DraftKings Daily Fantasy Baseball: Best Picks For April 13

Scott Kazmir struck out 10 in his first outing and Monday gets the light-hitting Astros. (Getty)

Scott Kazmir struck out 10 in his first outing and Monday gets the light-hitting Astros. (Getty)

Of the 14 MLB games on Monday’s schedule, 6 of them are afternoon contests. But we’re not focusing on them today.

That’s the beauty of DraftKings. You choose when you want to play. Want to play a contest with the entire player field, sign up for one. Only want day games? Go for it. Just a pool of players from night games? You can do that, too.

I entered a DraftKings contest featuring players from night games only.

**The lineup below is for a night game only contest on DraftKings. No players who have afternoon games are included.**

DraftKings uses the following parameters: You get a $50,000 cap to spend on 10 players – 2 pitchers, 1 catcher, 1 first baseman, 1 second baseman, 1 shortstop, 1 third baseman and 3 outfielders.

Hitters Scoring:

Single = +3 points
Double = +5 points
Triple = +8 points
Home Run = +10 points
Run Batted In = +2 points
Run = +2 points
Base on Balls = +2 points
Hit By Pitch = +2 points
Stolen Base = +5 points
Caught Stealing = -2 points

Pitchers Scoring:

Inning Pitched = +2.25 points
Strike Out = +2 points
Win = +4 points
Earned Run Allowed = -2 points
Hit Against = -0.6 points
Base on Balls Against = -0.6 points
Hit Batsman = -0.6 points
Complete Game = +2.5 points
Complete Game Shut Out = +2.5 points
No Hitter = +5 points

*NOTE: Hitting statistics for Pitchers will not be counted, and Pitching statistics for Hitters will not be counted.


Interested in playing daily fantasy baseball?
Click here to sign up for DraftKings.
Click here to sign up for FanDuel.


Here are the best lineup picks for April 13:

Pitchers

Jake Odorizzi of the Rays was outstanding in his first start. (Getty)

Jake Odorizzi of the Rays was outstanding in his first start. (Getty)

Scott Kazmir, A’s, $7,200, at Astros

Kazmir was brilliant in his first start (7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 10 Ks), but can he do a repeat performance Monday? Not sure, but the Astros are batting under .200 and score just 2.6 runs per game. So it’s much closer to yes he can.

Jake Odorizzi, Rays, $7,000, at Blue Jays

On the other hand, Toronto is scoring over 6 runs per game, so why start Odorizzi (1-0, 0.00 ERA)? He also dominated his first start and has baffled the Jays’ entire lineup in the past. Risky, sure, but the young righty hasn’t given much cause for concern in his short career.


Catcher

(Getty)

(Getty)

Derek Norris, Padres, $3,400, vs. Diamondbacks

Norris has been a pleasant offensive surprise for the Padres, who have been getting offensive production from their catchers in recent years. It’s a pretty ugly catcher situation for Monday and Norris’ price tag fits.


First Base

(Getty)

(Getty)

Anthony Rizzo, Cubs, $4,800, vs. Reds

Apparently, Rizzo is arriving fashionably late to the 2015 season. Perhaps that time is tonight vs. the Reds’ Mike Leake, whom Rizzo is 7 for 20 (.350) with a homer against.


Second Base

(Getty)

(Getty)

Robinson Cano, Mariners, $4,100, at Dodgers

Cano is even worse than Rizzo, going just 3 for 25 so far. But Brandon McCarthy isn’t exactly someone who keeps a hitter slumping and Cano’s price tag makes him worth it.


Shortstop

(Getty)

(Getty)

Starlin Castro, Cubs, $4,000, vs. Reds

Like his teammate Rizzo, Castro has enjoyed success vs. Leake. The shortstop options for the evening slate are blah at best, but Castro is an attractive option.


Third Base

(Getty)

(Getty)

Kyle Seager, Mariners, $3,600, at Dodgers

The good news is Seager has hit in 4 straight games. The bad news is he’s still hitting just .174. But he’s putting the ball in play so that’s a good sign. With that price, you take a flier on Seager, who should start seeing some of those ball drop.


Outfield

Matt Kemp has 6 hits in the past 2 games. (Getty)

Matt Kemp has 6 hits in the past 2 games. (Getty)

Mike Trout, Angels, $6,600, at Rangers

Trout has hit in all 6 games and has a .400 average. I splurged on him, but sometimes you need to spoil your lineup. Right-handed hitters like Trout have been torturing Rangers starter Ross Detwiler for the past 2 seasons (.322 average).

Brett Gardner, Yankees, $4,700, at Orioles

Gardner is heating up as well, hitting in 4 straight, with multiple base knocks in 3 of those. And he’s had some success vs. Orioles starter Wei-Yin Chen – 5 for 14 with a homer. Gardner fits my budget at $4,700.

Matt Kemp, Padres, $4,600, vs. Diamondbacks

The Padres are looking smart for their offseason acquisition of Kemp, who is seemingly impervious to Petco Park’s propensity to kill offense. He has 6 hits in his past 9 at-bats at home, so get on board as he’s obviously heating up.


Total Lineup Salary: $50,000 of the allotted $50,000

Each day, we’ll give you the rundown of who to pick for a winning lineup, so stay with us the entire season.


Interested in playing daily fantasy baseball?
Click here to sign up for DraftKings.
Click here to sign up for FanDuel.