This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.
Surprisingly, Yahoo leaves us with two options for Sunday contests. You can play a full slate of 15 games, but you have to have your lineup in by 10:10 a.m. ET. That's tricky, to be sure. Your other option, though, is a late-afternoon slate of…three games. Where's the fun in that? As such, I have recommendations for the full slate. Hey, in the mix there are a few recommendations from that three-game slate. No pitchers from that docket, granted, so, um, go with Tony Gonsolin ($37) if you miss the early call.
Pitching
Nathan Eovaldi, TEX at NYY ($47): Let's see, the Yankees are below average in runs scored, have a sub-.300 OBP as a team, and are without Aaron Judge. Yeah, they aren't exactly Murderers' Row right now. The one thing the Yankees have done well is hit homers, but Eovaldi has only allowed 0.98 home runs per nine innings in his career. This season he has a 2.37 ERA on the road as well.
Eury Perez, MIA vs. PIT ($46): Sure, Perez has a 3.36 FIP to go with his 1.54 ERA as a rookie, but a 3.36 FIP is not bad! An elite pitching prospect, the 20-year-old has lived up to the hype so far. The Pirates are below .500 and in the bottom 10 in terms of runs scored. When you remember how hot they started the season, you realize just how bad they have been since then.
Bailey Ober, MIN at DET ($45): As bad as the Athletics are offensively, I still won't slot Yusei Kikuchi into my lineup. Ober against the Tigers, though, is a better pitcher in a matchup almost as favorable. The Twins hurler has a 2.83 ERA, and if not for Oakland, Detroit was be the clear choice for the worst offense in MLB.
Top Targets
His home park has not been kind to him this season, but Mike Trout ($23) has a .933 OPS on the road, in line with his .911 OPS in away games since 2021. Not only is Trout on the road Sunday, he's at Coors Field. Even by the standards of Colorado pitchers, Austin Gomber is having a brutal campaign. In fact, at Coors he has a 9.40 ERA and has allowed 2.9 home runs per nine innings.
Having done his disciplinary riding of the pine, Wander Franco ($19) is back for the Rays. Maybe the time off will help the switch hitter get back on track, because he got to his .290 average, nine homers, and 24 stolen bases for a reason. In his career, Franco has a .912 OPS versus lefties. Daniel Lynch is a lefty with a career 5.20 FIP. Franco could face Lynch from the right side of the plate, but maybe he'll give it a shot hitting lefty. After all, the Royals pitcher allowed lefties to hit .308 against him last year, and .462 (in 15 plate appearances) this year.
Bargain Bats
With more at-bats against lefties, and more at-bats at home, Randal Grichuk ($18) should give his numbers a boost. Since 2021, Grichuk has an .525 slugging percentage against southpaws, and of course we know what Coors Field does for hitters. Tyler Anderson's first season as an Angel has been rough, as he has a 4.78 FIP. While he doesn't allow many home runs, righties have hit 20 doubles against the southpaw in 241 plate appearances. Coors is known for helping slugger, but it also helps doubles hitters as well.
I'm not going to stack Giants against Ryne Nelson, as he has a 3.41 ERA on the road, compared to a 7.09 ERA at home. Having said that, however you end up with a 4.63 FIP in 15 starts, it doesn't bode well. Joc Pederson ($18) has slugged over .500 against righties since joining the Giants, but he's also slugged over .500 at home for good measure.
Stacks to Consider
Dodgers vs. Astros (Hunter Brown): Mookie Betts ($20), J.D. Martinez ($18), Will Smith ($15)
Brown's rookie campaign has been thoroughly mediocre. He's posted a 3.78 ERA through 14 starts, though over his last seven starts his ERA is up to 4.66. Notably, though he is right handed, Brown has let righties hit .271 against him in his career, compared to lefties hitting .189 against him. Thus, I have three lefties in my stack.
Betts has a .353 OBP, which has helped him rack up 55 runs leading off for the Dodgers, but he's added 18 homers to add to that run total as well. Plus, he has a .917 OPS at home since 2021. Martinez has slowed down, but he's still slugged .560 with 16 homers. This year, his first with the Dodgers, he has a .902 OPS against righties. Smith is one of the best-hitting catchers out there, with a career .292/.407/.508 slash line. He has a .962 OPS at Dodger Stadium this season for good measure.
Diamondbacks at Giants (Anthony DeSclafani): Corbin Carroll ($23), Ketel Marte ($21), Pavin Smith ($10)
Led by a lefty who can effectively clear off shelf space for the NL Rookie of the Year award already, the Diamondbacks are lined up nicely to square off with DeSclafani. The Giants pitcher has had a bad run of starts, as he has a 6.22 ERA over his last nine starts. The righty keeps his fellow right handers in check, but lefties have hit .297 against him. All three of these Arizona bats can hit from the left side of the plate.
Honestly, if not for Ronald Acuna, Carroll would be the favorite for both Rookie of the Year and MVP in the National League. The southpaw has slashed .295/.375/.568 with 16 homers and 23 stolen bases. Marte has been on fire, as he's posted an 1.019 OPS over the last three weeks. While he's better against lefties, the switch hitter has an .833 OPS against righties, and that more than suffices. Smith is more of a utility backup these days, but against a righty on the road, he's likely to draw in. He has a .745 OPS against righties since 2021, and while his road OPS this year is not good, both Alek Thomas and Jake McCarthy have been awful on the road, worst than Smith, so Smith is the southpaw I want.
Reds vs. Atlanta (Charlie Morton): Elly De La Cruz ($26), Jake Fraley ($21), Jonathan India ($18)
The Cincinnati Reds are…an exciting, promising offense? It's true! Morton is definitely neither exciting nor promising. The 39-year-old pitcher has a career 4.02 ERA, and this year his 3.71 ERA is paired with a 3.94 FIP. His home/road splits have flipped entirely from last year, so I am not reading into those too much. Lefties have hit .258 against Morton, and righties have hit .259, so there is no real preference there.
While De La Cruz is a switch hitter, he's definitely preferred facing righties so far. He has an 1.326 OPS versus right-handed pitchers, and he has three homers and eight stolen bases in only 16 games. Fraley has hit .272 with 11 home runs and 12 swiped bags as well, but you can thank that entirely on his matchups with right handers. The southpaw can't it lefties, but has an .869 OPS against righties since 2021. India has 10 homers and 12 stolen bases, and he is a righty who has preferred to face righties. In his career he has a .789 OPS in those matchups. He also has an .804 OPS at home.
