This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
A couple of doubleheaders have this slate presenting with a somewhat smaller nine-game player pool, going of at our normal 7:10 p.m. EDT first pitch. Weather remains hot and humid on the east coast, which is great for hitters and bad for pop-up storms. As this column evolved, the top tier bats felt indifferent, so paying up on the bump, and going with some value bats felt like the right call. Fade accordingly!
Pitching
Yu Darvish, CHC vs. STL ($11,700): The clear cream of the crop, and an incredibly safe cash play, Darvish has had a 40 FDP floor since his season opener. He posted 46 FDP against the Cardinals earlier in the year, an outing where he allowed eight hits and a run over six innings, fanning seven. the Cardinals rank 10th with a .331 wOBA against righties however, and fan just 21.0 percent of the time. Perhaps that keeps usage down in GPPs, as there appears a lack of upside when paired with the tag.
Carlos Carrasco, CLE vs. MIL ($9,300): This seems like a high price for a guy that's hit 40 FDP just once in his last four starts. But Carrasco presents with an 11.25 K/9 rate, and he's been limited in his innings by being erratic, sporting a 4.25 BB/9 rate. The latter seemingly goes out the window when facing a Brewers squad that walks only 9.2 percent of the time in route to a .283 wOBA against righties, and the former comes into play with Milwaukee owning a 27.3 percent fan rate.
Justus Sheffield, SEA vs. TEX ($8,000): This looks like a nice bounce-back spot for Sheffield, who's coming off of his worse start in four outings. He'll get a Rangers side that has a 51.9 percent ground ball rate, pairing well with Sheffield's career-low 45.6 percent rate. The Rangers also have a meager 70 wRC+ against lefties and a 24.9 percent K rate. He posted 40 FDP in an earlier meeting with the Rangers, and a 5x return here would make for a great GPP and cash option. Yusei Kikuchi is now starting Friday, and not worth targeting bats against.
Tyler Anderson, SFG vs. ARI ($6,400): Paying down for arms Friday doesn't appear to be an easy task, but Anderson certainly has GPP potential. He'll be facing the Diamondbacks for the third straight time. His first chance resulted in a complete game shutout, where he fanned four and allowed three hits, resulting in 49 FDP. His second chance; seven runs in 4.2 frames, netting 2 FDP. Hence the GPP potential. Arizona isn't a combustible offense, posting just a .276 wOBA and 69 wRC+.
Top Targets
Rhys Hoskins, PHI at NYM ($4,000): Placing Hoskins here a few weeks ago would have been blasphemy, but he's scorching hot at the moment, homering six times in his last nine games, driving in 12 and scoring 11 times in that span. He's 3-of-8 in his career against Rick Porcello with two homers, and Porcello is allowing a .424 wOBA to same-handed bats.
Jose Abreu, CWS at KAN ($3,700): This is a weird slate for me. None of the +4k bats are wrong, or poor plays, but they just don't jump off the page as must use to me. Enter a streaky and currently cold Abreu, who hasn't homered in six contests but still carries a .428 wOBA, .330 ISO and 57.5 percent hard hit rate against righties. That feels targetable against Brady Singer, who is allowing a .415 wOBA to righties at home, and also a whopping 4.5 HR/9.
Value Bats
Michael Brantley, HOU at LAA ($3,400): Dylan Bundy isn't stackable against, but he's allowed seven runs in his last three starts (15.0 innings) after just five in his first four starts (28.2 innings). The .309 wOBA he's allowing to lefties isn't huge, but it is when compared to the .181 wOBA he's allowing to righties. Enter Brantley, who is warming, with 11 hits in his last seven games, including two homers and nine RBI in his last three.
Shohei Ohtani, LAA vs. HOU ($3,200): Astros' starter Lance McCullers' home/road splits are eye popping; posting a 1.82 ERA and 2.76 xFIP at home, while allowing an 11.37 ERA and 6.33 xFIP on the road. He's been particularly vulnerable to lefties while away, allowing a .564 wOBA and 1.445 OPS. The Angels don't have many opposite-handed bats to target, so I land on Ohtani, who likely leads off, and has gone for 9.2 FDP or better in six of his last nine.
Dylan Moore, SEA vs. TEX ($3,000): Keep an eye on Moore's availability, as he appears nearing a return from a wrist injury. Should he be back, he'll certainly be under-used, and carries a .407 wOBA and .293 ISO into Friday.
Stacks to Consider
Mets vs. Jake Arrieta: Dominic Smith ($3,500), Robinson Cano ($3,500), Brandon Nimmo ($2,900)
Arrieta has been hit harder by same-handed bats, but the Mets have a plethora of targetable lefties that present well against opposite-handed arms. Cano's resurgent season leads the way; he's boasting a .494 wOBA, 219 wRC+ and .290 ISO in this spot. Nimmo goes .438/182/.260, and Smith .437/181/.380 in this spot. None strike out more than Smith's 21.3 percent, giving them multiple shots to put the ball in play. And the price is certainly right across the board.
Padres vs. Jesus Luzardo: Manny Machado ($4,000), Wil Myers ($3,400), Juricskson Profar ($2,900)
Myers is bordering on must play status against lefties, coming into Friday with a .577 wOBA, 271 wRC+, .514 ISO and 59.3 percent hard hit rate. Machado isn't too far behind, making hard contact 53.1 percent of the time, leading to a .430 wOBA and .270 ISO. Profar rounds this out given his cost, and his 45.2 percent hard hit rate and 20.0 percent HR/FB ratio gives him a puncher's change at some power upside.
