This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Pitching
Sonny Gray, MIN vs. DET ($10,100): It's never a bad idea to pick on the Tigers given their .287 wOBA, against right-handed pitching, the lowest in the league. They also strike out 24.4 percent of the time, the sixth highest rate in the league. Gray has been spectacular at home sporting a 1.71 ERA along with a 1.05 WHIP. He's also has a 10.7 K/9IP rate at home, one of the more elite numbers among starting pitchers.
AJ Smith-Shawver, ATL vs. COL ($8,000): Smith-Shawver is one of the more economical options today given his upside and ability to create salary cap space. He's one of the better pitching prospects not only for Atlanta but over the entire landscape of rookie pitchers (he's ranked No. 31 overall according to our site). AJ has consistently struck out over a batter per inning in the minors and Colorado has only a .294 wOBA on the road against right-handed pitching, the seventh-lowest in baseball.
Top Targets
Ronald Acuna, ATL vs. COL ($4,600): It's not going out on a limb recommending Acuna but I think there's a potential for a 30-plus fantasy point game out of him tonight. He's gone 3-for-8 against Kyle Freeland with a home run and oddly Freeland has pitched worse on the road (4.81 ERA) than he has at Coors. Acuna is locked in with home runs in two straight game (three out of five) and with 29 stolen bases already this season, he doesn't need power to have a significant fantasy game.
Jose Altuve, HOU vs. WAS ($3,900): Altuve has scored at least 15.2 fantasy points in four straight games and had a 1.086 OPS against southpaws last season. He's another player with a strong speed/power combination and his eligibility at second base allows him to qualify at a positional that typically has positional scarcity. MacKenzie Gore has allowed 11 home runs this season (69 innings) and that includes home runs in five straight games.
Bargain Bats
Austin Riley, ATL vs COL ($3,000): While I try to keep this spot below the $3,000 mark, it's too tempting to pass on talking about Riley. He has a small sample against Freeland (2-for-3) those hits were a triple and a home run. Riley had a .964 OPS against lefties last season (1.135 at home) and I don't mind using him and Acuna in cash games despite being in the same lineup.
Nelson Cruz, SD vs. CLE ($2,500): Cruz has historically hit lefties well and will get Logan Allen at home tonight. He went 5-for-16 for Oklahoma City over four rehab games and two of those hits were a home run and a double. Against a lefty he should be starting and hitting in the middle of the lineup and homered in a pinch-hit role last night for Matt Carpenter.
Stacks To Consider
Atlanta vs. Rockies (Freeland): Acuna, Sean Murphy ($3,700), Ozzie Albies ($3,200), Riley
This should be one of the more popular stacks tonight given the limited number of games and the amount of elite pitchers toeing the rubber. Atlanta is projected to score around six runs (-250 favorite in a game with an over/under of 9 runs) and Albies has a 1.121 OPS against lefties this season. While Murphy has yet to face Freeland he also has good numbers against southpaws with a .975 OPS this season.
Padres vs. Guardians (Allen): Fernando Tatis ($4,500), Gary Sanchez ($3,100), Manny Machado ($2,900) Cruz
Machado easily could have made the "Bargain Bats" section today and he's one of the better values for tonight's slate. Tatis has homered in two straight games and he could have easily have made the "Top Targets" section. Sanchez appears to be in the middle of a bounce-back season (six home runs in only 61 plate appearances).
