This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Pretty poor results yesterday for the lineup I entered. Aaron Nola came through, and so did Arolis Garcia, but the rest was a bunch of zero- to six-point duds. I feel the thought process was solid, and the winning lineups included the likes of Michael Chavis and Christian Vazquez; guys I'd never think about. So kudos to those who did, and we grind on. Six games are on Saturday's main slate, starting at 7:15 p.m. EDT. All 12 teams have listed pitchers, so no surprises see in store.
Pitching
I'm not a proponent of using arms against the Dodgers, but Max Fried ($10,300) leads this pitching slate, and the argument can be made. In his last three starts against this lineup, he's 2-0, striking out 21 across 19 innings, allowing 11 hits and three runs. He's throwing like an ace, posting 40 plus FanDuel points (FDP) in four of his last five, and the Braves simply need a dominant showing to even this marquee series.
That said, I far prefer the soft matchup at a discount for Logan Webb ($9,600). The Reds bring only an 86 wRC+ into the game against righties. His strikeouts are coming along, sitting at 9.3/9 in four June starts, and he's now been able to work seven frames in consecutive outings.
As always, a section of this column is devoted to arms against Detroit or Oakland, and with the A's not on the slate, Arizona's Zach Davies ($8,200) gets the mention. This thought process didn't work Friday, which make me a little more convicted, as I can't imagine the Tigers having nine hits again here. I don't love the price for Davies, but he's flashed 4x potential and is averaging 32.4 FDP in his last five. Having worked at least 5.1 frames in each of those, there's a nice floor.
There aren't any truly bad arms on this slate, and we could highlight pros and cons of nearly all. But if not interest in the top options, I'm honestly going all the way down to the Dodgers' Mitch White ($5,800). For as potent as the Braves' lineup can be, I've made no bones about their propensity to strike out. They currently sit at 25.5 percent against righties. I routinely play the opposing pitcher over strikeout prop, and will likely do so again here. He's throwing on normal rest despite the unexpected Triple-A call up, and fanned 12 across his last 10 Major League innings. He likely won't go beyond five frames, but only needs 23.2 FDP for 4x. He could sail past that.
Top Targets
You can use Fried and still be okay picking a top Dodger bat singularly. Freddie Freeman ($4,200) turned in his sixth-straight double-digit scoring outing in his return to Atlanta despite only getting one single. With some of that emotion gone, perhaps he's more locked in Saturday. And Trea Turner ($3,900) has three three-hit games in his last four, and has gone 8-of-24 against Fried.
Remarkably, this slate has only six bats priced at $4,000 or higher. So we're either redefining a top target, or we're looking at some pretty solid lineup depth paired with a top pitcher. No matchup really stands out. It's always nice to use Mike Trout ($4,400) when he fits your budget, and if you think the Braves get into the rookie mentioned above, Ronald Acuna ($3,900) and Dansby Swanson ($3,800) atop the lineup are a nice start.
Bargain Bats
Javier Baez ($3,100) is clearly waking up. He's riding an eight-game hitting streak and a three-game homer streak, collecting nine RBI during that stretch. For as much as we want to trust Davies above, he fans only 7.2 per nine, which plays into Baez's swing-and-miss tendencies.
Cincinnati's Mike Minor is allowing 3.1 HR/9, and has a 6.97 ERA and 7.33 FIP. I'm not full in on stacking Giants Saturday, as it's hard to pinpoint where they get their production nightly, but moreso building a lineup without them, and then plugging in two or more of their cheaper options to round out your builds. They have a plethora of righties, who carry a 1.005 OPS and .419 wOBA into this contest against him. Any of Evan Longoria ($2,300), Austin Slater ($2,600) and/or Darin Ruf ($2,600) work for me.
Stack to Consider
Twins vs. Rockies (Antonio Senzatela): Byron Buxton ($3,900), Carlos Correa ($3,400), Luis Arraez ($3,200)
I don't love (m)any stacks on this slate, but when in doubt, take some chalk. Minnesota is heavily favored, and this game has the highest run total. Senzatela is allowing a .380 wOBA to lefties and a .393 wOBA to righties, and only strikes out 4.5 per nine, so the Twins should have ample chances to put balls in play, and single and double him to death. Buxton is obviously dependent upon a return to the starting lineup, and while he ranks third in this trio with a .359 wOBA, he also has a robust .301 ISO against righties, clearly showing the boom or bust nature we all expect. Arraez is a contact machine, carrying a .422 wOBA and 182 wRC+ into this contest while fanning only 7.1 percent of the time. Correa hasn't found his power stroke, but is another safe bet to put balls in play and find his way on. This should be a traditional 1-2-3 in the order stack. If Buxton sits, the prices for Twin bats fall off the cliff, opening you up freely elsewhere. Gio Urshela ($2,400) and Max Kepler ($2,500) likely slot into the top four of this order, similar to Friday.
