This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Wednesday sees the return of afternoon baseball with games starting at 1:05 p.m. EDT for an all-day slate. The main slate starts at the usual 7:05 p.m. EDT and features a healthy 11 contests. Unlike Tuesday, late-night baseball returns as well with four games on the west coast.
Pitchers
Chris Paddack, SD vs. TEX ($8,100): A bad outing last time out (minus-6 fantasy points) has dropped his salary almost $2,000, making Paddack an excellent value. Anyone can get lit up by the Dodgers in Los Angeles and Paddack has a much easier task at home tonight. He has a "career" .246 wOBA at home where his ERA is almost a full run lower than on the road (4.03 vs. 3.06). Besides the friendly environs, it's a solid matchup as the Rangers have the fourth-worst wOBA (.282) against right-handed pitching.
Jesus Luzardo, OAK vs. ARI ($7,300): Like Paddack, Luzardo is coming off a poor start and should be able to rebound at home against the Diamondbacks. He had been trending in the right direction with starts of 30 and 32 fantasy points in the previous two starts. Arizona has the seventh-lowest wOBA (.291) against left-handed pitching, and their .103 ISO is the lowest in baseball. Luzardo is still considered a great prospect who struck out over a batter per inning throughout his career in the minors.
Top Targets
Juan Soto, WAS at ATL ($4,800): Yes, the price has gotten rather inflated on Soto, but he's been very consistent over the last 10 games. He's scored over 20 fantasy points in eight of those contests, including two performances over 40 fantasy points. Kyle Wright is a good matchup too, as he's allowed four home runs over 17.2 innings in his young career.
Nolan Arenado, COL vs. HOU ($4,200): The Rockies are at home facing a lefty, so Arenado and Trevor Story ($4,400) are definitely in play. It's possible to use the pair of Rockies along with Paddack and Soto and still have an average of $2,680 per player for the rest of the lineup.
Francisco Lindor, CLE at PIT ($3,500): Both Lindor and Jose Ramirez ($4,000) are in play against lefty Steven Brault. Lindor has a career .364 wOBA against southpaws while Ramirez's sits at .348. Brault is an excellent matchup for the pair as evidenced by his career .352 wOBA against right-handed batters.
Nelson Cruz, MIN vs. MIL ($4,200): Cruz faces lefty Brett Anderson so he once again is very viable. To further help his case, Cruz has four career home runs against Anderson in only 23 at-bats. Don't be surprised if Anderson tries to pitch around Cruz and ends up walking him multiple times.
Best Values
Tommy La Stella, LAA at SF ($2,300): La Stella has been hitting leadoff for the Angels and is averaging double-digit fantasy points per game this season. He comes into this game with a hot bat, hitting home runs in each of his last two games. Johnny Cueto (who still has a year left on a six-year, $130 million contract), is a decent matchup as a pitcher on the wrong side of 34 who has a 6.20 xFIP in a short sample against left-handed batters this season.
Ryan Braun, MIL at MIN ($2,400): Braun will face off against Rich Hill, which normally wouldn't be a great matchup. However, this is Hill's first game back from the injured list and he likely won't last long into this game. Braun had a .384 wOBA last season against left-handed pitching and he should be hitting towards the top of the lineup.
Stacks To Consider
Indians at Steven Brault: Ramirez, Lindor, Franmil Reyes ($2,800), Carlos Santana ($2,800)
Reyes has a career .390 wOBA against lefties so he could have been listed in the "Best Values" category. He's capable of a multi-home run game, as is Santana, who has a career .362 against southpaws. This could be the sneaky stack to deploy while everyone eyes the game in Colorado.
Astros at Ryan Castellani: Alex Bregman ($4,300), Carlos Correa ($3,600), Kyle Tucker ($3,300), Josh Reddick ($3,100)
Normally it's grabbing the low-hanging fruit to roster players in a Coors game. This is an especially good spot, however, as Castellani isn't considered a top prospect and his 1.04 ERA is due for some obvious regression. Both Reddick and Tucker also get the platoon advantage at altitude.
