This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
There's an interesting mix of matchups Tuesday. It's an evening brimming with MLB action, but we have 11 of the games starting at 7:05 p.m. ET or later. If you are looking for some DFS recommendations, I've got them for you. Here are my suggestions for your lineups.
Pitching
Max Scherzer, TEX at OAK ($10,800): Scherzer's first start with the Rangers went reasonably well, but I expect this start to go a bit better. The Athletics are last in runs scored and team OPS. Scherzer has had a disappointing campaign, mostly owing to an uptick in homers, but Oakland's lineup combined with its ballpark should help there.
Wade Miley, MIL vs. COL ($7,000): Miley is a reliable veteran who doesn't strike out many batters, but he keeps the ball in the park, and that has helped him post a 3.01 ERA this season. The Rockies are in the bottom 10 in runs scored, and when you factor in where they play their home games, that looks even worse.
Jameson Taillon, CHC at NYM ($6,700): Overall, Taillon has alarming numbers. Even his 4.28 road ERA is a little iffy. However, over his last five starts the righty has a 2.08 ERA. The Mets are at the fringes of the bottom 10 in terms of runs scored, and several of their players are worse at home, so I'd take a shot at Taillon.
Top Targets
After having 28 homers and 25 stolen bases in his first season with the Rangers, Marcus Semien ($5,600) has 18 of the former and 10 of the latter this year. A step down, in theory, but he's boosted his average up to .279 with a .350 OBP, so all in all he's been a better hitter, just with a slight decrease in counting stats. In his first full season with the Athletics, JP Sears has a 5.14 FIP and has allowed 1.85 homers per nine innings. Even though Oakland tends to have a pitcher-friendly park, Sears actually has allowed 2.5 home runs per nine at home.
Early on, I felt like the vibe on Bobby Witt ($5,400) was that he was not building upon his rookie campaign. Now, though, you can look and see that he's hit .269 with 20 homers and 32 stolen bases, so he has taken a step forward. Facing a righty is better for a base stealer, and Kutter Crawford is the perfect righty for that. He has a 5.65 ERA at home and has allowed righties to hit .274 against him.
Bargain Bats
Though he lacks power Andrew Benintendi ($3,300) has hit .276 and stolen 12 bases. He also has a .745 OPS at home, better than his road output. Clarke Schmidt has allowed lefties to hit a whopping .293 against him in his career, and this season he has a 4.91 ERA on the road.
Rookie Joey Wiemer ($2,200) has 13 homers and 11 stolen bases, even if his overall offensive numbers are lackluster. Oddly, though, while he's really struggled with righties, he has a .931 OPS versus lefties. That's quite the split! Kyle Freeland is a lefty, and right-handed hitters have averaged .305 against him. Don't blame his numbers on Coors either, as he has a 5.33 ERA on the road.
Stacks to Consider
Astros at Orioles (Grayson Rodriguez): Yordan Alvarez ($5,800), Kyle Tucker ($5,600), Alex Bregman ($4,900)
Rodriguez has gotten a lot of punch outs with his impressive fastball, but the contact that is made tends to do damage. In fact, he has a 7.36 ERA at home where he has allowed 1.9 homers per nine innings. Additionally, lefties have hit .293 against him, so there are two southpaws in this stack.
Alvarez has shown no rust after returning from injury, as he has an 1.189 OPS since getting back in the lineup. Given his career .979 OPS, that isn't a surprise. Tucker has picked up 19 homers and 23 stolen bases with a .295 average. He's been solid at home, but the southpaws has a .969 OPS on the road. While Bregman is a righty, he's usually better against right-handed hitters. In fact, over the last two seasons he's hit .277 against righties, and he's slugged .465 against them in 2023 as well.
Dodgers at Diamondbacks (Brandon Pfaadt): Freddie Freeman ($6,200), J.D. Martinez ($5,400), James Outman ($3,200)
A top pitching prospect, Pfaadt is not quite ready for primetime, so to speak. He's made nine MLB starts and has a 7.11 ERA while allowing a whopping 2.84 homers per nine innings. Righties have hit .280 against him, while lefties have hit .305 versus Pfaadt. So yeah, stacking Dodgers leaves you with an abundance of options, though I landed on these three.
Freeman is quietly having the best full season of him career (and possibly a better season than his 2020 campaign that left him with some hardware), having slashed .340/.418/.595 with 23 homers and 16 stolen bases. He's been great at home, but on the road the southpaw has an 1.044 OPS. Martinez has 25 homers in his first season as a Dodger, though Dodger Stadium isn't his favorite place. The slugger has a .954 OPS in away games. The rookie Outman has picked up 13 homers and 13 stolen bases. He slowed down in the middle of the season after a hot start, but he has a .940 OPS over the last three weeks.
Red Sox vs. Royals (Brady Singer): Justin Turner ($4,600), Jarren Duran ($4,500), Connor Wong ($2,300)
I am not expecting a pitchers' duel at Fenway. Singer doesn't allow many home runs, but that is about the only positive skill he brings to the table. He has a 5.10 ERA, but on the road that ERA jumped to 6.91. I have two righties in this stack against the right hander, because Singer has allowed righties to hit .314 against him.
The righty Turner has slashed .284/.353/.474 with 17 homers in his first season with Boston. While he has mashed lefties this year, since 2021 he has an .817 OPS versus righties, so he can easily handle a matchup like this. Duran is a lefty, but he's also been a standout in the Red Sox outfield, hitting .307 with eight homers and 23 stolen bases. Fenway is usually kind to southpaws, and indeed he has a .965 OPS at home. Wong is an intriguing choice at catcher. He's struggled versus lefties and on the road, but his .733 OPS against righties and his .771 OPS at home both work quite well for his position, and his DFS salary to boot.
