This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
Tuesday night's slate is a perfect time for those who'd rather spend on hitting than pitching. As none of the high-end arms are surefire bets, it'll likely be a popular strategy to go near the bottom of the list and hope you can find gold.
PITCHING
Walker Buehler ($12,300) is a huge favorite and the most expensive pitcher, but he isn't needed to have success. While his matchup is good, he's already been shelled by the Rockies and Marlins in recent starts and he's had fewer than 25 fantasy points in six of his last 10. Of course, none of the other expensive options are consistent, either. Zac Gallen ($11,200) is maybe most consistent, yet the Mets have a 19.1 K% in the last month against righties so his upside is limited. Zack Wheeler ($10,000) could be popular against the Diamondbacks, but I'm not sure he's worth it, failing to reach more than five strikeouts in his last six starts.
I'd rather look for value and bank on Ryan Yarbrough ($9,000) in a plus matchup. The Rangers have a 25.7 K% and .301 OBP against southpaws since the beginning of August. Sure, Yarbrough has had issues, but he can gone off in the right situation seen in back-to-back 30-point outings a month ago. Trevor Bauer ($9,100) is more of a gamble in GPP because he's given up 17 runs in his last three starts. The Mariners are still worth going against with a 27.4 K% and .290 wOBA versus righty arms in the last month.
If you want to save more money, Justus Sheffield ($7,600) is intriguing after not allowing a run in five innings against the Cubs last start. Plus, the Reds have a 25.6 K% and .300 OBP against lefty pitchers since the beginning of August. Nathan Eovaldi ($7,300) is a little riskier because he's rarely started due to injury, yet struck out eight Angels in four innings a couple weeks ago. It helps that the Blue Jays are struggling with a 27.5 K% and .282 OBP against righty hurlers in the last month. Surprisingly, Ivan Nova ($4,800) is one of the cheapest pitchers despite having much better numbers at home, allowing a .301 OBP compared to .379 on the road. Sure, he's had some bad outings, but his home numbers are solid and the Royals are beatable with their .285 wOBA against righties in the last month.
KEY VALUES/CHALK
The Rockies-Cardinals game will get most of the attention with two questionable pitchers on the mound at Coors Field. Chi Chi Gonzalez had one of his better performances last start against the Dodgers, but he's still allowing a .460 OBP to 52 batters faced at home with most of the struggles against lefties. Michael Wacha has allowed a .373 wOBA on the road and none of those starts came in Colorado. Kolten Wong ($4,800) may be the best value with a .481 OBP in his last 81 plate appearances against righty pitchers. Tommy Edman ($5,400) costs the most, but I'd rather back Wong or fellow lefty bats Matt Carpenter ($4,700) and Dexter Fowler ($4,500). Trevor Story ($5,400) costs a lot, but he's hard to pass up with a .534 OBP and .388 ISO in his last 58 plate appearances at home against a righty. Ryan McMahon ($4,700) and Raimel Tapia ($3,900) are the cheaper options, though still have great numbers at Coors.
According to the odds, the Nationals-Twins and A's-Astros games will have the next most runs and it wouldn't be a bad idea to stack any of those teams. Jose Berrios has the best numbers, but he's lost control in the last month and is allowing a .335 OBP to lefty batters at home. It's a similar case for Anibal Sanchez because his overall numbers are good, allowing a .284 wOBA on the road. My top choice would be Washington lefties like Juan Soto ($5,400), Adam Eaton ($4,200) and Asdrubal Cabrera ($4,100). The Astros will likely be a favorite stack against Tanner Roark, who is allowing a .369 wOBA to lefty hitters. That could mean Yordan Alvarez ($5,100) or cheaper options like Kyle Tucker ($4,300), Michael Brantley ($4,100) and Josh Reddick ($3,600). Wade Miley couldn't get an out last start so he's worth testing with the likes of Jurickson Profar ($3,900) and Khris Davis ($3,300).
The Indians-Angels game is another one to target as Zach Plesac has allowed 10 runs in his last two starts and Jose Suarez has a .419 wOBA allowed to righties. I'd target some of Cleveland's cheaper righties like Yasiel Puig ($4,000) and Franmil Reyes ($4,000) in case Suarez gets shelled early. You can find slightly more value with the Angels in Andrelton Simmons ($3,400) and Luis Rengifo ($3,300), but they're a bit harder to trust.
STACKS
Dodgers vs. Ty Blach (Orioles)
(OF A.J. Pollock - $4,700), (3B Justin Turner - $5,000), (2B/OF Enrique Hernandez - $4,000)
This isn't the matchup Blach wants and he knows that. In addition to giving up 13 runs in three starts with the Orioles, he gave up seven runs in 3.1 innings in his lone start against the Dodgers earlier this year, who also boast a .256 ISO against southpaws since the beginning of August. This stack doesn't break the bank while also providing a bit of everything led by Turner and his .405 OBP and .436 ISO in his last 42 PA against southpaws.
White Sox vs. Jakob Junis (Royals)
(SS Tim Anderson - $4,700), (3B Yoan Moncada - $4,600), (2B Yolmer Sanchez - $2,900)
While Nova is good at home, Junis is worse on the road, allowing a .341 wOBA and 1.96 HR/9. He has good numbers against the White Sox this year, but those both came in KC. There's only a few reasonable places to go in this stack with Anderson and Sanchez at the top of the charts for Chicago in terms of OBP against righties. Moncada has two homers and a .474 OBP in 19 career PA against Junis.
Mariners vs. Trevor Bauer (Reds)
(OF Mallex Smith - $4,000), (3B Kyle Seager - $3,900), (2B Dee Gordon - $3,400)
I'm not huge on the Mariners, but it'd be wise to grab at least a piece of them. Bauer has allowed a .355 wOBA to lefty bats, as well as 17 runs in his last three outings. This lefty trio has three of Seattle's four batters who have an OBP above .300 against righties in the last month. That's not a great number, but if Bauer's struggles continue, it'll likely come against these guys.
