This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
A loaded 12-game slate awaits Tuesday evening. The Reds are without a listed pitcher, giving us 23 names to sort through on the bump. A massive seven of them are priced in five figures, with four more in the $9k tier. Only two games come in with an expected run total of 10 or greater, and only two more sit at 9.5, while three sit at the low mark of 7.5. Pitching certainly seems like the spot to begin our builds. Clayton Kershaw and Shane Bieber are the top two options, with their plus matchups making them preferred choices if you can afford it. I'll omit them below and see if we can find some lower-salaried arms to combat them.
Pitching
Zack Wheeler, PHI at SF ($9,400): Wheeler is rounding into form, posting at least 43 FDP in three of his last four starts and striking out at least seven in each of those outings. San Francisco is a difficult team to get a handle on. They've been able to score runs against righties, but it's with just a .336 wOBA and 112 wRC+. More importantly for Wheeler, they strike out 25.2 percent of the time. That seems to give Wheeler a high enough ceiling at a discount compared to the top hurlers.
Seth Lugo, SD vs. KC ($9,000): While I'm not buying that Lugo's success to date is sustainable all season, he's poised for another solid outing. He's posted five quality starts in seven opportunities, going for at least 31 FDP in all of those with a 49 FDP ceiling. His floor is lower than Wheeler's, but this matchup profiles more favorably. Kansas City sits 28th out of 30 teams with a .288 wOBA against righties, adding just a 78 wRC+ and 24.7 percent K rate.
Jordan Montgomery, STL vs. MIL ($8,600): Montgomery is coming off one of his worst outings of the year, which has dropped his salary and created a buying opportunity. Milwaukee's offense is the worst in the league statistically against lefties, bringing a dreadful .275 wOBA, 70 wRC+ and .130 ISO while striking out a massive 31.0 percent of the time. The Cardinals are also surging, winning seven of their last eight, giving Montgomery further win potential here. He faced the Brewers back on April 8 and earned a whopping 58 FDP, striking out nine across seven shutout innings.
Top Targets
Atlanta southpaw Jared Shuster hasn't shown much in his major-league opportunies, allowing an 8.31 ERA and 8.02 xFIP while walking a massive 9.4 per nine innings. He may not stick around long Tuesday, so we don't need to strictly look for elite splits against lefties in the Ranger lineup. That's ideal, because Marcus Semien ($4,400) doesn't have those numbers presently but offers a nice floor with upside potential. Jonah Heim ($3,800) meanwhile has a 13-game hitting streak, and could offer a different way to get a piece of this offense. I like stacking this lineup for GPPs, but the top names are a tad pricey.
With so many bargains listed below, sprinkling in some expensive bats could end up being a contrarian play. One high-priced name that doesn't belong based on name recognition is Christopher Morel ($4,000). You'd be paying for a hot streak, as he's hit safely and scored in all six games since being inserted into the lineup while homering four times, but it could pay off with a low usage rate.
Bargain Bats
Nolan Arenado ($3,000) is going to be wildly popular, having homered in four straight games, but his salary hasn't risen to its usual midseason levels yet. He's got 11 hits and 12 RBI over his last six and is a solid 9-for-25 (.360) in his career off Brewers starter Wade Miley with five walks. 12 FDP works just fine here.
Jose Ramirez ($3,300) is simply priced too low, even given his season-long mediocrity. He has a team-best .387 wOBA and 149 wRC+ off righties, and is 11-for-32 (.344) in his career with four homers and a 1.214 OPS off struggling White Sox starter Lance Lynn. The veteran righty has a 7.51 ERA and 5.31 FIP, and is allowing lefties to post a .466 wOBA and 1.109 OPS.
The ball was flying out of Globe Life Field on Monday, when Atlanta hit five home runs. Austin Riley ($2,900) got one of those and quietly has six hits over his last five games while posting an exit velocity of 105 mph-plus on three fly balls last night, with his homer going to right center. He looks to be elevating more balls of late, and could be poised to break out.
Seattle doesn't have any plus career splits against righties on its roster, but the M's also don't have a bat priced north of Julio Rodriguez at $3,500. Boston's Nick Pivetta has allowed 23 runs across his last five starts, spanning 24.2 innings, making this a nice offense to target. Jarred Kelenic ($3,100), Cal Raleigh ($2,900) and J.P. Crawford ($2,900) give us left-handed options against Pivetta's .396 wOBA allowed.
Matt McLain ($2,000) enjoyed a fine big league debut, going 1-for-4 with a double, a walk and two runs scored. It's rare to find a viable minimum-salaried option, especially one playing in Coors Field that will likely slot in near the top of the order, making him essentially a free square.
Stacks to Consider
Diamondbacks vs. Kyle Muller: Christian Walker ($3,500), Lourdes Gurriel ($3,200), Ketel Marte ($3,100)
Muller comes in with a 7.34 ERA (5.75 FIP), and he's been equally generous to righties and lefties, allowing a .395 wOBA and .919 OPS to the former and .419/.974 to the latter. That opens up the entire Diamondbacks lineup, so you can feel free to get creative, particularly in GPPs to differentiate what will likely be a very popular stack. All three of these options have at least a .374 wOBA and 134 wRC+ off lefties to date. Walker provides the thump with a .409 ISO and 1.077 OPS, while Gurriel seems to provide a stable floor, having hit safely in nine of his last 10. Gabriel Moreno ($2,600) has plus splits off lefties too, offering a cheaper option if he's in the lineup, though he and Walker together would tie up your 1B/UTL spots.
Padres vs. Brady Singer: Fernando Tatis ($3,700), Juan Soto ($3,500), Jake Cronenworth ($2,800)
Singer is coming off an encouraging outing against the White Sox but still sits with a 7.71 ERA and 5.02 FIP. He's been particularly vulnerable to lefties, allowing a .408 wOBA and .964 OPS. That has me targeting Soto individually, as he has a team-best .435 wOBA, 180 wRC+ and .286 ISO against righties. The Padres overall don't have favorable numbers against right-handers, with only three players being above league average. Cronenworth isn't one of those with a meager .293 wOBA and 85 wRC+, but he likely slots into the top portion of the order and gives another lefty to target Singer's struggles. Tatis, at a sub-$4k salary, gives this stack further upside atop the order. Xander Bogaerts ($3,100) can be a substitute for Tatis if you need to be more budget friendly, sitting with a .387 wOBA and 148 wRC+.
