Daily Fantasy Baseball 2015: Best MLB DFS DraftKings Lineup for July 8 – Bleacher Report

There are just four games on the afternoon baseball schedule Wednesday, but it’s not advisable to stack your DraftKings lineup with players from any one team. A number of great matchups from the scheduled games are available to DK players.

The Baltimore Orioles’ Manny Machado is the best daily fantasy play of the day. The 23-year-old third baseman has had great success against the Minnesota Twins’ Tommy Villone, and the latter is on the mound for Wednesday’s matinee. In eight at-bats against the left-hander, Machado is hitting .625 with a home run and a double. 

This season, Machado is hitting .324 against lefties. He has the most upside of all the hitters available, and his $4,800 DK salary should be well worth the investment. While no team dominates the optimal lineup, the Orioles do have the most players on the list:

Starting pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez is one of the two best pitchers available. Jimenez has recorded 93 strikeouts in 94 innings pitched this season, and he hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in a game since May 27. He’s coming off a solid outing but a hard-luck loss to the Chicago White Sox on July 3.

The Orioles couldn’t provide Jimenez with any run support. His seven-inning, one-earned-run, four-strikeout performance was wasted in Baltimore’s 1-0 loss.

Nonetheless, Jimenez has become one of the safest bets for a quality start over the last month. On an afternoon with few stud pitchers set to start, he’s a worthwhile option for DraftKings players at $8,300. 

Jacob deGrom ($10,700) at San Francisco Giants

Jimenez is a good pick, but the New York Mets’ Jacob deGrom is the best pitcher available Wednesday. The 2014 MLB Rookie of the Year has picked up where he left off last season. His 2.36 ERA, 102 strikeouts in 105 innings and 0.97 WHIP makes him a potential fantasy stud every time he takes the mound.

While deGrom didn’t have his best stuff in his last outing against the Chicago Cubs on July 2, that game was an anomaly in the 27-year-old’s season. The 4.6-fantasy-point performance marked just the third time in his last 10 starts that deGrom failed to compile at least 20 fantasy points.

I like him to rebound Wednesday with a strong performance against the Giants. He’s faced them just one other time in his short major league career. The start came last season, and deGrom went 7.1 innings, striking out seven in a 4-2 Mets victory.

Seth Smith ($3,300) vs. Detroit Tigers

If you’re looking for the highest-value position player, the Seattle Mariners’ Seth Smith might be your guy. He’s on a modest five-game hitting streak, including a pinch-hit single Tuesday night in the Mariners’ 7-6, extra-inning, walk-off win.

During the streak, Smith is hitting .307 with a home run.

Smith has also had great success against Detroit Tigers’ starter Anibal Sanchez. Smith is 6-for-17 against Sanchez with two home runs, a double and two walks. Few players set to play Wednesday have had a better combination of recent success and mastery of the opposing pitcher scheduled to start.

For just $3,300, Smith should be in your lineup.

J.D. Martinez ($4,800) at Seattle Mariners

There’s no history of dominance in favor of the Tigers’ J.D. Martinez over Mariners starter J.A. Happ, but few have been hotter than Detroit’s right fielder. Martinez is on an eight-game hitting streak, and he’s been on fire in July.

So far this month, he’s hitting .444 with four home runs in just seven games. This blazing start to July follows a successful June that saw Martinez hit .320 with 11 home runs and drive in 26. In fact, per ESPN Stats & Info, no player has hit more long balls since June 1:

Most Home Runs Since June 1
J.D. Martinez 15 (includes today)
Albert Pujols 14
Giancarlo Stanton 12
Nolan Arenado 12

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 7, 2015

He’s had fewer than 10 fantasy points only three times in his last 10 games—and in two of those games, he had nine. If there’s a guy in the daytime games you have to draft until he cools off, it’s Martinez. 

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