The 12-game Wednesday slate is a fun follow-up to the massive Tuesday contests that gives gamers a bit of a mulligan with a similar setup to last night’s action. Both the DraftKings and FanDuel main slates have a fair amount of high-end pitching and a broad mid-range on the mound with several extremely targetable pitchers bringing up the bottom of the list and pushing major point-scoring upside toward some of the best teams in baseball.
Don’t miss our new Stack Suggestions feature and our Power Index for more on the top opportunities at the plate tonight.
Join us at 4:15 ET for a LIVE Game-by-Game breakdown:
Note: All analysis is written utilizing available projected lineups as of the early morning, pay close attention to confirmed lineups and adjust accordingly. This article is posted and updated as it is written, so if a game has not been filled in, check back in a few minutes. Update notes are provided as lineups are confirmed to the best of our ability. Still, lineup changes are not typically updated as lock approaches, so stay tuned to official news for any late changes.
MLB DFS: Game by Game Main Slate Strategy Snapshot – 6/14/23
Toronto Blue Jays (-104/4.55) @ Baltimore Orioles (-104/4.55)
The first game on deck provided some fireworks last night and could be teed up for more run-scoring madness on Wednesday with Vegas seeing things as a pick’em with both teams at 4.55 implied runs. Kyle Bradish is on the mound for the Orioles, the righty has been generally effective this season, pitching to a 4.25 ERA and 3.98 xFIP over 53 innings in 11 starts. Bradish has a 22.5% strikeout rate and hit his season-high with 10 in just five innings over which he also allowed three runs on six hits to the Brewers. There is only minor price-based potential in Bradish, he costs $6,200/$6,700 and could find a handful of strikeouts while delivering five relatively clean innings, but it would be a better play against a weaker opponent. The Blue Jays are difficult to strike out, among their primary hitters, only slugger Matt Chapman has a relatively high strikeout rate at 26.1%, which is a fine trade for his 59.7% hard-hit rate and nine home runs with a .202 ISO. George Springer, Bo Bichette, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. are a bundle of DFS dynamite atop the lineup. The trio has an average strikeout rate of just 16.2% with power and speed and they have all created runs at an above-average pace this season. Springer and Guerrero are cheap for their talents at $4,900/$3,100 and $5,100/$3,400. Whit Merrifield is a good hit-and-speed player who can find some run-scoring upside and hit an infrequent home run. Daulton Varsho has 11 homers with a .178 ISO and is clawing his way out of the productivity grave with a 97 WRC+. Danny Jansen, Cavan Biggio, and Kevin Kiermaier are mix-in options from the bottom of the batting order at low prices and ownership.
The hometown Orioles will be facing Jose Berrios, who has bounced around the quality board over the past few years. This season, the righty has a 22% strikeout rate and a 3.61 ERA with a 4.00 xFIP and a healthy 10.9% swinging-strike rate with a 29.8% CSW%, all of which are better than what he posted in 172 innings and 32 starts last year. Berrios has also been better at limiting power in 2023, he has allowed just a 2.52% home run rate on 87.6 mph average exit velocity and 33% hard hits. Last season, Berrios was a target who allowed a 3.85% home run rate on 90 mph exit velocity and a 43.4% hard-hit rate in the full sample, he has been markedly better this year. At just $8,600/$9,500 there is potential for the pitcher in this spot, but the same was true of Chris Bassitt last night and he was tattooed by the solid Orioles. This seems like a both-sided situation, we will have shares of Berrios but Orioles stacks will be a part of the approach to this slate as well. Gunnar Henderson hit his 10th home run last night and has been roaring to life over the past week or two. The rookie was struggling with strikeouts and being too precious in his approach at the plate, he is swinging somewhat more aggressively and making excellent contact with a 14.2% barrel rate and 51.7% hard-hit in his 214 plate appearances and he has pushed his triple-slash to .246/.355/.475 with a .230 ISO and 131 WRC+. Henderson is still a bargain at $3,700/$3,100 with eligibility at third base and shortstop. Adley Rutschman costs $5,400/$3,000, he has eight home runs and has created runs 27% better than average as one of the league’s most productive catchers. Anthony Santander hits from both sides and has nine home runs with a .203 ISO for $4,700/$3,200. Ryan O’Hearn had another good night and is earning some respect when he lands in the heart of this lineup. O’Hearn hit 10 home runs over 399 plate appearances in the last two seasons combined, he has half that total in 76 chances so far this season. Austin Hays is slashing .303/.340/.498 with a 130 WRC+ and still costs just $4,100/$3,000 in the outfield. Aaron Hicks has been a solid acquisition for the Orioles to this point, making many of us look bad in our initial reaction to the odd signing. Hicks has three home runs and a 108 WRC+ in 117 total plate appearances this season, we still do not believe this will last. Adam Frazier, Ramon Urias, and Jorge Mateo are all potentially productive moving parts at the bottom of the Orioles lineup in small doses.
Play: four corners potential – Blue Jays bats/stacks, Jose Berrios as a mid-range option, Orioles bats/stacks, minor shares of Bradish value in that order
Update Notes:
Colorado Rockies (+208/4.20) @ Boston Red Sox (-230/6.44)
The lousy Rockies are a limited option at a 4.20-run implied total against righty Garrett Whitlock, who checks in with a 4.78 ERA and 4.08 xFIP and a 19.7% strikeout rate over six starts and 32 innings this year. Whitlock was better in his 78.1 innings in 2022, posting a 26.4% strikeout rate with a 3.45 ERA and 3.20 xFIP with a 13.7% swinging-strike rate. The righty struck out six while allowing just one run on a home run and seven total hits in 6.1 innings against the Yankees in his most recent outing, which was probably his best of the year as he rounds into form following a season-opening injury. Whitlock is a play at $6,700/$7,000 in this matchup, he is stretched out enough to expect innings and he is facing one of the worst teams in baseball. The Rockies’ active roster has a 92 WRC+ against right-handed pitching this year, the 22nd-best in baseball. Whitlock has a good chance at keeping this team well in check, and the righty has strikeout upside with Colorado sitting at a collective 24.3% strikeout rate against righties. Colorado’s projected lineup lacks their two best players but features a few decent lefty power hitters that Whitlock will have to manage, they would be the primary focus for anyone looking to roster Rockies. Ryan McMahon and Nolan Jones are the primary options in the Colorado lineup, McMahon has 10 home runs in 276 plate appearances and Jones has hit four with four stolen bases in just 64 plate appearances. Both players are cheap options with McMahon at $4,600/$3,200 with eligibility at third base on DraftKings and adding second base to that on the blue site. Jones lands in the outfield or at first base on DraftKings for $3,900 and he is a third baseman for an expensive $3,900 on FanDuel. The Rockies are better for value on the DraftKings slate with Jones priced so high, but the team is a lousy option on both sites. Jurickson Profar and Ezequiel Tovar have WRC+ marks of 81 and 69 so far this season, they are odd options at the top of a lineup given their .324 and .286 on-base percentages this year. McMahon hits third with Elias Diaz providing good value at catcher for $4,500/$2,800. Diaz is slashing .296/.352/.461 with six home runs as a cheap backstop. Jones hits fifth in the projected lineup ahead of also-playable Randal Grichuk, who has upside for power but has been more focused on his hit tool in 149 plate appearances this year. Mike Moustakas and Harold Castro are mix-in options and Brenton Doyle has interesting power for $3,400/$2,700. The rookie has an 11.7% barrel rate and four home runs in 128 plate appearances but sits 48% below league average for run creation.
The series in Fenway Park has seen the Rockies’ miserable pitching staff pushing run totals that might as well be Coors Field numbers toward the Red Sox lineup in Vegas. This evening is no exception, Boston has a slate-leading 6.44 implied team total in their matchup against lefty Austin Gomber. Boston’s run total leads the slate by more than a full run, the second-highest team on the board is the Rays at 5.34 followed by the Dodgers and Rangers at 5.08, with every other team below 5.0. There is a significant upside for MLB DFS point creation in Boston tonight, the Red Sox should be crushingly popular and it is entirely warranted. Gomber has a 7.57 ERA and a 5.23 xFIP and has struck out just 14% of opposing hitters while walking 9.7% in 60.2 innings and 13 starts this season. The lefty has been somewhat better in years past, but there does not seem to be much of a viable path to success for him, even at $5,100/$5,700 in this form. The Red Sox projected lineup has Rob Refsnyder and his platoon-focused hit tool at the top of the lineup. Refsnyder is a journeyman utility player who hits lefties well and has been a fixture against southpaws for Boston this season in a variety of lineup spots. Leadoff is the right place for this player if Boston includes him in the lineup, Refsnyder is slashing .275/.416/.363 with a 125 WRC+ in 113 plate appearances overall and .357/.471/.464 with a 166 WRC+ against lefties. He has a .107 ISO and does not produce much individually, and his .143/.333/.200 with a .057 ISO and 64 WRC+ won’t play well against bullpen arms after the Red Sox chase Gomber, so the interest is somewhat tepid even with a cheap price in a great lineup spot. Refsnyder can absolutely deliver and he should be included, but he is a player on whom difference-making pivots could be made as well. Justin Turner has eight home runs and a 113 WRC+ and has hit lefties well his entire life. Rafael Devers will be fine against this lefty, for $5,900/$3,600 the third base masher is a great buy in this lineup if we are ignoring popularity. Devers delivered after landing as one of our top-rated options for a home run last night, he has 17 on the season with a .263 ISO. Adam Duvall has massive right-handed power, he hit four early home runs and has made just 54 plate appearances with a .426 ISO in the microscopic sample. Mastaka Yoshida drops in the lineup against lefties, he is an excellent hitter who can be deployed in the split with confidence for $5,700/$3,500. If the crowd goes away from Yoshida it is advantageous, he has not been as good against same-handed pitching but he is not inept in the split with a .258/.387/.355 triple-slash and a 112 WRC+. Enrique Hernandez, Christian Arroyo, Connor Wong, and Pablo Reyes round out the projected lineup. Wong is a stout catcher who has an 11.7% barrel rate and 42.6% hard-hit rate with six home runs in 153 plate appearances this year, the others are mix-in options for price and popularity offsets.
Play: Red Sox bats/stacks aggressively, Garrett Whitlock value
Update Notes:
New York Yankees (-104/3.79) @ New York Mets (-104/3.79)
The duel between Gerrit Cole and Justin Verlander should be fascinating tonight. We witnessed early implosions for both Max Scherzer and Luis Severino in last night’s contest and could see the same early in the action tonight. Both Cole and Verlander have been scuffling and not pitching like their former selves so far this season. Between the two, Cole has been better at a 2.84 ERA and 3.97 xFIP with a 25.8% strikeout rate in 85.2 innings and 14 starts. Cole had a good run of clean starts to begin the year but he has come back to Earth for runs and has not seen much of an uptick in his strikeout rate, which cratered from 32.4% last year. His swinging strikes are way down at just 10.8% after he was at 14.3% last year and 14.5% the season before. Cole’s stuff is not working the same way that it was, he has made changes to his pitch mix to cover a minor dip in velocity on his fastball to limited results. On the other side, Verlander has been messy to start the year. Over seven starts and 39 innings, the righty has just a 19.9% strikeout rate with a 4.85 ERA and 4.57 xFIP. Verlander has more wear and tear at an older age than his opponent, the dip seems more believable after the star starter made a miraculous return from Tommy John Surgery last year after missing all of 2021. Verlander costs just $8,000/$8,800, all of the struggles are already included in his price. The spotlight is firmly on the starter and his struggles, he does not have an easy opponent, but this is still a diminished form of the Yankees that lacks their superstar. Verlander was not good against the Braves in his last start, he allowed four runs on seven hits, including a home run, while walking four and striking out only three in just three innings. Prior to that, he made an effective start against Toronto to inspire a bit of faith. In that outing, Verlander lasted six innings, yielding five hits but just one run on a home run, and he struck out eight but walked three. Verlander has a price-based upside in this matchup. Both Cole and Verlander should be a part of gamer’s plans on both sites. Cole is fully priced at $11,000/$10,600 against a weakened version of the Mets that has no Pete Alonso, and Verlander is extremely cheap against these Yankees. Vegas has both teams at a 3.79-run implied team total, which seems to suggest the oddsmakers are seeing things the same way when it comes to the veteran starters.
The Yankees and Mets lineups are both lacking their biggest piece. Aaron Judge and Pete Alonso will both be absent for several weeks, leaving a big home run hole in the heart of our Summer, particularly with Yordan Alvarez also hitting the inured list last week. The Yankees lineup opens with Willie Calhoun, though we have seen Jake Bauers also land in that role in recent games. Calhoun has five home runs and a 99 WRC+ on the season and he puts the ball in play regularly. Gleyber Torres has a 12.7% strikeout rate with a 35.9% hard-hit rate, he made better contact last season with a 10.7% barrel rate and 44.9% hard-hit rate but his 11 home runs this season in 283 plate appearances are on track with the 24 he hit in 572 chances last year. Anthony Rizzo and Giancarlo Stanton add power to the heart of the lineup. Rizzo has 11 home runs and a 121 WRC+ and Stanton hit his sixth home run of the year last night. The star power hitter has made just 83 plate appearances but has driven the ball with authority, as usual, this season. Stanton has a 55.9% hard-hit rate with a 20.3% barrel rate this year and costs just $5,200/$3,100. Bauers is projected to hit fifth ahead of Josh Donaldson and Billy McKinney, all of whom have power upside and run lefty-righty-lefty. Jose Trevino and Anthony “Early” Volpe land in the final spots in the lineup. The Mets will have Brandon Nimmo in the leadoff role ahead of Francisco Alvarez, who is having an outstanding season at the plate. The young catcher has 12 home runs and a .292 ISO while striking out 23.9% of the time and barreling 11.2% of his batted-ball events. Jeff McNeil might wind up with fewer barrels for the season than Alvarez had in May, but the slap-hitter can get involved for cheap prices, he has a 106 WRC+ with eligibility at second base and in the outfield on FanDuel. Francisco Lindor has power in the heart of the lineup, the shortstop has an 8.47 in our home run model and he has put 12 on the board this year amidst struggles with his triple-slash and on-base percentage. Starling Marte has a .314 on-base percentage with 19 stolen bases and just three home runs this season, the outfielder has underperformed but he belongs in stacks of Mets if one is building them, Marte is a proven talent who is cheap at $3,900/$2,800. Brett Baty has a 50% hard-hit rate over 169 plate appearances, the lefty is projected to hit ahead of Tommy Pham, Omar Narvaez, and Mark Vientos, all of whom are playable options. Pham and Narvaez are veterans with a touch of power and run creation ability, and Vientos is a premium prospect with Major League power for just $2,500/$2,200.
Play: Gerrit Cole, Justin Verlander value, minor shares of bats on either side
Update Notes:
Los Angeles Angels (+119/4.52) @ Texas Rangers (-129/5.08)
The Angels are facing Jekyll and Hyde southpaw Andrew Heaney who has a 24.4% strikeout rate and 4.14 ERA with a 4.34 xFIP for the season, all of which are serviceable numbers over 63 innings and 12 starts. The strikeouts are down for Heaney however, the lefty was outstanding over 72.2 innings last year with a 35.5% strikeout rate and a 16.8% swinging-strike rate, both of which far exceeded the 26.9% strikeout rate and 12.5% swinging-strike rate he posted in 129.2 innings in 2021. Heaney’s problems crop up around power, he tends to allow too many home runs and too much premium contact in amidst his quality for strikeouts, the mistakes tend to travel. The lefty allowed a 4.52% home run rate on 47.7% hard hits, 91.2 mph of exit velocity, and an 11% barrel rate last year. This season he has improved somewhat, but there is a lot of happenstance in year-to-year home run numbers, particularly in small samples. Heaney has allowed a 3.76% home run rate on 35.5% hard hits and a 10.1% barrel rate with an 89.9 mph average exit velocity this season. Heaney has talent to exploit some of the strikeouts available in the Angels lineup, there is a path to a ceiling score for his cheap $8,400/$9,000 price tag, but we know he is volatile on the mound so a both-sided approach is recommended. The Angels lineup is filthy with right-handed power hitters, Taylor Ward hit 23 home runs and had a .192 ISO with a 12.1% barrel rate last year, he has delivered more modest returns this season with eight home runs and a 7.8% barrel rate with just a .137 ISO, but there is a lot of season left and he was a roller coaster hitter last year as well. Shohei Ohtani has a 16.68 in our home run model, Mike Trout sits at 16.84, the two superstars are strong buys in Angels stacks, even with their inflated price tags. Ohtani has 20 home runs, Trout has 14, they have created runs 62% and 29% better than average this season, there is no reason to skip them. Anthony Rendon is a good option at third base, the former star is tarnished in gamer’s minds after a few seasons of injury and underperformance, but he is still a quality bat when healthy and he costs just $3,300/$3,000 at the hot corner. Rendon has created runs two percent better than average and has a .374 on-base percentage with an 11.6% strikeout rate and 42.3% hard-hit rate over 155 plate appearances this year. Brandon Drury has a .216 ISO with 10 home runs and a 12% barrel rate, Hunter Renfroe has a dozen home runs and a .201 ISO, he hit 29 home runs last year and 31 the year before, his power output for the season is just getting started. Luis Rengifo and Chad Wallach are pulling in good home run marks for their prices and talent levels late in the lineup, and Zach Neto is an interesting hitter to find ninth at shortstop for $2,700/$2,800. The Angels are a good opportunity for stacking tonight, but there is a possibility that Heaney picks them apart for strikeouts while pitching a clean game for power, both sides are in play.
The Rangers are in a similar spot against lefty Reid Detmers, who has a 4.79 ERA and 3.87 xFIP this season. Over 56.1 innings and 11 starts, Detmers has a 27.2% strikeout rate and 13.3% swinging-strike rate with a 28.8% CSW%. The starter has been allowing premium contact but seems to have gotten lucky for home runs to this point, his 2.00% home run rate is mismatched with a 42.9% hard-hit rate and 16.5-degree launch angle, as well as 91 mph of exit velocity, but the barrel rate is the culprit in this spot, he has limited opponents to just 4.5% barrels and a .399 xSLG. Detmers costs $7,000/$7,200 on this slate, he is facing one of the highest-scoring teams in baseball but there is potential value in this spot for the talented lefty. Detmers is more of a mix-in value play, given the Rangers’ 5.08-run implied team total he is more likely to fail than provide a slate-winning MLB DFS score, but he does not look like a punching bag in this spot. The Texas lineup has been terrific this season. Marcus Semien and Corey Seager are an enviable duo up the middle and at the top of the lineup. The two stars have WRC+ marks of 126 in 312 plate appearances and 184 in 159 chances. Semien has hit nine homers and stolen seven bags, and Seager has eight home runs with a massive .629 slugging percentage and a .271 ISO. Nathaniel Lowe continues to be a strong value in the heart of the Texas lineup and at first base, he costs just $4,600/$3,200 despite a 118 WRC+ and eight home runs with a 42.7% hard-hit rate over 300 plate appearances. Adolis Garcia has 15 home runs and six stolen bases, Josh Jung has 13 home runs and one stolen base, so Garcia is a bit better. The star outfielder costs $5,500/$3,800, Jung lands at $4,800/$3,400 at third base, so Jung has a bit more value-based upside. The point is that both players should be in most stacks of Rangers bats. Jonah Heim and Mitch Garver give Texas two good power-hitting catchers with upside for MLB DFS on both sites, with the ability to use them both in multiple configurations on the FanDuel slate. Ezequiel Duran and Leody Taveras are two of the more productive late-lineup hitters in baseball this season. Duran has been terrific with eight home runs and a .302/.351/.512 triple-slash, a .210 ISO, and a 138 WRC+ in 174 plate appearances. Taveras quietly has a 130 WRC+ with a .301/.361/.464 triple-slash with five home runs and six stolen bases in 203 plate appearances.
Play: all over the map in this one… Angels bats/stacks, Rangers bats/stacks, Andrew Heaney value, Reid Detmers value in that order
Update Notes:
Pittsburgh Pirates (+130/4.17) @ Chicago Cubs (-141/4.93)
The Pirates are facing lefty Drew Smyly who has a 3.27 ERA but a 4.59 xFIP over 71.2 innings and 13 starts this season. Smyly has struck out 20.5% with a 6.7% walk rate and has been fairly effective at limiting power with just a 30.8% hard-hit rate and 6.1% barrel rate allowed to this point. The lefty has been a roughly league-average pitcher for most of his career, he had a 20.4% strikeout rate last year with a 4.18 xFIP and was at 21.4% and 4.39 the season before. At $7,200/$7,700, Smyly is not entirely off the table if one is casting about blindly for value plays, but Pittsburgh’s active roster has a productive 109 WRC+ against lefties this season and they strike out at just a 19.9% clip collectively in the split. The upside for Smyly is very limited in this matchup, he is probably best left alone. The Pirates are a productive-enough bunch at fair prices, Andrew McCutchen costs $4,500/$3,100 in the leadoff spot, he has a 117 WRC+ with a .213 ISO in 74 plate appearances against lefties this season. Bryan Reynolds has been better against righties, he has a 66 WRC+ with a .100 ISO while slashing .229/.280/.329 against southpaws this year, which is problematic in Pirates stacks. For his career, Reynolds has hit lefties worse than righties, he sits at .275/.346/.438 with a .163 ISO in this split and .284/.365/.497 with a .213 ISO against righties as a lefty hitter. Connor Joe has six home runs and a .209 ISO this season, four of the homers came against lefties and he has a .297 ISO and a 178 WRC+ in 76 plate appearances in the split. Carlos Santana has four home runs and just a .128 ISO this year, his 97 WRC+ against lefties does not inspire much faith. Ke’Bryan Hayes has four home runs and seven steals with a .151 ISO and 92 WRC+, against lefties he has a 93 WRC+ with a .179 ISO. Hayes is a viable option for $4,100/$3,000. Rodolfo Castro has a 7.27 in our home run model for $3,400/$2,400 at second base or shortstop on both sites. Castro has six long balls on the season in just 173 plate appearances and has a 117 WRC+ for the year. He leads the team with a 202 WRC+ in 79 plate appearances against lefties with all six of his home runs coming in the split and piling up a monster .343 ISO. Castro is a strong value option in this lineup. Mark Mathias, Ji-Hwan Bae, and Jason Delay round out the projected lineup.
The Cubs are in play against rookie Osvaldo Bido who will be making his MLB debut. Bido is a 27-year-old unranked prospect who has a 5.25 xFIP and 4.55 ERA with a 4.64 xERA in 55.1 innings 10 starts and 12 appearances in AAA this season. He has a 23.5% strikeout rate and 10.9% walk rate at AAA that have us looking to roster Cubs hitters. Bido is not an option on either site. Mike Tauchman has a .403 on-base percentage and has worked his way into a leadoff role in the Cubs lineup, which is an interesting fit for the $2,800/$2,400 outfielder for MLB DFS purposes. Tauchman is just filling a spot for Chicago, he is a quad-A talent overall but he has kept pace and been valuable over 78 plate appearances and is in play if he hits leadoff. Nico Hoerner has an 11% strikeout rate that should play well against this starter. He has four home runs and 15 stolen bases and is a good source of counting stats and correlated scoring in the Cubs lineup. Seiya Suzuki and Ian Happ are somewhat similar to one another in the outfield for Chicago. Suzuki has six home runs and a .168 ISO with a 124 WRC+ supported by his .368 on-base percentage and a productive hit tool. Happ has five home runs but just a .131 ISO this year, but his 121 WRC+ is similarly supported by his excellent nose for getting on base. Happ has a .390 on-base percentage and his power issues seem to be simply happenstance and a bit of a dip in his hard-hit rate to this point. Both outfielders are cheap for their run-creation talents and mid-range power potential. Dansby Swanson is a star shortstop who is at fair pricing on both sites, he has multiple seasons of more than 20 home runs and double-digit stolen bases and is a good value in attacking this low-end rookie starter. Christopher Morel has 11 home runs and a .400 ISO over 99 plate appearances, odds are strong that his next 99 will be less productive for power, but Morel is a good player in what should be a high-scoring lineup, he has value at $4,600/$2,800 with eligibility in the outfield on DraftKings and adding third base on FanDuel. Matt Mervis has yet to deliver reliably at the MLB level but he has hit three home runs in his 96 chances. Yan Gomes has seven home runs and a .174 ISO on 12% barrels and costs just $3,400/$2,700, he is one of our favorite value catchers on DraftKings in this spot. Miles Mastrobuoni brings up the bottom of the lineup but we would greatly prefer titanic power hitter Patrick Wisdom who would push the Cubs even higher in our esteem in this spot.
Play: Cubs bats/stacks, Pirates bats as a mid-range option but watch out for Reynolds’ lower-end potential in the split and don’t forget Castro’s significant upside.
Update Notes:
Cincinnati Reds (-110/4.87) @ Kansas City Royals (+102/4.72)
The Reds and Royals square off with fairly high totals in Kansas City once again tonight. The two interesting but flawed young heavy-strikeout teams are lending a bit of upside to the two moderate talents on the mound in a messy spot that arguably has potential or a total lack thereof in any corner. Lefty Daniel Lynch is making the start for the Reds, he has a 4.41 ERA and 4.42 xFIP over 16.1 innings and three starts this year, and he has struck out 23% of opposing hitters in the small sample. Over 131.2 innings in 27 starts last season, Lynch had a 20.3% strikeout rate with a solid 11.3% swinging-strike rate but just a 24.8% CSW%, he has improved those marks dramatically in the tiny sample this year, posting a 14.3% swinging-strike rate and 27.9% CSW% that would make him a very different pitcher. Those marks support the uptick in overall strikeouts, but three starts and 16.1 innings are essentially meaningless. Lynch has also been good at limiting power in his three starts, cutting barrels to 3.9% but he was at 8.8% last year with a massive 47.7% hard-hit rate and 91.2 mph of exit velocity amounting to a 3.50% home run rate. Overall, Lynch projects in the middle of the board for $6,500/$7,300 against a Reds projected lineup that has a few premium rookies who strike out far too much despite their talent along with a handful of mediocre spare parts. Lynch has SP2 value upside at the very least, his potential at the FanDuel price is debatable, but he posted a quality start allowing three runs on eight hits in six innings against the Orioles in his most recent outing, although that was also his lowest strikeout total with just four. The Reds lineup is growing more interesting by the day, Kevin Newman is not a part of that situation however, he has an 85 WRC+ in 183 largely irrelevant plate appearances this year. Matt McLain is a much better starting point, the rookie shortstop has a .322/.375/.492 triple-slash with a 129 WRC+ over his first 128 plate appearances, though he does strike out at a 27.3% clip. Jonathan India and Spencer Steer are talented right-handed hitters who bookend projected cleanup hitter and newly anointed superstar Elly De La Cruz, who is now sitting at .267/.389/.467 with a .200 ISO, a home run, and five stolen bases in his 36 plate appearances. De La Cruz has gotten on base at a good pace so far despite his aggressive 38.9% strikeout rate in the tiny sample, the whiffs are the concern with the budding star, he always struck out aggressively in the minors, but cut through the noise with Stantonian/Judgian contact metrics and blazing speed. De La Cruz is already the fastest player in baseball as measured by Statcast. India has a 107 WRC+ with seven homers and 12 stolen bases, Steer is a good value at $4,300/$3,400, he has eight homers and five steals and upside for more. Tyler Stephenson is an OK option at catcher, TJ Hopkins slots in seventh in the projected lineup, the 26-year-old has not done much in 20 plate appearances in the Show, but he had seven home runs in 207 opportunities in AAA earlier this year. Jose Barrero and Curt Casali lend believability to the Lynch upside notion.
The Royals’ hard-hitting free-swinging bunch draw Ben Lively who has been a bit whatever your favorite synonym for his last name is on the mound this season but has allowed far too much power. The starter has posted a surprising 24.8% strikeout rate with a 4.21 ERA and 3.93 xFIP over his first five starts and 36.1 innings after pitching overseas the past few years. Lively has a 9.9% swinging-strike rate and 27.1% CSW% for the season and he has worked deep into starts despite some issues with home runs and earned runs. In his last performance, Lively went 6.2 innings against the Cardinals in St. Louis, striking out eight while walking three, but he allowed a ridiculous seven earned runs and gave up three home runs and 10 hits. The righty also had issues over seven innings against the Brewers the start before, he struck out five and walked three while yielding a pair of home runs and five overall runs. In 5.2 innings against the Red Sox before that he was quite good, shutting the team out while allowing four hits and striking out six. Overall, Lively is not entirely believable on the mound, but the Royals’ aggressive approach could push fantasy points in his direction if he manages to avoid the long ball. The Royals lineup has potential as well, leadoff man Nick Pratto has a 10% barrel rate and 42.2% hard-hit rate from the left side of the plate with a 120 WRC+ over his 169 plate appearances. Sal Perez has a 15.24 in our home run model to push him toward the top of the board for the entire slate. MJ Melendez has light tower power from the left side that has just not amounted to much production this season, he also strikes out at a 29.7% clip, making him one of several on-brand hitters in this lineup. Bobby Witt Jr. has excellent counting stats and now sits at 11 home runs and 21 stolen bases but just an 86 WRC+. Witt has only gotten on base at a .276 clip, which is a big reason for the low marks for run creation, but he has undeniable value for MLB DFS. Michael Massey has a good contact profile for cheap prices as a left-handed second baseman, he has potentially underrated upside at $2,500 on either site. Edward Olivares has moderate power and a bit of speed, Drew Waters, Maikel Garcia, and Nicky Lopez round out the projected batting order as mix-in values.
Play: four parts are on the board but none of them are pretty – Royals bats/stacks, Reds bats/stacks, Daniel Lynch value in small doses, Ben Lively value in small doses
Update Notes:
Washington Nationals (+215/2.97) @ Houston Astros (-239/4.63)
The Nationals get frisky when they face left-handed pitching, but let Vegas’ 2.97-run implied team total do the thinking for you in this matchup, there are lefties and then there is Framber Valdez, who has been electric on the mound for most of the season. Valdez has a 2.36 ERA and 2.86 xFIP over 84 innings in 13 starts, he is the most reliable option for depth in the entire league. The lefty has boosted his strikeouts to 26.5% this season, up three points year over year and he has limited launch angle to a typically spectacular one-degree on the average. Valdez has allowed just a 1.79% home run rate to opposing hitters this season, last year it was 1.33% on -3.6 degrees of launch angle and the year before was 2.10% on a -5.5-degree angle. Valdez is a fantastic option at $10,300 on DraftKings and he still ranks as one of our top pitchers for $11,300 on the FanDuel slate, he has a very strong projection in our pitching model and should be rostered aggressively against this bad Nationals lineup. Hedge stacks of the Nationals should focus on Lane Thomas, Joey Meneses, Stone Garrett, and Keibert Ruiz, the righties hit left-handed pitching well and have power in the split, but there is very little upside in this spot. Jeimer Candelario does not hit for power in the split overall and has been bad against lefties this season, Luis Garcia can provide value from the second spot in the lineup in some situations, but this is not a good spot, Dominic Smith, Alex Call, and Ildemaro Vargas bring up the bottom third in lousy form.
The Astros are facing Josiah Gray who is probably our least favorite pitcher in DFS baseball. The righty has been all over the map for power allowed, for the past two seasons he was an excellent target for home runs every time out, but this year he has checked power effectively in spots while losing that talent in others. The up-and-down performances have amounted to a 3.00 ERA and 4.92 xFIP which are a big mismatch, the xFIP is the more honest number overall. Gray has a 19.6% strikeout rate and walks too many at 11.9%, but his home run rate is essentially halved year over year at 2.57% after sitting at 5.86% in 28 starts and 148.2 innings in 2022. The pitcher can be used for value darts at $6,600 on the DraftKings slate as an SP2 but between mid-range power marks in our home run model and Gray’s ugly xFIP and walk rate, we are still endorsing targeting him with bats. This is more with an eye toward run creation potential than home run upside, despite three hitters in the Astros’ lineup who land over the magic number in our home run model. Mauricio Dubon is a mix-in part for correlated scoring atop the lineup, but all three of Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, and Kyle Tucker are showing power. Altuve has a 12.93 in the home run model, he has two on the season but has made just 74 plate appearances. Bregman has hit nine homers this season, and so has Tucker, they have an 11.20 and 13.63 in our home run model and are both above-average for run creation. Jose Abreu has a 39.4% hard-hit rate and three home runs, his 6.39 in our home run model is indicative of the ongoing struggles for the former star. Jeremy Pena, Corey Julks, and Martin Maldonado are solid mix-in values from late in the lineup and Chas McCormick is our guy at the bottom of the batting order. McCormick hit his sixth home run of the year, in just 129 plate appearances, in last night’s game. The cheap outfielder has a 111 WRC+ and .219 ISO for the season and he sits at a 7.26 in our home run model.
Play: Framber Valdez aggressively, Astros bats/stacks, minor SP2 value shares of Gray if so inclined
Update Notes:
Tampa Bay Rays (-258/5.34) @ Oakland Athletics (+231/3.29)
The Rays are drawing a big 5.34-run implied team total and massive MLB DFS projections in a matchup against pushover starter Luis Medina who has been flat-out bad in five starts and 34.2 innings this season. The righty has a 7.53 ERA and 4.77 xFIP with a 20.5% strikeout rate and 10.9% walk rate and has given up a 6.41% home run rate on 43% hard hits and 10.3% barrels in the small sample. Medina is a target for bats and not an option in a realistic sense for MLB DFS lineups. The Rays lineup will be extremely popular on the big slate, but they are very much in play and they are not expensive enough for their potential in this matchup. Yandy Diaz slots in at $5,200/$3,800, he has a 164 WRC+ and a dozen home runs with a 55.9% hard-hit rate this season. Wander Franco is a counting stats machine with eight home runs and 22 stolen bases as a star shortstop who has a top-end hit tool and strikes out just 12.3% of the time. Josh Lowe has an 11.9% barrel rate and 41.3% hard-hit rate on the left side of the plate which should be problematic for Medina. Lowe has 11 home runs and 15 steals this season. Randy Arozarena is our Tampa Bay home run pick with a 12.41 in the model today. The star outfielder has 12 home runs and a .199 ISO this season for just $5,800/$3,900. Isaac Paredes slots in with eligibility at third base on DraftKings and adds first base to the mix on the blue site. Paredes has 11 home runs in 227 plate appearances. Lefty Luke Raley is our overall home run pick for the day, he has 11 in 227 plate appearances with a .219 ISO and a 20.6% barrel rate from the left side. Jose Siri raced to 11 home runs in just 168 plate appearances, Francisco Mejia and Vidal Brujan are slated in the final two spots in the lineup as mix-in values.
The Athletics suddenly surging run of wins should do nothing to change one’s overall opinion about the quality of this lineup, particularly not when Tyler Glasnow is on the mound for the opposing team. Glasnow is an ace when he is healthy, which is to say infrequently. The righty has not pitched much in the past few seasons, but his three starts and 15.2 innings in 2023 have been strong with a 31.3% strikeout rate. He has given up two home runs in his three starts, but was good with only one earned run allowed in each of his last two outings, a 5.1-inning contest against Boston and a 6.0-inning quality start with six strikeouts against the elite Texas lineup. Against Oakland, Glasnow has significant upside for strikeouts and clean innings, he is our top pitching option on the slate, right next to Valdez, and he lands at a much cheaper price than the lefty ace. Glasnow costs just $9,400/$10,100, he is a significant value on both sites and should be played aggressively in this matchup. The Athletics have a few productive lefties near the top of their lineup, Ryan Noda and Seth Brown are good players in different ways. Noda has a .409 on-base percentage with seven home runs and a 150 WRC+ despite a 31.5% strikeout rate and thanks in-part to a 19.1% walk rate. Brown has four home runs and two stolen bases after missing time, he strikes out at a similar clip but does not get on base as often as his teammate, instead he hits for a bit more power and runs a bit more than Noda. Esteury Ruiz has 31 steals and counting. Ramon Laureano has seasons in the past with mid-level double-digit home run and stolen base output. Brent Rooker is priced at $3,100 on both sites, he has 13 home runs and a 148 WRC+ over 235 plate appearances but has not done much since April. Jonah Bride, Jace Peterson, Kevin Smith, and Shea Langeliers round out the lineup.
Play: Rays bats/stacks aggressively, Tyler Glasnow aggressively
Update Notes:
Miami Marlins (+164/3.03) @ Seattle Mariners (-179/4.06)
Stop us if you’ve heard this one, there is a good pitching matchup in play in the late game in Seattle tonight with the Marlins and Mariners dueling once again. This time we will have Luis Castillo, the nominal ace of the Seattle staff for $9,800/$10,800, which is too cheap for the matchup on both sites. Castillo has a 30% strikeout rate with a 15.8% swinging-strike rate and 30.4% CSW% that are among the league leaders and he has dominated to the tune of a 2.70 ERA and 3.24 xFIP over 13 starts and 76.2 innings. Castillo is a no-brainer option for a lot of shares on both sites tonight, particularly on DraftKings where he is just too cheap in the matchup. The starter is likely to be highly owned on a large slate, but he is entirely worth it. The Marlins have Luis Arraez and Jorge Soler as a dynamic tandem at the top of the lineup. Arraez gets on, Soler can knock him in, again and again, though Arraez has dipped again at a .382 batting average, which shows just how difficult it is to maintain anything close to .400. Soler has 19 home runs and a .295 ISO and is always in play for power, but Castillo has limited homers to just 2.61% though he has allowed premium contact this season. Bryan De La Cruz and Jesus Sanchez are good options from the right and left sides of the plate, they both have moderate power potential and land at cheap prices in the outfield. Garrett Cooper, Joey Wendle, Jean Segura, Nick Fortes, and Jonathan Davis are a lousy bottom half of this lineup behind the team’s quality, if we get Yuli Gurriel or Jon Berti they are better players than most of those hitters, but this is a low-end team that does not rank as a priority stack.
The Marlins will answer Castillo with young starter Eury Perez, who has a flashy 24.8% strikeout rate and 2.17 ERA over his first six starts and 29 innings. The 20-year-old has walked 10.7% and has a 4.68 xFIP hiding under the better numbers, however, which give us some cause for concern against the Mariners, despite the team’s aggressive strikeout approach. Overall, Perez is playable in the spot, he costs just $9,000/$9,200 but could be cheaper given the walk rate. The Mariners’ projected lineup has a 24.9% strikeout rate from top to bottom this year, pushing the idea of upside for Perez in the same way that we have seem for Marlins talent on the mound over the past few slates. Perez is similarly talented, he can find strikeouts but may not reach a quality start in this spot, and the Mariners’ talent could always decide to shine through. JP Crawford is a mix-in value at shortstop in the leadoff role for Seattle, he has a 106 WRC+ on the season. Ty France provides correlated scoring potential with his hit tool and moderate pop behind Julio Rodriguez who has a dozen home runs and stolen bases but has dipped overall for quality in notable ways this season. Rodriguez has lost a few points in his barrel rate and his triple-slash and run creation marks are well down despite the counting stats. Teoscar Herandez has a 32.4% strikeout rate with 11 home runs, Jarred Kelenic has been stuck at 11 home runs for some time, he also strikes out at a 32% clip. The two outfielders have titanic power potential in the heart of the lineup at cheap prices when rostering stacks of Mariners, they should not be skipped in that situation. Eugenio Suarez and Cal Raleigh are another pair of heavy-strikeout hard-hitting options late in the lineup, Mike Ford and Jose Caballero less so.
Play: Luis Castillo aggressively, Eury Perez in smaller doses, minor shares of Mariners bats
Update Notes:
Cleveland Guardians (+139/3.86) @ San Diego Padres (-151/4.73)
The Guardians draw Michael Wacha who has been very good this season. Wacha has a 3.18 ERA and 23.4% strikeout rate in 12 starts and 68 innings. The veteran righty has been better than expected so far, he is striking out more hitters and throwing more strikes overall, taking his swinging-strike rate from 9.5% to 11.1% and his CSW% from 24.7% to 27.5% so far this season. Wacha has a 2.19% home run rate and has allowed just 87.5 mph of exit velocity on average with a 33% hard-hit rate. Against the lousy Guardians Wacha may not find the one or two bonus strikeouts he has located this season, but his potential for a deep clean start with a win and quality start bonus is very much intact at just $8,200/$9,900. Wacha makes a better SP2 option at the price and with the premium starters available tonight, he is less likely to replace a top score from one of those pitchers than he is to enhance one as part of the supporting cast on DraftKings. The Guardians are not one of our go-to stacks, Jose Ramirez can always be deployed but, outside of an outburst last week, he has not been great this season. Steven Kwan has a 94 WRC+ over 303 plate appearances in the leadoff role and Amed Rosario is at 69 in 256 opportunities in the second spot, which is not how one constructs a high-scoring lineup. Josh Naylor has power but just eight home runs and a .175 ISO on the year, his 113 WRC+ is second in the lineup. Josh Bell and Andres Gimenez have been disappointing but have track records that are long enough to support their use in stacks of Guardians if one is going overboard for Cleveland. Will Brennan, Mike Zunino, and Myles Straw are a lousy bottom third with WRC+ marks of 93, 67, and 74.
The Padres bats look far more playable, though opposing pitcher Aaron Civale is not bad on the mound. Civale is not a high-strikeout starter but he can eat innings on the mound and post a clean game from time to time. This season he has a 2.31 ERA and 4.39 xFIP over 23.1 innings and four starts. Civale is targetable for power over time, but he has kept home runs to just 1.08% on a 4.2% barrel rate in the tiny sample. Last year it was 3.44% home runs and a 7.5% barrel rate in a more honest 97 innings in which he did have a 24.1% strikeout rate and 5.4% walk rate with a 3.62 xFIP. Civale is less bad than he is not good. Of course, this does not mean one should roster him for MLB DFS purposes at $7,700/$8,400. Fernando Tatis Jr. has a massive 17.10 in our home run model, he has hit 13 in just 212 plate appearances since his return and is a star every day of the week. Juan Soto has an 11.66 in the home run model, he has 10 in 287 tries with a .202 ISO while creating runs 42% better than average. Soto is slashing .259/.408/.461 with a 19.9% walk rate, he is fantastic at getting on base and correlating with teammates. Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts are cheap for a bit of underperformance in recent weeks. Machado has six home runs and an 88 WRC+ on the season, and Bogarets has seven and a 109. Jake Cronenworth has underwhelmed over most of the season but has fought his way toward the waterline with a 97 WRC+, he is cheap at $5,000/$2,800. Gary Sanchez is also above the magic number for home run potential with a 10.14 in our model, the catcher has blasted six in 57 plate appearances this season. Rougned Odor, Matt Carpenter, and Trent Grisham round out the projected Padres batting order as mix-in values.
Play: Michael Wacha SP2 value on DraftKings, less interest on FanDuel for the price and depth of slate, Padres bats/stacks as a mid-range top-heavy option
Update Notes:
Philadelphia Phillies (+117/4.07) @ Arizona Diamondbacks (-126/4.52)
Righty Merrill Kelly has been mostly excellent over 77 innings in 13 starts this season. Kelly has a 26.8% strikeout rate and a 9.8% walk rate, the free passes remain a bit high for our tastes but he has worked around them effectively and has a 2.92 ERA. His 3.68 xFIP is the more honest number, but Kelly has been a good strike-thrower this year with a 12.2% swinging-strike rate and 28.2% CSW% which are up from 9.7% and 26.7% last year. His 2.61% home run rate is a good mark for keeping power in check, he accomplished this with an 8.4-degree launch angle so far, another marked improvement over the 14 degrees to which he allowed hitters to climb last season. Kelly costs $9,600/$10,400 in a matchup against the powerful Phillies lineup, he seems somewhat like Wacha in that he probably offers more for the DraftKings price than he does as a replacement for one of the expensive starters in better matchups on the single-starter site. Kelly is more likely a limiting factor for Phillies bats than he is a major piece of the puzzle on the mound, but a few shares are not a mistake. Kyle Schwarber his his 18th home run last night and has a .262 ISO with a 16% barrel rate, he is a buy against most starters at $5,300/$3,500. Trea Turner got engaged in the season and has seven home runs and 11 stolen bases overall but still sits at 84 WRC+. Nick Castellanos is having a strong year that resembles production from most of his career prior to last year’s dip in Philadelphia. He has a 10.7% barrel rate and 45.9% hard hits with a 132 WRC+ that leads the team. Bryce Harper is a star for $5,900/$3,500, he retains his first base eligibility in addition to obvious outfield positioning on the FanDuel slate and is always in play. JT Realmuto is a strong option at catcher who does not cost as much as he once did. Realmuto showed off his talents in hitting for the cycle on Monday night, he has upside on any slate. Bryson Stott, Alec Bohm, Kody Clemens, and Brandon Marsh are a productive group of hitters at the bottom of the lineup. Stott, Clemens, and Marsh all hit left-handed with a moderate range of power potential, Bohm checks in on the right side and offers the same at cheap prices.
The Diamondbacks will be facing lefty Ranger Suarez who has a 21.1% strikeout rate with a 4.70 ERA and 3.56 xFIP so far this season. Suarez has allowed just a 1.50% home run rate despite 90 mph of exit velocity, he has typically been good at keeping the ball down and limiting launch angle, which is the primary factor again this season. Suarez is a fairly low-end pitcher, but he is not the biggest target for MLB DFS scoring potential on most nights, given his moderate knack for checking home runs. The Diamondbacks are a mid-range stack on both sites in our model tonight, Suarez is showing a bit of price-based upside but he is a low-expectation low-trust play on the mound even at $5,600/$6,900. Arizona’s lineup opens with Ketel Marte who is good at limiting strikeouts and getting on base and could push Suarez early. Marte has a 122 WRC+ with nine home runs and six stolen bases in 274 opportunities. Corbin Carroll is an emerging star for $5,600/$4,300, he has 14 home runs and 19 stolen bases after hitting another one over the fence last night. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Christian Walker are good options for power in the heart of the lineup, Gurriel adds a sharp hit tool and on-base skills to the mix as well. The underrated outfielder costs just $4,500/$3,600 tonight. Emmanuel Rivera has been a different player this year, focusing more on the hit tool over 119 plate appearances in which he has one home run. He hit a dozen home runs in 359 plate appearances last year but struggled overall. Evan Longoria is better against lefties these days but he is slotted into the projected lineup, if he plays he has moderate power potential. Carson Kelly, Nick Ahmed, and Jake McCarthy round out the lineup.
Play: only small doses of any side, Diamondbacks bats, Phillies bats, Kelly, Suarez in that order if going to it
Update Notes:
Chicago White Sox (+244/3.03) @ Los Angeles Dodgers (-273/5.08)
The last game of the night sees one of the top pitchers taking the mound, with lefty ace Clayton Kershaw going for the home team. Kershaw has made 13 starts and has been mostly dazzling over 76.1 innings this year. The lefty’s 15.1% swinging-strike rate and 32.1% CSW% are among the very top of the league in both categories, he is an extreme strike-thrower in peak form. Kershaw has a 2.95 ERA and a 2.97 xFIP and has struck out 30.3% of opposing hitters, when he is healthy he is still one of the very best pitchers in baseball. The lefty has a good matchup against the scuffling White Sox, though they have several hitters who are good at checking strikeouts. There is significant upside for Kershaw to lead the pitching slate even at $10,800/$11,100 he should be in lineups aggressively. The White Sox are carrying a 3.03-run implied team total in another stern warning from Vegas. There will be a lack of ownership on this squad and they are easily more talented than the Nationals, so contrarian gamers should probably focus here instead of against Valdez, but neither spot has much appeal. Tim Anderson leads off, he has a 69 WRC+ in a down season over 204 plate appearances. Yoan Moncada pushes up to the second spot against a lefty, he has also been disappointing over 147 plate appearances in his return from an injury after a strong World Baseball Classic got hopes up. Luis Robert Jr. is the team’s best player, he has 15 home runs and four stolen bases and has a 9.10 in our home run model against Kershaw, who is good at limiting power. Andrew Vaughn has been good for run creation and correlated scoring, Jake Burger hit a surprising 13 home runs but has cooled somewhat, Yasmani Grandal can get on base but has not done a lot and sits at the league average for run creation. Clint Frazier, Romy Gonzalez, and Elvis Andrus round out the projected batting order, Frazier is easily the most interesting of the three.
The Dodgers are facing Mike Clevinger, which is bad news for Mike Clevinger and his six fans. The righty has been mediocre at best this season, he has a 4.19 ERA and a 5.39 xFIP with an 18.9% strikeout rate and 9.4% walk rate while allowing a 3.54% home run rate in 58 innings and 11 starts. The matchup and general lack of quality or reliable depth have us in a hands-off posture with Clevinger even at $6,000/$6,800. The Dodgers are the go-to play in this spot, their lineup is among the slate leaders by average projection, and they are well worth the investment with a 5.08-run total in Vegas. Mookie Betts is a great buy even if he was only an outfielder, which is not the case on either site. Betts adds second base on DraftKings and pulls in three positions on the blue site with second base and shortstop both added. The superstar has 17 home runs and a 145 WRC+ that would both be among league leaders at all three positions. He costs $6,500/$4,200 and is totally worthwhile. Freddie Freeman has a 165 WRC+ and a .244 ISO with 13 home runs, Will Smith is a dynamite catcher with 10 home runs and a ridiculous knack for putting the ball in play and getting on base, and JD Martinez has roared to life with 16 home runs this season and a team-leading .345 ISO over 219 plate appearances. Max Muncy has been dealing with a nagging injury and may sit out again, if he plays he is a major source of home run potential. Chris Taylor is a quality veteran hitter who has 10 home runs in 169 plate appearances and also fills multiple positions on both sites. Miguel Vargas is a productive and growing young player who has six home runs and a .187 ISO and costs just $3,400/$2,800 at second base. Jason Heyward has been hitting the ball hard and lands in the bottom of the projected lineup but could hit higher and would gain value if he does. Miguel Rojas remains the weak link in this lineup.
Play: Dodgers bats/stacks aggressively, Clayton Kershaw aggressively
Update Notes:
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