This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
The players featured in this piece will be building blocks that can work in several lineup configurations (cash and GPP). There will be some excellent starting pitchers available on DraftKings with Max Scherzer, Chris Sale and Noah Syndergaard all scheduled to take the mount, but there are also plenty of great hitter matchups to take advantage of for your entry.
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STARTING PITCHER
Chris Sale, BOS at TEX ($12,600): Simply put, Sale's numbers can stand up with anyone in baseball. He finished with a 2.90 ERA, 2.45 FIP and 0.97 WHIP last year while also posting a career-high 12.9 K/9. He is off to another great start this year, allowing one earned run or fewer in five of his seven starts. His K/9 is excellent again at 10.9, and he continues to do an excellent job keeping runners off base with a 0.98 WHIP. The Rangers are missing several key players in their lineup with Elvis Andrus (elbow), Adrian Beltre (hamstring) and Rougned Odor (hamstring) all currently on the disabled list, making Sale an even stronger play Sunday.
GPP Fade: Chris Archer, TB vs. TOR ($8,400): Archer has excellent strikeout upside, posting a K/9 of at least 10.4 in each of the past three seasons entering 2018. However, it's concerning that he gave up a 39.4 percent hard-hit rate last year and has allowed a 40.5 percent hard-hit rate so far this season. His 6.05 ERA and 1.53 WHIP are both much higher than his career marks, but some of that has to do with his abnormally high .363 BABIP allowed. However, since he's allowed at least four earned runs in four of his seven starts this season, it may not make sense to pay this much for him considering the other pitchers available Sunday.
Cheap GPP Consideration: Jakob Junis, KC vs. DET ($7,300): At first glance, Junis' 3.29 ERA and 0.94 WHIP might lead you to believe he is having a special start to the season. However, his 5.52 FIP and extremely lucky .184 opponents' BABIP indicate he is a prime regression candidate. On the plus side, he's thrown a first-pitch strike to 63.0 percent of the batters that he has faced in his career and doesn't issue a lot of walks. He has already faced the Tigers twice this season, allowing two earned runs to go along with 10 strikeouts in 15 innings combined. The Tigers don't exactly have a deadly lineup since they are starting a rebuilding process, so it might make sense to take a chance on Junis in their third meeting of the season.
CATCHER
Salvador Perez, KC vs. DET ($3,700): Finding useful DFS catchers is a tough task Sundays with many resting for day games, and with so many teams playing night games Saturday, we could be looking at a lot of backups taking the field. The Royals played an afternoon game Saturday, so there is a chance Perez is one of the few starting catchers in the league who plays. He'll face lefty Matthew Boyd, who struggled against righties last year by allowing a .357 wOBA.
FIRST BASE
Mitch Moreland, BOS at TEX ($4,400): Moreland is off to a fast start with a .323 average entering Saturday, but don't get too excited: His .340 BABIP is over 50 percentage points higher than his career mark. At least he gets a favorable matchup Sunday though against Doug Fister, who has allowed a wOBA of at least .365 to lefties in both of the last two seasons.
SECOND BASE
Asdrubal Cabrera, NYM vs. COL ($3,800): The Mets will face left-hander Kyle Freeland on Sunday and could be in trouble since they entered play Saturday with the lowest OPS (.587) against lefties this season. Cabrera is one of their few hitters who dominates lefties, though, recording a .407 wOBA against them last year and posting a .377 wOBA against them this season.
THIRD BASE
Eduardo Escobar, MIN at CWS ($4,000): Escobar gets the benefit of facing James Shields, who finished with a WHIP of at least 1.44 in both of the last two seasons and has a 1.47 WHIP so far this year. He has really struggled against lefties, too, allowing a wOBA of at least .370 to them in three straight seasons.
SHORTSTOP
Francisco Lindor, CLE at NYY ($5,100): Lindor got off to a slow start this season, but it was only a matter of time before he turned things around. He's currently on a significant hot streak, recording at least two hits in six of his last seven games. The switch-hitting Lindor has fairly close splits in terms of wOBA for his career, so he's an excellent option again Sunday with the Yankees starting inexperienced right-hander Domingo German.
OUTFIELD
Christian Yelich, MIL vs. PIT ($4,400): The Pirates are starting struggling right-hander Chad Kuhl on Sunday, who has followed up his 4.35 ERA and 1.47 WHIP last year with a 5.01 ERA and 1.49 WHIP across six starts this season. His opponents BABIP isn't high either, which isn't good news for his value moving forward. Kuhl has allowed a .385 wOBA to lefties in his career, making Yelich a strong candidate to provide value Sunday.
Max Kepler, MIN at CWS ($3,800): With Shields' struggles against left-handed hitters already detailed, Kepler is another Twins hitter to target for your entry. Kepler is a much better performer against righties, as well, finishing with a .350 wOBA against them last year.
Jorge Soler, KC vs. DET ($3,800): Soler only batted .144 overall last year, so his numbers look ugly in just about every area. Over the course of his career, however, he has fared better against left-handed pitchers, recording a .349 wOBA against them compared to .319 against righties. His hot start this season is largely inflated due to his .406 BABIP, but the price might be right to take a chance on him continuing his success against lefties Sunday.
