This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Pitching
Spencer Strider, ATL vs. ARI ($11,400): Here's your "play it safe" pitcher on the slate. Outside of 12 and 24 point performances, he's scored at least 33 fantasy points in his other 17 starts this season. His over/under for strikeouts is 8.5 (over -104) which is the best mark among fantasy pitchers today. While this isn't the greatest matchup, it doesn't seem wise to stray away from using Strider in your cash games today.
Michael Kopech, CWS ($8,000): Kopech has been up and down all season and most recently, he's been down. He's issued 20 walks over his last four starts and is coming off his worst start of the season, a -10-point performance. However, this will all make him an extremely unpopular play and it's likely he'll be below five percent rostered in almost all formats, giving him contrarian appeal with upside. The Mets are league average against right-handed pitchers with a .319 wOBA (15th in the league) and slugger Pete Alonso is 6-for-52 (.115) over the last three weeks. Kopech has 10 games of at least 33 fantasy points this season, and if he hit that mark Strider would need to score over 47 fantasy points to have the same relative value.
Top Targets
Luis Robert, CWS at NYM ($4,000): Robert hasn't had any hangover from the All-Star break and comes into the game with home runs in two of his last three contests and six RBI in his last four. He's crushed left-handed pitching this season with a 1.056 OPS and has done that consistently over the last few years (1.054 OPS since 2021). He gets to face Jose Quintana, who is coming back from a rib injury and is on the wrong side of 34 years old. Quintana has given up seven earned runs in his last two rehab starts (seven innings), making this a great matchup for Roberts.
Austin Riley, ATL vs. ARI ($3,400): Juan Soto ($3,700) has been seeing the ball well (three walks yesterday, two home runs since the ASB) and deserves an honorable mention here. However, Riley checks a lot of boxes, the first being that he comes into the game on a tear with three home runs in his last two contests. He also has a good history against Zac Gallen in a small sample, going 3-for-7 with a home run. Atlanta has an expected run total of over five in this game, suggesting another good performance for Riley out of the three spot.
Bargain Bats
Kerry Carpenter, DET at KC ($2,900): Carpenter appears to be in the middle of a breakout season and the Tigers have wisely adjusted their lineup and have been using him in the cleanup spot. He's reached base safely in every game since the All-Star break and has scored an average of 16.8 fantasy points in those six games. Zack Greinke (5.44 ERA) has allowed 18 home runs in only 92.2 innings this season and is making his first start off the IL with shoulder tendinitis. Honorable mention here to Eugenio Suarez ($2,900), who has homered in three straight.
Wilmer Flores, SFG at CIN ($2,700): Flores has enjoyed the hitter-friendly confines in Cincinnati and has score 54.1 and 30.7 fantasy points in two of his last three games. Flores has hit southpaws well throughout his career and sports a .951 OPS this season in that split. While Andrew Abbott has gotten off to a great start over his first eight big-league outings (2.45 ERA, 1.01 WHIP), he's allowed four home runs over his last two starts leading to eight earned runs over 10.1 innings.
Stacks To Consider
Atlanta vs. Diamondbacks (Gallen): Ronald Acuna ($4,800), Matt Olson ($4,300), Riley, Ozzie Albies ($3,900)
The hope here is fantasy owners shy away from the NL East leaders given the matchup against Gallen. However, these four have gone 10-for-30 (.333) with two home runs against the right-hander, who has a 5.11 ERA on the road this season. Albies is my favorite out of the group considering he's not as "splashy" of a name as the others, but quietly he's turning in a monster season (22 home runs, 66 RBI, 54 runs, seven stolen bases) after being hurt most of last year. This is an easy stack to fit in your lineup if you roster a pitcher like Kopech or even Michael Lorenzen ($8,300).
White Sox at Mets (Quintana): Robert, Eloy Jimenez ($3,000), Jake Burger ($2,900), Tim Anderson ($2,600)
Jimenez and Andrew Vaughn ($2,900) may or may not be in the lineup today, but the former is the preferred option if both can go. Anderson finally might be waking up, going 7-for-21 (.333) since the All-Star break, while Burger has a .950 OPS against left-handed pitching this season. Quintana will likely struggle in his first start of the season and it's unlikely he pitches past the fifth inning, meaning Chicago should face some second-tier Mets bullpen arms once he's out.
