This week has been brutal with the injuries! It felt like half of my season-long teams filled up their IL slots this week, and that’s always frustrating in those types of leagues. The good news is that we’re playing DFS here, and that’s one of the bonuses of this format! We can actually capitalize on these injuries and get players in better positions. We have another full Saturday card ahead of us, so let’s go ahead and get into it!

Starting Pitcher Rankings

Starting Pitcher Strategy

This is a strange slate for pitching. We have some established aces that have seen their price drop due to some early-season struggles and some young guys that appear to be developing into frontline starters. There were even a few guys that I like that will not be mentioned, including Sandy Alcantara, Logan Gilbert, Jose Urquidy, and Nathan Eovaldi. All of those are in great spots, too but there four stands above the rest!

Cash Game Recommendations:

Gerrit Cole (NYY) at TB

Cole got off to a rough start this season, but there’s a reason why he’s always one of the top candidates for AL Cy Young. The right-hander has a 2.88 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, and 1,001 Ks across 718 innings since 2018. Those are obviously some of the best averages around, with Gerrit generating a 2.45 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, and 11.2 K.9 rate across his last six starts. The oddsmakers love him too, making him a -160 favorite, with Tampa projected for just three runs.

Joe Musgrove (SD) vs. PIT

Musgrove has been one of the best pitchers in baseball this season. The San Diego slinger has a 5-0 record, thanks to a 1.90 ERA and 0.94 WHIP. His consistency has been equally as impressive, scoring at least 17 DraftKings points in all eight of his starts. Not many guys on this slate even have that average, and it should be easy to duplicate against a Pittsburgh team that ranks 25th in wOBA and 26th in OPS. That has Musgrove entering this matchup as a -250 favorite in a game with a 7-run total!

GPP Recommendations:

Shane Bieber (CLE) at DET

Bieber has struggled at times this season, but one Toronto dud has killed his averages. If you take out that stinker, Shane has a 2.34 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and 9.8 K/9 rate. That’s the Cy Young candidate we’ve become accustomed to, and he’ll definitely capture that form against Detroit. The Motor City Kitties rank 29th in OPS and dead-last in runs scored. Not to mention, Bieber has at least 10 Ks in each of his last six matchups with the Tigers.

Tony Gonsolin (LAD) at ARI

The Dodgers churn out good starters year after year, and it looks like Tony G is another one of them. He’s got a 4-0 record, behind a 1.62 ERA and 0.97 WHIP. He’s also got at least 21 DraftKings points in five of his last six starts, allowing four runs or fewer in his previous four starts against Arizona. All of those starts have come in the last 365 days, and it’s not like this 26th-ranked D’Backs team is one to be concerned with.

Top Lineup Stacks

Los Angeles Dodgers (vs. Merrill Kelly)

• Road (Chase Field)
• Value: Low
• Risk: Low
• Game Type: Both
• Game Total/Moneyline: 9 Runs/LAD -190

Kelly got off to an unbelievable start this season, but the Dodgers sent him right back to earth last week. They dropped eight runs across two innings on the right-hander, and they’ve been doing that all season. Los Angeles is leading baseball in runs scored, OBP and OPS, and it’ll surely continue against a guy who just got shelled by them last week.

Boston Red Sox (vs. Mike Baumann)

• Home (Fenway Park)
• Value: Low
• Risk: Low
• Game Type: Both
• Game Total/Moneyline: 9 Runs/BOS -190

The Red Sox are one of the hottest teams in the league right now. They come into this matchup winning 11 of their last 16 games, scoring 65 combined runs over their last six outings. That’s terrible news for a Baltimore arm just being called up, with Baumann amassing a 7.29 ERA and 1.71 WHIP in limited time at this level.

San Francisco Giants (vs. Vladimir Gutierrez)

• Road (Great American Ballpark)
• Value: High
• Risk: Medium
• Game Type: Both
• Game Total/Moneyline: 9 Runs/SF -150

It’s never exciting to stack the Giants, but they’re always one of the best options in DFS. This lineup remains way too cheap, but this is a club that led the league in numerous offensive categories last year. They essentially have the same roster, and a matchup against Gutierrez in GAB should get them rolling. Vlad has an 8.70 ERA and 1.90 WHIP this season!

Core Studs

• If we’re going to stack the Dodgers, we have to use Freeman in the heart of it. The former MVP has been playing like one for a month now, collecting a .324 AVG, .412 OBP, .528 SLG, and .940 OPS over his last 37 games played.
• Ramirez had a terrible two-week stretch earlier this season, but he’s still been one of the best producers in fantasy. He’s third among all hitters with 11.1 DraftKings points per game, posting a 15-point average across his last six games. That’s bad news for a rookie like Faedo, especially since it puts Jose on his more favorable left side.
• Story might be the hottest hitter in baseball right now. The former Rockie has eight homers and three steals over his last 11 games, providing a .412 OBP, .905 SLG, and 1.317 OPS in that span.
• Soto getting to face Colorado sounds like a recipe for success. The lefty masher has the highest OBP in baseball since the 2020 season, posting even better splits against righties. Chad Kuhl is not a scary righty, either, totaling an 8.25 ERA and 2.33 WHIP over his last three starts.
• Pederson has made a career of crushing right-handed pitching. He’s been in the heart of this Giants lineup against them all season, accruing a .630 SLG and .967 OPS against them. We already talked about how bad Gutierrez has been, which is incredible since Joc has four homers and 11 RBI over the last three games.

Value Plays/Punts

• Soler is one of the best plays over on FanDuel. He’s got some of the best power numbers in baseball since his call-up and gets the platoon advantage against one of the worst pitchers in baseball. That happens to be Tucker Davidson, who’s got an 8.71 ERA and 2.03 WHIP. Don’t be afraid to stack the Marlins!
• Pham just got in a fight with Joc Pederson over a fantasy football league, but we expect him to return to the lineup here. The righty has some of the best advanced statistics in baseball and should do well against a struggling lefty. Not only is Pham a righty but his opponent Wood has a 1.55 WHIP this season.
• Schwarber can’t get a hit unless it’s a homer, but that seems like a decent bet here. He’s got a career OPS flirting with .900 against righties, and we’re not worried about him facing Taijuan Walker‘s horrific K rate. In 17 at-bats against Walker, Schwarber has five homers en route to a .471 OBP, 1.467 SLG, and 1.938 OPS.
• McNeil has quietly been one of the best hitters ever since he was called up. This dude is regularly sitting around a .300 AVG and .400 OBP, posting even better splits against righties. We talked about how poor Kuhl has been recently, and it puts McNeil and these Mets in a magnificent spot.
• There’s no doubt that Gallo has been one of the worst hitters in baseball this season, but his power potential makes him an intriguing GPP option. He’s one of the league leaders in ISO and HR per plate appearance over the last five years, and he could go yard against Corey Kluber‘s 4.42 ERA.

Hitter Strategy

There are a million ways to go about hitting on this slate. We already mentioned three of the offenses we loved, but we’re also going to stack the White Sox, Mets, Angels, Phillies, Indians, Athletics, and Marlins. There’s plenty of value to find among all those teams, and it should allow you to pair these bats with some high-priced pitchers!

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Whether you’re new to fantasy baseball or a seasoned pro, our Fantasy Baseball 101: Strategy Tips & Advice page is for you. You can get started with our Sabermetrics Glossary or head to a more advanced strategy – like Maximizing Your Potential in Multi-Lineup Contests – to learn more.

Joel Bartilotta is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joel, check out his archive and follow him @Bartilottajoel.