting healthy as Yastrzemski was activated.
SD 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Fernando Tatis Jr, Eric Hosmer
GPP Note: Team ISO of just .126 against RHPs this season.
SF 5-star plays: NONE
4-star plays: Buster Posey, Brandon Crawford
GPP Note: Team ISO of .177 against RHPs this season.
Toronto Blue Jayes @ Houston Astros (-140)
Pitchers:
Blue Jays – Steven Matz
Astros – Cristian Javier
Rundown:
This game has opened with a total of 9. We get another game that I am torn on as I love the way that Javier is throwing the ball but a flyball pitcher against a RH-heavy lineup could be a bad thing as this Blue Jays team just knocked Fiers around. Matz is always in play for me and I think he is here as HOU is generally a team I prefer against RHPs.
TOR 5-star plays: Vlad Guerrero Jr
4-star plays: Teoscar Hernandez, Randal Grichuk
GPP Note: Team ISO of .152 against RHPs this season.
HOU 5-star plays: Alex Bregman
4-star plays: Jose Altuve, Yuli Gurriel
GPP Note: Team ISO .131 against LHPs this season.
Stacks of the Day: Main Slate
- Boston Red Sox
- Arizona Diamondbacks
- Chicago White Sox
MLB Dinger of the Day – Charlie Blackmon, Colorado Rockies
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.
The only thing you are missing at this point is the key to unlock the next level of your game. Come inside and check us out!! We have experts sharing their secrets and experience on a daily basis. Combine that with the actual ability to ask them questions and get quick answers in return gives you a recipe for success that puts our army hats on leaderboards all over the face of DFS.