This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
We have our typical Saturday schedule with only a few early matchups, followed by eight games starting at 4:05 p.m. EDT. That slate will be the focus in this article, which features excellent pitching at every salary point. There are also several positive hitting environments to choose from, making this an interesting set of games from a few different perspectives.
Pitchers
There are strong pitchers by name value atop the pitcher pool, though the matchups improve once we drop into the second tier. That leads us to Max Fried ($8,800). He has among the lowest strikeout rates of the day, but his matchup against Pittsburgh should create some upside as the lineup has struck out at a 25.5 percent clip against lefties this season.
Aaron Nola ($8,700) is valued in the same range and is another player who faces a favorable opponent. The Marlins list the lowest wOBA (.274) in the league in the last 30 days while striking out at the seventh-highest rate.
Tanner Bibee ($8,600) and Paul Skenes ($8,500) round out the tier and bring plenty of K upside. Bibee draws a matchup against the Royals while Skenes will battle Atlanta. I favor Bibee as a result.
Justin Steele ($7,600) is misvalued. The Brewers are a poor lineup against left-handed pitching and Steele has topped 20 DK points in four consecutive starts.
Going down to the final grouping, we can highlight Framber Valdez ($7,000). The Mets have turned things around at the plate of late, yet Valdez has tallied at least 22 DK points in three of his last five outings.
Top Hitters
Ketel Marte ($5,700) is a nice building block. He and the Diamondbacks will face lefty Hogan Harris. Marte has enjoyed a great season overall, but he's been particularly strong against lefties with a .446 wOBA and .380 ISO against this year.
Aaron Civale has started to show signs of improvement during his recent starts, though he's still conceded too many homers. The Nationals are a poor power-hitting team with the exception of CJ Abrams ($6,000).
Value Bats
Josh Lowe ($3,700) started the season slowly due to injuries, but his performance has picked up at the plate as he's averaged 11.1 DK points from his last 10 games. He's also moved up to second in the Rays' order. That combination makes Lowe a decent bargain.
Michael Busch ($4,200) is a bit more expensive than the typical value option, though he's now hitting second in the Cubs' lineup. Tobias Myers relies on getting outs on fly balls, so looking to some of Chicago's power bats could be a good way to hunt for home runs.
Stacks to Target
Phillies vs. Marlins (Roddery Munoz): Bryson Stott ($4,800), Trea Turner ($6,300), Alec Bohm ($5,600)
The Phillies are an obvious choice based on ballpark and matchup. Munoz has allowed multiple homers in five of his seven starts and at least four earned runs four times. Citizens Bank Ballpark hasn't played very hitter-friendly so far, but it's historically been a great place to score runs and that should be the case at higher temperatures. The thing that makes the stack trickier is that the Phillies just lost its two most potent hitters in Bryce Harper (hamstring) and Kyle Schwarber (groin). But they still boast enough at the top of the order to produce strong numbers.
Astros at Mets (Tylor Megill): Jose Altuve ($5,400), Alex Bregman ($4,500), Yordan Alvarez ($5,900)
Megill has struggled with surrendering walks and working deep into games. He's also allowed an 11.2 percent barrel rate, with only Munoz posting a worse numbers among Saturday's pitchers. That hasn't yet translated to many homers, yet the Astros have performed closer to their expectations of late by maintaining a .322 wOBA and .174 ISO.
