It's time to kick off 4th of July weekend…with the 3rd of July. Friday is packed with MLB action, though, featuring 11 games that start at 7:05 p.m. ET or later. You might have other plans Saturday, but Friday can be all about baseball. Here are my MLB DFS lineup recommendations.
Pitching
Kyle Harrison, MIL at ARI ($9,700): He is in the shadow of Jacob Misiorowski, perhaps literally given how tall that dude is, but Harrison is having a tremendous season. The lefty had a disastrous day visiting the Athletics earlier this season, but that's his only poor outing. He had an 1.57 ERA before that game, and he's gotten himself back down to a 2.57 ERA. The Diamondbacks are below-average in terms of runs scored, and their ballpark tends to be kind to pitchers, so Harrison shouldn't see a repeat performance of his day against the Athletics.
Reid Detmers, LAA vs. BOS ($8,300): For the third season in a row, Detmers has a FIP decidedly lower than his ERA. This year, his 3.88 ERA is paired with a 2.95 FIP. Now, the consistent nature of that does make me wonder, but this matchup is enticing enough as is. The Red Sox are pretty much locked into the bottom five in runs scored, and definitely the bottom 10, and they have a sub-.700 OPS as a team.
Grant Holmes, ATL vs. NYM ($7,000): At this salary, why not? Holmes has handled the Padres and Giants in his last two outings (though both ended before he got to 5.0 innings, which is relevant from the standpoint of getting a win), and the Mets are an offense of the same caliber, i.e., bad. In addition to being in the bottom five in runs scored even with Juan Soto on the team, they have a sub-.300 OBP.
Top Targets
Having six homers looks a lot better when you also have five triples and 13 stolen bases. Also, when you are a second baseman who has hit .301, and that all describes Xavier Edwards ($5,000). Maybe facing the Athletics in their bandbox of a ballpark will benefit Edwards. Jack Perkins (who will remind me of MST3K for as long as he's an MLB pitcher) has moved from the bullpen to the rotation, but it hasn't helped. Over his last five outings he has a 6.65 ERA.
Over the last three weeks, Jonathan Aranda ($4,400) has an 1.011 OPS. He also has a .948 OPS against righties and is better on the road than some of his slugging compatriots on the Rays. Meanwhile, the bloom is off the rose with Spencer Arrighetti. Over his last five starts he has a 9.00 ERA, and he's allowed three homers in each of his last two games.
Bargain Bats
Last season, despite the hype as a prospect Samuel Basallo ($3,600) struggled. This year, he's still struggled against lefties, but he's now proven viable against lefties, posting an .851 OPS in those matchups. Plus, he's eligible to be rostered at catcher even though he mostly serves as a DH. Brady Singer has allowed 2.21 home runs per nine innings, and on top of that lefties have hit .307 against him.
He's still not pushing .400 in terms of slugging percentage, but shortstop Brayan Rocchio ($3,400) has hit .269 with 13 doubles and 14 stolen bases. Also, unexpectedly, he has an .828 OPS at home. Rookie lefty Anthony Kay has been fine at home, but on the road he has a 6.40 ERA and 2.2 HR/9 rate. Sure, Rocchio isn't likely to hit a home run, but there's a good chance he can get a hit (or two).
Stacks to Consider
Giants at Rockies (Tomoyuki Sugano): Casey Schmitt ($4,900), Jung Hoo Lee ($4,500), Rafael Devers ($4,300)
In the same article wherein I talked trash about the Giants' offense, I am recommending a stack from the same team. A trip to Coors Field will do that. Sugano has a 5.32 FIP this season, in line with his 5.35 FIP last year. Of course, do recall he was with the Orioles, not the Rockies, in 2025. Wherever Sugano pitches, he's homer-prone, and in his MLB career, both lefties and righties have hit over .270 against him. This stack, as such, is one righty and two lefties.
Schmitt has been cold, but on the year he's hit .278 with 16 homers and seven stolen bases. This matchup could help Schmitt heat up, as he's slugged .519 on the road this year. Lee has built upon last year, as he's hit .319 with 19 doubles, three triples and six stolen bases. He's also better away from the Giants' ballpark, as he has an .856 OPS in away games. For Devers, it has been less about home versus the road and more righties versus lefties. He has slugged .540 against righties, though, and that certainly looks good to me at Coors Field.
Yankees vs. Twins (Mike Paredes): Ben Rice ($5,200), Jazz Chisholm ($4,300), Jose Caballero ($3,400)
You know what work out long term? An 1.44 K/BB rate and an 1.42 HR/9 rate in MLB. That's what Parades has done thus far in his rookie campaign, and he has a 4.26 ERA to go with a 5.43 FIP. Since his fellow righties have hit .270 against Paredes, I did want to make sure I had one righty in the mix here.
Both Rice and Cody Bellinger have been cold, so I only wanted one of them. Bellinger has been colder, though, and he's hit righties less well than Rice, so Rice is the guy. He's slugged more than .600 against righties, and also slugged more than .600 at home. Chisholm has been swiping bags left and right, having tallied 26 stolen bases in 82 games. That isn't a surprise, as he stole 31 bases in 130 games last year. On top of that, though, he's now also up to 12 homers on the campaign. Given Paredes' issues against righties thus far, I figured Caballero was worth a shot. He has a reasonable salary, eligibility at multiple positions, and eight home runs to go with 19 stolen bases.
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