Dan Marcus considers Griffin Canning an intriguing bargain-priced DFS pitcher option at $6,800 on DraftKings due to recent adjustments. Canning refined his pitching arsenal with the Mets in the offseason and showed encouraging signs in a solid debut to the 2025 MLB season, making him a potentially strong value play on Saturday's slate.

With few attractive cheap pitching options on the slate, Dan Marcus identified Griffin Canning ($6,800) as an appealing low-priced arm. Marcus cites Canning's work refining his arsenal with the Mets this offseason, paired with a solid debut to the 2025 campaign. Canning stands out among bargain arms as a potential value play in DraftKings contests.

Dylan Rockford confidently chose the Mets money line (-124) as his lock play. His model has the Mets priced significantly higher (-140), creating value. Griffin Canning, despite historical volatility, showed promise in his first start. Rockford also mentioned the Mets' bullpen excellence (ranked second-best currently), solid recent offensive momentum, and a revenge factor against Blue Jays pitcher Chris Bassitt, who previously pitched for New York. Given these multiple favorable factors, Rockford believes Mets have a strong edge and clear winning path at the current odds.

Greg Peterson picks the Mets -122 and the over at 7.5 runs, given Griffin Canning's diminishing strikeout ability (career-low 6.8 K/9 last year, 5.19 ERA, and 1.6 HR/9). He’ll pitch against ex-teammate Chris Bassitt, who's been steady (3.82 ERA) since joining Toronto but faces the challenge of his team's shaky bullpen, the worst in the AL last year (4.82 ERA) and even worse to start this season (5.59 ERA). The Mets lineup, while absent Juan Soto this year, was still top-10 in runs per game during last season, setting up a potential high-scoring matchup.

Daniel Lewis pointed out a strong strikeout prop opportunity for Griffin Canning, debuting for the Mets against the Astros. Despite Canning's inflated ERA and WHIP in 2024, he delivered back-to-back 130-strikeout seasons and hit a career-best 2.0 K/BB rate last year with the Angels. Ending the prior season, Canning cleared 3.5 strikeouts in six of his last seven starts, averaging four per game in September. The Astros have struggled with strikeouts early this season, registering 17 Ks through their first two games (10th highest in MLB). The SportsLine model currently projects Canning for 4.8 strikeouts, assigning a high confidence rating of 4.5 to his over 3.5 strikeout prop.

Scott Reichel strongly advises betting against Mets pitcher Griffin Canning, emphasizing his brutal 0-10 road record and 6.06 ERA across away games last season. He notes specifically Canning's extensive poor track record against Houston, allowing Astros hitters to bat .307 with a .365 on-base percentage over 96 plate appearances. While Spencer Arrighetti of Houston previously had volatility, the Astros clearly have a significant edge both on the mound and offensively against someone they've repeatedly performed well against. Scott firmly supports playing Houston at -120/-125, highlighting the mismatch presented by Canning’s severe road deficiencies.

Cash Out Sports Picks backed the New York Mets money line primarily due to Griffin Canning's promising recent performance during spring training, despite his historically mixed MLB results. They noted encouraging segments of performance springboard potential after a rough prior season (6-13 record in 2024), believing he's poised to improve towards a solid .500 winning percentage with a significantly reduced ERA. Additionally, the Mets bullpen delivered fantastic performances early in this series, supporting the pick and providing confidence in their ability to win the finale matchup against Houston.