This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
As has been the case, we have a nice number of options to work with for a Monday, with the main slate featuring 10 games. There are interesting pitchers to roster at every price point, which gives us some flexibility to build lineups in a variety of ways.
Pitchers
There's nothing wrong with paying all the way up for either Gerrit Cole or Shohei Ohtani. However, I'd be content to start with either Julio Urias ($9,600) or Luis Castillo ($9,200) and save between $500 and $1,000. Urias has topped 25 DK points in four of his last five starts, and he managed 21.4 DK points at Coors Field in that same span. The Brewers have a .297 wOBA and have struck out at a 25 percent clip against lefties on the season. Castillo faces an equally appealing matchup against a poor Angels lineup, and he has shown no signs of slowing down since being dealt to Seattle.
Marcus Stroman ($7,200) is another cash game option. Besides his slip against Washington his last time out, he's consistently put in performances of roughly 18 DK points. At his price point, he's a safe floor play with the chance to redeem himself against a watered-down Nationals' order. For those in tournament contests, I'll turn to Alex Cobb ($7,000). He rivals the aces on the slate in terms of SIERA, yet is priced among mid to lower-tier pitchers. The downside is that Arizona has actually been an above-average lineup as measured by wOBA in the last 30 days and has struck out at just an 18.9 percent clip in that span.
Glenn Otto ($5,600) is the punt play of the day. He needs to reach double-digit DK points to put together a passable performance, something he's done in four of his last five starts. Oakland is among the worst lineups in the league, giving Otto a legitimate chance of reaching his ceiling and returning roughly 3X his salary.
Top Hitters
Anthony Santander ($4,900) has hit well against lefties this season (.388 wOBA) and Yusei Kikuchi has allowed at least one home run in each of his last five starts at home.
Aaron Judge is the obvious choice anytime we are discussing the Yankees being in a good spot for production. However, I like Gleyber Torres ($4,500) on Monday. He has a .383 wOBA against lefties on the season and offers $1,500 savings as compared to Judge. In addition, Ryan Yarbrough has the lowest strikeout rate among all pitchers Monday and has a 5.12 ERA across his last 10 appearances.
Value Hitters
It seemed that Josiah Gray had turned a corner for a month-long stretch between late May and late June. However, he's served up multiple home runs in four of his last six starts. Gray has significant skills – most notably a 26.3 K% -- so I'm not eager to invest heavily in the Cubs' lineup. However, Rafael Ortega ($2,800) and Nick Madrigal ($2,100) have alternated the leadoff role in Chicago and aren't priced up. My hope is Ortega slots in atop the order Monday, due to Madrigal's complete lack of power.
Bubba Thompson (2,000) is buried toward the bottom of the Rangers' lineup, but he has multiple paths to production – particularly given his minimum price. He has swiped three bases in nine games since his debut and has the potential to be driven in by the top of the order if he can reach base. James Kaprielian has gotten better surface results of late, but still has the third-lowest K-BB% of pitchers available.
Glenn Otto was highlighted as a potential punt play and is a good option. On the other hand, he has also served up at least one home run in five consecutive starts, which makes Seth Brown ($3,300) someone I'm interested in rostering.
Stacks to Consider
Orioles at Blue Jays (Yusei Kikuchi): Cedric Mullins ($5,000), Anthony Santander ($4,900), Adley Rutschman ($4,700)
Kikuchi has shown moments of promise in three starts since returning from the injured list, but his last outing was abysmal, as are his overall numbers. Compared to other pitchers in the pool Monday, he has the second-highest HR/9 and the highest walk rate by over a percentage point. There is some risk that he'll have his stuff Monday, but the Orioles have a fairly formidable top of the order and get a positive park shift moving from Camden Yards to the Rogers Centre.
Astros at White Sox (Johnny Cueto): Jose Altuve ($5,500), Yuli Gurriel ($3,300), Yordan Alvarez ($6,100)
Johnny Cueto has a 2.91 ERA for the season, so this may appear to be a curious choice at first glance. However, he has just an 8.8 percent strikeout rate in 28 innings across the last month and has the highest SIERA of any pitcher on the slate in that span. He's masked his lack of skill by maintaining a 0.64 HR/9, but that could come crashing to an end against Houston. The Astros remain stubborn by placing Gurriel second in the order, but he does offer some salary savings.
Giants vs. Diamondbacks (Madison Bumgarner): Austin Slater ($3,700), Wilmer Flores ($4,000), Evan Longoria ($3,900)
The Giants lineup doesn't fit particularly neatly into either elite players or values, but they could be a nice secondary stack to complement the Astros, Yankees or other elite offense. Bumgarner has shown periods of effectiveness this season, but in the last 30 days he has allowed a 41.5 percent hard-hit rate and a 9.8 percent barrel rate. The Giants are top-10 in wOBA against lefties this season, which leaves some room for upside given their price.
