Another weekend is in the books, every MLB team has played at least 20 games, and we have eight MLB games on the slate for DFS purposes. We don't have much in the way of pitching talent, but maybe that means you can focus on nailing your hitting selections for your DFS lineups. The first pitch is at 6:40 p.m. ET. Here are my lineup recommendations.
Pitching
Bryce Elder, ATL at WAS ($8,900): I don't believe in Elder's 0.77 ERA or even his 2.73 FIP. That being said, those are his numbers through four starts, and I do believe he may be in line for his best season since he had a 3.17 ERA in 2022. Plus, I also don't believe in Washington. It's up there in terms of runs scored to start the season, but I can't see this lineup finishing in the top half of MLB on that front.
Kyle Bradish, BAL at KAN ($8,700): Bradish has a 5.49 ERA through four starts, but he also has a 3.17 FIP. Given that he posted a 2.77 ERA over the prior three campaigns, I think that latter number may be more indicative. The Mets and Royals were tied for last in runs scored headed into Sunday, and the Mets only managed to score one run. However, the Royals were shutout, and so they begin Monday last in MLB in runs scored.
Colin Rea, CHC vs. PHI ($7,000): Rea has only started in one of the four games in which he's pitched, but he's gone at least 3.0 innings in every game, and he allowed three runs with five strikeouts in six innings against these same Phillies following an opener in his last outing. This time, Rea gets to be at home, and he had a 3.86 ERA at home last year. The Phillies have started the season in the bottom 10 in runs scored. In the inverse of the Nations, I think they end up comfortably in the top half on that front, but the bats may need to warm up a bit more.
Top Targets
The Dodgers gave Teoscar Hernandez ($4,000) a day off Sunday, but he need not fret, because the Dodgers have one more game to play at Coors Field before moving on to the next series. Since joining Los Angeles, Hernandez has slugged .480, and this year he has four home runs and three doubles. Jose Quintana, a lefty, has a 5.63 ERA in his first season with the Rockies…and he's yet to pitch at home.
Last season, Hunter Goodman ($3,500) didn't just hit .278 with 31 homers in 144 games while seeing a lot of time at catcher. He showed he's not merely a good hitter for a catcher, or merely a byproduct of Coors Field, though the fact this game is at Coors is a positive. Goodman had an OPS over .800 against righties and lefties, but also at home and on the road. I don't really believe in Justin Wrobleski's 2.12 ERA, given that he came into this season with a career 4.81 ERA.
Bargain Bats
The Cubs have benefited from hot starts from Nico Hoerner and Ian Happ ($3,300). After picking up two more hits and a walk Sunday, Happ is my pick here. He has six homers and four doubles already, and he's also a switch hitter and thus can hit left-handed. Aaron Nola has a 4.03 ERA in 2026 after putting up a 6.01 ERA last season, but this year lefties have hit .357 against him.
It's been an interesting start to the MLB career of JJ Wetherholt ($3,200), who has a .368 slugging percentage but a .381 OBP. He also has three homers and four stolen bases while being eligible at second base and shortstop. Max Mayer is on pace to improve for the third season in a row, but also he has a 4.12 ERA. That's a reminder that he has a career 5.13 ERA.
Agree with these recommendations? Give them a spin with various combinations of other players in RotoWire's MLB DFS Lineup Optimizer.
Stack to Consider
Atlanta at Washington (Jake Irvin): Matt Olson ($3,700), Ozzie Albies ($2,900), Michael Harris ($2,800)
Last season, Irvin had a 5.70 ERA, a 2.00 K/BB ratio and a 1.90 HR/9 rate. This year, his HR/9 rate is down to 1.42…but his K/BB ratio is down to 1.91, and his ERA has ticked up to 6.16. Irvin is now flirting with a career 5.00 ERA, and given that he's also approaching 100 career starts, I think it's safe to say he's not a very good pitcher. He's also a righty who has allowed lefties to hit .264 against him since 2024, so I have three Atlanta hitters who can hit left handed.
Olson has five homers and 10 doubles to start this campaign, and he hasn't had fewer than 29 homers in any of the prior five seasons. Only once did he have under 35 doubles in that time, and it was the year he hit 54 homers, so nobody was wringing their hands over that. Albies is hitting .282 with four home runs and three doubles. While the switch-hitting second baseman hasn't swiped a bag,yet, he's stolen double-digit bases every season in which he's played at least 100 games. Sure, I'm recommending Harris after he went 3-for-3 with a home run Sunday, but that was the continuation of a good start to the year. He's hit .290 and slugged .478, and last year he finally had his first 20/20 campaign while also notching six triples.
