This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
12 games are on Friday's slate, but oddly, despite most teams having yesterday off, we aren't treated to a plethora of top arms. Robbie Ray ($10,300) is the only pitcher priced in five-figures, so we're going to save on the mound by default.
Pitching
Given Atlanta's season-long success against lefties, I'm absolutely not forcing Ray into any lineups. Nick Lodolo ($9,700) seems to profile better against the Brewers, who fan a whopping 25.8 percent of the time against lefties while posting just an 87 wRC+. But they did get him for four runs, four hits and four walks in 4.2 innings earlier, so he's not a must start by any means. Charlie Morton ($9,300) hasn't been efficient of late, lacking quality starts, but he should at least match Ray's outing Friday night, and with seven 40+ FDP in his last 11, there's upside as well. But perhaps the most appealing atop the pitching list is Frankie Montas ($8,900) against the Rays. He'll be facing them for the fourth time this season, and is currently 2-0, allowing two runs and 10 hits across 18.1 innings, striking out 19, going for 42, 43 and 44 FDP.
Truth be told, the rest of this slate is filled with flawed options marred by inconsistency. Lance McCullers ($8,800) has a soft matchup with the Angels, but his innings ceiling is so low I can't justify this price. Lucas Giolito ($8,200) gets Oakland, but we know the roller coaster season he's had. Noah Syndergaard ($7,900) likely draws eyes, but he hasn't been great of late and the Nationals have been feisty. I highly doubt anyone is running out to trust Patrick Corbin ($7,500) or Austin Voth ($6,600), despite some surprisingly solid returns. Perhaps GPP players searching for upside at a discount can look at Brayan Bello ($7,400), who is coming off of six shutout innings, recording 40 FDP in the process. Baltimore is league average with a .305 wOBA and 99 wRC+ against righties. But is the discount here significant enough to pivot from Montas? For me, the answer is no.
Top Targets
I'm not confident Michael Lorenzen will throw many innings in his first start since July 1, but it may not matter, as the Astros have hit him hard in limited exposure, collecting 12 runs and 12 hits (four homers) across just 6.1 innings in two starts. Yordan Alvarez ($3,800) is in a power drought, but he has one of those four bombs and still leads the team with a .418 wOBA, 180 wRC+ and .312 ISO against righties. Given the team's declining prices, stacking with Kyle Tucker ($3,600) and Alex Bregman ($3,500) is certainly doable.
There are a ton of bargain options available across hitters, so skimming the list of tops bats and trying to find someone who may be lower used, I landed on a surging Bo Bichette ($3,900). He's hitting .516 across 33 plate appearances, with five homers, 11 runs scored and 14 RBI.
Bargain Bats
A pair of uninspiring lefties are set to battle in Kansas City, with Daniel Lynch squaring off against Joey Wentz. Normally, we'd target Salvador Perez from the Royals against the southpaw, but it's fellow catcher MJ Melendez ($2,700) that should be targeted Friday. He boasts a .390 wOBA 156 wRC+ and .241 ISO against lefties, hits atop the lineup, and has five hits and five RBI in his last five games. If we stay in this game with bad pitching, not much of the Tigers' lineup lends confidence to production, but Javier Baez ($2,500) is so cheap, and the best regular against lefties. Perhaps he squares one up.
There's no shortage of bad pitching facing bad offenses. Jason Alexander against the Reds certainly qualifies. Alexander is allowing a .397 wOBA and .947 OPS to lefties, which does fit right into Jake Fraley's ($2,700) wheelhouse. Fraley sits with a .390 wOBA, 146 wRC+ and .274 ISO against righties.
Coors' Field is on this slate, and there isn't a bat priced north of $3,800, so we can easily slide a few pieces in from that contest. Perhaps a BvP matchup is what gets Ketel Marte ($2,800) out of his 1-for-19 slump, as he's 12-for-40 (.300) with two homers and a .947 OPS off of German Marquez.
Stacks to Consider
Phillies vs. Nationals (Patrick Corbin): Rhys Hoskins ($2,900), Alec Bohm ($2,900), Edmundo Sosa ($2,100)
This isn't a traditional stack, but it gives us ample bargain pieces while still giving us shares of what Bryce Harper could provide. Corbin has labored on the road, allowing a 7.95 ERA (though a 4.91 FIP), allowing righties to post a .433 wOBA and 1.011 OPS. Hoskins checks in with a .425 wOBA, 175 wRC+ and .281 ISO and is 10-for-30 with three homers and a 1.178 OPS against Corbin. Bohm sits at .405/162/.199 while being 4-for-15 with two homers and a 1.223 OPS off of Corbin. With so many perceived values, we may not need to go all the way down to Sosa, but he's homered in consecutive games, is 8-for-12 over the last four games and has an unsustainable .518 wOBA, 238 wRC+ and .370 ISO across just 30 plate appearances against lefties.
Dodgers vs. Padres (Mike Clevinger): Mookie Betts ($4,300), Freddie Freeman ($4,000), Will Smith ($3,000)
The Dodgers have gotten to Clevinger this season, posting 11 hits and 10 runs across 8.0 innings (two starts). Value has been the theme of the day, so I think we can find ways to get both Bets and Freeman into lineups. Betts .368 wOBA isn't huge, but it's still second on the team behind Freeman, who sits with a .402 wOBA, 162 wRC+ and .198 ISO. Smith's .350 wOBA isn't too much lower than Betts, and is 3-for-4 with two homers off of Clevinger. Perhaps the better play is Freeman singularly, and stacking the Astros above, but this could also be lower used given the bigger price tags.
