The Thursday slates are always light, but it's nice to see a smaller player pool. It's actually much easier to navigate a field with only five games because 15 can be overwhelming at times. Sometimes players get overlooked on larger slates, but that rarely happens on these Thursday cards. With that said, it's one of the weakest pitching pools we've seen all year, but that should make it a fun one to dissect!
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Pitching
Gage Jump, ATH vs. LAA ($10,000)
Jump has one of the most unique names in baseball, but he has some serious game. This lefty is one of the A's top prospects, posting a 1.96 ERA and 0.87 WHIP across his last four starts. He did that damage against teams like the Astros and Cubs, but a home matchup against the Angels is much easier. Los Angeles ranks 19th in wOBA while posting the worst K rate in baseball. That's why he enters this matchup as a -140 favorite.
Noah Cameron, KC vs. STL ($8,800)
Cameron has quietly had a breakout season in Kansas City. This left-hander has scored at least 46 FanDuel points in three of his last five starts while posting a 2.22 ERA and 0.78 WHIP in that span. His only stinker over the last two months was a matchup with a hounding Houston lineup, but St. Louis doesn't scare us. The Cardinals rank 15th in runs scored, while Cameron completed a quality start against them a month ago. That's all you need for him to be a decent value at this price, which appears to be his floor based on his recent form.
Top Targets
Bobby Witt, KC (vs. Matthew Liberatore) $3,800
Witt is a perennial MVP candidate, and he's tough to avoid in a matchup like this. Let's start there because he has the platoon advantage against a lefty with a 4.71 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. That's terrifying since Witt has a .392 OBP and .914 OPS against southpaws this season. Witt is also scorching right now, sporting a .412 OBP and .795 OPS across his last 17 outings while stealing 11 bases in that span. He's also scored at least 13 FanDuel points in 13 of those 17 games.
Cody Bellinger, NYY (vs. Sean Burke) $3,500
Bellinger goes on these stretches where he looks like one of the best hitters in baseball. This slugger homered again Wednesday and has 60 FanDuel points in the first two games of this series. He's also got a .399 OBP and .953 OPS since May 1 while recording eight homers and five steals in that span. That's bad news for Burke, with the ChiSox righty posting a 5.82 ERA and 1.56 WHIP across his last six starts. The Yankees scored 10 runs on Wednesday and are one of the safest stacks out there. Guys like Ben Rice ($4,300), Paul Goldschmidt ($3,300), Jazz Chisholm ($3,200) and Jasson Dominguez ($2,700) are all in play.
Bargain Bats
Matt Chapman, SF (vs. Martin Perez) $3,100
Chapman got off to a slow start, but he's been rolling recently. This defensive stud has a .449 OBP and 1.213 OPS across his last 16 outings. That makes him a heck of a bargain at just $3,100, especially since he has the platoon advantage against Perez. Chapman has a .405 OBP and .867 OPS against left-handers this year, while Perez has a 4.85 career xERA and 1.42 WHIP. We also love Chapman's BvP numbers against Perez, posting a .320 AVG and .846 OPS in 25 at-bats against him. Casey Schmitt ($3,400) and Willy Adames ($2,900) both have the platoon advantage against Perez as well.
Trea Turner, PHI (vs. Sean Manaea) $2,900
There's no doubt Turner has been terrible this season, but seeing him south of $3K is wild. This superstar has been closer to $4K throughout his career, and it feels like this will be the lowest salary we'll see all year. We're still talking about a guy who has a .296 career AVG and .836 OPS against lefties. He's also one of the all-time leaders in steals among this generation and shouldn't be faded against a southpaw who has a 5.25 ERA since the start of last year. Alec Bohm ($2,600) has a .884 OPS across the last two weeks and has slaughtered southpaws throughout his career, if you want to stack him with Turner.
Stacks to Consider
Kansas City Royals vs. St. Louis Cardinals (Liberatore): Witt ($3,800), Jac Caglianone ($2,900), Salvador Perez ($2,600), Lane Thomas ($2,500)
This is a unique stack. We already talked about how Liberatore has a 4.71 ERA and 1.50 WHIP, but his 5.28 ERA and 1.56 WHIP since his first two starts are even worse. Many people won't stack the Royals because of how rubbish their offense has been, but this is a sneaky team with how cheap many of these bats are next to Witt.
Witt is the obvious choice at the top of this stack, but Caglianone has been crushing recently. He has a .482 OBP and 1.115 OPS across his last 14 fixtures. Perez has the platoon advantage against Liberatore, providing an OPS 200 points higher against lefties this year. Thomas is projected to bat leadoff, tallying a .361 career OBP and .844 OPS against left-handers.
