This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
A somewhat reduced 10-game slate is on tap Tuesday evening, as we've got two doubleheaders and six games going off before 7:05 p.m. EDT. There's no shortage of top-end pitching however, with four arms carrying salaries in five figures and four more in the $9,000 range, which is an area I think we need to live in given the lack of appealing cheaper options.
Pitching
I'm not sure we can find enough value bats to fit Jacob deGrom ($12,000) into our budget, but every effort should be made to do so. For stability, I think I prefer Yu Darvish ($10,400) the most of the four five-figure arms, but for some upside and lineup diversity, perhaps we give lefties Clayton Kershaw ($9,900) and/or Jordan Montgomery ($9,100) a look. Kershaw may lack innings upside, but the matchup is favorable as Arizona has a below-average 89 wRC+ while fanning 23.0 percent of the time. Montgomery presents even more favorably against Milwaukee, an offense he already has a 52 FDP outing against. The Brewers fan a whopping 26.0 percent of the time while posting an 86 wRC+ and .294 wOBA.
The choices seem to really drop off quickly after that. Michael Kopech ($8,200) is in poor form, allowing seven runs in his last 9.2 innings, but gets the Rockies outside of Coors Field on Tuesday. Atlanta's bats are in a funk as their West Coast trip wraps up, but there's a low floor with Jakob Junis ($7,200) if they wake up, and a low ceiling regardless. Perhaps we consider going all the way down to Cole Ragans ($6,400). He did give up three runs over five innings against the A's previously, but is expected to have a slightly higher pitch limit Tuesday. He only needs 19.2 FDP to return 3x value, and would offer plenty of offensive flexibility.
Top Targets
Attacking Kris Bubic on Tuesday seems like a must, yet stacking options are limited. He has a 5.80 home ERA (4.81 xFIP) but his results have been worse against lefties (.463 wOBA, 1.090 OPS) than righties (.331/.755), something the Twins don't have many of. As such, I'll happily use Carlos Correa ($3,800) and his 145 wRC+ against lefties and move on.
I'm struggling with Nathaniel Lowe ($3,600). He isn't a must use, nor is he a bargain. He has a .425 wOBA, 184 wRC+ and .230 ISO against lefties though, by far the best amongst Ranger regulars, and he's put up five multi-hit games in his last seven even though that resulted in only two double-digit FDP showings.
Bargain Bats
Giancarlo Stanton ($2,700) is priced far too low given his upside. He's homered in consecutive games and is 8-for-20 with three homers against Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta.
In a similar power chase, Matt Olson ($3,200) has seen his salary fall far enough where we can dream big. The aforementioned Junis is allowing a .350 wOBA to lefties against a .274 wOBA to righties.
Eloy Jimenez ($3,200) may be more must-use than anyone listed above. He has a .389 wOBA and 158 wRC+ against righties and is in a great groove, collecting 13 hits and three homers during his current six-game hitting streak.
Stack to Consider
Dodgers vs. Diamondbacks (Merrill Kelly): Trea Turner ($4,000), Mookie Betts ($3,900), Justin Turner ($3,400)
The Dodger lineup is a collective 59-for-161 (.366) with a 1.001 OPS against Kelly. Nine Dodgers have faced him at least 11 times, and seven of them are hitting at least .389 against him. There's truthfully no wrong answers here, and you can pick and choose pieces as your lineup construction dictates. Turner and Betts are emerging from what by their standards are slumps, and we can buy the dip at these salaries. Turner too is seeing the ball well right now, hitting safely in 18 of his last 20. Max Muncy ($2,500) is in play if you need to clear a little more cap space.
