Fantasy Baseball Picks, May 5, Top 4 Bargain Bats
DFS Fantasy Baseball bargain hitters for Thursday's 6-game MLB slate at DraftKings
After multiple weeks of early-heavy Thursday schedules, we’ve finally got some action under the lights this Thursday night with six games on the main DFS fantasy baseball slate. I previewed the whole slate at DraftKings Playbook, and in this daily post, I’ll dive deeper into some of the cheapest bats that you can use in your lineup while still getting good upside.
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With 12 teams on the slate, there are plenty of cheap plays that make sense. For whatever reason (or no reason at all), most of the value plays available today are in the outfield. Coming into the day, here are the four bargain bats that I think make the most sense.
Trevor Larnach, Minnesota Twins at Baltimore Orioles, $2,500
Larnach is in my bargain bats picks for the second straight day after picking up 8.0 DKFP at this same salary on yesterday’s slate. While he isn’t the most hyped prospect in the Minnesota lineup right now, he is still just 25 and is showing he can be a reliable left-handed bat in the OF. In his first 20 games this season, he is hitting exactly .300 with a .133 ISO and .346 wOBA.
He has been hitting well lately, which is important since other Twins’ OF options have been battling injuries and illness. He has gone 10-for-26 (.385) with a 62.5% hard-hit rate over his past eight games with at least 7.0 DKFP in six of those contests. The Twins lineup should be stocked up with value as Ryan Jeffers ($3,400), Jose Miranda ($2,100) and Nick Gordon ($2,100) should all be in good spots against the Orioles in the series finale.
OF Mark Canha, New York Mets at Philadelphia Phillies, $2,800
Canha didn’t start out on fire like some of the Mets’ other offseason acquisitions, but he’s starting to come around, and he’s still very affordable under $3K as part of a very good Mets lineup. Canha has hit safely in eight of his past nine games, going 11-for-31 (.355) with a double and a home run boosting him to a .390 wOBA over that span.
New York will go on the road and take on Aaron Nola ($8,000) in this matchup, which should set up pretty well for Canha, who is hitting .362 (17-for-47) against right-handed pitchers this season with a .369 wOBA. He doesn’t have quite the power upside of the other plays listed here but is a little more proven, making him a relatively safe play under $3K.
OF Juan Yepez, St. Louis Cardinals at San Francisco Giants, $2,000
The Cardinals just called up Yepez for his MLB debut on Wednesday, and he delivered 12 DKFP by going 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles while hitting fifth. He was hitting exactly .300 with 11 homers and 28 RBI in Triple-A and brings good power potential.
Yepez should get a decent look since the Cardinals need some offensive thump in their lineup after Nolan Arenado ($5,900), and the 24-year-old has shown he can bring good production and energy. He and the Cardinals could be in a sneaky stack spot against Logan Webb ($9,400), who has been getting knocked around due to a velocity drop so far this season.
Kevin Padlo, San Francisco Giants vs. St. Louis Cardinals, $2,000
On the other side of that late game, there should be some value in the Giants lineup as well. Padlo was just acquired from the Mariners and has started two games since joining the Giants, going 1-for-5.
In his 19 games in Triple-A with the Tacoma Rainiers and Sacramento River Cats, Padlo showed some good potential with a .883 OPS, six home runs and five stolen bases. He hasn’t shown he can do it at the Majors yet, but he has nice potential for a punt play while allowing you to pay up at other spots.
It should be another great day of fantasy baseball action this Thursday, and I will do my best to update these picks on Twitter if needed, so be sure to follow @ZT_Sports.
Have a great Thursday and good luck!