Best MLB DFS Picks Today: Top Value Plays for August 5, 2026

Wednesday’s MLB slate is stacked with fourteen games and a handful of juicy stacking spots, headlined by an Astros-Blue Jays tilt at Daikin Park and a Cubs-Dodgers clash at Wrigley that both carry plus-9.5 game totals. With Sonny Gray dealing in Boston and a pair of NL Central offenses squaring off in a hitter-friendly environment, there’s no shortage of ways to build a winning DraftKings or FanDuel lineup today.

Our approach for today’s MLB DFS picks blends a workhorse ace at a fair price with a top-of-market power bat, then rounds things out with a trio of value plays from one of the day’s most attractive offensive matchups. The goal is a lineup with a strong floor for cash games while still leaving GPP upside on the table.

Sonny Gray, SP — Boston Red Sox ($8,000 DK / $7,800 FD)

Sonny Gray has been one of the best pitchers in baseball this season, sitting at 13-2 with a 2.93 ERA and a 22% strikeout rate through his last look at the White Sox lineup. His xERA of 3.64 and SIERA of 3.90 both back up the surface numbers, and Chicago’s road offense has managed just a 0.311 wOBA against right-handers this year.

At home at Fenway Park, Gray gets a Chicago lineup that ranks near the bottom of the league in quality of contact against right-handed starters, and his 48% groundball rate limits the barrel damage that can blow up a start in a hurry. For a pitcher of his caliber, $8,000 on DraftKings and $7,800 on FanDuel represents one of the better prices you’ll find on a true SP1 all season.

Gray’s strikeout upside alone makes him a strong source of DFS points, but the win equity matters too — Boston is favored at home, and Gray has been nearly unbeatable when the Red Sox back him with any kind of run support. He’s a lock-in for cash lineups and a smart, cheaper alternative to the $9,000-plus arms on tonight’s board.

Shota Imanaga, SP — Chicago Cubs ($8,000 DK)

Shota Imanaga gets one of the more favorable spots on the entire slate, drawing the Dodgers at Wrigley Field as a -124 favorite. Imanaga is sitting at 7-9 with a 3.67 ERA, but the surface record undersells him — his 3.75 xERA and 3.84 SIERA both point to a pitcher who has been better than his win total suggests, and his 24% strikeout rate ranks comfortably above league average.

The matchup context matters here too. Imanaga owns a 0.300 xwOBA allowed on the season, and while the Dodgers lineup is talented top to bottom, several key bats — Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts among them — carry modest expected numbers against left-handed pitching this year relative to their overall production.

At $8,000, Imanaga is priced as a mid-tier arm despite having true SP1 underlying metrics, which makes him a sharp pivot off the higher-owned arms at the top of the pool. His combination of strikeout equity and a plus matchup makes him a strong source of value for both cash games and tournament builds tonight.

Yordan Alvarez, OF/DH — Houston Astros ($6,500 DK)

Yordan Alvarez remains one of the most dangerous bats in baseball, hitting .318 with 31 home runs and a 1.059 OPS this season — tops in the American League in homers. He gets a home matchup against Blue Jays right-hander Jameson Taillon, who is sporting a 5.42 xERA and a 5.38 ERA on the year, numbers that make him one of the softer arms on today’s entire slate.

Taillon has allowed a .354 xwOBA to opposing hitters and a 35% groundball rate that leaves plenty of room for fly balls to leave the yard — exactly the profile Alvarez feasts on. Houston’s implied team total sits at 4.56 runs, comfortably the higher number in this game, and Alvarez hits in the two-hole in front of a lineup that’s produced all season.

At $6,500 on DraftKings, Alvarez is priced below several outfielders with a fraction of his power upside. Given the soft opposing pitcher and a home ballpark that plays well for left-handed power, he’s one of the clearer premium plays on the board for both cash and GPP builds tonight.

Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF — Chicago Cubs ($6,300 DK)

Pete Crow-Armstrong leads off for a Cubs offense that projects for a 5.03 team total tonight, the second-highest implied run total on the entire slate, and he draws a favorable look at Dodgers left-hander Eric Lauer. Lauer is running a 4.97 xERA and a 5.30 SIERA this season, both well above league average, and he’s allowed a .341 xwOBA to opposing hitters.

Crow-Armstrong has been productive against left-handed pitching, and as the Cubs’ leadoff man, he gets the most plate appearances of anyone in the lineup — a meaningful consideration in a game projected to be one of the higher-scoring matchups of the day. His speed also adds stolen-base equity that few outfielders at his price point can match.

At $6,300, Crow-Armstrong is a strong source of DFS value given the volume of at-bats and the plus matchup against a well below-average starter. He fits nicely into a Cubs mini-stack alongside the middle of Chicago’s order.

Seiya Suzuki, OF — Chicago Cubs ($5,300 DK)

Rounding out the Cubs stack is Seiya Suzuki, who hits second in front of Alex Bregman and has been one of Chicago’s most consistent bats against left-handed pitching this year. Suzuki carries a .403 wOBA and a .220 ISO on the season, and his expected numbers back that up — a .389 xwOBA and .201 xISO that both rank well above the league mean.

Facing Eric Lauer, who has struggled to miss bats and limit hard contact all season, Suzuki projects as one of the better values in the entire player pool today. His 92.1 mph average exit velocity and 44% hard-hit rate suggest the underlying quality of contact to back up a strong day at the plate.

At $5,300, Suzuki gives DFS players a way to double up on the Cubs’ plus matchup without paying full price at the top of the lineup. Pairing him with Crow-Armstrong gives you two legitimate value plays from the same favorable spot, which is exactly the kind of correlation smart DFS players look for on a slate like this one.

Building Your Lineup

Tonight’s slate sets up well for a Cubs-centric build, with Crow-Armstrong and Suzuki both offering strong value against a struggling Eric Lauer in a game projected for nearly ten combined runs. Pairing that mini-stack with Sonny Gray at the top of your pitching pool gives you a lineup with a high floor without needing to pay up at every position.

For cash games, prioritize the two pitchers above everything else — both Gray and Imanaga offer strikeout floors that are hard to find below $9,000 on tonight’s board. In GPPs, consider fading Yordan Alvarez if his projected ownership climbs into the 20%-plus range by lock, since a matchup this favorable against Taillon will draw plenty of attention across the field.

Whichever direction you build, check live MLB odds close to first pitch to confirm the lines haven’t moved, since a shift in an implied team total can change which stacks make the most sense. And if you’re still shopping around for the best DraftKings promo code to pair with your DFS action, tonight’s slate is a good one to have extra bankroll in play for.

With salary spread across two undervalued aces and a correlated stack from one of the day’s highest-scoring matchups, this build gives you exposure to both floor and ceiling — the two things every strong MLB DFS lineup needs on a fourteen-game night.