This article is part of our DFS MLB series.
Top DFS Pitching and Team Stacking Strategies for DraftKings
In this article, I'm going to take a deeper dive into pitching and team stacking options. Let's take a look at our optimizer's rankings of the pitchers for the DraftKings main slate, sorted by projected fantasy points.
Visit RotoWire's MLB Daily Lineups to find out where the hitters slot in!
*Potential rainout for Tigers @ Rockies. Proceed accordingly!
Paul Skenes checks in as the lone starter priced in the $10k range today, but it's actually Chris Sale ($8,800) who we have projected for the most fantasy points. He gets an $1,100 discount compared to his FanDuel salary, and he gets a matchup against a Reds squad that has been held to one run combined over its last two games.
We've also starred Zack Wheeler, Zac Gallen and Cade Povich in our optimizer. Povich is the best point-per-dollar value after Sale in large part due to his lowly $5k salary, but he's best used only as a contrarian GPP option. Meanwhile, Wheeler has gone for 20 DK points in three consecutive starts and is a worthy option to spend up on. Michael King, Pablo Lopez and Matthew Liberatore all rank well in the metrics below as well.
Here's how each pitcher ranks in key categories (stats are from 2025 season only):
| Pitcher | Fantasy Points | FIP | K% | Opponent K% |
| Chris Sale | 1 | 9 | 3 | 8 |
| Paul Skenes | 2 | 7 | 7 | 19 |
| Zack Wheeler | 3 | 8 | 1 | 11 |
| Michael King | 4 | 5 |
Top DFS Pitching and Team Stacking Strategies for DraftKings
In this article, I'm going to take a deeper dive into pitching and team stacking options. Let's take a look at our optimizer's rankings of the pitchers for the DraftKings main slate, sorted by projected fantasy points.
Visit RotoWire's MLB Daily Lineups to find out where the hitters slot in!
*Potential rainout for Tigers @ Rockies. Proceed accordingly!
Paul Skenes checks in as the lone starter priced in the $10k range today, but it's actually Chris Sale ($8,800) who we have projected for the most fantasy points. He gets an $1,100 discount compared to his FanDuel salary, and he gets a matchup against a Reds squad that has been held to one run combined over its last two games.
We've also starred Zack Wheeler, Zac Gallen and Cade Povich in our optimizer. Povich is the best point-per-dollar value after Sale in large part due to his lowly $5k salary, but he's best used only as a contrarian GPP option. Meanwhile, Wheeler has gone for 20 DK points in three consecutive starts and is a worthy option to spend up on. Michael King, Pablo Lopez and Matthew Liberatore all rank well in the metrics below as well.
Here's how each pitcher ranks in key categories (stats are from 2025 season only):
| Pitcher | Fantasy Points | FIP | K% | Opponent K% |
| Chris Sale | 1 | 9 | 3 | 8 |
| Paul Skenes | 2 | 7 | 7 | 19 |
| Zack Wheeler | 3 | 8 | 1 | 11 |
| Michael King | 4 | 5 | 2 | 3 |
| Pablo Lopez | 5 | 3 | 8 | 7 |
| Seth Lugo | 6 | 14 | 17 | 5 |
| Zac Gallen | 7 | 12 | 5 | 21 |
| Drew Rasmussen | 8 | 4 | 6 | 13 |
| Jackson Jobe | 9 | 18 | 22 | 1 |
| Hayden Wesneski | 10 | 15 | 9 | 17 |
| Matthew Liberatore | 11 | 1 | 11 | 10 |
| Chad Patrick | 12 | 10 | 16 | 16 |
| Colin Rea | 13 | 2 | 14 | 6 |
| Clarke Schmidt | 14 | 21 | 10 | 24 |
| David Peterson | 15 | 6 | 13 | 18 |
| Jeffrey Springs | 16 | 17 | 21 | 9 |
| Andrew Abbott | 17 | 16 | 4 | 12 |
| Justin Verlander | 18 | 11 | 15 | 14 |
| Cade Povich | 19 | 20 | 20 | 15 |
| Sean Burke | 20 | 22 | 23 | 23 |
| Tyler Anderson | 21 | 19 | 18 | 22 |
| Chase Dollander | 22 | 23 | 12 | 4 |
| Emerson Hancock | 23 | 13 | 19 | 20 |
| Jose Urena | 24 | N/A | N/A | 2 |
Analyzing Team Stack Rankings for Maximum DFS Impact
Here is how each team ranks in implied runs, home run rate and how popular we expect each team stack to be in GPPs:
| Team | Implied Runs | HR Rate | Stack Popularity |
| Tigers | 6.2 | 4 | High |
| Royals | 5.9 | 23 | High |
| Braves | 5.9 | 9 | High |
| Twins | 5.5 | 19 | High |
| Athletics | 5.5 | 6 | High |
| Mariners | 5.0 | 3 | High |
| Cubs | 4.9 | 2 | Low |
| Blue Jays | 4.8 | 24 | Medium |
| Diamondbacks | 4.8 | 8 | High |
| Mets | 4.7 | 10 | Medium |
| Angels | 4.6 | 5 | Medium |
| Phillies | 4.4 | 13 | Medium |
| Brewers | 4.4 | 18 | Low |
| Yankees | 4.2 | 1 | Medium |
| Rays | 3.9 | 17 | Low |
| Astros | 3.9 | 15 | Medium |
| Pirates | 3.8 | 22 | Low |
| Rockies | 3.7 | 20 | High |
| Padres | 3.7 | 16 | Medium |
| Cardinals | 3.5 | 14 | Low |
| Giants | 3.5 | 11 | Medium |
| Orioles | 3.4 | 7 | Low |
| Reds | 3.0 | 12 | Low |
| White Sox | 2.9 | 21 | Low |
My primary team stack targets
Twins vs. RHP Cade Povich (5.16 ERA, 1.65 WHIP). Key pieces: Ryan Jeffers, Ty France, Brooks Lee, Carlos Correa, Byron Buxton
Braves vs. LHP Andrew Abbott (4.59 FIP vs. 2.84 ERA). Key pieces: Austin Riley, Alex Verdugo, Marcell Ozuna, Ozzie Albies, Matt Olson
Angels vs. RHP Jose Urena (4.80 career ERA). Key pieces: Logan O'Hoppe, Nolan Schanuel, Jorge Soler, Zach Neto, Taylor Ward
Mets vs. RHP Zac Gallen (4.93 ERA). Key pieces: Jeff McNeil, Mark Vientos, Francisco Lindor, Brandon Nimmo, Juan Soto
Key Matchups and Batter vs. Pitcher Insights for DFS Success
Notable hitter matchups against the opposing starter today:
- Jonathan Aranda: 2-for-2, 1 HR; 1.000 BA, 3.000 OPS
- Daulton Varsho: 7-for-12, 1 HR; .583 BA, 1.699 OPS
- Vladimir Guerrero: 6-for-11, 2 2B; .545 BA, 1.311 OPS
- Randal Grichuk: 5-for-12, 1 HR; .417 BA, 1.128 OPS
- Brandon Lowe: 3-for-12, 1 HR; .250 BA, 1.024 OPS
- Nolan Arenado: 4-for-11, 1 HR; .364 BA, 1.144 OPS
- Alec Burleson: 5-for-12, 2 RBI; .417 BA, .878 OPS
- Ryan O'Hearn: 3-for-11, 1 HR; .273 BA, .909 OPS
For up-to-the-minute updates on injuries, lineups, roster changes and more, head to RotoWire's Fantasy Baseball News & Latest MLB Updates or follow @RotoWireMLB on X.
