The MLB schedule makers did something strange here. We have three games starting at 2ET, eight games starting at 4ET, two games beginning at 7ET, and three games starting at 10ET. That means we have four slates to pick between, and it’s dealer’s choice in terms of which ones you want to play. We’re going to go ahead and fade the morning slate to limit the player pool, but it still leaves us with 12 games to break down! With that in mind, let’s start by looking at the pitchers!
Starting Pitcher Rankings
| PLAYER |
DK SALARY |
FD SALARY |
VALUE |
RISK |
| Kevin Gausman (TOR) at DET |
$10,300 |
$10,600 |
Low |
Low |
| MacKenzie Gore (SD) vs. COL |
$10,000 |
$9,200 |
Medium |
Low |
| Charlie Morton (ATL) vs. PIT |
$7,800 |
$7,500 |
Medium |
Medium |
| Zach Plesac (CLE) vs. OAK |
$6,500 |
$8,100 |
Medium |
High |
The MLB schedule makers did something strange here. We have three games starting at 2ET, eight games starting at 4ET, two games beginning at 7ET, and three games starting at 10ET. That means we have four slates to pick between, and it’s dealer’s choice in terms of which ones you want to play. We’re going to go ahead and fade the morning slate to limit the player pool, but it still leaves us with 12 games to break down! With that in mind, let’s start by looking at the pitchers!
Starting Pitcher Rankings
| PLAYER |
DK SALARY |
FD SALARY |
VALUE |
RISK |
| Kevin Gausman (TOR) at DET |
$10,300 |
$10,600 |
Low |
Low |
| MacKenzie Gore (SD) vs. COL |
$10,000 |
$9,200 |
Medium |
Low |
| Charlie Morton (ATL) vs. PIT |
$7,800 |
$7,500 |
Medium |
Medium |
| Zach Plesac (CLE) vs. OAK |
$6,500 |
$8,100 |
Medium |
High |
Starting Pitcher Strategy
It’s tough to get a read on this slate in terms of pitching. We don’t have many solidified options out there, but we have a ton of high-upside pitchers in fantastic spots. The most important thing for DFS is to exploit the bad lineups in tough spots, and we definitely have four of those here. Our first recommendation is easily the safest option on the slate, so let’s start there!
Cash Game Recommendations:
Kevin Gausman (TOR) at DET
Gausman took his game to another level last season in San Francisco, and that stuff has carried over in Toronto. The AL Cy Young candidate has allowed three runs or fewer in all 11 of his starts, en route to a 2.78 ERA and 1.16 WHIP. That’s the guy we saw most of last season, and it should continue against the lowest-scoring team in baseball. The Motor City Kitties are last by 32 runs, and that shows just how bad they’ve been.
MacKenzie Gore (SD) vs. COL
We weren’t so sure Gore would even stick into the rotation at this point, but the Padres can’t keep him out with how he’s been pitching. The former top prospect has allowed one run or fewer in six of his eight starts, amassing a 0.41 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, and 11.9 K/9 rate over his last four starts. We love that against Rocky Road, with Colorado regularly scoring the fewest runs in baseball outside of Coors Field. That’s why he enters this matchup as a -250 favorite.
GPP Recommendations:
Charlie Morton (ATL) vs. PIT
Morton is having his worst season in nearly a decade, but he’s too good to be this cheap in a matchup like this. Let’s start there, with Pittsburgh ranked 27th in wOBA and 29th in runs scored. That’s bad news against a pitcher like this, with Morton maintaining a 3.50 ERA and 1.17 WHIP since 2017. All of that has Morton and the Braves entering this matchup as a -260 favorite.
Zach Plesac (CLE) vs. OAK
Plesac has been inconsistent at times throughout his career, but he’s flashed moments of brilliance this season. The right-hander has allowed two runs or fewer in six of his 10 starts, providing a 2.02 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in that span. One of those games is much likelier in this matchup, with Oakland ranked bottom-three in runs scored, OBP, OPS, and xwOBA.
Top Lineup Stacks
Milwaukee Brewers (vs. Patrick Corbin)
We’ve been stacking against Corbin all season, and it’s been printing money for us. The left-hander is simply one of the worst pitchers in baseball, providing a 6.71 ERA and 1.76 WHIP. Those sorts of averages are rough news against a talented Brewers lineup because this team has a ton of dangerous righty bats like Andrew McCutchen, Willy Adames, and Hunter Renfroe.
Atlanta Braves (vs. Zach Thompson)
The Braves are in their best stretch of the season right now, entering this matchup amid an eight-game winning streak. This offense has been firing on all cylinders, averaging nearly seven runs per game in that span. That’s what you expect from the world champs, and it should continue against a pitcher with a 4.60 ERA and 1.42 WHIP.
Baltimore Orioles (vs. Daniel Lynch)
Stacking Baltimore is always risky, but we love them in this spot. The main reason we want to use them is this matchup, with Daniel Lynch totaling a 5.36 ERA and 1.54 WHIP this year. This is a lineup that’s much better against left-handers, too, with Trey Mancini and Ryan Mountcastle batting from the right side. This could be the sneaky stack of the day, and it’d be silly to fade them all together in such a premium matchup.
Core Studs
| POS |
PLAYER |
DK SALARY |
FD SALARY |
| OF |
Ronald Acuna (ATL) |
$6,400 |
$4,300 |
| OF |
Yordan Alvarez (HOU) |
$6,300 |
$4,200 |
| 3B |
Manny Machado (SD) |
$5,400 |
$3,900 |
| 1B |
Rhys Hoskins (PHI) |
$3,900 |
$3,200 |
| OF |
Hunter Renfroe (MIL) |
$3,800 |
$2,900 |
- Acuna was the top pick in season-long fantasy leagues last year, and he would have been this season if it weren’t for that ACL surgery. He looks just fine now, though, averaging over 11 DraftKings points per game. His power-speed combo can’t be matched by many, with Acuna accumulating .345 AVG, .442 OBP, .595 SLG, and 1.038 OPS over his last 24 games.
- Yordan might be the best pure hitter in baseball. This guy has never posted an OPS below .877 in his four seasons, totaling a .395 OBP, .630 SLG, and 1.025 OPS this year. He’s been even better against righties, and he’d be the key piece to a Houston stack against an inexperienced pitcher with a 10.80 ERA.
- Manny just went yard on Friday, and he’s clearly having an MVP-type season. He’s one of the betting favorites for that award, generating a .329 AVG and .944 OPS. That doesn’t even include his seven steals, making him tough to fade against Ryan Feltner’s 5.85 ERA.
- Hoskins also went yard twice on Friday, and he’s been making minced meat of lefties throughout his career. In fact, Rhys has a .385 OBP, .582 SLG, and .967 OPS against them since 2020. That’s scary since he’s flirting with a .400 OBP and 1.000 OPS over his last 10 games played.
- Renfroe is another guy that we want to exploit against lefties. He’s got a .349 OBP, .546 SLG, and .897 OPS against them since 2020. That makes him one of the safest plays in our Milwaukee stack, and he’s easily my favorite value play of the day!
Value Plays/Punts
| POS |
PLAYER |
DK SALARY |
FD SALARY |
| 1B/OF |
Trey Mancini (BAL) |
$4,900 |
$3,100 |
| SS |
Willy Adames (MIL) |
$4,500 |
$3,000 |
| C |
Alejandro Kirk (TOR) |
$5,100 |
$3,000 |
| OF |
Joey Gallo (NYY) |
$3,800 |
$2,400 |
| 1B/OF |
Ryan Mountcastle (BAL) |
$3,500 |
$3,100 |
- We discussed how Baltimore is our favorite cheap stack of the day, and Mancini would have to be in your lineup if that’s the route you take. He’s simply their best hitter, maintaining a .304 AVG, .379 OBP, and .825 OPS this season. We know the power stroke will come around after his Home Run Derby show last season, and he could put on another one here with the platoon advantage in his favor against such a poor pitcher!
- Adames has quietly been a monster for most of the season. The slugging shortstop has a .575 SLG and .874 OPS over his last 23 games played. That’s the guy we’ve seen since the Tampa trade, and we certainly love that he faces a lackluster lefty here.
- Kirk has the body of a god, and he’s simply one of the best catchers in baseball right now. The stout backstop has a .488 AVG, .553 OBP, .878 SLG, and 1.431 OPS over his last 11 games. That’s one of the best two-week stretches you’ll see all year, and it should continue against Beau Brieske’s 0-5 record and 4.93 ERA.
- Don’t look now, but the power stroke is coming around for Joey. The powerful outfielder has three homers over the last three games and can go on home run binge whenever he gets hot. That seems more likely here against a weak righty, with Matt Swarmer making the third start of his career.
- Mountcastle and Mancini are my favorite two-man stack of the day. Both of these guys are way too cheap, and they should do well in such a premium matchup. Mountcastle also gets the platoon advantage from the right side, posting a .386 OBP and 1.056 OPS over his last nine games played.
Hitter Strategy
There is more value on this slate than ever before. We can ride some cheap lineups like the Orioles and Giants, pairing them up with stud lineups like the Astros, Blue Jays, Braves, Brewers, and Padres. There’s so much value between all of those lineups that you could use two of the higher-priced pitchers mentioned above. I’m sure we’re missing some players, but a combination of those seven lineups should take care of business!
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Joel Bartilotta is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joel, check out his archive and follow him @Bartilottajoel.
