This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Monday has only the main slate, and as usual it starts at 7:05 p.m. EDT. It consists of nine games including a rested Mike Trout leading the Angels into Arlington and Detroit pitcher Edwin Jackson, who should get shelled in Houston.
There's one elite pitcher with an outstanding matchup and a couple of cheaper options to consider for GPPs.
Pitching
The top cash-game starting pitcher has to be the Reds' Trevor Bauer ($10,200). He's coming off his worst outing of the season (nine earned runs in 4.1 innings, minus-2 fantasy points) so hopefully that'll keep his ownership down. However, he has a great matchup against the Padres, who are still one of the worst-hitting teams against right-handed pitching. They have a .308 wOBA against that handedness (eighth-worst) and their 26.2 percent strikeout rate is the third highest. Factor in they won't have Fernando Tatis Jr., who's out for the season, and those numbers get worse.
It'll be interesting to see how things work out down the road from the Zac Gallen/Jazz Chisholm trade, but Arizona's Gallen ($8,000) looks to be the real deal. He'll get better offensive support with the Diamondbacks and has a 2.58 ERA this season. Colorado is one of the few teams to note the difference between them hitting at home and on the road. They've been awful away from Coors Field. Their team .283 wOBA against right-handed pitching on the road is second-worst only to the Marlins and their 25.5 percent strikeout rate is the fifth-highest.
Looking at the really cheap options, the Orioles' John Means ($6,200) stands out as a good value. He's been in a bit of a slump, but he's had to pitch against the Yankees (twice), at Arizona and against Boston in his last four starts. It'll be a much easier task against the Royals, who have struggled facing left-handed pitching. Kansas City has the seventh-worst wOBA (.297) on the road against southpaws, and the club's 25 percent strikeout rate is the sixth-highest.
Key Values/Chalk
Rarely it's recommended to spend up in the outfield, but both the Angels' Mike Trout ($4,900) and the Astros' Yordan Alvarez ($4,400) have prime matchups. Alvarez is home against the Tigers and Edwin Jackson, and Trout moves into a better hitting environment in Texas to face rookie Kolby Allard. Obviously it's easier to fit both players (who average over 15 fantasy points per game) into a lineup using either Gallen or Means. However, it's still possible to use Bauer with both and have $2,583 per player for the rest of the team.
The Angels-Rangers game has the highest over/under of the slate at 11 runs, and the Angels are a -119 favorite. Therefore, a wise play would be to use multiple right-handed bats against Allard, including the Angels' David Fletcher ($3,000). He should be hitting leadoff and has a .346 wOBA in that spot, and Allard had a 4.17 ERA with a lofty 1.41 WHIP at Triple-A.
The Reds' Eugenio Suarez ($3,800) has just as good of a matchup as anyone facing Padres lefty Eric Lauer at home. Suarez hit his 34th home run yesterday and now has a .502 wOBA at home against lefties. Lauer has a 6.20 ERA on the road (3.10 at home), which shows what an extreme split it is pitching at Petco Park.
The Diamondbacks' Wilmer Flores ($2,800) has been a lefty killer this season with a .399 wOBA against them, and that stat goes up to .449 at home. He should be hitting in the middle of the order, which is a good RBI spot. Rockies lefty Kyle Freeland hasn't been good against right-handed hitters, surrendering a .393 wOBA to that side of the plate.
Honestly, it always seems to be a risk to use a catcher when it's possible to use a first baseman at the C/1B spot. However, the Astros' Martin Maldonado ($2,200, provided he's in the lineup) is going to be a sneaky play. He's part of a stackable Houston lineup, and Maldonado has gone 6-for-16 against Detroit righty Jackson, with two home runs and two walks (1.257 OPS).
Stacks
Houston vs. Detroit (Edwin Jackson)
Martin Maldonado (C/1B - $2,200), Yordan Alvarez (OF - $4,400), Michael Brantley (OF - $4,400), George Springer (OF - $4,400)
Going the cheaper route, Josh Reddick ($2,400) could easily work as well despite his second-half woes. This will be one of the more popular stacks even though the over/under is 9.5 runs; the Astros are favored at -400 at most sports books.
Angels at Rangers (Kolby Allard)
Mike Trout (OF - $4,900), Justin Upton (OF - $3,500), Albert Pujols (C/1B - $2,900), David Fletcher (SS - $3,000)
Again, Trout should be one of the top-owned players in cash or GPPs, and this is a matter of matching him up with the right teammates. Justin Upton has finally heated up and has a .963 OPS over the last two weeks. Albert Pujols has a .398 wOBA on the road this season against left-handed pitching.
