This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
A 13-game slate is on deck Friday evening. All pitchers are listed, with only three coming in in five-figures. It's a bit top-heavy as such, but there appears to be a few solid options thanks to soft matchups in the next tier where paying up isn't fully required.
Pitching
Max Scherzer ($11,400) is seemingly matchup proof, and there's plenty of upside in both Carlos Rodon ($10,800) against Pittsburgh and Tony Gonsolin ($10,000), who surely gets run support and a great chance at a win against Kansas City. Feel free to deploy any as they fit your budget. But where can we save a little bit more?
The clear choices are Tyler Mahle ($9,000) or Mike Clevinger ($9,100). Clevinger will look to bounce back from a poor outing, but that came against the Dodgers, who clearly aren't the Nationals, whom he faces here. He had previously turned in three-straight quality starts, averaging 41 FDP. Mahle meanwhile faces an Angels lineup that strikes out 26.9 percent of the time while posting a below average 96 wRC+. He's not in terrific form, but the high K potential creates potential even if he fives up a few runs. Luis Garcia ($8,700) profiles similarly. He's had a 31 FDP ceiling across his last three, but faces the lowly A's and their meager 79 wRC+. They strike out 23.8 percent of the time, seemingly capping his upside, but he's far more stable than Jose Berrios for the same price.
While a few decent names are present below that price range, they face difficult matchups. The options seem to fall off a cliff after Michael Kopech ($8,200), who should be fairly popular in a plus spot against Detroit. Just know he doesn't have more than four strikeouts across his last five starts, and posted just 22 FDP in his last start against the Tigers. Domingo German ($7,000) is the only other option I'd consider. He's been worth 3x this number in two of his last three, and the hinderance to getting there Friday is more innings limitations than the matchup with Boston.
Top Targets
There are seemingly a plethora of bad arms throwing Friday, creating lots of obvious offenses to target. The challenge is choosing the right stack versus the one-offs. I expect San Diego bats to be popular against Cory Abbott, who is allowing a .455 wOBA to lefties. I'll certainly buy the return to Washington angle on Juan Soto ($4,000) and Josh Bell ($3,200) at a discount. Manny Machado ($3,800) isn't too expensive either, so stacking is possible if not probable in builds. Just expect high usage.
Yordan Alvarez ($4,300) versus C.J. Cron ($4,300) is an interesting debate for the same price. Alvarez is just 1-for-15 in his last five games and has one homer since July 30. But still carries a .451 wOBA, 204 wRC+ and .364 ISO against righties. Cron meanwhile has awoken from his post All-Star break funk to go 7-for-22 (.318) across his last five with eight RBI entering a favorable home spot against Zach Davies.
Arizona bats are priced too rich for me personally with their Coors Field spot, but it's also difficult to ignore Antonio Senzatela allowing a .402 wOBA to righties at home. Christian Walker ($3,800) gives us some thump, who happens to also be 13-for-25 with two homers and a 1.440 OPS against Senzatela.
Bargain Bats
I don't want to stack White Sox bats against Daniel Norris because he isn't fully stretched out and may not last long, but it's hard to ignore their positive splits against left-handed arms. Jose Abreu ($3,200) is priced down, and sports a .382 wOBA, 154 wRC+ and .231 ISO against southpaws.
Bryse Wilson has pitched a bit better of late, but is still allowing a .438 wOBA and 1.036 OPS to lefties, something the Giants are stocked with. Feel free to consider any of Mike Yastzremski ($2,700), Joc Pederson ($2,600), Brandon Belt ($2,500), Luis Gonzalez ($2,400) and/or Brandon Crawford ($2,300) to fill in holes in your lineup.
Austin Voth hasn't been as awful as his 5.53 ERA says, but a 3.91 xFIP isn't superb either. The Rays are awfully hard to figure out for DFS purposes, but if Yu Chang ($2,200) slots into the lineup, he merits consideration. He's been worth double-digit fantasy points in three straight, has a six-game hitting streak and a 231 wRC+, albeit in just 33 plate appearances.
Stacks to Consider
Dodgers vs. Royals (Daniel Lynch): Mookie Betts ($4,300), Trea Turner ($4,200), Will Smith ($3,600)
It's a tad more expensive than a potential Padres' stack noted above, but perhaps we get lower usage as a result. Lynch doesn't have any discernible splits against lefties or righties, but he does have a 5.97 ERA and 4.91 FIP at home. And we know this trio has a plethora of success off left-handers. Betts leads the way with a .428 wOBA, 180 wRC+ and .299 ISO, Turner sits at .417/173/296 and Smith at .413/170/.198.
Mariners vs. Rangers (Josh Sborz): Julio Rodriguez ($3,800), Mitch Haniger ($3,400), Ty France ($3,400)
This is likely to be a bullpen effort for the Rangers, so targeting against lefties or righties isn't prudent. But it seems Taylor Hearn may be the long relief guy, and the Mariners have gotten him for seven runs and 10 hits across seven innings to date. They also own the Rangers, having won eight straight and 16-of-18 dating back to last August. Rodriguez and Haniger both seem a tad priced down, having both recently come off IL, and pairing with France gives us a standard 1-2-3 stack. Eugenio Suarez ($3,100) is a tad cheaper and offers some power, while J.P. Crawford ($2,600) is 8-for-14 with two homers off of Hearn, if you need some savings.
