MLB DFS Picks: FanDuel Plays and Strategy for Monday September 18

MLB DFS Picks: FanDuel Plays and Strategy for Monday September 18

This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.

There are two NFL games Monday night, but what about MLB games? After all, you're here because you're still putting together your DFS lineups, day in and day out, as long as the baseball season is going strong. Well, there are eight MLB games on the DFS docket at 7:05 p.m. ET or later. Here are my lineup recommendations.

Pitching

Bryan Woo, SEA at OAK ($9,800): Soon, the playoffs will be here, and the truly poor offenses won't be there to target any longer (Milwaukee, 18th in runs scored, seems likely to be the worst offense to make the postseason). Oakland's offense is at another level of futility, though, ranking last in runs scored and team OPS comfortably. Woo hasn't allowed an earned run in two of his last three starts, and one of those starts came against the Athletics. 

Michael Wacha, SD vs. COL ($9,300): Wacha has slipped some recently, but he still has a 3.43 ERA on the season and, crucially, a 2.55 ERA at home. The Rockies are going to finish below average in runs scored, and given where they play their home contests, that speaks to a lackluster offense.

Top Targets

Guys who can hit more than 40 home runs in consecutive seasons remain rare, but Kyle Schwarber ($3,800) has done just that. He's tallied 44 homers this year, and he's going to manage more than 100 runs and RBI as well. Another Kyle, Wright, looked off before his lengthy injury absence, and he looked off in his return. The righty allowed six runs in 3.0 innings to these same Phillies.

Undoubtedly it has been a disappointing season in San Diego, but Xander Bogaerts ($3,000) has not been part of the problem. He's batted .276 with 18 homers and 16 stolen bases, and he's posted an .809 OPS in his new home park. If a hitter averaged .347 in modern baseball, that would be remarkable. That's an average that basically will lock you into a batting title. Well, over the last two seasons, righties have hit .347 against Ty Blach.

Bargain Bats

It's the circle of life. Sal Frelick ($3,000) has shown promise as a rookie, and he has a .262 average and .369 OBP with three homers and seven stolen bases in 48 games. The southpaw has a .767 OPS against righties as well. Meanwhile, Cardinals fans are saying goodbye to Adam Wainwright, but the 42-year-old pitcher has had a nightmarish swan song campaign. He has a 7.95 ERA, has allowed 1.91 homers per nine innings, and struck out a mere 4.98 batters per nine as well. If that wasn't enough, lefties have hit .363 versus Wainwright.

He completely lacks power, but Andrew Benintendi ($2,800) has hit .268 with 33 doubles and 13 stolen bases. The southpaw will get a favorable opportunity against Washington's Joan Adon on Monday. In his career, Adon has a 6.37 ERA at home (compared to a 6.66 ERA on the road, to be fair) and allowed lefties to hit .288 against him.

Stacks to Consider

Mariners at Athletics (JP Sears): Julio Rodriguez ($4,500), Teoscar Hernandez ($3,000), Jarred Kelenic ($2,900)

Sears has a 5.13 FIP and has allowed 1.77 homers per nine innings. Being at home isn't a safe haven for the lefty either. In fact, Sears has a 4.76 ERA at home where he's allowed 2.1 homers per nine. With the Mariners having a ton left to play for, I'll take this trio in a stack against the southpaw.

Rodriguez has had an incredible season, as he has more than 30 homers, doubles and stolen bases. Not only that, but he's been scorching hot when the team has needed it, as he's posted an 1.150 OPS over the last three weeks. Hernandez's clear strength is in this matchup, as since 2021 he has an 1.011 OPS versus lefties. Plus, in his first season with the Mariners, he has an .826 OPS on the road. Yes, Kelenic is a lefty, but he has an .807 OPS versus left-handed pitchers in limited appearances. Meanwhile, Sears has allowed lefties to hit .311 against him. Thus, I'll take a shot on the southpaw in this matchup.

Rangers vs. Red Sox (Kutter Crawford): Marcus Semien ($3,800), Nathaniel Lowe ($3,100), Leody Taveras ($2,800)

Yes, Crawford has a 2.69 ERA on the road and a 6.10 ERA at home, but last season he had a 4.50 ERA at home and a 6.51 ERA on the road, and it's the same ballpark. Mostly, I see a guy with a career 4.94 ERA who has struggled in an assortment of scenarios. A shorthanded Red Sox pitching staff doesn't feel imposing at Texas, especially with Crawford starting.

Semien has long been a righty who prefers to face righties, as since 2021 he has an .820 OPS in those matchups. This year, he's also put up an .878 OPS at home. The lefty Lowe has a .374 OBP and is likely to hit 40 doubles for the first time in his career (and his 16 homers aren't too shabby either). He has an .869 OPS versus right-handers, plus an .852 OPS at home. Taveras is a switch hitter with 12 homers and 14 stolen bases. However, he has a .274 average and .444 slugging percentage against righties, so that would be the style of pitcher he prefers to face.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Chris Morgan plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: cmorgan3, DraftKings: cmorgan3.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chris Morgan
Chris Morgan is a writer of sports, pop culture, and humor articles, a book author, a podcaster, and a fan of all Detroit sports teams.
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