This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Ten games come our way on Tuesday's main slate, with first pitches scattered between 7:07 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. EDT. It's a slate absolutely dominated by pitching, with Shohei Ohtani and Jacob deGrom leading the way, and in absolute smash spots against the Nationals and Royals. You certainly don't need me to tell you to use those aces where you can afford them, but there are also six pitchers priced in the $9k tier and seven more in the $8k tier who warrant attention, so there should be some serviceable options at a discount.
Pitching
Dustin May, LAD at SF ($9,500): In sorting through the $9k pitching, I was surprised to settle on May as my favorite upside play capable of matching the aces. Corbin Burnes at $9,700 and Pablo Lopez at $9,600 were eliminated due to matchups against teams that put the ball in play. Alek Manoah ($9,900) has a great matchup against a strikeout heavy Tigers lineup, but he himself isn't a major K guy. That leaves May facing a Giants lineup with a league-high 29.3 percent K rate. The Dodger righty has been brilliant in his two starts, working six and seven innings. If he can show that longevity here and generate whiffs, he'll deliver plenty of fantasy points.
Lance Lynn, CWS at MIN ($8,800): Personally, I'm not crushing on many of the $8k arms. It's a tier where we need more stability that these options seem to present. So, ask yourself who is the most likely to provide 30 FDP, or nearly a 3.5x return? I find Lynn to be that choice solely based on matchup. The Twins are striking out at a 23.1 percent rate, middle of the pack thus far, but have only a .289 wOBA and 83 wRC+ to date. Lynn was reportedly not fully healthy in his last start, so we're looking for a similar line to his opening outing. I will leave the caveat that the veteran righty allowed five homers and 15 runs to the Twins last year across just 15.0 innings.
Luis Cessa, CIN at ATL ($6,700): There isn't a clear punt pitcher on this slate given how incredibly top heavy it is. I don't see much difference between any of the sub $8k arms. All are either unproven talents against good offenses, or known lesser commodities capable of flashing but who are inconsistent. As such, I'd recommend going as low as you feel comfortable if you're trying to stack offenses. Atlanta has gone from an elite offensive unit to very mediocre after their top three or four batters in just a week due to injuries. Pair that with a 23.8 percent K rate (11th), and Cessa has potential to get through five frames with minimal damage.
Top Targets
We have dueling southpaws on the mound in Citi Field, which should give us the opportunity to target some positive splits against lefties. Pete Alonso ($3,800) leads that charge with a .372 wOBA, 145 wRC+ and .264 ISO against them since the start of 2022. Starling Marte ($3,500) is equally appealing at a slightly lower salary if he's in the lineup.
If you're not buying Cessa above, Matt Olson ($4,300) makes plenty of sense as a lineup anchor. He's taken eight walks over his last six games, boosting his floor, while also ranking fifth in the early going with 11 RBI and eighth with three homers.
Bargain Bats
As noted above, you'd like to think we can target Padres against lefty David Peterson, but they surprisingly don't hit lefties tremendously. Manny Machado ($3,400) is discounted due to an early season power drought, but he has a team-best .363 wOBA and 138 wRC+ against lefties since the start of last year. We can find some nice value in Nelson Cruz ($2,400), who will be in the lineup against Peterson and has a long track record of crushing lefties. Ha-Seong Kim ($2,400) also has nearly identical numbers to Machado, sitting at a .357 wOBA and 133 wRC+.
Reports were Kyle Wright's velocity was down in his one rehab start prior to Tuesday's activation,in which he allowed five runs and seven hits across six innings. Jonathan India ($3,400) has played his way out of a true bargain salary, but an adjustment in value hasn't similarly been made for Jake Fraley ($2,900). He's driven in nine in his last seven and has a .452 wOBA and 172 wRC+ against righties through 25 plate appearances.
There are a plethora of "name" players priced at $3,000 that haven't gotten off to great starts. Of those, Corey Seager ($3,000) is trending the best, posting four-straight double-digit FDP outings, and a matchup with Jordan Lyles shouldn't cause pause.
Stacks to Consider
Rockies vs. Miles Mikolas: C.J. Cron ($4,200), Kris Bryant ($3,600), Elehuris Montero ($3,000)
It almost feels like FanDuel is daring us to use as many Rockies as possible, as it's a very obvious matchup, yet they stink offensively and are priced that way. Mikolas has allowed 10 runs and 19 hits in his first 9.1 innings, and while it's possible he is a GPP pitching option when considering those games came against Toronto and Atlanta, we probably need to see it to believe it first. Cron has a massive .456 wOBA and .550 ISO against righties in the early going, but doesn't have a homer or RBI in six straight. Bryant has a decent .387 wOBA and will continue hitting in a run-producing spot, but his power seems completely gone at this point, capping his upside. Montero, meanwhile, has arguably been the Rockies' best hitter to date, which includes a .431 wOBA and 151 wRC+ against righties.
Blue Jays vs. Matt Manning: Vladimir Guerrero ($3,900), Bo Bichette ($3,900), Daulton Varsho ($3,400)
Manning battled against a stacked Astros lineup in his debut, but I'm skeptical he can repeat that performance against another loaded lineup in a favorable park. This stack is costly, but it gives us a traditional 2-3-4 core for the Blue Jays lineup. Guerrero and Bichette are both white hot, with Guerrero hitting safely in every game but one to date, having multiple hits in five straight while scoring eight times in that span. Bichette too has hits in all but one game and has posted double-digit FDP in four straight. Varsho meanwhile has started well against opposite-handed arms, posting a .408 wOBA and 167 wRC+.
