Covering The Bases: MLB DFS Picks Today for Saturday 4/25

by Justin Van Zuiden (stlcardinals84) Last Updated 2026-04-25 17:43:56 Premium Content Part of the product MLB DFS

Long-time grinder Justin Van Zuiden (aka stlcardinals84) is here to cover the bases for the upcoming MLB DFS slate on DraftKings and FanDuel. Whether you are looking for the top pitchers or the best stacks, Justin has you covered with an extensive deep dive into his favorite MLB DFS picks today on April 25, 2026.

Happy Saturday, Grinders! We are already steamrolling to a full month into the major league baseball season, and it feels like Opening Day just happened. This Saturday brings us the usual spread-out slate, with a 6-game afternoon slate starting at 2:15 PM Eastern and a 7-game traditional evening slate. I will break down both slates in the article today.

I am not sure what FanDuel is doing with their early slate. They have removed the first two games (SEA/STL and CLE/TOR) and are starting their slate at 4:05 PM Eastern. However, they also currently have BAL/BOS listed on that slate, and that game has been moved up to noon because of impending weather. I assume they will just remove that game at some point, but it is still there as of the time I am writing this. FD also has very small prize pools for that early slate, so I will focus the early analysis on DraftKings for the most part.

The early slate offers a fairly ominous forecast for the COL/NYM game in New York, while the evening slate has a chance of storms for the PHI/ATL game in Atlanta. I am going to write the article assuming everything plays fine, but we will obviously need to keep an eye on this as lock draws closer.

Let’s dig in and see what the start of the weekend has in store for MLB DFS picks!

Saturday Afternoon Pitching: MLB DFS Picks on DraftKings and FanDuel

TOP TIER PITCHERS

• Robbie Ray vs. Marlins
• Kevin Gausman vs. Guardians (DK Only)
• Bryan Woo at Cardinals (DK Only)

This is a strong group of top pitchers that could be considered borderline aces most of the time they pitch. All of them are in above-average matchups for run prevention today at first glance. Let’s begin with a look at the overall statistical metrics before we break things down. As a reminder, I am still using the 2025 full season data for these numbers as of now. I plan to switch to the 2026 season to date once we get into May.

Ray – 3.65 ERA, 4.17 SIERA, 24.6% K, 9.7% BB
Gausman – 3.59 ERA, 3.79 SIERA, 24.4% K, 6.5% BB
Woo – 2.94 ERA, 3.30 SIERA, 27.1% K, 4.9% BB

There is one thing for certain with these pitchers. Robbie Ray is going to have the most maddening walk rate. Bryan Woo is going to have the best command. Kevin Gausman is going to fall somewhere in the middle. When you also see that Woo had the highest strikeout rate of this bunch last season, it would stand to reason that he should be the clear SP1 choice in a matchup against a Cardinals team that has a middling lineup at best. However, I do not think it is that clear cut. Woo has the lowest swinging-strike percentage of these pitchers so far in 2026, and Kevin Gausman really intrigues me if he can keep his SwStr% above the 14% mark. Ray also has a great matchup in his pitcher-friendly home park.

I say all that to come to the conclusion that I really don’t have an “obvious” SP1 pick out of this group. Bryan Woo feels like the safe choice, but I don’t feel like he is a must, and I’d be inclined to pivot in GPP builds if he becomes the most popular. Keep a close eye on projected ownership as lock draws closer. None of the opponents are in the top 12 in the league in team strikeout rate so far in 2026, yet all of them lack explosiveness in general.

Salary differential really isn’t a major factor for me with them all being priced similarly. If the savings is enough to sway your decision because it helps your lineup work, I understand that logic, but it doesn’t move the needle much. If you are playing on FD, the only option you have from the early slate is Robbie Ray, with FD knocking the SEA/STL and CLE/TOR games off their early slate. Therefore, he defaults as the SP1, but I do not think you need to prioritize him if you don’t want to spend up for your single pitcher.

If you’re going for the factor of upside and ownership in a GPP build, I am ranking them loosely as Gausman > Ray > Woo.

In cash game builds, I am ranking them loosely as Woo > Gausman > Ray.

That said, all of these pitchers are playable, and I am largely splitting hairs with those conclusions.

SECONDARY ARMS

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