After throwing 210 innings last season and finishing third in NL Cy Young voting, Zac Gallen has become the unquestionable ace for the Arizona Diamondbacks. On Thursday, Gallen will take the ball against the New York Mets and he’ll look to continue his run of quality starts. Gallen has given up three earned runs or less while throwing at least six innings in each of his last four starts and he’ll be one of the more popular starting pitching options in the MLB DFS player pool tonight.
However, Gallen will also come with a hefty price tag, with FanDuel listing him at $10,600 and DraftKings pricing him at $9,500. How much exposure should you have to him in your MLB DFS lineups and how can you shuffle the rest of your MLB DFS roster around to take on that sort of salary cap hit? Before locking in any MLB DFS picks for Thursday, be sure to check out the MLB DFS advice, strategy and projections from SportsLine daily Fantasy expert Mike McClure.
McClure is a daily Fantasy pro who has won more than $2 million in his career. And when it comes to daily Fantasy baseball, McClure is at his best. Recognized in the book “Fantasy Football (and Baseball) for Smart People: How to Turn Your Hobby into a Fortune” as a top MLB DFS player, McClure’s proprietary projection model simulates each game 10,000 times, taking factors such as matchups and recent results into account. This allows him to find the best values on every site.
On Wednesday, McClure highlighted Yankees starter Luis Gil as one of his top picks in his MLB DFS player pool on both sites. The result: Gil allowed two hits and one earned run while striking out nine over eight innings as he scored a win over the Angels, returning 35.6 points on FanDuel and 58 on DraftKings. Anybody who included him in their lineups was well on the way to a profitable day.
Now, with the 2024 MLB season rolling, McClure has locked in his top MLB daily Fantasy picks for Thursday, May 30. You can head to SportsLine now to see them.
McClure’s top MLB DFS picks for Thursday
One of McClure’s top MLB DFS picks for Thursday is Nationals catcher Keibert Ruiz at $2,500 on FanDuel and DraftKings. The switch-hitting 25-year-old Venezuelan is off to a sluggish start at the plate this season (.561 OPS) but last year he proved himself as an offensive threat at a position that typically doesn’t provide a lot in that category.
Ruiz broke out in 2023 by blasting 18 home runs and driving in 67 while slashing .260/.308/.409. He hit 17 of his 18 home runs from the left side of the plate but was a better contact hitter when swinging from the right side, hitting .289 against right-handed pitching and .249 against lefties. On Thursday, he’ll face off with Braves lefty Raymond Kerr, who gave up five earned runs over four innings in his last start.
McClure is also rostering Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe ($4,600 on DraftKings and $3,300 on FanDuel). Volpe extended his hitting streak to 21 games on Wednesday night with a pair of hits and he’s now had multi-hit games in five of his last seven contests.
The 23-year-old had a disappointing .666 OPS in his rookie season but he did have 21 home runs, 60 RBI and 24 stolen bases. He appears to be settling in at the plate in his sophomore season as well, as he enters Thursday slashing .288/.357/.442 with six home runs, 23 RBI and 11 stolen bases. See McClure’s full MLB DFS player pool at SportsLine.
How to set your MLB DFS lineups for May 30, 2024
McClure is also targeting an undervalued player who is set to explode for huge numbers on Thursday. The stars are aligning for him to return tournament-winning value and he comes at a price that won’t break the bank. You can only see who it is, and get the rest of McClure’s MLB DFS picks, here.
So what are the top MLB DFS picks for Thursday? Visit SportsLine now to see DFS millionaire Mike McClure’s complete player pool and picks for FanDuel and DraftKings, all from the DFS expert who has won more than $2 million.
