This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Note: Just like last night, the main slate of games for this evening starts at 6:35 PM EST.
PITCHING
The chalk among the starting pitchers will likely fall to Cole Hamels ($9,000) who has a fantastic matchup against the Marlins. He has scored 49 and 37 fantasy points in his last two outings and shouldn't have much trouble against Miami. Oddly enough, the Marlins have the lowest strikeout rate (14.3 percent) against left-handed pitching in baseball. However, it's a small sample and last season they had the lowest wOBA (.283) of any team in the league against lefties. Feel confident in deploying Hamels.
Carlos Carrasco ($9,600) warrants a mention here despite a rocky start. He single-handedly killed lineups last time out, finishing with -7.0 fantasy points, and his first start of 7.0 fantasy points obviously didn't come close to making value for his cost. However, there's a 51-fantasy point effort sandwiched in between those two outings to show his upside. The Mariners on the road won't be an easy matchup for Carrasco, but they do strike out at a rate of 25.1 percent against right-handed pitching, which is league average. Carlos should (rightfully so) have low ownership in cash games but he's a great pick to use in GPPs.
A dark horse pitcher to consider for tournaments only is Erik Swanson ($6,000). His price allows for a lot of flexibility, making it possible to roster multiple hitting studs. Swanson is considered a decent prospect who came over in the James Paxton trade and struck out over a batter per inning last year over three different minor-league levels. The Indians are a great team to target as they've struck out 25.9 percent (sixth worst) of the time against right-handed pitching and have only a .266 wOBA (fifth worst).
KEY VALUES/CHALK
Happy Matt Harvey Day! It seems like a good idea in cash to have at least a couple of Rangers in your lineup. The two best candidates are Joey Gallo ($4,300) and Nomar Mazara ($3,700). Mazara had a .386 wOBA in Arlington last season against righties and Gallo has career .358 in Texas against that handedness. Harvey allowed a .342 wOBA to left-handed hitters last season and has given up three home runs in 6.1 innings to that side of the plate so far this season.
Willy Adames ($2,800) is a good value to target at shortstop. After a slow start he's scored fantasy points in eight straight games, including three games of 21.4 fantasy points or more. David Hess allowed a .369 wOBA on the road last season against right-handed batters, showing he's a good matchup for the Rays' bats.
It looks like it's time to trust Jose Ramirez ($3,600) again after he homered and had two stolen bases Monday in Seattle. Obviously don't use him in GPPs with Swanson in the same lineup, but he's in play against the inexperienced pitcher for cash games. This may be the cheapest we see him for the rest of the season, and his slow start shouldn't cloud the 39/34 season he had in 2018.
Adam Frazier ($3,000) is off to a good start, averaging over 10 fantasy points per game while occupying the leadoff spot for the Pirates. He'll get a lefty-vs-righty matchup against Spencer Turnbull, a split in which he posted a .340 wOBA last season.
At the 1B/C spot, Brandon Belt ($2,700) looks to be in a good matchup against Jeremy Hellickson. Belt had a .350 wOBA against right-handed pitching last season and Hellickson surrendered a .356 wOBA at home to left-handed hitters last year. Steve Pearce ($2,400) facing a lefty is always in play as well.
STACKS
One of the highest over/unders of the season to date is the Rangers/Angels affair taking place in Arlington. There's three ways to approach this game: stack Rangers, stack Angels or stack both and hope for a shootout. Looking at the Rangers, Mazara, Gallo and a combination of Shin-Soo Choo ($3,800), Elvis Andrus ($4,200) and/or Delino DeShields Jr. ($3,300) makes sense. On the other side, using Mike Trout ($5,000), Albert Pujols ($3,000), Kole Calhoun ($3,100), and either Justin Bour ($2,700, if he plays) or Andrelton Simmons ($2,800) could be a winning combination. Again, don't hesitate to use players from both sides in this one.
The Red Sox will look to exact some revenge on the Yankees after getting shut out in the first game of the series. The top four Boston players to use in this matchup are Mookie Betts ($4,100), J.D. Martinez ($4,300), Xander Bogaerts ($4,200) and Pearce, all of whom kill lefties.
The under-the-radar stack to take a look at is the Athletics. Khris Davis ($4,700) has become almost matchup-proof at this point. The other Oakland players to consider include Chad Pinder ($3,100), Stephen Piscotty ($3,500), Robbie Grossman ($2,700) and Mark Canha ($2,200). Over his career, Wade Miley's worst split is on the road versus right-handed hitters, who have a .338 wOBA against him.
