There been some summer rain around the United States in the last week, and that could very well be the case Thursday night. At present, though, we have six games on the slate starting at 6:40 p.m. ET or later. Here are a handful of MLB DFS lineup recommendations for you this Thursday.
Pitching
Kevin Gausman, TOR vs. TEX ($8,500): Gausman was rocked in his last start, but he still has a 4.04 ERA, and he still has a 3.41 FIP. Plus, that bad outing was on the road, and Gausman has a 3.10 ERA at home. Lastly, going back to that ominous start one last time, it was against the Cubs. The Cubs are top 10 in runs scored, while the Rangers are in the bottom five.
Matthew Boyd, CHC at NYM ($7,200): Boyd is returning from the IL, so it is worth noting his 6.00 ERA comes in only five starts. Also, his 6.00 ERA is paired with a 2.35 FIP. This is a good matchup to return to, as the Mets are 29th in team OPS and has a sub-.300 OBP.
Top Target
Halfway through the season, Yordan Alvarez ($6,000) has an OPS over 1.000 and 25 home runs. The southpaw slugger isn't slowing down, either, as he has an 1.111 OPS over the last three weeks. Troy Melton's career 2.68 ERA is a bit of fool's gold. He has a 4.93 FIP, a 6.40 K/9 rate and an 1.51 HR/9 rate.
Bargain Bats
Over the last three weeks, George Springer ($4,000) has an .889 OPS. Additionally, since 2024 he has slugged .465 at home. On the flip side, MacKenzie Gore has been good at home this year, but he has a 5.75 ERA on the road. Springer is the one at home here, so he's the one I want on my roster.
He hasn't panned out as hoped, at least not yet, but Colt Keith ($2,900) has four homers, four stolen bases and two triples. The southpaw can't hit lefties at all, but in his career he's hit .260 against righties. Tatsuya Imai has impressed in terms of strikeouts in his first season pitching on this side of the Pacific, but because of issues with walks and homers he has a 6.71 ERA.
Stack to Consider
Cardinals vs. Diamondbacks (Zac Gallen): JJ Wetherholt ($4,900), Alec Burleson ($4,700), Ivan Herrera ($4,600)
Gallen's woeful season continues apace. After allowing nine runs in his last outing, Gallen's up to a 6.10 ERA in 16 starts. What's more alarming, and the greatest sign something is wrong/Gallen is cooked is that his K/9 rate has cratered to 5.87. Since he is right-handed, and since lefties have hit .345 against him, I have two southpaws in this stack.
The rookie Wetherholt has a .361 OBP with 12 home runs and eight stolen bases. He could end up having a 15/15 campaign his first year in the majors. Additionally, the shortstop has a .903 OPS over the last three weeks. Burleson is having a strong season, and to that end he already has 20 doubles through 77 contests. He's really struggled against lefties, but his OPS against righties is over 1.000. Herrera is a righty, but he's also a catcher, and you need a catcher for your lineup. Righties haven't hit Gallen as well as lefties, but they have hit .288 against him. On top of that, Herrera has a .384 OBP over the last four campaigns.
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