This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.
We have a limited schedule across baseball Thursday that leaves us with only four games to choose from for the main evening slate on Yahoo. Let's review the limited options and highlight some players who might be worth considering for your entry.
Pitchers
Outside of one bad outing against the Giants, Clayton Kershaw ($53) has been excellent this season. He's allowed one or no runs in four of his five starts and his WHIP stands at a miniscule 0.77. His control has once again been one of his strengths with him recording 33 strikeouts compared to only four walks across 30 innings. He's an excellent option to consider for this start against the Diamondbacks, a team he shut out across 5.2 innings in his first start of the season. The Diamondbacks' lineup is even more compromised now that they have traded away Starling Marte.
If you're looking to take a chance on a pitcher with a more budget-friendly salary, Taijuan Walker ($34) could be worth pursuing. He pitched well in his first start with the Blue Jays on Saturday, recording four strikeouts over six scoreless innings against the Orioles. One of the reasons why he's been able to produce a 1.09 WHIP this season is that he's only allowed a 26.6 percent hard-hit rate. Facing the Red Sox at Fenway Park isn't exactly an easy task, but their lineup isn't as potent as it was before they dealt away Mitch Moreland and Kevin Pillar at the trade deadline.
Top Targets
With left-handed pitcher Danny Duffy ($30) starting for the Royals against the White Sox, Jose Abreu ($24) stands out as someone to strongly consider. He's scorching hot right now, hitting 26-for-65 (.400) with nine home runs and five doubles during his current 16-game hitting streak. He also has a career .388 wOBA against left-handed pitchers.
The Red Sox will send their "ace" Martin Perez ($30) to the mound against the Blue Jays. He was roughed up for six runs across four innings in his last start against the Nationals and he now has a 5.06 FIP for the season. This could be the perfect matchup to deploy Teoscar Hernandez ($22), who has been excellent this season with a 160 wRC+, which includes a 191 wRC+ against left-handed pitchers.
Bargain Bats
Viable bargain bats aren't easy to come by for this slate since there are so few games. With that being said, James McCann ($13) is one to consider if he's in the lineup for the White Sox. He is 8-for-21 with two doubles during his current six-game hitting streak and he has a robust .968 OPS for the season. Duffy could have a difficult time retiring him since McCann has a career .355 wOBA versus southpaws.
It's been a rough season for Alex Gordon ($9), who enters this matchup with the White Sox sporting a .294 wOBA. His strikeout rate has increased by almost six percentage points compared to last season and his hard-hit rate has plummeted by just over 12 percentage points. The good news is that he's showing signs of life, hitting 8-for-17 (.471) with a home run and a double across his last five games. He might be able to keep things rolling against Dylan Cease ($37), who has allowed a .370 wOBA to left-handed hitters during his career.
Stacks to Consider
Padres vs. Andrew Heaney ($35), Angels: Fernando Tatis Jr. ($27), Manny Machado ($24), Austin Nola ($16)
Heaney has actually performed better than his 4.62 ERA would lead you to believe considering his FIP stands at 2.75. However, this a rough matchup against the Padres, who have the highest OPS (.837) in baseball. Tatis and Machado both bring plenty of power upside to this stack while Nola could be key at the catcher spot. He's dropped his strikeout rate to 14.9 percent compared to 23.6 percent last season, which has helped him produce a .380 wOBA.
Dodgers vs. Luke Weaver ($27), Diamondbacks: Mookie Betts ($27), Corey Seager ($21), Max Muncy ($16)
The Diamondbacks hoped that they acquired one of their top starters of the future when they brought over Weaver from the Cardinals prior to last season. He was able to produce a 2.94 ERA and a 3.07 WHIP across 12 starts, but he's been a disaster this season with an 8.23 ERA and 5.66 FIP through seven outings. One reason why he was successful last year is that he only allowed six home runs over 64.1 innings. That's changed this season with him already giving up eight long balls across 27.1 innings. That could spell trouble against this trio. Seager had made significant strides in the power department through 31 games, leaving him with a .286 ISO.
