This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.
Pitcher
Jacob deGrom, NYM at CIN ($54): I'm not a huge fan of any pitcher on this slate, but deGrom has the most upside of anyone, all things considered, so I'll pay up in this spot. DeGrom is coming off a solid outing against the Nationals where he recorded 10 strikeouts in 7.2 innings while allowing just one run. The maddening thing about deGrom is that he gave up five runs in each of his two previous starts. It doesn't seem to matter who he is facing, it's just a matter of whether or not he has his stuff. Hopefully he carries over some of that stuff from his most recent starts. If so, he'll be just fine against a decent, but not overly potent, Cincinnati offense.
Gio Gonzalez, WAS at MIL ($50): The pricier options today either come with too much risk (Zack Greinke) or don't have enough of an upside right now (Madison Bumgarner). Gonzalez's upside seems to shift on a weekly basis as his strikeout production is rarely consistent, but facing the Brewers could be exactly what he needs to reach his upside. The Brewers enter with the highest K rate against lefties in the majors.
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CATCHER
Gary Sanchez, NYY vs BOS ($22): There are going to be picks later on that I'm not overly fond of, but I actually like this pick. Sanchez was on fire a week ago, but has faded a bit over his past few games. A matchup against a struggling Eduardo Rodriguez should take care of that though as Sanchez enters with a .401 wOBA against lefties this season. Rodriguez has allowed 12 runs in his past 17.2 innings, so the Yankees could be a decent stack option.
FIRST BASE
Jose Martinez, STL at SF ($10): This slate is so awkward, as there are few reliable pitchers to select yet there also aren't any reliably bad pitchers either. With that in mind, stacks will be tough to find and low priced one-off players might be the way to go. Martinez has a tough matchup against Bumgarner, but he enters with a .461 wOBA against lefties this season, so the upside is there.
SECOND BASE
Javier Baez, CHC vs ATL ($19): Sean Newcomb has been pretty good this season, but he's in what could be the toughest spot of anyone on this slate. If Newcomb were just a little more erratic, the Cubs would likely be the top stack on this slate, and for all I know they could be, but on paper this matchup isn't stack-worthy. With that said, the Cubs are always a popular stack, so chances are most people will just take their hitters by default. While I don't recommend that, I certainly recommend finding a Cub or two to plug into your lineup, and Baez fits nicely because of his .390 wOBA against lefties this season.
THIRD BASE
Josh Donaldson, TOR at BAL ($27): Jeremy Hellickson is about the closest thing to a reliably bad pitcher as there is on this slate. Unfortunately, the team he is facing hasn't been very good this season, so there aren't many bats to target. One exception is Josh Donaldson, who has hit very well over the past few weeks. Donaldson enters with a .382 wOBA against righties this season, which leads the Blue Jays.
SHORTSTOP
Brandon Crawford, SF vs STL ($15): With few good stacking options on this slate, there's a case to be made that the Giants of all teams could be one of the better options. Michael Wacha has pitched poorly over his past three starts, allowing 14 runs in 12.1 innings and he's been pretty erratic all season, so if you can scrap together a few Giants, that might be a solid tactic. Crawford has hit pretty well lately and he's fared well against Wacha in his career -- in limited action of course, as nothing comes easy on this slate.
OUTFIELD
Ezequiel Carrera, TOR at BAL ($11): As mentioned earlier, stacks are at a premium on this slate, but the Blue Jays present what might be the best option. With the way they have hit collectively this season, stacking several Blue Jays is not very difficult because most of them come at a discount. Carrera is no exception as his price is extremely low, but he's hit righties well this season, so there is some upside there. Carrera enters with a .375 wOBA against righties this season.
Giancarlo Stanton, MIA vs PHI ($28): On a slate where it's difficult to field an entire team of players that look promising, you might as well spend up for a guy like Stanton who has hit everyone this year. Stanton faces Ben Lively, who is coming off a poor outing, but he's only allowed four or more runs in two of his past nine starts so it's not like he's reliably bad. With that said, Stanton has hit righties very well this season, to the tune of a.413 wOBA, so there's no reason to not pay up in this spot.
George Springer, HOU vs TEX ($17): Cole Hamels takes the hill for the Rangers and it's safe to say I have no idea what he'll look like in this start. Hamels has looked great in spots this season, but he's also been awful during starts as well, as he was in his most recent start against the A's where he surrendered six runs in 4.1 innings. If the bad Hamels shows up, the Astros are a good stack option, but as just mentioned, there's no telling which Hamels shows up. Either way, Springer should be able to get to Hamels as he enters with an impressive .408 wOBA against lefties this season, which is top 10 in the majors.
