The FantasyLabs MLB Player Models house numerous data points to help you construct your MLB DFS rosters.
They house our floor, median, and ceiling projections for each player, but that’s just the beginning of what you’ll find inside. You’ll also find our Trends tool, stacking tool, and more.
Also, don’t forget that for large-field tournaments, you can utilize our Lineup Optimizer to effortlessly create up to 300 lineups, or use our Lineup Builder if you like to hand-build your teams for cash games or small-field tournaments.
Let’s dive into some MLB plays that stand out in our Player Models for today’s slate.
Bargain Rating Picks
You might be asking: what is Bargain Rating, and why should I care?
Bargain Rating shows how much of a bargain a player is on one DFS site versus others. If a player is significantly cheaper on one site than the other, they will have a favorable Bargain Rating on the site where they’re more affordable and a poor Bargain Rating on the site where they’re more expensive. It’s a straightforward metric, but targeting players at reduced price tags is almost always a strong strategy in DFS.
Bargain Rating strongly correlates with player value, which you can quickly see with our predictive projected Plus/Minus metric.
Seeing how Plus/Minus helps you project how many points a player is expected to score compared to what their salary implies them to score, this is a good company for Bargain Rating.
MLB DFS DraftKings Bargain Value
Brett Wisely ($2,200): Shortstop, San Francisco Giants
Since joining the big league club on May 12, Brett Wisely has performed well with a .400/.385/.560 batting line through 26 plate appearances. The 25-year-old spent some time in a Giants uniform last season and hit .175/.231/.267 in 51 games.
The ceiling is relatively low with just three home runs in 62 big league games, but Wisely has still posted a +2.42 average Plus/Minus over his last 10 games. He has four multi-hit and double digit DraftKings results in his last six starts.
The Giants take on Yankees right-hander Marcus Stroman today in the Bay Area. Stroman is 4-2 with a 2.76 ERA and 1.24 WHIP on the season. The model likes Wisely as an interesting low-budget dart throw on the main slate.
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MLB DFS Ceiling Projection Picks
Pitcher
Pablo Lopez ($9,000) at Houston Astros
Recent rough outings have lowered the fee for Pablo Lopez in fantasy lineups. The model reminds us that he still packs high upside today in Houston.
On the season, Lopez is 4-5 with a 5.25 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. A boom-or-bust proposition, he sits 10th in the American League with 69 strikeouts and third in home runs allowed with 11 already in 2024. It has been more bust as of late with 13 total runs allowed in his last two starts.
Using PlateIQ, the projected Angels lineup has a .160 ISO and .333 wOBA against right-handed pitching this season. Lopez is a high-variance option today with a high strikeout rate, low walk rate, and dangerous hard hit %.
Hitter
Shohei Ohtani ($6,600) vs. Colorado Rockies
Today’s game may not be in Colorado, but Shohei Ohtani still remains at the top of the ceiling projections against the Rockies. Ohtani continues to cook in his first season in Dodger blue with an insane .330/.395/.615 batting line.
Ohtani elevates his ceiling with fantasy scoring versatility. He hits for power, with 14 home runs and 38 RBI. He hits for average with 73 hits and 17 doubles in 55 games. If that’s not enough already, he adds fantasy value on the base paths, with 13 stolen bases and 41 runs scored.
Even with his sky high price tag, Ohtani is usually worth the spend. He has a +2.02 average Plus/Minus this season. The matchup is strong against Dakota Hudson with his 1-7 record and 5.54 ERA in 10 starts for Colorado.
More DraftKings MLB DFS Hitters and Pitchers
One of the great features of being a FantasyLabs Pro member is the option to purchase additional items in the FantasyLabs Marketplace.
A new addition to our MLB projections is THE BAT X from Derek Carty of RotoGrinders. With this purchase, you can use his projections alone or create aggregate projections within our Player Models.
For this example, we created a 50/50 blend with THE BAT X and the FantasyLabs projections to pinpoint some hitters standing out with this blend.
MLB DFS Pitcher
Walker Buehler ($8,700) vs. Colorado Rockies
After starting the season in the minors, Walker Buehler has a 1-2 mark with 4.26 ERA in four starts with the Dodgers. The 29-year-old kicked off his career in style with a 14-4 record in 2019 and 16-4 record in 2021, but a pair of Tommy John surgeries have derailed his potential.
Since returning to the Dodgers this season, Buehler has one excellent scoreless start with 29.7 DraftKings points on May 18. He has allowed three earned runs in each of his other three starts and notched a negative Plus/Minus in each.
The Rockies have a low implied run total today against Buehler, and their projected lineup has a .145 ISO and .321 wOBA against right-handed pitching this season. The model expects Buehler to lean on his 44.6 ground ball % and 5.4% barrel rate allowed to produce for fantasy owners today.
Now in beta testing: our MLB DFS SimLabs Lineup Generator that creates advanced DFS lineups using the power of simulation.
MLB DFS Hitter
Davis Schneider ($4,500) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates
At the price tag, the Blue Jays outfielder is a solid lineup option with a high fantasy floor. Davis Schneider is batting .248/.356/.462 on the season with six home runs and 27 RBI. His 13.2% walk rate helps him rank 12th in the American League with a .356 OBP.
Schneider had a strong mid-week series in Chicago with four hits, one home run, and five RBI over the first two games on May 27 and 28. He totaled 23.0 and 18.0 DraftKings points in those games, his highest back-to-back game total of the season.
Left-hander Bailey Falter takes the mound for the Pirates today with a 3-2 record and 3.55 ERA. Falter allows a high .501 xSLG and has a low 14.5 K%.
Mookie Betts ($5,900) vs. Colorado Rockies
Expect a lot of attention on the Dodgers offense today against Dakota Hudson and the Rockies. Even through a down stretch in May, Mookie Betts is still a high-upside option in the model projections.
Overall, Betts is batting .332/.426/.527 on the season, but his power numbers have been down, with eight home runs and 31 RBI. By his standards, May has been a down month at the plate, with just two home runs and a .287/.357/.406 hitting line.
Betts looks to turn a corner tonight on his -3.15 average Plus/Minus over the last 10 games. He has a plus matchup against Hudson who has a low 12.1 K% and and allows a .366 wOBA.
