Of all the major sports, baseball may be just be the most fickle, as a game can truly change with one swing of the bat. All it requires is for the right hitter to come up to bat in the right situation and receive the right pitch…bringing arguably the most exciting play in all of sports — the grand slam — into the equation.

This May, DraftKings is offering the Grand Slam Payout. The rules are pretty simple: if a user opts in and places a home run bet on any player (minimum $5 stake) and that player hits a grand slam, they’ll earn a share of $250,000 in bonus bets. If no player hits a grand slam that day, the prize pool will increase by $250,000 each day. Since there have been no grand slams over the prior five days of MLB action, the pool is now $1.5 million.

MLB Grand Slam Payout Picks

Pete Alonso, Orioles

Alonso hasn’t necessarily had a great start to his tenure with the Orioles, posting his lowest slugging percentage (.436) of his career. But he’s starting to heat up, hitting two homers in his last five games. He’s still seeing the ball well overall, posting a 98th-percentile average exit velocity and 97th-percentile hard hit percentage, and he’s gotten somewhat unlucky, as his .469 expected slugging percentage is significantly higher than his actual mark.

Alonso has an excellent matchup tonight in the Miami Marlins’ Eury Pérez, who has yet to properly bounce back after missing the entire 2024 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Pérez finished seventh in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2023 after posting a 3.15 ERA, but he pitched to just a 4.25 ERA in 2025 and sits at 4.46 so far in 2026. Additionally, he’s already given up six homers in 36.1 innings and ranks in just the eighth percentile in barrel rate. Plus, the splits are in Alonso’s favor; throughout his career, Pérez has been worse against righties and Alonso better against righties. Pérez is heavily reliant on his fastball, and Alonso has posted a .600 expected slugging percentage against right-handed four-seamers.

For Alonso to hit a grand slam requires not only him to go deep but also for there to be three men on the bases in front of him. The fact that Pérez has given up a .329 on-base percentage this season helps, and the hitters in front of him have been pretty good at getting aboard. Taylor Ward’s .429 OBP ranks third in the American League this season, and though Dylan Beavers and Gunnar Henderson haven’t had great offensive seasons, they both have an OBP north of .340 for their careers. He’s had three grand slam opportunities so far this season.

Byron Buxton, Twins

There’s hot, then there’s what Buxton has been doing in his last eight games. In that span, the Minnesota center fielder has slashed .314/.368/.857, going deep six times. In the series opener against the Washington Nationals last night, Buxton took reliever Andre Granillo deep in the eighth inning to ice the game. He’s now up to 11 homers for the season, which ranks fifth in the American League. Buxton’s 19.4% barrel rate ranks in the 96th percentile, representing a career high.

He should be able to impart plenty of damage against Miles Mikolas, who’s posted worse than a 4.5 ERA in each of his last four seasons and sits at 8.23 this season after giving up 11 earned runs and four homers on April 3. All in all, he’s given up at least one long ball in five of his seven appearances, and he sits in just the 12th percentile in barrel percentage. Mikolas has ranked in the top seven in homers allowed in each of the past five seasons. Plus, Buxton has posted an OPS 411 points higher against righties than lefties this season. He’s had a solid .462 slugging percentage against righty sinkers.

Buxton’s status as the leadoff hitter slightly limits his grand slam opportunities, but the Twins rank a solid ninth in OBP this season and Mikolas has conceded a pitiful .370 mark. Even the back of Minnesota’s lineup has plenty of talent; the last two hitters are Brooks Lee and Royce Lewis in some order, and while Lewis has slumped as of late, Lee has posted a career-high .323 OBP so far. Additionally, the sixth and seventh hitters have typically been Kody Clemens (career-high in OBP in 2026) and Luke Keaschall (.382 mark last season). Buxton has had eight grand slam opportunities already this season.

How to Play MLB Grand Slam Payout

1. Opt in to receive your MLB Grand Slam Payout token in the Promotions page
2. Place a Single, Parlay, or SGP bet on a player to hit a home run and if their home run is a grand slam, receive a share of $250,000 in Bonus Bets! (minimum $5 bet, maximum three legs for a parlay)
3. If the player in your qualifying bet hits a grand slam you’ll win a share of $250,000 in Bonus Bets.
4. If no grand slams are hit, the bonus prize pool will carry over to the next day the Promotion is offered.

For more information on this promo, click here!