Welcome to our MLB DFS Building Blocks, DraftKings and FanDuel picks for 5/9/22! In this article, I’ll break down by top overall plays for today’s main slate. Last year was an extremely big year for the Karma team in MLB, and we are looking to continue that success in 2022. I will be providing Core Plays for every main slate (and day baseball) this season — you can gain access to that as well as our premium discord here. You can also try out the Core Plays package with a $5 daily pass. Let’s get to the plays…
Pitcher
Carlos Rodon
Rodon is the easy choice for top pitcher tonight, and he has clearly been the ace of this slate in 2022. This Colorado team is not as bad as it has been in the past, but they are still a bottom-ten offense outside of Coors Field this season ranking 22nd in team wRC+. I’ve noted a few times this season how Rodon is throwing his slider more this season which is good seeing as he gets a ton of whiffs with that pitch. That also allows him to profile well in this match-up — all of the Rockies top-six projected batters in the lineup tonight sport a wOBA below .280 vs sliders. I think he is the best pitcher throwing today and he will be my top option on DraftKings.
Brandon Woodruff
I wrote Woodruff up in this spot last week, and he responded by striking out 12 reds in his best start of the young season. Cincy scored a bunch of runs over the weekend, but this is still the worst offense in baseball that’s striking out 26% of the time vs right-handed pitching. I think that Woodruff will continue to round into form as we progress through the season — and I will continue to take advantage of this price tag while he is cheap.
If you are looking for more savings at this position, I probably would side with Noah Syndergaard in the mid-tier. I don’t really play pitchers that don’t get strikeouts, but Thor has been solid overall for the Angels. He’s striking out just 15% of batters faced, but his swing and miss numbers are more than solid with a 12% swinging strike rate. Some positive regression could be coming in the K department, and the Rays projected lineup has a strikeout rate over 28% as a team this season! I actually may bump him up my rankings as we approach lock.
Building Blocks
Jose Abreu
Chicago matches up with Zach Plesac, a pitcher I have been attacking in pretty much every one of his starts this season. Plesac has been much worse than he was last season, he’s striking out just 14% of batters faced while his hard-hit and barrel numbers are way up. Abreu has had a slow start to 2022, but he is still hitting the ball hard with a lot of fly-balls. Abreu is one of the better hitters on this team vs RHP long-term, and I’m more willing to trust that data over one month of 2022 numbers. He also has seen Plesac a good bit, with over 20 at-bats — in those he owns a .413 xwOBA against him. I love this White Sox offense tonight and I think it could be a breakout spot for them.
Daulton Varsho
Varsho has been a main target for me this season, and he is once again underpriced. He continues to be locked in at the plate ranking top-30 in barrels — and has a strong match-up with Elieser Hernandez. Hernandez is one of the worst pitchers in baseball vs left-handed batters, while Varsho is the best hitter in this lineup vs righties. Furthermore, Hernandez pounds fastballs while Varsho is the best fastball hitter on this team. Vegas likes the Diamondbacks tonight, and I think Varsho is too cheap for his power upside making him the top value for me on both sites.
Bold Call
The White Sox score 8+ runs!
Written by Ben Hossler (Follow @BenHossler on Twitter)
