This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
Tuesday's main DraftKings slate will be a busy one. There will be 26 teams in action, leaving us with a ton of options to wade through. Let's try to narrow down the field by highlighting some players who have particularly favorable matchups.
Pitchers
Lucas Giolito ($9,500) was hammered by the Red Sox in his last start, allowing eight runs (seven earned) in one inning of work. Prior to that outing, he had allowed five runs and recorded 26 strikeouts over 17.2 innings. Entering this year with back-to-back seasons with at least a 32.3 percent strikeout rate and a FIP no higher than 3.43, look for him to bounce back in a big way against the underwhelming Tigers' lineup.
Another lineup to try and take advantage of is the Mariners, who entered Monday with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball. That shouldn't come as a major surprise given that they had the third-worst OPS last season. Facing them will be Cristian Javier ($9,300), who has a 36.4 percent strikeout rate through his first three starts. Although he only had a 25.2 percent strikeout rate last year in his rookie campaign, he had shown plenty of strikeout upside throughout the minors, including a 36.4 percent rate at Triple-A and a 39.0 percent rate at Double-A in 2019.
The Rockies can still score runs at Coors Field, but their depleted lineup is one to attack when they are on the road. Entering Monday, they had scored a total of 11 runs across their six road games this season. Enter Aaron Sanchez ($7,200), who hasn't allowed more than two runs in any of his first four starts.
Top Targets
The Red Sox's lineup has been deadly in the early going, led by their star shortstop Xander Bogaerts ($5,700). His .366 average entering Monday has certainly been aided by his .422 BABIP, but it's also important to note that he's finished with a BABIP of at least .317 in all but one season of his career. He's also seen his power numbers improve as his career has moved along, entering 2021 with an ISO of at least .202 in each of the last three seasons. He's an appealing option against left-handed pitcher David Peterson ($7,500), who has allowed at least six runs in two of his three starts.
Corey Kluber ($8,300) certainly looks like a pitcher who only made eight starts across the last two seasons. He hasn't made it past 4.2 innings in any of his first four starts and his lack of control has contributed to a 1.93 WHIP. While the Orioles might not have many potent hitters in their lineup, Trey Mancini ($4,600) could be an excellent option based on this matchup. He hits for power and doesn't strikeout out much, posting a .209 ISO and a 23.0 percent strikeout rate for his career.
Bargain Bats
Merrill Kelly ($6,700) has the unfortunate combination of not striking out a lot of hitters and allowing too many home runs. For his career, he's allowed 1.5 HR/9 and he has just a 20.1 percent strikeout rate. With numbers like that, this could be a prime opportunity to deploy Wil Myers ($4,400) at a reasonable salary. Also, working even further down the salary scale, Jake Cronenworth ($3,500) might be worth considering. The young left-handed hitter is coming off of a 2020 campaign in which he had a 42.7 percent hard-hit rate.
When a left-handed pitcher is on the mound, Avisail Garcia ($) has to at least be considered in DFS. For his career, he has a 119 wRC+ versus lefties, compared to a 95 wRC+ against righties. He won't exactly be facing an overpowering lefty in Daniel Castano ($6,400), who has 14 strikeouts over 39.2 career innings. He never pitched at Triple-A, but he didn't miss many bats at Double-A, either, posting a 20.7 percent strikeout rate there in 2019.
Stacks to Consider
Yankees vs. Bruce Zimmermann ($6,000), Orioles: Aaron Judge ($5,600), DJ LeMahieu ($5,200), Gio Urshela ($3,100)
The Yankees' lineup is loaded with right-handed hitters, so Zimmerman will have his work cut out for him. He's not a big strikeout pitcher, either, never posting a strikeout rate higher than 23.8 percent above Single-A. This could be a great matchup for Judge to have a big performance. He thrives against left-handed pitching, posting a .408 wOBA against them for his career. LeMahieu should also prove to be a tough out given his ability to make contact. For his career, he only has a 14.8 percent strikeout rate.
Mets vs. Garrett Richards ($6,600), Red Sox: Francisco Lindor ($4,800), Dominic Smith ($4,000), Brandon Nimmo ($3,700)
Richards' tenure with the Red Sox has not started off well. He's issued more walks (13) than he has strikeouts (12) on his way to a 1.86 WHIP. He hasn't pitched at least 100 innings in a season since 2015 because of injuries and he posted a pedestrian 4.28 FIP across 14 appearances (10 starts) with the Padres last season. He only has a 20.6 percent strikeout rate for his career, so with Nimmo's excellent on-base skills, he could be a prime player to add to a Mets stack. His. 477 OBP entering Monday has helped boost his career mark to .394.
White Sox vs. Jose Urena ($7,000), Tigers: Tim Anderson ($5,500), Yermin Mercedes ($5,000), Luis Robert ($4,900)
After six straight seasons with a strikeout rate no higher than 18.3 percent, Urena moved on from the Marlins to the Tigers. His lack of swing-and-miss stuff has left him with a career 1.34 WHIP. He's been much of the same this season, recording a 1.43 WHIP across four outings. Mercedes has been scorching hot with a .477 wOBA and a .243 ISO. Although Anderson doesn't draw a lot of walks, he's coming off of back-to-back seasons with a hard-hit rate of at least 35.8 percent.
