Sunday winds down the weekend with an 11-game featured slate beginning at 1:05 p.m. on DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo. Before we get to our MLB DFS picks, as always, we will use Stokastic’s tools to help identify today’s MLB DFS stacks, key pitchers and daily fantasy baseball lineups. Look to Freddy Peralta and Chris Bassitt as the key arms, while the Milwaukee Brewers and the Washington Nationals are the teams to target for stacks.
Still trying to find your MLB DFS edge? Luckily Stokastic has a new tool to help you get there — the MLB Sims Tool! With it, you can simulate any MLB DFS contest you are playing on a given night and see which lineups are the likeliest to be profitable. And if you need a head start on strategy, we’ve broken down how to use the MLB Sims Tool to create the best DFS lineups each night.
MLB DFS Picks: Spotlight Pitchers and Top Stacks | June 2
MLB DFS Picks: Spotlight Pitchers
Main Slate Primary Pitching Target: RHP Freddy Peralta (MIL vs. CHW)
Brewers vs. White Sox – 3.0 implied runs
First Pitch: 2:10 p.m. ET
$11,000 at DraftKings
$10,700 at FanDuel
$52 at Yahoo
This afternoon, RHP Freddy Peralta is popping up in the Stokastic Top Pitcher’s Tool, with a dreamy matchup against the Chicago White Sox. Tomorrow Peralta will be celebrating his 28th birthday and “Fastball Freddy” has been living up to his nickname with 11.4 strikeouts per nine innings this season. That is the fourth best among qualified starting pitchers and with strikeouts being the currency of the realm for DFS, look to the Dominican ace as a fantasy building block.
Chicago has a paltry 169 runs on the season, averaging 2.86 per game. They are 47 runs behind the next worst offense and at risk of being doubled-up by the Philadelphia Phillies later this month. It should be no surprise that the White Sox have the fewest home runs, RBIs and total bases, though the team is in the middle of the pack with strikeouts and steals. Luis Robert Jr. is close to a return, though Eloy Jimenez and Yoan Moncada are still out, plus Andrew Benintendi and Andrew Vaughn are dealing with minor ailments. The ChiSox have lost their last 10 games and have only one lonely victory in the last 15 tilts.
Main Slate Secondary Pitching Target: RHP Chris Bassitt (TOR vs. PIT)
Blue Jays vs. Pirates – 3.6 implied runs
First Pitch: 1:37 p.m. ET
$8,200 at DraftKings
$9,000 at FanDuel
$44 at Yahoo
It is basically a coinflip between RHPs Charlie Morton who is at home against the Oakland Athletics and Chris Bassitt, who is welcoming the Pittsburgh Pirates to Toronto. Morton is a little more expensive across the DFS sites and coming off an eight-run game against Washington. This should be a “get right” spot for the 40-year-old, who had allowed just nine runs in the preceding six games.
Bassitt was stellar in May, with a 2.40 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 44 strikeouts across 30 innings. The 35-year-old did get to face the White Sox in each of his last two games, though he was impressive with 12 scoreless innings. The projected Pittsburgh lineup does not have much pop, with a paltry .115 ISO against right-handed hurlers this season, with a strikeout rate approaching 25%. If Bassitt is able to navigate lefties Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz and Rowdy Tellez, he should be in the mix for a quality start, as well as the win bonus.
Late Slate Primary Pitching Target: RHP Luis Castillo (SEA vs. LAA)
Mariners vs. Angels – 3.2 implied runs
First Pitch: 4:10 p.m. ET
$9,200 at DraftKings
$9,300 at FanDuel
$46 at Yahoo
In his last five starts, RHP Luis Castillo has allowed two runs in each outing, with only 14 earned runs in his last nine games, spanning 49.2 innings. Sadly, the Seattle offense has not been helping Castillo, who has a 4-6 record, despite performing better than his career averages nearly across the board.
Los Angeles has lost four consecutive games and eight of the last 10. In this stretch, the team has scored more than four runs only once (5), as the Angels really been feeling the impact of the injuries to Mike Trout, Brandon Drury and Anthony Rendon. The Halos are not a bad lineup, with Luis Rengifo, Taylor Ward, Willie Calhoun, Jo Adell and Logan O’Hoppe, but there really is no standout bat to anchor the offense and strike fear into the hearts of opposing-pitchers. It is going to be a cool day in Seattle, with rain in the forecast and temperatures in the upper-50s. Keep in mind that while the field has a retractable roof, it is more of a carport configuration, so it has very little impact on the temperature and dampness. This is a boost to pitchers.
The other options are a pair of southpaws squaring off in San Francisco with Nestor Cortes having a slight edge over reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell, who is working his way back from an adductor strain, as well as a delayed start to the season while he was navigating the free agency waters.
MLB DFS Picks: Top Stacks
Main Slate Primary Target: Milwaukee Brewers
Brewers vs. White Sox – 5.2 implied runs
First Pitch: 2:10 p.m. ET
Opposing Starter: RHP Nick Nastrini
DK Top Stack %: 6.8%
FD Top Stack %: 7.7%
The Stokastic Top Stacks Tool declared today as Nick Nastrini Day, in honor of the 24-year-old right-hander’s proclivity for creating fantasy goodness. Of course, that fantasy goodness is for opposing offenses as the former fourth-round selection in the 2021 MLB Draft has been doing his best pinata impression with a 9.92 ERA, a 2.20 WHIP and four home runs allowed in his scant 16.1 innings of action.
Nastrini came over from the Dodgers as part of the Lance Lynn deal last year and to be fair, he was not expected to be called up to The Show until next year. He has just 45.2 innings at Triple-A over the last two seasons, with a strong 10.8 strikeouts per nine innings, but control issues with 3.92 walks per nine. He should be a solid back of the rotation starter for the next several seasons, but he needs more time in the minors to work out the kinks.
Brice Turang does not have much power, but he has improved his contact rate, and he has 20 steals, giving him upside as the leadoff man for the Milwaukee offense. William Contreras, Christian Yelich, Willy Adames, Jake Bauers and Rhys Hoskins are well positioned to take on right-handed pitchers with the lefties all holding the platoon advantage and the righties performing well in same-handed matchups.
For a limited time only, you can use promo code EMACLGMLB to get five days of access to our industry-leading MLB Lineup Generator for only $1 by clicking here!
Main Slate Secondary Target: Washington Nationals
Nationals at Guardians – 4.0 implied runs
First Pitch: 1:40 p.m. ET
Opposing Starter: RHP Carlos Carrasco
DK Top Stack %: 4.3%
FD Top Stack %: 4.4%
The Stokastic Top Stacks Tool knows that gamers will be going after RHP Luis Medina with Atlanta stacks, while Boston also rates highly against RHP Casey Mize. Heck, even Cleveland has a higher Top Stack score than the Washington Nationals, who are going against the Guardians’ venerable veteran RHP Carlos Carrasco.
So why the Nats bats? Well, they rate out as one of the better value plays and also provide differentiation. Plus we know where the production should be consolidated, which makes them an excellent mini-stack to complement other full stacks. Carrasco has muddled through his last three starts, with a 3.00 ERA, but just 11 strikeouts in 18 frames. The 37-year-old landed on the injured list with acute neck spasms, prior to his last scheduled start, though he is expected to be good to go this afternoon.
Prior to his last trio of tilts, Carrasco had a 6.59 ERA in his first six starts, with walks being an issue. Strikeouts are a thing of the past for the former ace, who is likely to hang up his spikes after this season. Lane Thomas is back for the Nationals, having missed a month with a knee issue and he has four steals in his six games since returning from the injured reserve. CJ Abrams (shoulder) was a late scratch yesterday, so there is a chance he sits again today after landing on his shoulder Friday making a play. If he is in the lineup, he is a prime target as the best hitter for Washington.
Luis Garcia has been solid this season, taking over the cleanup slot from Joey Meneses and catcher Keibert Ruiz. Last year the former top prospect did not have much power, but this year he has been getting a prime spot in the batting order against right-handed pitching and delivering with career numbers across the board. While he still loses out to Ildemaro Vargas when a southpaw is on the mound, he should be in the heart of the order this afternoon.
That gives gamers a strong trio to target, while not breaking the bank. If Abrams is out again, either struggling Jesse Winker, or veteran lefties Joey Gallo and Eddie Rosario can be considered as viable stacking options.
If you need some more tips on how to manage your bankroll, Steve Buzzard has a great guide here on the biggest bankroll mistakes DFS players make and how you can avoid them! Check it out HERE.
Late Slate Target: Seattle Mariners
Mariners vs. Angels – 4.4 implied runs
First Pitch: 4:10 p.m. ET
Opposing Starter: RHP Griffin Canning
DK Top Stack %: 16.9%
FD Top Stack %: 17.8%
The Stokastic Top Stacks Tool acknowledges that RHP Griffin Canning was very effective in his five May outings, allowing just eight runs across 27.2 innings, for a 2.60 ERA. Through his first six starts of the season, the 28-year-old was saddled with a 7.45 ERA, so this is a massive improvement. However, in May he still allowed five home runs, with just 20 strikeouts, so there is opportunity for the Mariners, beneath the pristine surface numbers.
Seattle has won six of the last seven games, but the M’s offense has been among the dregs all season. The team is just inside the top-10 with 65 home runs; however, they are last with 70 doubles and 22nd in total bases. Last night the team popped off for a 9-0 victory, behind J.P. Crawford’s fourth-career grand slam and a gem from RHP Bryce Miller. Rookie second baseman Ryan Bliss was the catalyst from the nine-hole, scoring three times and stealing two bases. While he had just one hit, he did have a pair of walks and looked electric on the basepaths. In 50 games at Triple-A this season he had 28 steals, to go with 20 in his 47 games at that level last year. For those in season long leagues, snag him off waivers to see if he manages to stick with the big club in his age-24 season.
Julio Rodriguez may finally be snapping out of his season long slump and switch-hitting catcher Cal Raleigh continues to be an excellent option on DraftKings and Yahoo, which require someone to fill the catcher slot. Luke Raley knocked one out of the park last night and he is always a threat for extra-base hits when he has the platoon advantage. Depending on where they land in the lineup, Dominic Canzone and Dylan Moore are also in play.
Featured MLB Bet of the Day | MLB DFS Picks Today
This afternoon, we can target struggling LHP Andrew Heaney, who is popping in the OddsShopper model for the under on his 4.5 strikeouts prop. The +112 wager is currently available at BetRivers, Circa Sports and Unibet.
OddsShopper shows this bet has +104 “true odds,” so the +112 line brings a solid 4.2% expected ROI. We can also see how crucial it is to shop the odds, as sportsbooks tend to vary wildly with their offerings. This can be seen with shops like SuperBook and Fliff down at -117 and -120, respectively Be a savvy shopper!
Heaney actually worked in relief of RHP Nathan Eovaldi last Tuesday when the righty came off the injured list. This was a bit of a break for Heaney as well, since he struggled in his two outings preceding this shift. In those starts he lasted a combined seven innings, ceding two round-trippers, seven total runs, while striking out six. In his outing on Tuesday he had just one strikeout in 2.1 innings of action. The projected lineup for Miami has just a 20.9% strikeout rate against southpaws this season, though stretching back to the start of last year, that does increase to 23.6%. Even if Heaney lasts 80 to 85 pitches, this wager is still live, but crucial to grab at plus money.
For a limited time only, you can use promo code MLBSIMSWEEK to access one week of our industry-leading MLB Sims Max, Sims Data or Data packages for 40% off by clicking here!
Final MLB DFS Picks & Thoughts for Sunday, June 2
Atlanta will be dealing with precipitation this afternoon and while a postponement is unlikely, delay(s) are possible ESPN Sunday Night Baseball is in Philadelphia tonight, which has mentionable chance of rain, though it is still far enough out in the forecast that it is up in the air (cwidt). Be sure to check in with your favorite MLB Weather Report page closer to first pitch for updates.
Before you finalize your MLB DFS picks, check out today’s Stokastic MLB Live Before Lock Show, at 12:00 p.m. ET brought to you by Sleeper – new users, use this link to receive a $100 first deposit match! Full details here.
