MLB DFS: Top DraftKings, FanDuel daily Fantasy baseball picks, lineups, advice, stacks for July 26, 2024

Few baseball fans or daily Fantasy players knew about Oakland Athletics outfielder Lawrence Butler entering his second MLB season at the start of this year, but if you've been keen enough to play him in MLB DFS lineups over the past two weeks, you likely have some nice paydays to show for it on sites like FanDuel and DraftKings. Lawrence leads baseball with a 1.878 OPS and RBI (15) while ranking tied for first in home runs (five) and runs scored (12) over the eight games during that span.

Butler enters Friday on an eight-game hitting streak with multiple hits in seven of those contests. He's batting .545 over that span compared to .257 on the season, so should you include him in Friday MLB DFS lineups against the Angels , or is a regression to his season average approaching? Before locking in any MLB DFS picks for Friday, 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 Thursday, McClure identified Cease as his top-ranked starting pitcher in the MLB DFS player pool for one of his top MLB DFS picks on both sites. The result: Cease threw just the second no-hitter of the 2024 MLB season with three walks and nine strikeouts, returning 64 points on FanDuel and 50.5 points 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 Friday, July 26. You can head to SportsLine now to see them .

McClure's top MLB DFS picks for Friday

One of McClure's top MLB DFS picks for Friday is Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. at $6,300 on DraftKings and $4,700 on FanDuel. Witt is having a dominant week, hitting .696 with two home runs, seven RBI and eight runs scored over his last six games to go along with his elite 2024 MLB season. Witt has the best batting average in baseball (.344) and fourth-highest OPS (.983). He leads all shortstops in runs scored (83), triples (10), RBI (70) and slugging percentage (.593). He went 3-for-4 on Wednesday for his fifth three-hit game over his last six contests.

The 24-year-old is one of five players with at least 15 home runs and 20 stolen bases this year. The No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft has 18 home runs and 23 stolen bases while playing in all 103 games this year. Witt quickly moved his way through the Kansas City minor league system and made the Opening Day roster in 2022. He finished one stolen base shy of joining the 30-50 club as he finished with 30 home runs and 50 stolen bases last season and is rewarding the Royals for acting quickly and signing Witt to an 11-year, $288.7 million extension this offseason.

McClure is also targeting Athletics outfielder JJ Bleday ($3,800 on DraftKings and $3,100 on FanDuel). Bleday has at least one hit in six of his last seven starts and he's hitting .367 with a 1.173 OPS over his last eight contests. The 26-year-old is posting career-highs in nearly every statistical category in his third MLB season. His recent hot streak has raised his batting average to .235 and OPS to .747 and similarly to taking advantage of Butler's recent success, now is the time to cash in on Bleday at his value while outperforming his career marks.

Bleday leads the American League in doubles (30) and he's recorded at least one double in six of his last seven starts. The Angels are scheduled to start right-handed pitcher Carson Fulmer on Friday and Los Angeles has stretched him out to a starter over recent weeks. Fulmer will make his third start of the year on Friday after making just three starts over his previous four seasons. Fulmer allowed three runs over 4 2/3 innings in his last start against Oakland on Sunday and Bleday had an RBI double off him in that outing. McClure suggests utilizing the hot bat on Bleday as a value play for Friday MLB DFS lineups. See McClure's full MLB DFS player pool right here .

How to set your MLB DFS lineups for Friday 26, 2024

McClure is also targeting an undervalued player who is set to explode for huge numbers on Friday. 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 Friday? 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 .