This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Twelve games comprise FanDuel's Tuesday main slate, with first pitch at 7:10 p.m. EDT. Seven arms seem like worthy pay-ups priced at $9,500 or greater, three of which carry five-figure tags. The White Sox and Dodgers don't have confirmed arms per FanDuel, but barring a Triple-A call up, the answer likely is in the player pool and can be considered knowing roster percentages will be near zero.
The Dodgers are in Coors Field, unsurprisingly giving them the slate's highest run expectancy at 8.1 (11.5 run game total). Yankees-Reds, Atlanta-Mets and Cubs-Cardinals are the only other games with run totals of 9.0 or 9.5. The Dodgers (-240), Brewers (-200) and Giants (-190) are the slate's biggest favorites. Wind doesn't look like a major factor across the slate, while rain is possible in Chicago. The bigger weather story is heat across the central zone and east coast, where we expect balls to travel well.
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Pitching
Garrett Crochet, BOS at LAA ($10,800): If I'm paying up, I'm going all the way up for Crochet as the matchup is just too good. The Angels do occasionally run into some power, but they come with a massive 28.0 percent K rate off lefties with just an 80 wRC+. Crochet has failed to go six innings just five times all season, has five quality starts in his last seven, and his strikeouts have risen each month, peaking at his current 11.9 per nine in June.
Ryne Nelson, ARI at CWS ($8,000): I suspect a lot of eyes will look towards Luis Castillo at $8,800 for a mid-tier option, but he doesn't strike out enough batters, nor do the Twins whiff a lot, so his ceiling seems minimal. For $800 cheaper, we can consider Nelson in a soft matchup against the White Sox, who are the league's worst with a .281 wOBA and 77 wRC+ against righties. Nelson is far from a sure thing, but he's posted 30-plus FDP in consecutive starts and in three of his last five. A quality start boost seems unlikely, but Nelson has the matchup to work five or more innings with minimal damage.
Justin Verlander, SF vs. MIA ($7,800): I'm streaming Verlander in season-long leagues this week as a two-start guy, so if I'm willing to chance it there, why not try him in DFS too for a cheap option? We know we aren't getting his Hall of Fame history, but the matchup is worth targeting, and for whatever reason, Verlander is averaging 2.0 more K/9 at home than on the road. The Marlins don't strike out a lot at 21.4 percent but have a below-average 95 wRC+ and minimal power with a .139 ISO off righties. Verlander has four quality starts in his last seven, but no wins all season. I'm betting that changes Tuesday night.
Top Targets
The Mets are turning to Frankie Montas on Tuesday, activating him to make his season debut, and it's more out of necessity given their injuries than the fact he's ready. He had a 4.84 ERA and 1.4 HR/9 last year, and a 13.19 ERA at Triple-A this season, allowing a brutal eight homers in 14.1 innings! Ronald Acuna ($4,500) is flirting with hitting .400, has two hits in each of his last four games, and now has two steals over the last four, upping his potential. Matt Olson ($3,700) has a 24-game on-base streak and has moved up to the two spot in the lineup. This makes a nice mini-stack with the rest of Atlanta's offense bumbling along.
We can't ignore the Dodgers as they're more than capable of exploding for double-digit runs, but with the Coors Field price boost, it's challenging to find much space. Mookie Betts ($3,700) isn't overpriced thanks to his weak form, but he's a reasonable 7-for-23 (.304) off German Marquez. We've seen Max Muncy ($3,600) go on power binges, and he's coming off a two-homer game Sunday. He's just 7-for his last-32 (.219) but four of those hits have left the yard. Andy Pages ($3,600) is in sound form and also a consideration at a fair salary.
James Wood ($3,700) has four homers and nine RBI over his last five. He seems destined to be overlooked and under-rostered with so many more expensive options above him.
Bargain Bats
Cal Quantrill has been ripped on the road, allowing a 6.53 ERA, but it's righties that have done him in to the tune of a .431 wOBA and 1.013 OPS, and the Giants lack multiple reliable choices on that side of the plate. Heliot Ramos ($3,300) is the play by default.
Washington's Trevor Williams is allowing a .418 wOBA and .977 OPS to lefties against .233/.528 to righties. The Padres offer a plethora of options that can be the final piece or two to your builds. Jackson Merrill ($3,300) is priced down two games removed from an IL stint, and Jake Cronenworth ($2,900), Gavin Sheets ($2,900) and Luis Arraez ($2,800) are all in play. Arraez is 7-for-18 (.389) off Williams.
Chris Paddack has allowed 18 hits and 12 runs over his last 9.0 innings, but doesn't have targetable splits to hitters. Only one Mariner bat is priced over $3,200, so there should be value to be had. Julio Rodriguez ($3,200) has more potential than this salary suggests and is 2-for-5 off Paddack. Luke Raley ($2,900) has nine hits in his last six, and Dominic Canzone ($2,800) has three homers in his last two.
Stacks to Consider
Brewers vs. Andrew Heaney (Pirates): Jackson Chourio ($3,500), Rhys Hoskins ($3,000), William Contreras ($3,000)
Heaney has allowed 10 runs and 12 hits over his last 10.0 innings and has a 5.40 ERA and 1.7 HR/9 rate in June. He's curiously been more vulnerable to left-handed bats, but we'll back the Brewers splits against lefties more strongly. Chourio is a terrific standalone play at a fair price, leading the team with a .415 wOBA, 167 wRC+ and .250 ISO. Hoskins has homered in two of his last four and carries a .347/121/.216 slash line, far from elite, but he gives us a cheaper power option. The third piece is somewhat interchangeable, Contreras has poor splits and hasn't been himself all year. He does have two hits in each of his last two though, and gives us a third top of the order option. Caleb Durbin ($2,600) wouldn't make this a traditional lineup stack, but he offers a nice price break and has 12 hits in his last 10 games.
Cardinals vs. Jameson Taillon (Cubs): Brendan Donovan ($3,100), Alec Burleson ($3,000), Nolan Arenado ($2,800)
There are certainly higher-upside stacking options, and we've noted some mini-stacks to consider, but with such high-end bats and arms, sometimes we need to get creative/cheap with lineup stacks. The entire Cardinals' roster is 40-for-128 (.312) off Taillon, a large enough sample to back. Arenado is strictly a BvP play, going 11-for-25 (.440) with a .942 OPS. Donovan is 8-for-19 (.421) and has a team-best .384 wOBA and 148 wRC+ off righties. Burleson is surging with four homers and 11 RBI over his last seven and is 6-for-15 (.400) with two homers off the Cubs' starter.
