This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
Fresh off the All-Star break, most teams are in action Monday. As a result, we have a nice 10-game main slate to work with, albeit with a lot of subpar pitching options and several of the better offensive teams off the schedule. Some of the better hitting environments include Great American Ballpark and Angels Stadium, both of which should feature plenty of runs.
Pitchers
Matchups dictate that it's reasonable to forego the entire top tier of pitching as defined by price. For those looking to pay up a bit more, Jesus Luzardo ($10,200) would be the choice. He has the highest strikeout rate of the available arms and also has an excellent 23 K-BB%. He draws a matchup against the Cardinals, which isn't ideal, but the other two top-priced pitchers have even less desirable matchups.
Logan Gilbert ($9,800) has a relatively middling 24.8 percent strikeout rate, but he's posted at least 26 DK points in three of his last four outings. A matchup against the Twins is nothing to fear, as they strike out at the highest clip in the league and are otherwise mediocre.
MacKenzie Gore ($7,900) is coming off of a pair of disastrous starts, but he still boasts the second-highest strikeout rate of available pitchers. He's a tournament option over cash, but it wouldn't be a massive surprise to see him post one of the better starts of the evening. The Cubs are a mediocre matchup and strike out at an above-average rate.
The A's got to Minnesota's pitching over the weekend, but they're still a positive matchup. Nick Pivetta ($7,300) has worked in bulk relief his past couple outings and has been effective. It's unclear in exactly which capacity he'll pitch Monday, but he should be a decent cash game option as a counterpart to Gore.
Matt Manning ($6,800) doesn't check in all that much cheaper than Pivetta, but he represents the cutoff of reasonable options for the slate. His upside has been limited due to lack of strikeouts (16.9%), but he draws a dream matchup against a Royals lineup that lacks pop and strikes out at a 24.5 percent clip.
Top Hitters
J.D. Davis ($4,300) isn't priced up, but he's an excellent bet to go yard or otherwise post a strong line Monday night. He has a .211 ISO against lefties this season and draws a matchup against Brandon Williamson, who has served up 1.5 HR/9 during his first sample in the majors.
Griffin Canning has served up 1.8 HR/9 this season and his home park doesn't help him. That puts Giancarlo Stanton ($4,500) on the radar, who has heated up lately (albeit with the aid of Coors Field).
Value Bats
Jordan Lyles is one of the more obvious arms to target, but he faces the Tigers – not exactly an offense we would typically look to target. However, Kerry Carpenter ($3,200) has taken over as the team's cleanup hitter and slugged .727 with four extra-base hits across his last 10 games.
Zach Neto ($2,800) has taken over as the Angels' leadoff hitter since returning from the injured list out of the All-Star break. That alone makes him a value, but he has a positive home park and a matchup against the ineffective Luis Severino to improve his outlook even further.
Stacks to Consider
Los Angeles Angels vs. New York Yankees (Luis Severino): Zack Neto ($2,800), Shohei Ohtani ($6,600), Mickey Moniak ($3,800)
Whether he wants to admit it publicly or not, something is off for Severino. He has a 9.1 percent walk rate and has surrendered a massive 2.3 HR/9, two things that are beneficial for a potential stack. Even better for the Angels is that the majority of the top of their lineup is cheap, meaning they can be used as a secondary stack to complement a more traditionally high-powered offense such as the Dodgers or Rangers.
San Francisco Giants vs. Cincinnati Reds (Brandon Williamson): Austin Slater ($3,400), Wilmer Flores ($3,200), J.D. Davis ($4,300)
We've briefly covered the appeal of stacking the Giants at Great American Ballpark. The first is the park, and only Coors Field is more beneficial for scoring runs. Next is Willamson, who is another pitcher with a high walk rate (9.5%) and homer rate (1.5 HR/9). The Giants lack star power but get the most out of their hitters by playing matchups, and we should expect that to be the case Monday. This is another potential secondary stack based on price.
