This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
We blinked and we reached the halfway point of the MLB season. Don't lose your energy for DFS baseball, though! There are eight games on the slate here, the first of which starts at 1:35 p.m. EDT. Here are a few suggestions for you to consider.
Pitching
Eric Lauer, MIL vs. PIT ($10,100): Lauer has been struggling on the road, but at home it's a different story. In his own ballpark the lefty has a 2.13 ERA, and last year he had a 3.12 ERA at home. The Pirates are 28th in runs scored, and also have a sub-.300 OBP.
Taijuan Walker, NYM vs. MIA ($9,200): With injuries to Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom, the Mets have needed the season Walker is having. He doesn't just have a 2.86 ERA, but an 1.86 ERA at home. The Marlins are definitely better than there were last season offensively, but they are still below average in runs scored.
Michael Kopech, CWS vs. DET ($8,200): A few rough starts have lifted Kopech's ERA to 3.34, but that speaks to how well he was pitching before that. This is the exact matchup he needs to get his numbers back on track. The Tigers are 29th in runs scored and team OPS.
Top Targets
There are few hitters more reliable than Jose Ramirez ($3,900). If he's healthy, he's basically a lock for at least a 20-20 season while hitting around .280 or so. Indeed, he already has 17 home runs and 12 stolen bases. Zack Greinke's return to Kansas City as a 38-year-old pitcher has not been a storybook moment, as he has a 4.85 ERA.
No Coors Field necessary for Nolan Arenado ($3,700) to soar at the plate. That's especially true against lefties. This year he has a .993 OPS against southpaws, and last year he had a .931 OPS in those matchups after joining the Cardinals. Cristopher Sanchez is a lefty, and he's got a career 4.05 ERA even though he's mostly pitched out of the bullpen.
Bargain Bats
Though Willy Adames ($3,300) is not hitting for average or getting on base, he has 17 home runs in 63 games. Since 2020 he has an .818 OPS against lefties to boot. Jose Quintana has a 3.33 ERA, but he hasn't posted an ERA under 4.03 since 2016. Additionally, since 2020 righties have hit .291 against him.
While Bobby Witt ($3,200) has plenty of room for improvement, as a rookie he has notched 12 home runs and 13 stolen bases. Additionally, he has strong reverse splits, as he has a .773 OPS against righties. Zach Plesac is a righty, and he has a career 4.45 FIP.
Stacks to Consider
Braves vs. Nationals (Paolo Espino): Dansby Swanson ($3,800), Matt Olson ($3,800), Marcell Ozuna ($3,400)
Espino has a 3.33 ERA, but a 4.39 FIP. Additionally, he started the year in the bullpen. Across his last five outings, since he became a starter, he has a 4.91 ERA. Espino is a different pitcher out of the rotation, and that bodes well for the Braves.
Swanson is hitting .299 with 14 home runs and 14 stolen bases. On top of that he has a .961 OPS at home. Olson has a career .854 OPS and has two 30-homer seasons to his name. He also has an .867 OPS against righties. Ozuna doesn't make frequent contact, but he hits a lot of homers when he does. That's especially against righties. Since 2020 he's slugged .487 against righties, and 16 of his 17 homers this year have come in those matchups.
Nationals at Braves (Ian Anderson): Juan Soto ($4,000), Josh Bell ($3,500), Lane Thomas ($2,400)
I'm flipping this matchup around. Anderson was decent last year, as he had a 3.58 ERA. This year? Not so much. Anderson has a 5.09 ERA. He doesn't allow a ton of home runs, but clearly opponents are roughly him up anyway.
Soto's numbers have not been elite, which they normally are. Blame that on his drop against lefties. The southpaw has a .950 OPS against righties even in this down campaign. Bell has been roughing up many opposing pitchers this year. He's slashed .308/.389/.497 with 12 home runs. That comes after he had 27 homers in 2021, his first year as a National. Thomas has been struggling at home, but he has an .854 OPS on the road. I also wanted to end with a righty, as Anderson has let righties hit .317 against him.
White Sox vs. Tigers (Drew Hutchison): Luis Robert ($3,700), Andrew Vaughn ($3,200), Gavin Sheets ($2,300)
Hutchison has a career 4.93 ERA, even though he's spent a lot of time in the bullpen. He's primarily been a relief pitcher since returning to MLB in 2021 after a couple years away. He has a 4.30 ERA this year, and he's struck out a mere 5.83 batters per nine innings. It's not too difficult for a stack to excel in this matchup.
Robert is a career .292 hitter, and on top of that he has 10 home runs and 11 stolen bases this year. In his sophomore season, Vaughn has slashed .296/.346/.453. He also has eight homers after hitting 15 as a rookie. The lefty Sheets has a .788 OPS against righties. Additionally, he's posted a .952 OPS at home in his career.
