This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
We have a modest eight-game slate Monday, which kicks off at 6:40 EDT. There are elite pitchers at the top of the pool but not much in terms of value. That said, we'll be hunting for cheap bats to pair with ace pitchers in the most logical builds. The picks in this article will try to reflect that, when considering the price points of (most) hitters recommended.
Pitchers
Corbin Burnes ($10,400) joins Carlos Rodon ($10,900) as the only pitcher with a strikeout rate above 30 percent for the season to take the mound Monday. The next closest mark is 23.9 percent, so these two stand above the rest of the field by a significant margin. Burnes gets a fairly easy nod for cash games from there, as he draws a matchup against the Pirates while Rodon will take on the Padres.
Tony Gonsolin ($9,600) doesn't have the peripherals to match Rodon and Burnes, but he has posted at least 16.3 DK points in each of his last five starts. He also faces the Marlins, who own the lowest wOBA across the last 30 days, while also striking out at the sixth-highest clip in that span.
From there, I'm willing drop down significantly to a trio of mid-tier pitchers: Mike Clevinger ($8,000), Jose Berrios ($7,600), and Frankie Montas ($7,200). None are particularly comfortable cash game plays, but Berrios is my favorite of the group. In his past five starts, he's topped 25 DK points on two occasions and posted 17.9 points in an additional outing. He takes on the Cubs on Monday, a lineup that has struck out at the fifth-highest rate in the last 30 days while also maintaining just a .281 wOBA in that same span.
Top Hitters
Milwaukee is in a tremendous spot going up against the woeful Pirates and Jerad Eickhoff. Since 2018, Eickhoff has served up 3.1 HR/9 across 87.2 big-league innings. Christian Yelich ($4,100) is slugging .590 across his last 10 games. That's about all the information needed to build through Yelich in all lineups.
Javier Assad has had a decent minor-league season, maintaining a 2.66 ERA with a 111:38 K:BB across 108.1 innings between Double-A Tennessee and Triple-A Iowa. However, he's a target as an inexperienced big-leaguer heading into Toronto. Take your pick from high-quality Blue Jays hitters, but I'll land on George Springer ($5,700).
Alec Bohm ($4,400) has smoked left-handed pitching to the tune of a .408 wOBA and .216 ISO across 137 plate appearances. Rhys Hoskins ($5,000) has been even better, but he is a bit pricier. The Phillies take on Madison Bumgarnerm, who has the second-highest SIERA (4.71) of any pitcher in Monday's pitcher pool.
Value Hitters
Franchy Cordero ($2,000) has bounced around the Boston lineup recently, but he has started relatively consistently. The Red Sox draw a matchup against Dylan Bundy, who has maintained a 2.96 ERA across his last 24.1 frames. However, he has struck out just 12.8 percent of the batters he has faced in that span. Cordero has 26 extra-base hits in 228 at-bats this season, so he's capable of doing damage when he manages to make contact.
Lars Nootbaar ($3,000) is the primary leadoff hitter for the Cardinals and has slugged .703 across his last 10 games – good for 11.2 DK points per game. That's not likely to be sustainable, but he checks in at a very reasonable price given his position the lineup and recent level of production. Brendan Donovan ($3,200) is another good option, as he's occupied the second position in St. Louis' lineup.
Stacks to Consider
Phillies at Diamondbacks (Madison Bumgarner): J.T. Realmuto ($5,700), Rhys Hoskins ($5,000), Alec Bohm ($4,400)
The Phillies are a really dangerous lineup against lefties. Hoskins and Bohm both have wOBAs above .400 against southpaws on the season, while Realmuto is the laggard of the group with a .360 wOBA and 130 wRC+. Bumgarner has been particularly bad of late, posting a 7.53 ERA while allowing 1.6 HR/9 across his last 28.2 innings and five starts.
Cardinals at Reds (Chase Anderson): Lars Nootbaar ($3,000), Brendan Donovan ($3,200), Paul Goldschmidt ($6,200)
Both Nootbaar and Donovan were listed as strong value plays, so unsurprisingly, the Cardinals are an option to jam plenty of upside into your lineups without paying the typical cost. This group makes up the top three in the lineup, and they'll go to one of the best hitters parks in the league while also being projected to take on Chase Anderson. Anderson has spent most of the season with Triple-A Toledo (Tigers organization) and posted a 4.63 ERA while allowing 1.8 HR/9.
Brewers vs. Pirates (Jerad Eickhoff): Christian Yelich ($4,100), Hunter Renfroe ($4,000), Rowdy Tellez ($3,900)
Eickhoff's ineffectiveness in recent seasons has already been covered, so I mostly want to use this space to highlight another relatively cheap stack to pair with some of the top pitchers on the slate. Tellez hasn't hit particularly well of late, but is still consistently slotting into the third spot in the Milwaukee order. Meanwhile, both Yelich and Renfroe have hit for plenty of power across the last 10 games and are in a good spot to continue that. If you have extra cash to spend, Willy Adames ($4,900) is also a strong play.
