Rise and shine! Thursday's MLB DFS lineups have to be in early. The first pitch on the seven-game slate is at 12:15 p.m. ET. Brew your coffee, look over these MLB DFS lineup recommendations, get your lineups in, and then good luck to you!
Pitching
Cristopher Sanchez, PHI vs. SFG ($9,200): Both Orioles-Astros and Phillies-Giants were rained out Wednesday, and that completely changed/derailed my DFS plans. At least I can go back to the well of Sanchez against the Giants now that his start has been pushed a day. Sanchez has a 2.61 FIP and 4.30 K/BB rate. The Giants were last in runs scored even before Wednesday's game was rained out. It's all pretty straightforward there.
Andrew Abbott, CIN vs. COL ($6,700): I opted for Abbott over another Andrew – Painter – for the "maybe things will turn around" option. Abbott has the MLB track record to have some trust. He had a 2.87 ERA last year, and he has a 3.51 FIP this year. Facing the Rockies – as per usual in the bottom 10 in runs scored even with their home ballpark – in Cincinnati could be just what Abbott needs.
Top Targets
Since returning from injury, Juan Soto ($5,800) has been hitting, he's been walking, and he's now also hit a couple home runs. There are hitters as trustworthy as Soto, but there is no hitter more trustworthy. Miles Mikolas has never been a strikeout pitcher – not that Soto ever strikes out – but the last couple of years he's also allowed a lot of home runs. Owing to that, over the last three seasons he has a 5.33 ERA.
Is Brice Turang ($5,400) still growing as a player? The fielding and the base stealing were always there, but last year he added power, which he has sustained in 2026. Now, on top of that, he has a .407 OBP. I don't even need to say I don't necessarily believe in Michael Soroka's 2.60 ERA, because lefties have hit .304 against him!
Bargain Bats
Konnor Griffin hasn't given the Pirates the boost many envisioned, but the veteran additions in the offseason have panned out. Shout out to Brandon Lowe, but my recommendation here is Ryan O'Hearn ($4,900). The first baseman/outfielder has a .402 OBP with five homers and 20 RBI. Having more guys who can hit means more runs being scored in Pittsburgh. Hunter Dobbins will be making his Cardinals debut Thursday. In his rookie campaign with the Red Sox he had a 4.13 ERA, but a 5.48 ERA away from Fenway Park.
While Brandon Marsh ($3,500) has been as bad as ever against lefties, he's been as good as ever against righties. Since 2024 he has an .822 OPS versus right-handed pitchers. Marsh is now facing Logan Webb instead of Adrian Houser on Thursday afternoon, but Webb, surprisingly, has let lefties hit .310 against him this year, so I'm sticking with Marsh.
Stacks to Consider
Reds vs. Rockies (Michael Lorenzen): Elly De La Cruz ($6,200), Sal Stewart ($5,200), JJ Bleday ($3,700)
Lorenzen has a 5.97 ERA in his first season with Colorado, and given his 5.97 K/9 rate he can't blame Coors Field. Plus, he had a 4.64 ERA with Kansas City last season. Lefties have hit .426 against Lorenzen this season, but since 2024 righties have hit .273 against him, so I have a mixture here.
This version of De La Cruz is not just an all-star, but possibly an MVP candidate. The shortstop has hit .283 with 10 homers and eight stolen bases. Over the last three seasons he's slugged .504 against righties as well. Speaking of awards, my preseason pick for NL Rookie of the Year Stewart is off to a strong start. He's slashed .288/.377/.586 with nine homers and seven stolen bases. It's impressive to be a rookie who is already seemingly an above-average hitter at first base. Bleday only just got called up from Triple-A, but the lefty showed what he can do in fits and starts while with the Athletics. Last year he hit 14 homers in 98 games, and in 2024 he had a whopping 43 doubles.
Orioles vs. Astros (Peter Lambert): Gunnar Henderson ($5,700), Taylor Ward ($4,400), Samuel Basallo ($4,000)
This is another case in which my original plan got nixed, but I think the stack still works. Lambert has a career 6.15 ERA. Yes, he was with the Rockies prior to this season, but he has a career 4.73 ERA in Triple-A as well. The 29-year-old is only pitching for the Astros right now because of injury issues. Otherwise, he'd be down in the minors. Lambert didn't pitch in 2025, but in 2024 both righties and lefties hit over .300 against him, so I don't mind having a righty in this stack.
Henderson is having an "overlook the slash line for the counting stats" season thus far. Sure, he has a .287 OBP, but he had nine homers, a triple, five doubles and five stolen bases. For a shortstop, that'll do. Ward has hit .313 with 13 doubles in his first season with the Orioles. With the Angels, he consistently had notably better numbers on the road, and now he isn't stuck playing in Anaheim. Basallo can slot in as your catcher, which is nice. A vaunted prospect who struggled to adapt to MLB pitching has picked it up, with two homers and two doubles in his last three games.
