This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Saturday may be the day of the men's Final Four, but there is but one thing I care about, and that is getting you some quality recommendations for your MLB DFS success. Okay, so I also wrote a couple NHL DFS articles for Saturday, but that's off topic. There are seven MLB games on the slate in the evening. The first pitch arrives at 7:05 p.m. ET. Onto those promised recommendations.
Pitching
Jacob deGrom, TEX vs. TB ($10,200): There's a degree of this that it is simply nice deGrom is healthy for now and that makes me want to have him in DFS lineups. Don't know what you've got 'til it's gone, and all that. However, he also looked great for five innings in his first start of 2025, and he has a 2.15 ERA in his time with the Rangers. The issue, of course, is that comprises 10 starts over three seasons. Still, the skills have clearly never diminished, and the Rays were a bottom-five offense last year and, shockingly, didn't really make any big moves this offseason.
Tanner Bibee, CLE at LAA ($9,500): Bibee had to deal with an illness recalibrating his start to the 2025 campaign, but he still took the mound and held the Royals to two hits and zero runs over 5.2 innings. That is a trickier thing to do than handling the Angels. I grant you a dearth of Mike Trout played a role in this, which is not applicable at present, but the Angels finished 28th in runs scored last year with a collective .229 batting average.
Top Targets
All the walks may indicate pitchers are working around Marcell Ozuna ($3,800), but in time he will get a chance to square up a ball or two. Indeed, Friday he hit his first home run of the season. After all, over the prior two seasons he hit 79 home runs and slugged .552. If you were thinking that Cal Quantrill might look better this season because his 4.98 ERA as a Rockie was a byproduct of Coors Field, I will note that he had a 5.24 ERA the season prior with Cleveland. In his first start this season he allowed six runs in four innings against the Mets.
Though Willy Adames ($3,400) is still trying to find his groove now that he is a Giant, in two of the past three seasons he's had over 30 home runs, and that is a number that stands out for a shortstop. Plus, last season he had an .851 OPS against his fellow righties. Bryce Miller is one of the foremost beneficiaries of Seattle's home park. In his career he has a 2.76 ERA and 0.9 HR/9 rate at home. On the road, those numbers jump to 4.52 and 1.5 respectively.
Bargain Bats
I mentioned Coors Field earlier, and this is my first opportunity to turn to that park for DFS purposes. Tyler Soderstrom ($3,400) has started the season strong for the Athletics, as he's batted .323 with three home runs. His career numbers aren't remarkable, but he has a career .804 OPS on the road, a reminder that his former home ballpark was as pitcher-friendly as they come. Coors is the antithesis of that. German Marquez, with his career 4.39 ERA and 1.25 HR/9 rate, can attest to that.
Last year, Jordan Beck ($3,000) crushed at Triple-A. That led to a call-up by the Rockies, where not even Coors could really help him too much. The outfielder had three homers and seven stolen bases in 55 games, though, and he has swiped three bags already in 2025. With the present Colorado lineup, the 23-year-old outfielder is likely to draw into the starting lineup whenever a lefty is on the mound. JP Sears is such a lefty, and even with all his days pitching in Oakland he has given up 1.49 home runs per nine innings in his career.
Stacks to Consider
Mets vs. Blue Jays (Chris Bassitt): Juan Soto ($4,500), Brandon Nimmo ($3,300), Brett Baty ($2,300)
I was enthused to stack against Bassitt in his first start of the season, as he had a 4.16 ERA last year and lefties hit .305 against him. While he has a 1.50 ERA after his initial outing of 2025, Bassitt allowed eight hits in six innings, and Baltimore's lefties hit .357 against him. So yeah, I'm going to an all-lefty stack again against Bassitt.
Soto has one of the best batting eyes in the world, is a lock to finish with an OBP over .400, and hit a personal-best 41 home runs last year. If you want to chalk that up to being a lefty at Yankee Stadium, he hit 35 homers in 2023 with the Padres. Nimmo had 23 home runs and 15 stolen bases last year, and while he finished with a .399 slugging percentage, he's slugged .519 to start this year. Since 2023 he has an .800 OPS versus right-handed pitchers. It's quite possible Baty won't draw into the lineup, but Jeff McNeil is hurt, and Baty is a lefty. This recommendation saves salary and also kept me from just filling your entire outfield with Mets. He's had an unremarkable career for a once-acclaimed prospect, but he did have a .731 OPS at home two years ago, and he's playable against righties. You can't say that when it comes to facing lefties, but that won't come into play until the Jays get into the bullpen.
Reds at Brewers (Elvin Rodriguez): Elly De La Cruz ($4,300), Matt McLain, Jake Fraley ($2,400)
It's barely the beginning of April, and the Brewers are already woefully bereft of pitching options due to injuries. That's the only way in which Rodriguez would find himself drawing a start in MLB. He's been in Japan after not catching on with the Rays. Prior to this season, he lasted started in 2022 with the Tigers. He posted a 10.62 ERA in 29.2 innings. How did Rodriguez do in his first start with the Brew Crew? He allowed four runs in four innings to the Royals. It's a day to stack Reds!
De La Cruz wowed at the plate even with his wildly undisciplined approach, racking up 25 homers and 67 stolen bases (not to mention 218 strikeouts). For whatever reason he still purports to be a switch hitter, even though he can't hack it against lefties but has an .854 OPS versus righties like Rodriguez. McClain is right-handed, but the second baseman has an easy matchup, not to mention three home runs already this season. He missed all of 2024 with injury, but if you don't recall in 2023 he had 16 homers and 14 swiped bags in 89 contests. While he is dealing with a hamstring issue, he was able to pinch hit Friday. Fraley doesn't really have much power, but he hit .277 with 20 stolen bases in 116 games last year. Also, since 2023 he's slugged .425 against righties, so to the extent he has power it is in such matchups.
