This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
A 14-game slate awaits Tuesday, with only the Twins-Reds matinee omitted from the main slate. Five arms are priced in five figures, while three more are north of $9k, so there's no shortage of top pitching to choose from. That makes lineup construction and philosophy of paramount importance.
Pitching
Max Scherzer, WAS vs. PHI ($10,800): I'm looking to be different here. There's nothing wrong with options above Scherzer (other than the exorbitant prices), and given that he's coming off the IL, I assume there are questions on stamina, which should result in low usage. The Phillies' 25.2 percent K-rate is the target. Scherzer was in a great groove before going down and went for 57 FDP against Philly two starts ago.
Freddy Peralta, MIL at ARI ($9,500): Peralta is going to be the very popular pay-down option. It's just too perfect a matchup, with Arizona carrying a league worst .288 wOBA and 80 wRC+ to pair with a .129 ISO and 24.5 percent K-rate. We are often greeted with these too-obvious matchups that fail to live up to expectations, but Peralta has allowed two runs or less in eight straight and posed 56 FDP against the D'backs three starts prior.
Charlie Morton, ATL at NYM ($8,300): Every time I target Morton, he flops, and when I go against him, he shines, so tread lightly. Nonetheless he's been pretty darn solid of late, going for 30 FDP or better in five of his last six, and 43 or more in three of those. The Mets' offense isn't one to fear, posting only a .302 wOBA and .144 ISO against righties. Atlanta is coming off consecutive doubleheaders, so it's reasonable to assume they'll let Morton work as long as he can.
Chris Flexen, SEA vs. COL ($6,900): Flexen has turned in three quality starts in his last four outings, twice allowing no runs while fanning at least six. We know the Rockies are awful outside of Coors Field, and a .295 wOBA and .140 ISO against righties overall should play favorably for Flexen at this number.
Top Targets
Shohei Ohtani, LAA vs. SF ($4,400): Fade Ohtani at your own risk at this point. He's homered six times in as many games, bringing a .424 wOBA, 174 wRC+ and .364 ISO against righties into Tuesday with only an 11.7 percent soft contact rate. Giants' starter Anthony DeSclafani has been pretty good, lowering his homers allowed to 0.89 per nine after posting at least a 1.57 mark in each of the last three years, and while his .309 wOBA allowed to lefties certainly isn't targetable, it's considerably higher than the .199 he's allowing to righties.
Matt Olson, OAK at TEX ($4,000): Jordan Lyles has oddly been hit harder by same-handed bats, which prevents this from being a perfect matchup. Olson has a terrific .408 wOBA and .290 ISO, but his low 12.2 percent strikeout rate keeps his opportunities and floor stable. He's a name we'd take for HRs only two years ago, but not so much anymore.
Starling Marte, MIA vs. TOR ($3,800): Not a name we'd often consider as a top target in 2021, but Marte has been pretty darn good this season. He'll bring a .408 wOBA and 166 wRC+ into a plus matchup against Ross Stripling on Tuesday. Stripling is allowing a .364 wOBA to righties (against .276 to lefties) and carries a 5.16 road ERA into the contest, something that's supported by a 4.93 FIP. He's allowing 2.06 HR/9 to righties and 1.99 on the road, so I don't hate the idea of pairing Marte with Jesus Aguilar ($2,500) for a mini stack.
Value Bats
J.P. Crawford, SEA vs. COL ($2,700): It's irresponsible to not have at least a piece of the offense facing Rockies starter Kyle Freeman, who has allowed 22 runs across 20.2 innings. Enter Crawford, who has a team-leading .366 wOBA against lefties to date. Admittedly, that's not a huge number, but pair it with an eight-game hitting streak that's featured two homers and 13 total hits out of the leadoff spot, and there's plenty of appeal.
Wander Franco, TB vs. BOS ($2,500): Simply put, why the heck not? The game's top prospect isn't priced up for his debut, and we know he isn't coming up to be a spectator. Sox starter Eduardo Rodriguez is allowing a .360 wOBA to righties, a number that rises to .380 on the road, where he's allowed five homers in 35.1 innings. Franco won't need to do much at this number to justify his promotion, or his spot on your roster.
Andrew Vaughn, CWS at PIT ($2,200): There are a lot of White Sox bats that present favorably against lefty Tyler Anderson, but they all seem to be fading, hence me going low and not stacking. Vaughn has a ridiculous .486 wOBA, .387 ISO and 216 wRC+ against lefties, all team highs. He's got eight hits in his last six, which works incredibly well at this near-minimum salary.
Stacks to Consider
Dodgers vs. Blake Snell: Justin Turner ($3,500), Chris Taylor ($3,200), Albert Pujols ($2,900)
Thanks to injuries, we can get some nice pieces from the Dodger lineup for a discount. Snell looks broken, surrendering 22 runs over his last five starts spanning 22.0 innings, and that includes a surprise seven inning shutout performance against the Mets. He's allowing a .384 wOBA to righties, and while he's admittedly been better at home, it's hard to not like this spot. Turner's .384 wOBA and .263 ISO against lefties are the lowest of this trio. Pujols is an obvious power reach, but he's posted a .500 wOBA, 206 wRC+ and .405 ISO against lefties since joining the team.
Astros vs. Jorge Lopez: Carlos Correa ($3,900), Yordan Alvarez ($3,800), Michael Brantley ($3,400)
The top of the Astros lineup is white hot, so you can absolutely build this stack as you see fit, and Jose Altuve ($4,100) also makes a ton of sense if you can afford him. Brantley is surprisingly my anchor, as he's as hot as anyone despite being the cheapest of the trio, and he has a team-leading .448 wOBA and 195 wRC+ against righties. Further making this stack customizable to your budget and positional needs when building a lineup are Lopez' splits, as he's been lit up by righties at home, but lefties on the road. He's only allowing a 30.2 percent fly ball rate, but 22.4 percent of those leave the yard. Someone from this lineup is going deep tonight.
