There's only a couple dozen games left this season for the 30 MLB teams. Some are headed to the playoffs, while some are headed into vacations and trips to the golf course. Wednesday there are six games starting at 7:05 p.m. EDT or later. These are my recommendations to help you with your DFS decisions.
Pitching
Spencer Strider, ATL vs. STL ($12,300): Strider's 16-4 record is partially because of Atlanta's offense, but he's no slouch on the mound. The righty has a 2.80 ERA and a robust 5.00 K/BB rate. Given that the Cardinals are 17th in runs scored and have a sub-.500 record, I think Strider has a good chance of picking up a quality start and a win.
Touki Toussaint, CWS at KC ($6,900): Without much in the way of exciting pitching options, I've gone matchup with this second recommendation. These are two of the worst offenses in MLB, but I will never recommend Jordan Lyles under any circumstances. The Royals are in the bottom five in runs scored and just trying to avoid finishing with a sub-.300 OBP. Maybe Toussaint can pick up a win.
Top Target
Somewhat quietly, Francisco Lindor ($3,700) has his second 25-25 season of his career, impressive for anybody, let alone a shortstop. He's mostly been excelling on the road where he has an .879 OPS. Joan Adon has a career 6.55 ERA and has allowed 1.27 homers per nine innings, but this year he's allowed 2.4 homers per nine at home.
Bargain Bat
Former Royal Andrew Benintendi ($2,800) has a .272 average with 13 stolen bases, and while he only has five homers, he's hit 30 doubles in 2023. Over the last three weeks he has an .864 OPS as well. Lyles has a career 5.22 ERA over 347 games pitched. He's going to finish with a FIP over 5.00 for the third time in four seasons, and this year he's allowed 2.04 homers per nine innings as well.
Stacks to Consider
Orioles at Angels (Patrick Sandoval): Ryan Mountcastle ($3,300), Austin Hays ($2,800), Jordan Westburg ($2,400)
Sandoval doesn't allow many home runs, but he still has a 4.19 ERA. He's walked 4.41 batters per nine, which is part of that, and has a 22.9 line-drive rate. The lefty has a 4.45 ERA at home, so I'm looking to stack right-handed Orioles on Wednesday.
Mountcastle has been dominant against lefties, as he has an 1.092 OPS in those matchups. He's also been better on the road for good measure, where he has an .823 OPS. Hays doesn't hit a ton of homers, but he has a .281 average and has hit 33 doubles. He has a .989 OPS over the last 21 days as well. A force in Triple-A, Westburg has been solid, if unremarkable, at third base with the Orioles. I will note that he has a .761 OPS against lefties and a .745 OPS on the road, so this scenario is up his alley.
Tigers at Yankees (Clarke Schmidt): Parker Meadows ($3,300), Kerry Carpenter ($3,000), Zach McKinstry ($2,400)
In his first season as an MLB starter, Schmidt has a 4.56 ERA. While he has a 3.91 ERA at home, he has allowed 1.6 home runs per nine innings at Yankee Stadium. In his career, lefties have hit .306 against Schmidt, and Yankee Stadium tends to play well to left-handed hitters, so I am doing something rare for me, even as a Tigers fan: Stacking three Tigers hitters.
Meadows, one of the Tigers' top prospects, has only played in a handful of games for the MLB squad thus far. Down at Triple-A he had 19 homers and 19 stolen bases in 113 contests, which may give us a sign of what to expect. Carpenter's power makes me the most enthused about him of this trio. He's hit 20 homers in only 95 games, and in his career he's slugged .539 against righties. McKinstry is less of a power hitter, but he has eight homers, four triples, and 16 stolen bases. As a second baseman, I'll go with that profile against Schmidt at Yankee Stadium.
