This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
We have all 30 teams in action Tuesday, barring any rainouts. Twelve of the 15 games are included on the main slate, which us plenty of options to work with in all price ranges from a pitching perspective. A key decision point from the hitter perspective will be the Reds-Rockies matchup at Coors Field, which has the look of an explosive offensive game with a pair of underwhelming or unproven options set to take the mound.
Pitchers
Each of the top four priced pitches face difficult matchups, so I'd be willing to pay down a bit for Cristian Javier ($9,600), who faces the Cubs. He is appropriately priced as measured by SIERA, but he has the second-highest strikeout rate of any available pitcher Tuesday night and has posted ceiling performances of 28.5 and 33.1 DK points this season.
Zack Wheeler ($9,200) is another alternative to paying all the way up. His surface stats are a bit off early this season, but he still has a well above-average 21.6 K-BB% and 3.47 SIERA. Wheeler draws the Giants on Tuesday. They've been a middle of the road offense as measured by wRC+ and wOBA, but they strike out at 25.5 percent clip – second-highest in the league.
We saw what Michael Wacha did to the Royals on Monday night, so there's no reason to not turn to his more talented peer in Seth Lugo ($8,000). Lugo has had a few hiccups along the way, but overall he's been impressing in his shift from a relief to starting role. He's posted at least 20 DK points in three of his seven starts and at least 15 points on five occasions. That narrow range of outcomes suggests he's a better cash game play, but the matchup pushes him into tournament consideration as well.
For those willing to take on risk, Lance Lynn ($7,100) is a viable option. He has an awful 7.51 ERA, but there are a lot of metrics that suggest he deserves better. His strikeout has rebounded from his 2022 mark and his SIERA (3.86) is nearly half that of his ERA. Cleveland is not an intimidating offense, but they do strike out at a very low clip (19.9%).
Top Hitters
Nick Pivetta has served up six home runs across 20 innings at Fenway Park this season. The Mariners have underperformed offensively this season but came alive Monday night. They're in a good spot to do so again, and I like Jarred Kelenic ($4,700) to lead the offense.
Randal Grichuk ($4,100) has worked his way back into being a regular in the Colorado lineup quickly by performing well since returning from a core injury. Brandon Williamson is set to make his debut for the Reds in an unforgiving offensive environment. It's a pretty simple formula for production.
Value Bats
Matt McLain ($2,000) is an easy choice for the second consecutive night as he remains priced at the minimum while hitting at Coors Field. He hit second in the order for the Reds in his debut, a prime spot to produce in a great park for hitters.
We don't typically target the Rays because of the success they've had this season, but their pitching staff is suddenly short-handed. As a result, they'll have to turn to Yonny Chirinos for extended innings Tuesday, and he has been unimpressive to this point in the season. The Mets' offense has also been unimpressive, but Brett Baty ($3,400) is priced to buy.
Stacks to Consider
Texas Rangers vs. Atlanta Braves (Jared Shuster): Marcus Semien ($5,800), Robbie Grossman ($2,900), Adolis Garcia ($5,400)
This has all the ingredients we want in a stack and is an excellent pivot away from the Coors Field game. Shuster has a limited sample in the majors but it hasn't been good. He's also been poor at Triple-A Gwinnett, as he's posted an 8.4 K-BB% this season after an 11.4 K-BB% mark in 2022. Meanwhile, the Rangers rank second in the league in wRC+ and tied for third in wOBA. It's possible that Grossman gets bumped from the second spot in the order if Corey Seager (hamstring) is activated from the injured list, but that's ambiguous for the time being. Nathaniel Lowe ($4,500) is a cheaper alternative to Garcia that also fits in the stack.
New York Mets vs. Tampa Bay Rays (Jalen Beeks and Yonny Chirinos): Brandon Nimmo ($4,600), Francisco Lindor ($4,700), Pete Alonso ($5,300)
The Mets offense has gotten off to an uninspiring start to the season, particularly considering the amount the team has cost to assemble. That makes now a great time to buy. At least some prices are relatively deflated and roster rate should follow suit as DFS players get disenchanted with the underperforming star power. The Rays make the opener and bulk pitcher dynamic work exceptionally well given the typical level of talent associated with the arms they put in those roles, but Chirinos has to give back some results at some point as he has a 2.22 ERA and 5.79 SIERA (third-highest among all arms Tuesday night).
