This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
The start of the week brings an early-only and an all-day slate starting at 4:05 PM EST that kick off with the Yankees visiting the Orioles and the Phillies taking on the Mets. Those are the only two early games, with the main slate kicking off at 7:05 PM EST and featuring nine games. The main slate is a little tricky, with Gerrit Cole ($11,100) and Clayton Kershaw ($10,500) being the top pitching options but both with some red flags. Cole hasn't looked as good as of late (34 or fewer fantasy points in four of his last five contests) and the issues with Kershaw will be discussed below.
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PITCHER
Mike Clevinger, CLE vs CIN ($9,700): This is the first time the Reds are seeing Clevinger this season, and that scenario typically provides an advantage to the pitcher. Clevinger has 60 and 61 fantasy point efforts in two of his last four games and should be in line for a quality start/win facing Anthony DeSclafani in Cleveland. Cincinnati is around league average for both wOBA and strikeouts against right-handed pitching, so they're not a team to worry about.
GPP Fade: Clayton Kershaw, LAD at SD ($10,500): He'll be making his fourth start off the DL, so Kershaw could have more leeway when it comes to his pitch count. He's still unlikely to come close to a normal pitch count, and looking at his previous game logs it's hard to see him making value at this price. He hasn't scored more than 34 fantasy points in any of his last seven starts, and with his current limitations, his ceiling isn't that high. Even with a win and quality start last time out, he only scored 28 points. The Padres are a great matchup, but it's just tough to see Kershaw going deep enough in this game to earn his salary.
Cheap GPP Consideration: Chase Anderson, MIL at MIA ($7,500): Anderson has had three straight starts in which he gave up exactly one run, scoring 35, 39 and 40 fantasy points. Miami has been better as of late but still has the 13th highest strikeout rate (23.1 percent) against right-handed pitching and the sixth-lowest wOBA (.299). The Marlins .133 ISO is the fourth lowest in baseball, and Anderson has been better on the road (2.88 ERA, .240 wOBA allowed) than at home this season.
FIRST BASE/CATCHER
Steve Pearce, BOS vs TEX ($3,000): It's wearing the Captain Obvious hat to recommend a Boston stack at home against a mediocre lefty in Mike Minor. Mookie Betts, J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts and Pearce are all in play, with Pearce being the most affordable option. He'll likely be hitting cleanup and has a career .361 wOBA against lefties with this season's .391 mark factored in. Minor has allowed a .336 wOBA to right-handed hitters this season, and that goes up to .388 on the road.
SECOND BASE
Daniel Robertson, TB vs DET ($2,900): Robertson a good play at a reasonable price while still offering upside. He'll hit towards the top of the lineup against southpaw Francisco Liriano and has a .363 wOBA this season against left-handed pitching. After giving up a .374 wOBA to right-handed hitters a season ago, Liriano has still struggled this season with a .343 wOBA.
THIRD BASE
Colin Moran, PIT vs WAS ($2,400): Moran has been a regular at cleanup when the Pirates have faced a right-handed pitcher over the last few weeks. That will be the case tonight as Pittsburgh takes on the Nationals and rookie Jefry Rodriguez, who has a 5.52 ERA in his first 14.2 big-league innings.
SHORTSTOP
Brandon Crawford, SF vs CHC ($3,000): Brad Miller ($2,800) is in play and at a similar price, but Crawford has been a little better this season, averaging 9.5 fantasy points per game. Crawford has a .361 wOBA against right-handed pitching this season, while Kyle Hendricks has struggled on the road and as of late, posting a 6.28 ERA over his last six starts. His ERA on the road sits at 5.80.
OUTFIELD
Kyle Tucker, HOU vs OAK ($2,000): Tucker comes in at the minimum price, allowing for a lot of salary cap relief. The Jake Marisnick experiment appears to be over and Tucker should be a regular in the lineup most games. He struck out in his first three plate appearances in his first game Saturday but finished the day with a walk and an RBI single. He'll get the lefty-vs-righty benefit at home against Frankie Montas, who's allowed a .361 wOBA to left-handed hitters.
Robbie Grossman, MIN vs KC ($2,900): Grossman has been a good lefty-killer since joining the Twins with a .359 wOBA against southpaws since the start of the 2016 season. He should be hitting in the middle of the lineup, and the matchup against Danny Duffy is a good one. On the season, Duffy has allowed a .360 wOBA to right-handed hitters, putting both Grossman and teammate Brian Dozier ($3,800) in play.
UTILITY
Josh Reddick, HOU vs OAK ($3,100): Montas' issues against lefties has already been mentioned, and Reddick is another cheap piece of the Astros lineup to use. While he doesn't have the upside of Alex Bregman or Jose Altuve, Reddick has had a .363 and .371 wOBA over the last two seasons against right-handed pitching. He's also hit better in Houston, with a .398 wOBA against righties at home last season and a .367 mark this season.
