After a massive slate on Saturday, we don’t have as many options today. We have a handful of games that aren’t part of the main slate, but there are still plenty of options to pick from. It’s also the final Sunday MLB has the day to themselves because competing with the NFL is always tricky. With that in mind, let’s look at this Sunday card!
Starting Pitcher Rankings
After a massive slate on Saturday, we don’t have as many options today. We have a handful of games that aren’t part of the main slate, but there are still plenty of options to pick from. It’s also the final Sunday MLB has the day to themselves because competing with the NFL is always tricky. With that in mind, let’s look at this Sunday card!
Starting Pitcher Rankings
Starting Pitcher Strategy
We loved yesterday’s slate from a pitching perspective, but this one should be interesting. While there are some pitchers we love, many of our options come with some serious risks. Only one has been a lockdown pitcher throughout the year, while the other three have been all over the map. With that said, let’s start with one of the best pitchers in the NL.
Cash Game Recommendations:
Zac Gallen (ARI) vs. BAL
Gallen just had one of the worst starts of his career in his most recent outing, but everyone struggles against the Dodgers. We’ll overlook that because he had a 2.80 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and 9.7 K/9 rate across his previous 25 starts. His home splits are even more absurd, accruing a 1.79 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, and 10.9 K/9 rate in Arizona.
Sandy Alcantara (MIA) at WAS
Alcantara took down NL Cy Young last season, but it hasn’t been the same this year. In any case, he’s recaptured that form recently, registering a 3.22 ERA and 1.15 WHIP across his last 12 starts. Facing a team like Washington is a wonderful matchup, with Sandy sporting a 0.90 ERA and 0.78 WHIP in five starts against them last year.
GPP Recommendations:
Chris Sale (BOS) at KC
Sale is risky, but this guy is too good to avoid in a matchup like this. Despite allowing 15 runs through his first three starts, Sale has a 3.56 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and 10.6 K/9 rate since then. That’s the stud we’ve become accustomed to, which should be easy to duplicate against Kansas City. The Royals rank bottom four in runs scored, OBP, OPS, and wOBA. That’s why he’s a -200 favorite in this sensational spot!
Tarik Skubal (DET) at CWS
Skubal’s 3.93 ERA is not indicative of how good he’s been because he’s allowed four runs or fewer in all but one start. If you remove that stinker, Tarik has tallied a 2.91 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, and 10.9 K/9 rate this year. We love that sort of form in a matchup with Chicago, sitting 25th in runs scored, 27th in wOBA, and last in OBP.
Top Lineup Stacks
The Pirates are far from a daunting lineup, but we want to use anyone against Adam Wainwright. It’s sad that the veteran is going out like this, but the righty has an 8.10 ERA and 1.98 WHIP in his final season. They’re simply throwing him out there because the Cards have nothing to play for, and he’s been the most stackable player on every slate he’s been on.
UPDATE: Wainwright will be skipped in the rotation, but we still don’t mind stacking against Zach Thompson and his 1.54 WHIP.
Speaking of washed-up veterans, Greinke is another one of them. The soft-tossing righty has a 5.28 ERA this year, his worst total since his rookie season. It all comes full circle in baseball, and it’s sad that these two pitchers are at the end of the line. However, this is a much tougher matchup than Waino, with the Red Sox ranked fifth in OBP and seventh in runs scored.
The Mariners are the hottest team in the AL, and their offense is the main reason why. They led their conference in nearly every offensive category over the last month. That’s scary against a freefalling team like the Mets, sending out Megill to the wolves. The NY righty has a 5.29 ERA and 1.68 WHIP this year.
Core Studs
| POS |
PLAYER |
DK SALARY |
FD SALARY |
| 3B |
Rafael Devers (BOS) |
$5,800 |
$3,700 |
| OF |
Julio Rodriguez (SEA) |
$6,400 |
$4,300 |
| DH |
Shohei Ohtani (LAA) |
$6,400 |
$4,400 |
| OF |
Corbin Carroll (ARI) |
$5,700 |
$4,000 |
| OF |
Bryan Reynolds (PIT) |
$4,800 |
$3,500 |
- If we want to stack against Greinke, Devers needs to be our first option. This youngster has been mashing righties since his call-up, collecting a .362 OBP, .562 SLG, and .924 OPS against them over the last three years. We love that paired with his recent form, posting a .391 OBP and .930 OPS since July 1.
- We talked about this yesterday, and we’re going right back to the well. J-Rod has been the hottest hitter for a month, amassing a .473 AVG, .520 OBP, .813 SLG, and 1.33 OPS across his last 22 games while also snatching nine steals in that span.
- It’s surprising that Ohtani is still out there hitting with a torn UCL, but he’s still raking. The two-way player leads the AL with 44 home runs, totaling a .464 OBP, .776 SLG, and 1.240 OPS across his last 75 games. There haven’t been many 75-game stretches like that ever, and we obviously want to use him against an Oakland team that ranks last in ERA and WHIP.
- Carroll has struggled along with the rest of the D’Backs lineup in the second half, but he’s still one of the best options in fantasy. He’s got 23 homers, 41 steals, and 96 runs scored, ranked as one of the top-scoring players in DFS. He’s showing flashes of getting out of his slump, generating a 1.250 OPS across his last 11 outings. Not to mention, he’s got a .928 OPS against righties since his call-up and faces one with a 4.73 ERA and 1.55 WHIP here.
- There aren’t many potent bats in the Pirates lineup, but Reynolds is their best hitter. Over the last three years, Reynolds has a .841 OPS. That’s all you can hope for since he faces a pitcher like Wainwright, especially since BR has a .891 OPS across his last 36 outings.
Value Plays/Punts
- Hayes has quietly been one of the best third basemen in the second half of the season. The Pirates third baseman has a .366 AVG, .422 OBP, .683 SLG, and 1.105 OPS across his last 20 games. That’s an incredible stretch from a player in this price range, and we certainly don’t mind that he faces one of the worst pitchers in the sport.
- Yoshi has struggled in the second half, but he’s always a great option against a weak righty. In nearly 400 at-bats against right-handers, Yoshida has a .299 AVG and .809 OPS. We also saw him go 3-for-3 with a dinger a few days ago, and he’s looking to end the season strong against a gas can like Greinke.
- Lowe has been sitting against lefties, but he’s been rocking righties throughout his career. Over the last three years, Lowe has a .347 OBP, .490 SLG, and .836 OPS with the platoon advantage in his favor. He always bats second in these spots, too, which is fantastic since he has a .375 OBP and .904 OPS across his last 25 games. We also don’t mind that he faces an inexperienced pitcher like Xzavion Curry.
- The Tigers hitters are always overlooked, and Carpenter is one of those guys. He’s been their best bat this season, tallying a .370 AVG, .426 OBP, .707 SLG, and 1.132 OPS across his last 25 games. KC has also crushed righties all year, registering a .904 OPS against them. Michael Kopech can’t keep anyone off the bases right now, accruing a 5.08 ERA and 1.53 WHIP.
Hitter Strategy
If we stack teams like the Pirates and Mariners, this should be an easy slate from a lineup construction standpoint. They have so many cheap bats that we can do whatever we want in terms of lineup construction. It’s not like we had many expensive pitchers either, and it might be one of those days where you leave some salary on the table. In total, we want to stack the Pirates, Mariners, Tigers, Red Sox, Angels and Diamondbacks!
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Joel Bartilotta is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joel, check out his archive and follow him @Bartilottajoel.
