This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.
We have a full slate of MLB action for DFS purposes on Yahoo, but it isn't your usual Sunday of 15 games. Thanks to the Dodgers, Angels and Padres all pivoting to Saturday doubleheaders to avoid the hurricane projected to hit Southern California, there are only 12 games on the slate. Still, that means plenty of options for your DFS lineups, so let me get to the recommendations.
Pitching
Max Scherzer, TEX vs. MIL ($46): Both of these teams could end up winning their respective divisions. The difference is that the Rangers will do it with a top-five offense, while the Brewers have a good chance of finishing in the bottom 10 in runs scored (and will very likely finish there in team OPS). Scherzer was added by a Texas team looking to put itself over the top, and so far he's delivered. He's looked like his Cy Young-winning self, posting an 1.80 ERA in three starts.
Kyle Bradish, BAL at OAK ($44): Bradish has certainly taken a step forward in his second season, as he has a 3.18 ERA through 22 starts. He has a 3.97 ERA on the road, but this game is in Oakland's pitcher-friendly park, and he faces Oakland's pitcher-friendly offense. The Athletics, after all, are last in runs scored and team OPS.
Eduardo Rodriguez, DET at CLE ($40): What does Rodriguez need after an off start? How about a matchup with the Guardians? Cleveland, like Detroit, will finish in the bottom five in runs scored. However, the Guardians are basically locked into last in homers already, as they haven't even hit 100 yet, making them the only team not over that threshold. Rodriguez is also a lefty, which will help neutralize several key Cleveland bats.
Top Targets
While Ryan McMahon ($20) posting an .872 OPS at home is impressive, if bolstered by Coors Field, the fact he has a .905 OPS against righties is what stands out. Dylan Cease is a righty, and he also has a 4.98 ERA on the road. That bodes well for McMahon on Sunday.
What does Kyle Schwarber ($19) do? He hits a ton of homers. After hitting 46 last season, he has 32 this year. What does Trevor Williams do? He allows a ton of homers, and a lot of hits to lefties. This season, Williams has given up 2.14 home runs per nine innings, and southpaws have hit .304 against him.
Bargain Bats
Over the last three weeks, Max Kepler ($18) has posted a .998 OPS. He's shown decidedly more power at home, where he's slugged .493. The rookie Osvaldo Bido has a 5.05 ERA. Lefties have hit .300 against him and account for all four home runs he's allowed so far across 41.0 innings.
Southpaw Alex Verdugo ($11) has an .843 OPS against righties. While he's better at home than on the road, Yankee Stadium plays well to lefty power, and facing Clarke Schmidt anywhere plays well to lefties. Schmidt has allowed southpaws to hit .303 against him this year, which has certainly played a role in his 4.76 ERA in his first full season as an MLB starter.
Stacks to Consider
Cubs vs. Royals (Jordan Lyles): Cody Bellinger ($26), Nico Hoerner ($25), Ian Happ ($22)
Lyles has a 6.30 ERA, which is terrible, but of course he's finished with an ERA over 5.00 eight previous times in his career. Somehow, he's been worse recently, as he has a 7.22 ERA over his last five outings. It's never a bad time to catch Lyles, but the Cubs are catching him at a particularly good time.
Even in a down year, Bellinger had 19 homers and 14 stolen bases, so it isn't surprising that the lefty has 20 home runs and 17 swiped bags this season. However, he's also hit .326 with a .375 OBP. Hoerner has hit .283 with 32 steals. It's easier to steal on a righty, and Lyles obviously allows plenty of people on base. Additionally, Hoerner has an .814 OPS at home since 2021. Happ is a switch hitter, but he has a .797 OPS against righties. He's hit 14 homers and stolen 10 bags this season.
White Sox at Rockies (Chris Flexen): Luis Robert ($23), Elvis Andrus ($18), Andrew Vaughn ($16)
The White Sox don't have a good lineup. However, this is Coors Field. Flexen has a career 4.97 FIP. This year he has a 7.74 ERA and has allowed 2.63 homers per nine innings. Since 2021, righties have hit .297 against Flexen, and the White Sox don't have any good lefty hitters, so I have gone with three righties.
Robert is the one guy with real power on the White Sox, and so I have to go with him at Coors. He's hit 33 homers and slugged .568 this season. The Cuban also has a .949 OPS over the last three weeks. Andrus, well, he's a shortstop at least. He has four homers and 10 stolen bases after having 17 of the former and 18 of the latter last season. Recently he's shown unexpected power, having slugged .545 over the last three weeks. Vaughn doesn't have as much power, but he's hit 15 homers, so there's a good chance he sets a new personal best. He also has an .800 OPS over the last 21 days.
Pirates at Twins (Dallas Keuchel): Bryan Reynolds ($24), Connor Joe ($17), Andrew McCutchen ($14)
Keuchel has made two MLB starts this season, two more than I expected admittedly, and has struck out zero batters. Over the last three years he has a 6.44 ERA. He's not a strikeout hitter, clearly, but righties have also hit .307 against him since 2021. The Pirates might be the last MLB team that Keuchel faces, so hopefully they will make the most of it.
Reynolds has been on fire, having notched an 1.036 OPS over the last three weeks. While the switch hitter is better against righties, he has an .868 OPS on the road so I'm still all for using him against Keuchel. Joe isn't a consistent feature of the lineup for the Pirates, but he's a righty, and the Pirates have a lot of lefties, so I expect him in the mix. This year the outfielder has an .823 OPS against southpaws. In addition to having 11 homers and 10 stolen bases, McCutchen has a .377 OBP. Since 2021, he has an .857 OPS against lefties as well.
