Draftkings Best MLB Showdown Picks: Red Sox vs. Orioles 8/17/24

Major League Baseball presents a matchup between the Boston Red Sox and the Baltimore Orioles. Let’s take a look at this MLB game from a Draftkings perspective.

Before we dive into the Boston Red Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles game let’s review the rules for the Draftkings single game showdown contest.

Draftkings Single Game Showdown Contest Rules

You have $50,000 to utilize on five players from either team. However, one of those players will be designated as your team captain. The captain accumulates 1.5 times the standard fantasy points. Additionally, the captain is 1.5 times the standard cost of the flex position.

The remaining four players in your lineup will receive the standard fantasy points. Having stated that, it is highly important for you to identify the correct player for your captain position if you hope to win a large field DFS GPP (guaranteed prize pool) showdown contest.

If you have additional questions regarding the rules for the single game showdown contest, I recommend that you check out the Draftkings website for more details.

*I recommend that all readers review the starting lineups for both teams prior to setting your DFS lineup for this one game slate.

Here are my Draftkings picks for this evening’s Boston Red Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles matchup.

Draftkings MLB Showdown Picks

Captain-Brayan Bello, Pitcher, Boston Red Sox $11,400

On Saturday night, Major League Baseball presents the third game of a four game American League series between the Boston Red Sox and the Baltimore Orioles.

How are these two American League teams playing entering tonight’s game? The Baltimore Orioles arrive at this evening’s contest playing quality baseball. More specifically, the Baltimore Orioles have won seven of the team’s last ten games played in the 2024 MLB regular season, including an 4-1 win over the Washington Nationals four days ago.

In direct contrast to the Baltimore Orioles, the Boston Red Sox arrive at the third Game of this four Game American League series playing below average baseball. Let’s review the Red Sox recent Game data to better shed light on my previous statement. The Boston Red Sox have lost seven of the team’s last ten Games played this season, including an embarrassing 10-2 loss to the Houston Astros last week.

It should be noted that the Boston Red Sox defeated the Baltimore Orioles 12-10 in last night’s second game of this four game American League series.

Now that we ascertained how both of these teams are currently playing let’s shift our focus to this evening’s game. Talented Boston pitcher Brayan Bello has established himself as a valuable member of the Boston Red Sox starting pitching rotation this season. Having stated that, how has Bello been playing from a statistical standpoint in 2024? Let’s review Bello’s recent game data to answer that question.

In the 22 Games that Brayan Bello has pitched for the Boston Red Sox in the 2024 MLB regular season, Bello has posted a 4.87 ERA (Earned Run Average), 1.44 WHIP (walks, hits, inning pitched) and added 137 strikeouts while allowing 35 walks.

More recently, in the Boston Red Sox’s 5-4 victory over the Texas Rangers five days ago, Boston pitcher Brayan Bello certainly pitched at a high level. Let me be more specific. Brayan Bello pitched six innings striking out five Texas batters while allowing only four hits and three walks in the Red Sox win over the Rangers. I fully expect Brayan Bello to continue to post outstanding fantasy numbers versus the Baltimore Orioles later today.

For the reasons just noted, I am backing Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Brayan Bello as my captain for this one Game DFS MLB contest.

Flex plays I like to play well this evening (Draftkings price noted): Gunnar Henderson, Shortstop (Baltimore Orioles) $9,600: Rafael Devers, Third Baseman (Boston Red Sox) $9,200: Cedric Mullins, Outfielder (Baltimore Orioles) $6,000.