This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
After a light Thursday of MLB action, Friday is full with 12 games on the DFS docket with the first pitch at 7:05 p.m. EDT. You have plenty of options for your lineups, so here are my recommendations.
Pitching
Joe Ryan, MIN at MIL ($9,500): Ryan has produced two subpar starts, but beyond that has compiled six good-to-great efforts. All in all, his 2.74 ERA is more than sufficient. And Ryan's continued his prowess in K/BB with a staggering 10.80 strikeouts for each walk issued. The Brewers are middle-of-the-road in offense, but that's not concerning when it comes to a pitcher like Ryan.
Corbin Burnes, ARI vs. COL ($9,100): Worrying about Burnes' slow start looks to be a thing of the past with a 1.48 ERA from his last four outings. And he'll get a chance to improve those numbers on Friday against the woeful Rockies. There are 28 teams that have scored at least 150 runs. Colorado's one of two that hasn't even reached 140 while recording a .638 OPS.
MacKenzie Gore, WAS at BAL ($8,600): It's been an up-and-down year for Gore, though the highs have been high. His 3.20 FIP marks his career-best and a 12.82 K/9 rate through nine appearances is remarkable. I don't think the Orioles will be bottom-10 in offense when the season is done, but they're there now. They're also as lefty-dependent as any lineup, and the southpaw Gore therefore represents a tough matchup.
Find out when projected starters will be appearing with RotoWire's Probable Pitchers page!
Top Targets
Bobby Witt ($5,800) has been performing more like the best version of an old-school shortstop this season. The homers are lagging – at five – yet he's batted .312 with 15 stolen bases. Since 2023, Witt has an OPS over .900 against righties and at home. Andre Pallante is good at generating groundballs, but that's about it. He also carries 6.29 K/9 and 3.54 BB/9 career rates with a current 5.02 FIP.
We're now deep enough into 2025 that Spencer Torkelson ($5,000) has instilled confidence where there is something real in his improvement. It just remains to be seen what level he lands on. Through 43 games, Torkelson has an .870 OPS with 11 home runs and 11 doubles. Now a full-time starter - at least right now - Bowden Francis doesn't seem cut out for the role with a 6.34 FIP while allowing 2.59 homers per nine innings while righties have gone .308 against.
Bargain Bats
It's been an all-or-nothing campaign for Eugenio Suarez ($4,400) with a .210 average while slugging .510 and producing 13 home runs. He's registered a 1.079 home OPS with an .853 last year during his debut with the Diamondbacks. The assumption is that Tanner Gordon will make his MLB debut starting for the Rockies on Friday. It really doesn't matter to me if it's him or if they go elsewhere as the club doesn't really offer any imposing pitching option.
James Wood has established himself formidable in the bigs while Dylan Crews ($3,500) is still in the young, promising, flawed phase of his career. He's like a lot of talented young players in that he has clear issues as a hitter (as his sub-.300 OBP indicates), but still provides counting stats such as five homers and 11 steals. Cade Povich isn't cutting it at the MLB level as the lefty lists a career 5.31 ERA while righties are .284 against.
Stacks to Consider
Dodgers vs. Angels (Jack Kochanowicz): Freddie Freeman ($6,200), Will Smith ($4,600), Max Muncy ($3,100)
There's a decent chance Kochanowicz won't strike out a single Dodger as he's only managed a career 4.07 Ks per nine innings. His walks and homers are up this year and he's posted a 5.57 FIP. Since lefties have gone .297 against Kochanowicz during his career, I've included two Dodger southpaws.
Even with an ankle issue, Freeman is crushing it at the plate slashing .370/.435/.697 with nine homers and 10 doubles. And since 2023, he's notched a .961 OPS versus righties. Smith is a fine option for the catcher position on your DFS lineups hitting .324 with three home runs and two swipeds. Which Kochanowicz is worse against lefties, righties have still gone .254 against. Muncy has gotten off to a rough start, though he's gone deep in two straight. He's been terrible against lefties and on the road, yet his track record indicates he prefers to face right-handers and be at Dodger Stadium, so that should continue on Friday.
Mets at Yankees (Carlos Rodon): Pete Alonso ($5,700), Francisco Lindor ($5,200), Mark Vientos ($3,500)
Though Rodon's 3.65 FIP through nine starts is in line for his best season as a Yankee, he's still experienced homer issues since joining the team - including 1.7 homers per nine innings at home. While the lefty has faced five times as many righties during that stretch, he's also allowed righties to hit five times as many home runs. All three of these Mets can hit right-handed and destroy a baseball.
Now that Alonso is crushing it upon signing on to stay with the organization, it's easy to look back and think he can still produce 34 homers even in a down year. He remains one of the best power hitters slugging .584 this season, including a .630 on the road. Lindor can hit for power and steal bases with nine home runs and six swipes so far. He's been oddly terrible on the road in 2025, but it's weird as he produced an away OPS over .860 in each of the previous two seasons. Vientos kind of came out of nowhere last year to tally 27 homers in 111 games, so his dropoff is perhaps a bit more concerning. However, he's still gone deep five times through 40 games with an .877 OPS the last three weeks.
Try our DraftKings MLB Lineup Optimizer to discover more expert recommendations, customize the player pool, set exposure percentage and mass-enter DFS lineups.
