This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Not every team is in action Monday, but the vast majority of teams are. In terms of the DFS slate, there are 9 MLB games on the slate starting at 7:07 p.m. ET or later. Let's kick off the work week with gusto! These are my DFS recommendations.
Pitching
Blake Snell, SF vs. WAS ($10,500): Snell will be making his 2024 debut, and his Giants debut, Monday. He is, of course, the reigning NL Cy Young winner. Even if you don't think he'll have a 2.25 ERA again, Snell has struck out over 11 batters per nine innings while allowing less than one homer per nine in his career. The Nationals finished 21st in runs scored last year, and they are in the bottom 10 to start this season, so this is a good matchup for Snell to ease into.
Jose Berrios, TOR vs. SEA ($9,600): Berrios has a 2.25 ERA through two starts, which is encouraging, given that he was on the road for both starts. Last season the righty had a 3.97 ERA in away games, but a 3.30 ERA at home. While the Mariners may not finish in the bottom 10 in runs scored or with a sub-.300 OBP when all is said and done, they have scuffled out of the gate offensively.
James Paxton, LAD at MIN ($8,600): Will Paxton be the latest reclamation project for the Dodgers? He wouldn't be the first scuffling pitcher to find his footing in Dodger blue, and don't forget that before his injuries, Paxton twice finished with a sub-3.00 FIP. The lefty didn't allow a run in five innings in his Los Angeles debut, and the Twins have started the year down in the bottom five in runs scored.
Top Targets
Among sluggers who swing from their heels, Kyle Schwarber ($3,800) is as successful as anybody. While his batting average will likely always float around the Mendoza Line, he hit 47 homers last season after hitting 46 the season prior. The southpaw does have significant splits, but since joining the Phillies he's slugged .526 against right-handed pitchers. Miles Mikolas has only struck out 6.57 batters and walked 1.80 batters per nine innings in his career. He allows a lot of contact, and when Schwarber makes contact, the ball often travels.
Something of the store-brand version of Schwarber, Max Muncy ($3,300) is another power-happy lefty who tends to do some damage when a righty is on the mound. He's played five full MLB seasons, and in four of them he's hit either 35 or 36 home runs. Muncy has also slugged .451 versus righties since 2022. The Twins were rained out Sunday, so Bailey Ober is expected to start Monday now. Ober has a career 3.86 ERA, but in his first start of 2024 he allowed three homers in 1.1 innings to the Royals.
Bargain Bats
Once a vaunted prospect, Jarred Kelenic ($2,700) started his career so poorly the bloom came fully off the rose. Last season was the first sign of something, as he batted .253 with 11 homers and 13 stolen bases in 105 games. Now, the southpaw is with Atlanta, where he's secured a regular role whenever a righty is on the mound. Julio Teheran will be returning to his old stomping grounds Monday. He saw his first real MLB action since 2020 last year with the Brewers. It didn't go well, as he posted a 4.92 FIP while continuing to be homer rich and strikeout poor. Also, a pitcher who had failed to post a BB/9 rate below 4.28 since 2017 walked a mere 1.63 batters per nine. Either Teheran learned control, or he was arguably quite lucky.
While Mike Yastrzemski ($2,500) has not gotten a Fred VanVleet-esque new dad bounce since returning from paternity leave, what he really needs is a chance to face a right-handed pitcher at home. Last season the southpaw had an .831 OPS versus righties and also an .853 OPS at home. The Nationals moved Trevor Williams back into a starting role in 2023, and it did not go well, as he posted a 5.98 FIP. Even when largely pitching in relief for the Mets, Williams mostly only managed to neutralize righties. In each of the last two seasons lefties have hit over .300 against him.
Stacks to Consider
Diamondbacks at Rockies (Kyle Freeland): Ketel Marte ($4,400), Christian Walker ($4,200), Lourdes Gurriel ($3,900)
Welcome back, Coors Field! While the Rockies just hosted the Rays for three games at the best hitter's park in MLB, I have not had the opportunity to recommend a stack there yet. Naturally, I'm jumping at the opportunity. Also, through two starts Freeland has a 27.00 ERA, and both of his starts have been on the road. Since he is a southpaw, I did go with three guys who hit right handed from Arizona, though.
Marte is a switch hitter, but since 2022 he has an .886 OPS versus southpaws. Also, I do like to mention that Coors plays well for doubles and triples, as well as homers, and Marte had nine triples in 2023. Walker has hit over 30 homers in each of his last two seasons. Though last year he had an .872 OPS at home and a .792 OPS on the road, the year prior he had a .749 home OPS and an .856 road OPS, so there isn't too much to take from that. Plus, this is Coors Field. In his first season with the Diamondbacks, Gurriel's average dipped but he exchanged that for power. He slugged .463 with 24 homers and 35 doubles. He actually maintained his ability to hit for average versus southpaws, as he batted .301 against them.
Rays at Angels (Tyler Anderson): Yandy Diaz ($3,700), Randy Arozarena ($3,500), Isaac Paredes ($3,200)
When I was talking about the Dodgers revamping pitchers, Anderson was one of the guys I had in mind. After five-straight seasons with an ERA over 4.30, Anderson joined the Dodgers and posted a 2.57 ERA. Then, the lefty joined the Angels and, across 141.0 innings, he put up a 5.43 ERA. Even with the Dodgers he had a 6.95 K/9 rate, as he relied on his defense and a .256 BABIP. Thus, even though Anderson handled the Marlins in his 2024 opener, I'll stack Rays.
A career .290 hitter, Diaz has managed an OBP over .400 in three of his last four seasons. While he doesn't have a ton of power, when a lefty is on the mound he's slugged .566 against them, though last year's .669 slugging percentage is an outlier…for now. Arozarena has two homers and two swiped bags already, which is not a surprise given that he's had three 20/20 campaigns in a row. He's also slugged .518 against southpaws since 2022. Arozarena has speed, and Paredes has…the opposite of that. What he does bring, though, is power. The third baseman hit 31 homers last season, and he posted a .352 OBP thanks to his batting eye (he likes to walk more than he likes to run).
