If applicable, Happy Father's Day! And for everybody, I have MLB lineup recommendations. Sunday features nine games on the DFS docket with the first pitch at 1:35 p.m. EDT. Good luck!
Pitching
Dylan Cease, TOR at CHC ($10,100): At some point Saturday, the Yankees decided to push all their starters a day for rest leading to Gerrit Cole being bumped to Monday so Elmer Rodriguez can make a spot start. That changed my pitching plans, so instead I'm betting on talent even if the matchup isn't ideal. Cease is enjoying a remarkable season. His 2.71 ERA is excellent, but his 2.37 FIP is even better. The first-year Blue Jay has even struck out 13.56 batters per nine innings. Cease has only allowed more than three earned runs twice through 13 outings, so his DFS floor is high.
Dustin May, STL at KAN ($8,200): May has been locked in of late, but really has been more-or-less after his opening two appearances with a 2.54 ERA from the last 12 while coming off a complete-game shutout. Though the Royals have climbed out of the bottom 10 in runs scored, they're still below average - and that's enough evidence to select May.
Stephen Kolek, KAN vs. STL ($7,100): The Cardinals are only a bit better offensively than the Royals, though Kolek has been just as solid as May over eight total starts. He'll also be at home on Sunday and enters with a lower salary. Kolek has been particularly successful in KC having posted a 1.32 ERA over four outings.
Find out which projected starters are going and when with RotoWire's Probable Pitchers page!
Top Targets
Though Yandy Diaz ($5,500) hasn't been hitting for as much power the last couple weeks, he's still been doing well with a .322 average and .504 slugging percentage. And at home, his OPS is up over 1.000. Andrew Alvarez has managed a 3.49 ERA in 28.1 innings across eight appearances, which isn't bad. It's also not imposing and he's a lefty, so Diaz gets an added boost as he's registered a .906 OPS versus southpaws since 2024.
Kevin McGonigle ($5,000) is now 73 games into his rookie campaign and has notched a .389 OBP. He's also batting leadoff for a decent club. Davis Martin started the year well, but has given up four or more runs during three of his last five starts while his road ERA is currently at 5.09.
Bargain Bats
When you factor in the current home stadium compared to Fenway Park, Rafael Devers ($3,700) picking up 23 doubles alongside 11 homers makes sense. Maybe he's going to be someone who gets 40/20 as opposed to the days of only reaching 30 home runs with the Red Sox. It helps that this matchup will be on the road and that Ryan Gusto carries a career 5.85 ERA while lefties have gone .321 against him at the MLB level.
At this point, the gig for Joc Pederson ($2,800) is to hit against righties and that's pretty much it. Hey, it's a living. It's gone better this season as he's already effectively equaled his 2025 extra-base hit count from 96 games, though it would nice to see Pederson look like the player who slugged .515 the previous year. Facing Lucas Giolito might help as he comes in with a 6.48 road ERA while lefties have hit a whopping .347 against.
Stacks to Consider
Astros vs. Guardians (Slade Cecconi): Yordan Alvarez ($6,100), Jeremy Pena ($4,400), Isaac Paredes ($3,600)
Cecconi posted a 4.30 ERA with a 4.64 FIP in his first season with Cleveland and is currently on a 4.60 and 4.33. The script has flipped while also holding a 4.83 road ERA. Houston is a righty-heavy club, which can be an issue when facing a righty. Since 2024, righties have batted .290 against Cecconi, so this matchup works for a stack.
Alvarez is, of course, the only Astros' lefty of note and he just keeps on keeping on at the plate having recorded an OPS over 1.000 for the season, the last three weeks, against righties, and at home. Jeremy Pena has missed plenty of action, yet has hit .284 with six homers and five stolen bases. He's struggled on the road, though lists a .991 home OPS after a .963 last year. Paredes has performed better against lefties, but shown more power against righties and at home. He's also produced a .969 OPS the last three weeks.
Blue Jays at Cubs (Shota Imanaga): Vladimir Guerrero ($5,300), Kazuma Okamoto ($3,700), Alejandro Kirk ($3,400)
Imanaga doesn't allow much contact. The problem for him is when that happens as he's allowed a career 1.67 homers per nine innings. Things have been even tougher at home since joining the Cubs as he's tallied a 3.64 ERA and 1.8 HR/9 rate with a 4.75 this season. Imanaga is a lefty, so I've opted for three righties.
Guerrero picked up two more hits on Saturday…and they were both singles. That's been the issue for him this year, though he's managed a .279 average while slugging .511 versus lefties since 2024. Okomoto has had the opposite campaign to Guerrero in that he enters with .229 average to go with 16 home runs. He was a big-time power hitter in Japan, so that seems to have traveled over. Kirk's overall numbers don't mean much as he's only made 11 appearances due to a serious thumb injury. He's also a catcher who went .282 with 15 homers last year, so he's worth rostering against Imanaga since you need somebody for that position in your DFS lineups.
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