Aside from Opening Day and the Fourth of July, Memorial Day is one of the big milestones of the baseball season. This year is no exception, but we'll turn the page to the Tuesday schedule, which includes a 10-game main slate. It's a solid day for pitching at the top of the pool, though there is some lack of depth at the lower tiers of pricing. The best hitting environment is pretty clearly in Sacramento, making the Mariners-A's matchup an interesting one for bats.
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Pitchers
Cam Schlittler ($10,500) and Chase Burns ($10,000) are the headline pitchers of the day. Schlittler has a very slight advantage in underlying skills and results on DK this season, but the matchup is a key difference maker. Burns will draw a Mets' lineup that has only a .288 wOBA against right-handers this season, while Schlittler will draw the Royals, who have a .313 mark. Given price and matchup, I slightly prefer Burns.
Joe Ryan ($9,000) is also in a strong position toward the top of the pitcher pool. The White Sox are essentially an average lineup against right-handed pitching, but they strike out at the second-highest rate (24.4 percent). Meanwhile, Ryan has turned things around in his last few starts by averaging 23.8 DK points across his last three starts.
The middle tier of pitchers offers a few different options and creates a clear choice of valuing matchup against pitcher skill. Jack Leiter ($8,100) has the best skills of the group with a 25.2 percent strikeout rate, but Houston is inside the top-10 in wOBA against right-handed pitchers this season. Eduardo Rodriguez ($7,600) would be the alternative to consider, thanks to a favorable matchup against the Giants in pitcher-friendly Oracle Park. While inconsistent, Rodriguez has topped 20 DK points in three of his last four starts.
It's a difficult group to work with from there. Michael McGreevy ($7,400) has had solid outings, but he draws a Brewers' lineup that has hit righties well while striking out at the third-lowest rate in the league. Sean Burke ($6,600) is arguably the best option against the Twins, but he's been in a tough stretch in his last three starts. Aaron Nola ($7,200) has been abysmal this season, but the Padres have been an underachieving lineup, and there has been at least some bad luck involved in his terrible start to the year.
Top Hitters
Kyle Freeland has been very ineffective both at home and on the road, so the Dodgers are worth considering as at least a mini stack Tuesday. Andy Pages ($5,100) is a pretty obvious choice, while Kyle Tucker ($5,000) has performed well in a very small sample without the platoon advantage.
Value Bats
If the Rockies had a respectable lineup, they'd be an easy call to stack against Eric Lauer. Lauer will be making his team debut with the Dodgers, but he has given up at least one home in seven of his eight starts and multiple long balls on three occasions. Tyler Freeman ($3,200) has frequently hit second against lefties, while Hunter Goodman ($4,400) has been the team's best hitter against southpaws – though he's not exactly a value.
If the Rangers were fully healthy, they'd be another easy choice to stack. With several key hitters on the injured list, that's not the case, but they do draw a very favorable matchup against Tyler Alexander. Joc Pederson ($3,000) hasn't been particularly strong, but he's a nice value given that he's occupied the Rangers' leadoff spot against righties.
Stacks to Consider
Seattle Mariners vs. Athletics (Luis Severino): Julio Rodriguez ($4,800), Josh Naylor ($4,400), Randy Arozarena ($5,000)
Severino had a tough start to the season and has largely turned things around since, but his overall numbers when pitching at home remain underwhelming (5.55 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 2.22 HR/9). That puts the Mariners on the radar as a stack, and they've been surprisingly strong against right-handed pitchers this season by maintaining a .328 wOBA and 115 wRC+. Rodriguez and Naylor are also surprisingly cheap, which is key given the state of pitching.
Arizona Diamondbacks vs. San Francisco Giants (Tyler Mahle): Ketel Marte ($5,300), Corbin Carroll ($5,800), Nolan Arenado ($4,000)
This is a tricky call because of Oracle Park's status as very pitcher-friendly, but Mahle has really struggled in his last five starts. Though only one of those came at home, it appears that opposing hitters have a beat on him, and I'm still willing to bet that will continue. Each of Marte, Carroll and Arenado has been productive of late, and Arenado adds in a nice bit of savings on what looks to be a tight day for pricing.
