I can't believe we have less than three weeks remaining in the regular season. This is one of the most bizarre periods to play DFS because teams have wildly different priorities. We have a mixture of elite teams trying to get players ready for the postseason and crappy squads giving their young players more opportunities. It can be beneficial for us as DFS players, but it also makes things tricky from a pitching standpoint. With that in mind, we only have one pitcher we trust on this slate, so let's get started by discussing our favorite pitcher on this slate!
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Pitching
Bryan Woo, SEA (vs. STL) $10,200
With so many question marks on a slate like this, Woo is one of the few "guarantees" out there. This righty has completed at least five innings in all 27 starts while scoring at least 10 DK points in 25 of those. That floor is backed by an incredible 3.02 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 9.0 K/9 rate, with Woo posting a 2.35 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 9.2 K/9 rate at home this season. A matchup with St. Louis is far from scary, too, with the Cardinals ranked 23rd in xwOBA and 24th in OPS. That's why Woo enters this matchup as a -225 favorite, with St. Louis also missing many of their best bats (Willson Contreras/Nolan Arenado/Alec Burleson/Brendan Donovan).
Whoever starts for the Dodgers is a great play against a 29th-ranked Rockies lineup, likely entering that matchup as a -300 home favorite.
Top Targets
Julio Rodriguez, SEA (vs. Miles Mikolas) $5,300
To say Rodriguez is hot would be a dramatic understatement. This superstar always gets rolling in the second half, tallying a .305 AVG, .645 SLG and .992 OPS across his last 50 outings. He also has 19 homers and 10 steals in that span, making him a Top 3 player in DFS during that superb stretch. Our favorite part about this is that he gets a matchup with Mikolas, maintaining a 5.14 ERA and 1.30 WHIP over the last two years. A Seattle stack seems profitable after their 18-run outburst on Sunday, with Cal Raleigh ($6,300), Randy Arozarena ($4,900) and Josh Naylor ($4,700) all in play.
Mookie Betts, LAD (vs. Chase Dollander) $4,300
There's no doubt that Betts is having one of the worst years of his career, but he's quietly going off over this final month. The former MVP has two homers and a triple over his last four fixtures while posting a .395 OBP and .886 OPS across his last 29 outings. Those are the numbers we've become accustomed to, but Betts is still being priced like the guy who struggled throughout the first half. A matchup with the Rockies should keep Mookie rolling because they rank last in ERA and WHIP. We'll talk about that more in the stacks section!
Bargain Bats
Matt Wallner, MIN (vs. Caden Dana) $3,600
Wallner's season-long numbers are nothing special, but his sensational splits make him a stupendous option in this spot. Let's start with his splits, with Wallner sporting a .362 OBP and .889 OPS against right-handers over the last three years. That's the production you'd expect from a $5K player, but an IL stint and a recent slump have lowered Wallner way too far. Facing a rookie who's only made four career starts is the icing on the cake, with Dana registering a 7.17 career ERA and 1.69 WHIP.
Ian Happ, CHC (vs. Bryce Elder) $3,600
The Cubs are one of our favorite options on this slate, so let's use one of their most reliable bats. Happ has a .343 career OBP and .789 OPS, but he's always been better against right-handers. In fact, Happ has a .360 OBP and .803 OPS against them since 2023. That's awesome when considering Happ's recent form, tallying a .458 OBP and 1.208 OPS across his last 11 outings. The best part is a matchup with Elder, and we'll talk about that in the next section!
Stacks to Consider
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Colorado Rockies (Dollander): Shohei Ohtani ($6,500), Freddie Freeman ($4,800), Teoscar Hernandez ($4,300), Betts ($4,300)
Using the Dodgers against the Rockies feels like a cheat code. This is a top-three offense facing a pitching staff that ranks last in ERA and WHIP. Dollander hasn't done much to help those atrocious averages, amassing a 6.77 ERA and 1.60 WHIP in his debut season. He's also struggled mightily in his two matchups with LA, totaling a 9.64 ERA and 1.71 WHIP.
Betts is the best value on the Dodgers, but Ohtani is the best option on this slate. He homered twice on Sunday and has a .417 OBP and 1.109 OPS against righties over the last three years. Freeman posts similar splits, generating a .397 OBP and .913 OPS against them in that same span. Hernandez doesn't have the platoon advantage against Dollander, but he's too cheap while hitting in the heart of this daunting Dodgers lineup.
Chicago Cubs at Atlanta (Elder): Pete Crow-Armstrong ($4,500), Michael Busch ($4,400), Dansby Swanson ($3,800), Happ ($3,600)
The Cubs can be difficult to figure out right now with their injuries and recent struggles, but they're still one of the best choices in a spot like this. Anyone against Elder is an excellent option, with the right-hander producing a 5.54 ERA and 1.43 WHIP. That's scary since Chicago is projected to score five runs here, ranked seventh in runs scored.
PCA has fallen off a cliff in the second half, but seeing him at $4,500 is difficult to overlook. Crow-Armstrong is on his way to a 30-30 season while accruing a .284 AVG and .871 OPS against righties this year. Busch is expected to hit leadoff, accumulating a .878 OPS with the platoon advantage in his favor. Swanson is one of the few hot hitters in this lineup, amassing a 1.057 OPS across his last nine outings. We also like Kyle Tucker ($5,800) if he's able to suit up.
