This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
Despite being only an eight-game main slate, Wednesday's player pool has a lot to offer. There are at least five pitchers that are rosterable that come at various price points. There are also a lot of hitters in good spots to produce, so it should turn out to be a high-scoring night in DraftKings contests.
Pitchers
Let's start with a few punt-plays Wednesday, because both Jeffrey Springs ($6,400) and Mitch White ($6,000) have the potential to return tremendous value. Springs has shifted fully from a relief to starting role, as he's worked 5.2 and six innings in his last two starts. He's put together a 13:4 K:BB in that span and Texas is a bottom-third lineup as measured by wOBA. The case for White is based primarily on the fact that he takes on Pittsburgh. He went only four frames in his last appearance, but has been building up his pitch count and should work deep enough for the chance to earn a win.
Nestor Cortes ($10,700) has to be mentioned simply because of the fact that he has reached 27 DK points in three of his last four starts. The Angels are a tough matchup, though they are more mediocre against lefties early this season. The other high-priced option to consider is Robbie Ray ($9,500), who draws a matchup against a Baltimore lineup that is bottom-five in wOBA and strikes out a 23.7 percent clip. After a shaky start to the season, Ray has struck out at least eight hitters in four consecutive starts.
There's not much reason to dip into the middle tiers of the pitching pool Wednesday, but Bailey Ober ($8,200) would be my choice if I were to do so. The Tigers are dreadful at the plate, which could help Ober reach a ceiling outcome of around 18 DK points.
Top Hitters
Hunter Greene has shown flashes of dominance (27.6 K%), but he has also allowed multiple home runs in five of his nine starts. That makes Boston an easy choice to begin builds with, and Rafael Devers ($5,900) can serve as a foundational player.
Reid Detmers has allowed multiple long balls in each of his two starts since throwing a no-hitter, and he hasn't been particularly impressive this season aside from his one outing. A matchup in the Bronx will be difficult for him to manage. Like the Red Sox, the Yankees offer a lot of high-priced hitters to choose from. Given the savings available at pitcher, we can pick the best option and pay up for Aaron Judge ($5,300).
Jose Quintana hasn't been a pitcher to target early this season, but he has a 2.15 ERA and 4.24 SIERA. Regression is on its way, and the Dodgers are the best-equipped team to deliver it. Freddie Freeman ($5,600) could be sneaky as people will shy away from the matchup against a lefty, but Freeman has posted a .397 wOBA without the handedness advantage in a very small sample to begin 2022.
Value Hitters
Keep an eye on the Mariners' lineup, and particularly whether Kyle Lewis is in it. If Lewis is sidelined, Taylor Trammell ($2,000) is a minimum-priced player, but he's produced well since being recalled by Seattle on May 22 (four XBH across 22 PA). Riding hot streaks isn't typically a great strategy, but Trammell doesn't need to produce much to return value given his price point.
Tyrone Taylor ($3,400) is on the border of being a true value, but he is locked into the middle of the Brewers' lineup with Willy Adames and Hunter Renfroe sidelined. Kyle Hendricks seems to have been solved by the league, and his 15.7 percent strikeout rate is hardly imposing.
The White Sox lineup is depleted – Luis Robert could be back Wednesday – but that opens up opportunity for cheap players to produce. Jake Burger ($3,600) and Gavin Sheets ($3,000) have occupied premium spots in the lineup in recent games, while Yasmani Grandal ($3,700) led off Tuesday. Hyun-Jin Ryu hasn't fooled many hitters to begin the season, so this is a solid spot to hunt for value.
Stacks to Consider
Boston Red Sox vs. Hunter Greene: Enrique Hernandez ($4,100), Rafael Devers ($5,900), J.D. Martinez ($5,500), Xander Bogaerts ($5,500)
Stacking against Greene comes with a significant amount of risk because he is plenty capable of missing bats. However, he struggles to find the strike zone consistently (11.8 BB%) and his problems keeping the ball in the yard have already been documented. This stack is one of the more expensive ones on the slate, but the viability of playing at least one pitcher in the $6,000 range should make a build around Boston pretty easy.
Milwaukee Brewers vs. Kyle Hendricks: Kolten Wong ($3,900), Luis Urias ($4,600), Christian Yelich ($4,900), Rowdy Tellez ($3,800)
Hendricks checks all of the boxes we look for in stacks, particularly high home run rate and low strikeout rate. His 7.8 percent walk rate is okay, but not given his skillset and the other issues in his profile. Milwaukee is a relatively cheap stack, so I'd pair them with either elite pitching (this could be a unique build given the dynamics of the slate) or pay down at pitching and pair the Brewers with another elite lineup.
New York Yankees vs. Reid Detmers: DJ LeMahieu ($4,600), Aaron Judge ($5,300), Anthony Rizzo ($5,000), Gleyber Torres ($4,500)
The Yankees strike a balance in price point between Boston and Milwaukee, so that could make them popular. Detmers has minimized baserunners very well this season based on his 7.0 percent walk rate, but he has benefitted from a .191 BABIP. He also has the third-lowest strikeout rate among pitchers in the pool Wednesday, so the Yankees should put a lot of balls in play and they clearly have the power to do damage. This is another option that could be paired with the Brewers or elite pitching, and it offers more salary flexibility than the Red Sox.
