This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.
With a heavy dose of day games Thursday, we are only left with five games to choose from for the main slate on Yahoo. That doesn't give us a lot of options, although there are still some players who stand out as having favorable matchups. Let's dig in and highlight the best ones to consider.
Pitching Overview
Trevor Bauer ($41) is one of the biggest names on the pitching side of things, but he has a tough matchup against the Twins. A better top-tier option to target is Patrick Corbin ($48), who will be facing a much easier foe in the Padres. Despite getting shelled by the Reds in his last start, Corbin is having an excellent season with the Nationals by posting a 3.46 FIP and a 1.14 WHIP. His strikeout rate is down at 26.9 percent, but this could be a chance for him to make up some ground in that department considering the Padres have struck out the second-most times (605) in the league.
While the Twins offense has been grabbing all the headlines, their young ace Jose Berrios ($43) has struggled a bit lately. Despite coming away with a quality start in his last outing versus the Rays, he's allowed 16 runs (13 earned) over 23.2 innings in his last four starts. It wasn't really home runs that did him in, it was his 1.61 WHIP. Even with his recent issues, this is still a favorable opportunity to deploy him against a weak Indians lineup. Although Francisco Lindor was out the first time he faced them this season, Berrios recorded 10 strikeouts over 7.2 scoreless innings.
J.A. Happ ($44) will be facing his former team with the Yankees taking on the Blue Jays. His first full season in pinstripes hasn't exactly gone as planned with his 4.83 ERA and even worse 5.35 FIP. The problem has been the long ball with him giving up 15 home runs in 63.1 innings. He only allowed 10 homers across 63.2 innings with the Yankees last year. He's a bit risky, but with the Blue Jays having scored the fourth-fewest runs (236), he still might be worth taking a chance on during such a limited slate.
Key Values/Chalk
With Mike Fiers on the mound for the A's, expect Mike Trout ($27) to be a popular option. Fiers' 5.35 FIP is even worse than his 4.78 ERA and he's already allowed 13 home runs across 69.2 innings. Focusing on batter versus pitcher stats can be troublesome, but it's no surprise that Trout is 8-for-21 (.381) with a .500 OBP, four doubles and two home runs against the underwhelming Fiers in his career.
Another big name with a juicy matchup is Anthony Rendon ($24) against Joey Lucchesi. Rendon is swinging a hot bat after hitting 14-for-39 (.359) with two home runs and two doubles over his last 11 games and has a lofty .383 wOBA against left-handed pitchers for his career. As good as Lucchesi has been this season, his wOBA allowed to righties is over 100 points higher than his mark against lefties.
Stacks
New York Yankees vs. Edwin Jackson (Blue Jays)
Luke Voit (1B - $23), DJ LeMahieu (2B - $21), Aaron Hicks (OF - $15)
Somehow, Jackson is still in the league. His first four starts with the Blue Jays couldn't have gone much worse with him allowing 26 runs (24 earned) across 16.1 innings. He's also allowed six home runs and recorded only 12 strikeouts. The Yankees figure to be one of the most popular stacks of the night with Voit being one of their big power bats to consider. LeMahieu is a tough out with his 13.3 percent strikeout rate and he has found himself hitting in a favorable spot atop their order. Hicks is still trying to get things going after spending the start of the season on the IL, but he's someone to target after he logged a 132 wRC+ against righties last year.
Baltimore Orioles vs. Ariel Jurado (Rangers)
Trey Mancini (OF - $17), Renato Nunez (1B - $18), Keon Broxton (OF - $7)
Globe Life Park in Arlington can make even the worst of lineups intriguing. Case in point, the Orioles scored 12 runs in the first game of this series. Not only is Mancini having the best power season of his career with a .246 ISO, but he also has a .370 wOBA. Nunez has emerged as one of their better hitters with his .255 ISO while Broxton is a cheaper option with upside who has three home runs in 10 games since joining the team.
Rangers vs. David Hess (Orioles)
Elvis Andrus (SS - $13), Nomar Mazara (OF - $19), Ronald Guzman (1B - $15)
With the Orioles deciding to push back Andrew Cashner's (leg) start, the Rangers will have an even juicer matchup against Hess and his 7.10 FIP. Andrus is one of the Rangers' best hitters left with Joey Gallo (oblique) and Shin-Soo Choo (hand) ailing. Mazara has started to crank things up by hitting 19-for-59 (.322) with two home runs and five doubles over his last 15 games. Hess has given up 19 home runs over 55 innings, making Guzman and his .262 ISO is also worth considering.
