This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Coming out of the All-Star break, we've got a really small slate of games today, three early and three late. In a twist, only the three early games are on the main slate. Let's take a look at the talent in this limited player pool.
Pitching
With only six starting pitchers to choose from, it seems like a fair strategy to start by eliminating pitchers you don't want to use. Cristian Javier, Jameson Taillon, and Zach Logue all seem to have some type of red flag attached to them. Both Javier and Taillon have tough matchups and both have had multiple recent poor outings. Logue has had only one good start in seven outings, and while it came against the Tigers, Detroit should fare much better this time around having already seen him. Using a good chunk of your salary cap for Pablo Lopez ($10,000) seems like the safest option for cash formats, given success at home this season. He has a 2.38 ERA supported by a 0.98 WHIP in Miami and is striking out a batter per inning. The Rangers also sit in the bottom half of the league for both wOBA (.304) and strikeout percentage (23.3 percent) against right-handed pitching. If you're looking to pivot from Lopez, Tarik Skubal ($8,300) and Jon Gray ($9,000) seem viable, with Gray being the safer option given his recent track record. Skubal faces an Oakland team with the third-worst wOBA against lefties (.284) while Gray faces a Marlins team which is league average against right-handed pitching with a .308 wOBA and a 22.5 strikeout percentage.
Top Targets
I want to go with Yordan Alvarez here, who should be activated for today's doubleheader, but I think Kyle Tucker ($3,900) is the safer way to go. Tucker has gone 3-for-5 against Taillon in a small sample with one of those hits being a home run. He had a .410 wOBA in the month of June after a slow start and has a career .362 wOBA against right-handed pitching.
It feels funny to suggest him but on a small slate with the numbers backing him, I like Ramon Laureano ($3,200). He has a .410 wOBA against left-handed pitching and was hot heading into the break with at least 18.7 fantasy points in four of his last six games.
Bargain Bats
Sticking with Oakland, Chad Pinder ($2,200) should be hitting cleanup, and similar to Laureano was hitting well before getting the last few days off. He had fantasy games of 18.7, 9.2, 32.4 and 25.7 before the break and has always hit southpaws well. For his career, Pinder has a .333 wOBA at home and his position in the lineup should provide opportunities for RBI.
Miguel Cabrera ($2,200) is on the wrong side of 39 but he continues to hit left-handed pitching well as he's done his whole career. His wOBA this season is .350 against lefties. At 26, Logue isn't considered a prospect and had a 5.17 ERA and 1.74 WHIP at Triple-A this season.
Stacks To Consider
Astros vs. Yankees (Taillon): Alvarez ($4,400), Jose Altuve ($4,000), Tucker ($3,900), Alex Bregman ($3,400)
Everyone listed here has a home run against Taillon in their career except Altuve, who has gone 4-for-9 against him. These four have collectively gone 11-for-27 (.407) against the righty and can be stacked in cash games given the limited options out there.
Tigers vs. A's (Logue): Javier Baez ($2,600), Cabrera ($2,200), Robbie Grossman ($2,200)
This would normally be a cap-saving stack, but the small slate doesn't feature many options on which to spend those savings. I think this is one of those nights where a lineup that comes in well under the salary cap could end up being the winner in a big GPP, though. Grossman has a .414 wOBA against lefties this season while Baez has a .394 wOBA and has always hit lefties well. This will be one of the few occasions this season I'll be recommending a Tigers stack.
