This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
After quality pitching was light Monday, Tuesday offers a ton of marquee names. Three pitchers have five-digit price tags, while eight are $9,000 or more. There's also plenty of good spots for hitters, in particular against a number of lefties set to take the mound.
Pitchers
The Marlins have a .255 wOBA across the last 30 days and a top-10 strikeout rate. Zack Wheeler ($10,400) has the skill to take advantage and is a stable pitcher to use as the ace of the slate. Shane Bieber ($9,900) is in the same tier as Wheeler from a skill perspective and has an equally attractive matchup against the Tigers.
Alek Manoah ($8,900) dips down a tier in terms of both price and skill. He has a mediocre strikeout rate but suppresses runs at an impressive clip thanks to a great walk and home run rate. Baltimore is a relatively tough matchup of late, but they're still a mediocre lineup -- particularly without Trey Mancini. Manoah is a nice cash-game option, but I'd rather pay all the up or down in large-field tournaments. The analysis is similar for Carlos Carrasco ($8,200) who offers a little less safety, but at a discounted rate in an exploitable matchup against the Reds.
Marcus Stroman ($7,200) has a career-high 22.4 percent strikeout rate and draws a Nationals' lineup that was gutted at the trade deadline. The true punts of the day are James Kaprielian ($5,600) and Tommy Henry ($5,400). Kaprielian has a 1.89 ERA across six starts since July 3. His skills haven't jumped to the point where those results are earned, but he's still too cheap – particularly because he is facing the Angels. Henry is making only the second start of his career and gets a soft landing against Pittsburgh.
Top Hitters
For the second consecutive day, the Mets have a very exploitable matchup. This time, they'll take on Mike Minor, who has allowed at least one home run in 10 of his 11 starts this season and multiple long balls on four occasions. Starling Marte ($5,200) has a .392 wOBA against lefties this season, and he checks in $700 cheaper than both Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor.
I want exposure to the Guardians because Tyler Alexander has the lowest strikeout rate of any pitcher with a meaningful sample this season. Amed Rosario ($4,700) is my favorite target due to his relatively reasonable price tag and his .362 wOBA when facing left-handers for the campaign.
The Cardinals are in Coors Field against Ryan Feltner, who has served up 1.6 HR/9 this season. Of course the likes of Paul Goldschmidt ($6,400) and Nolan Arenado ($5,600) are great plays, but so are Nolan Gorman ($4,400) and Dylan Carlson ($4,300) at more palatable costs.
Value Hitters
Mike Brosseau ($2,900) should be in Milwaukee's lineup with lefty Ryan Yarbrough set to occupy a bulk relief role. Brosseau has .524 slugging percentage and .210 ISO against lefties this season and is a strong option to save cap space.
Franmil Reyes ($2,400) has a new home with the Cubs. Assuming that he has reported and remains in the big leagues by Tuesday's game against the Nationals, he's an interesting buy-low opportunity. Paolo Espino has been a homer machine (1.9 HR/9) this season, which also means any of the Cubs cheap hitters are in play if Reyes is unavailable.
Tommy Henry is a decent punt play, but despite a matchup against the Pirates, we have to acknowledge that he is making only his second big-league start. I still don't want to invest much in the Pittsburgh lineup, but Michael Chavis ($2,000) will be in the lineup and has had success against lefties this season (.339 wOBA, 119 wRC+) all while being priced at the minimum.
Stacks to Consider
Cardinals at Rockies (Ryan Feltner): Dylan Carlson ($4,300), Nolan Gorman ($4,400), Paul Goldschmidt ($6,400)
As was mentioned in the top hitter's section, this certainly seems like a spot for the Cardinals' offense to explode at Coors Field. Even better is that there are ways to play the top of the roster at relatively minimal cost. Just beware that this is likely to be a very popular option.
Mets vs. Reds (Mike Minor): Starling Marte ($5,200), Pete Alonso ($5,900), Darin Ruf ($3,000)
The entire Mets lineup is priced up thanks to its quality and because of the matchup against Minor (covered more fully above), however there are still ways to try fit quality bats without compromising the entire rest of the lineup. Ruf is a good player to turn to in that regard, as he has hit southpaws well historically, regardless of whether he's in a Mets or Giants uniform.
Guardians at Tigers (Tyler Alexander): Amed Rosario ($4,700), Jose Ramirez ($5,900), Oscar Gonzalez ($3,000)
Alexander has a contact-heavy approach as a pitcher and the Guardians strike out at the lowest rate in the league. That's a combination I want to take advantage of. The price is substantial to roster Rosario and Ramirez, but after that the majority of the lineup is cheap so it shouldn't be hard to find a combination that works from a salary cap perspective.
