This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Wednesday's DFS slate doesn't include the game at Coors Field or the game featuring the (annoyingly defiant) White Sox. Fret not, though. I have found some MLB DFS recommendations for you from the whopping six games on the docket. First pitch is at 6:35 p.m. EDT. Here are my picks:
Pitching
Bowden Francis, TOR at TEX ($10,600): Francis' performance after being moved back into the rotation has been a late-season revelation for the Blue Jays. Over his last seven starts he has an 1.50 ERA. The Rangers, meanwhile, are going to finish in the bottom 10 in runs scored more than likely, and the once-struggling Blue Jays are now comfortably ahead of the Rangers on that front.
Jose Quintana, NYM vs. WAS ($9,600): After a bad start against the Orioles, Quintana has only allowed one earned run over his last four starts. He's not exactly a strikeout machine, but he's keeping the opposition from scoring, and ultimately that's the name of the game. While Quintana has allowed 1.25 homers per nine innings this year, which is high for him, the Nationals are 29th in homers.
Landon Knack, LAD at MIA ($7,400): Knack's last start was rough, but he came into that with a 3.00 ERA in 11 appearances, which is solid for a rookie hurler only called upon due to injuries. He has a chance to rebound Wednesday, given that the Marlins are 29th in runs scored. At this salary, he's worth a shot.
Top Targets
In addition to picking his batting average up to .280, Gunnar Henderson ($4,000) is closing in on his first 40-homer season and first season with 20 stolen bases. His OPS versus righties and also at home are both over .900. Hayden Birdsong has a 10.74 K/9 rate, but also a 1.89 K/BB rate, and that doesn't happen unless you walk a ton of batters. That, plus his homer-prone nature, has yielded a 5.11 FIP.
Though he's been cold for a couple weeks, Jarren Duran ($3,800) has still tallied 21 homers, 32 stolen bases, and a whopping 45 doubles. The lefty has a .925 OPS versus righties, and he has also slugged .517 on the road. Righty Ryan Pepiot has a 3.97 ERA at home, and lefties have delivered more power against him.
Bargain Bats
Once again, Randy Arozarena ($3,300) has put together a 20-20 season. He's done that in all four full campaigns of his career. He also has an .858 OPS versus lefties since 2022. Nestor Cortes is a southpaw, and righties have hit .260 against him. Also, he has a 4.81 ERA on the road.
While J.T. Realmuto ($2,900) only has 12 homers and 17 doubles, that in only 91 games. He's really struggled at home the last two seasons, but this year he has an .837 OPS on the road, and a .951 OPS on the road last season. At home, Freddy Peralta has allowed 1.7 homers per nine innings. Notably, 16 of the 25 homers he's given up this season have been hit by righties, and that's in fewer at-bats. That's why I wanted to go with a right-handed Phillies player instead of one of the slugging southpaws.
Stacks to Consider
Tigers at Royals (Alec Marsh): Riley Greene, Kerry Carpenter, Matt Vierling
Marsh has been better in his sophomore season, but he still has a 4.52 ERA. His HR/9 rate has dropped down to 1.26, but his K/9 rate is also down to 8.60. In his career righties have hit .251 against him and lefties have hit .256, but last year lefties hit .280 against him so I went with two southpaws.
Greene's all-star season was temporarily derailed by injury, but he's gotten back in the groove, and he has an .889 OPS over the last three weeks. On top of that, he has an .886 OPS on the season against right-handed pitchers. Carpenter has slugged a whopping .575, though in only 78 games. When he connects, he clearly has a lot of power, but he rarely connects against lefties. Versus right-handed pitchers, though, he has a .984 OPS. Vierling has five triples, but also 16 home runs and 27 doubles. He's shown more power against his fellow righties, having slugged .448 in those matchups.
Mets vs. Nationals (DJ Herz): Pete Alonso, J.D. Martinez, Mark Vientos
Herz has pitched better recently in his rookie campaign, but he's also allowed 1.9 homers per nine innings on the road this season. Obviously, the latter informed this stack for me. He's a lefty, so I grabbed three right-handed Mets with power and I'm feeling good about it.
It's to Alonso's credit that he's hit 33 homers in 151 games and there is kind of a feeling of, "Oh, that's all?" He's hit 30 doubles for the first time since his rookie season, and that sort of speaks to just a slight downtick in his power. However, he has an .833 OPS against lefties, and also at home, so don't be surprised if he goes yard. Martinez's numbers aren't as impressive overall, but where he has succeeded is against lefties (.881 OPS) and at home (.846 OPS). Thus, this matchup will start out right up his alley. Were you aware than Vientos has batted .267 and hit 24 homers in 10 games? Or that he's slugged a whopping .594 at Citi Field? How about his .981 OPS against lefties, does that ring any bells? Well, now you know.
