This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
It doesn't feel like baseball weather in some of the country (here in Detroit we got a couple inches of snow the other day), but baseball is still happening. Some of the Wednesday action is early in the day, leaving us with 10 games starting at 6:07 p.m. EDT or later, thanks to the Athletics-Orioles game being moved up a few hours. Here are my DFS recommendations taken from those 14 teams.
Pitching
Carlos Rodon, SF at NYM ($10,800): Rodon has been impeccable to start his first season with the Giants. He's allowed only one run in both of his starts, and he's already struck out 21 batters across 12 innings. Rodon has long had believers in him, and their faith is paying off. Meanwhile, the Mets ranked 27th in runs scored last year, and while they will be better this year it's hard to jump from that point up to the top half of the majors.
Logan Gilbert, SEA vs. TEX ($9,500): Gilbert had a 4.68 ERA as a rookie, but a 3.72 FIP. This year, he's allowed only a single run across 10 innings. Offseason additions will boost the Rangers' offensive output and they won't finish 28th in runs scored again, but even so, Gilbert looks good at home Wednesday.
Erick Fedde, WAS vs. ARI ($8,300): Willing to take a risk to save some salary? Fedde has never had a good season in MLB. Through two starts this year though, he has a 3.40 FIP and has struck out 9.90 batters per nine innings. The Diamondbacks ranked 25th in runs scored last season, and they are on the road for this one.
Top Targets
Few batters are as formidable as Juan Soto ($4,100) at the plate against a righty. I don't care that Merrill Kelly hasn't allowed an earned run yet. He has a career 4.21 FIP and has allowed 1.30 home runs per nine innings as a big-league pitcher. Soto has a career 1.097 OPS versus righties since 2020 and has never had an OPS lower than .923 in a season.
Jose Berrios will likely turn things around, but through two starts he has an 11.81 ERA. In case something is wrong, it's time to try and take advantage before he figures it out. Not that Rafael Devers ($4,000) needs much help. In each of the last two full MLB seasons he's hit over 30 home runs and had over 100 RBI, and he's hit .292 over the last four seasons.
Bargain Bets
While he's off to a slow start, Whit Merrifield ($2,700) is a guy who gets hits and then steals bases. He's a career .290 hitter who has stolen 40 bases twice in his career. Meanwhile, since 2020 Chris Paddack has allowed righties to hit .304 against him. This is a contact hitter versus a guy who allows a lot of contact. It's clear who has the advantage.
The Athletics had a bad lineup to begin with, and now they are missing several expected starters and role players due to assorted reasons, including COVID-19. Seth Brown ($2,500) barely finished over the Mendoza line last year, but he slugged .480 and hit 20 homers in 111 games. Jordan Lyles is in his first season with the Orioles, and he brings with him a 5.21 ERA. He's not a strikeout pitcher, and all it takes is one swing from the lefty Brown to be a benefit to your DFS lineup.
Stacks to Consider
Blue Jays vs. Red Sox (Nick Pivetta): Vladimir Guerrero ($4,100), Bo Bichette ($3,300), Raimel Tapia ($2,500)
Pivetta has a 9.39 ERA to start the season. Manager Alex Cora has chalked it up to mechanics, but the fact is he's a pitcher with a career 5.22 ERA. Even at his baseline level of performance he's a below-average pitcher. "Below average" is definitely not how you would describe the Toronto lineup, though.
I'm excited about the prospect of having a power hitter like Guerrero in a matchup like this. He hit 48 home runs last season and has five to start this campaign. Vladito has also slugged .522 in his career. Bichette is off to a slow start but I trust in him and consider him a buy-low option. His career slash line is .298/.340/.498 and he's only 24. It's not like he's lost a step and probably hasn't forgotten how to hit. I grabbed Tapia because he's a lefty and he doesn't command a high salary. He hit .282 over the previous three seasons and stole 20 bases last year.
Twins vs. Royals (Daniel Lynch): Carlos Correa ($3,000), Jorge Polanco ($3,100), Gio Urshela ($2,700)
As a rookie, Lynch had a 5.69 ERA. This year, in his first start he allowed three home runs in five innings. The Twins are a little lefty heavy, but this stack features two righties and a switch hitter, so it's all good.
Slow start or not, there's a reason why Correa was considered the best available free agent this offseason by many people. He had a .851 OPS and hit 26 home runs last year. Correa is well off his career .313 BABIP, so I expect his luck to turn around. Polanco hit 33 home runs and stole 11 bases last year and he likes to face lefties on the road. Since 2020 he has a .796 OPS versus left-handed pitchers and a .855 OPS in away games. Urshela turned his career around as a Yankee, posting a .292/.335/.480 slash line in his three seasons there. He's off to a decent start as a Twin, having slashed .290/.333/.387.
Mariners vs. Rangers (Dane Dunning): Ty France ($3,300), Adam Frazier ($3,000), J.P. Crawford ($2,800)
The Rangers were enthused about getting Dunning in a trade from the White Sox, but last year he only managed a 4.51 ERA in 117.2 innings. This year? He's got a 5.19 ERA across 8.2 innings and has allowed a home run in both of his starts. You could do an all-lefty stack if you swapped France out for Jesse Winker ($2,700), but I'm going with two lefties and France personally.
After his rookie season, France clearly figured out how to hit. Over the last three seasons he's slashed .293/.369/.452 and he already has two home runs this year. Frazier is leading off for the Mariners, and he hit .305 last year. While he doesn't hit for power, getting on base and scoring runs has fantasy value. Crawford had a career-best .273 batting average last year, and this season he's off to a hot start with a .343/.477/.486 slash line.
