This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
The main slate at FanDuel Friday is a massive 12-gamer, amongst the biggest we've seen all season. Bryan Woo ($10,600) leads four arms priced in five-figures, with six more coming in at $9,000 or greater. That's just 38.4 percent of our listed starting arms, seemingly not forcing us to pay up.
Rain is in store on the East Coast, so we'll need to monitor it as the day progresses, as Atlanta and New York could be tricky spots. Wind isn't a huge factor as of Friday morning, but we know that could change. Potential gusts into the Chop House in Atlanta could aid lefties some. The Mets and Orioles are the slate's biggest favorites, boosting their starters if rain doesn't force a postponement. Only the Orioles and Diamondbacks have run expectancies of six runs, and no game has a total north of nine, suggesting you may be able to get away with going deep down into the pitching depth.
Baltimore - Chicago is still listed on the main slate but has been moved to 4:30 due to weather concerns. Keep an eye on FanDuel for an update as to whether this game will count.
Pitching
Matthew Liberatore, STL at TEX ($9,200): This isn't a slate where I'd force a pay up, so the choice likely comes down to David Peterson ($9,500) or Liberatore, and I'll simply take the discount on someone who is less obvious, as Peterson faces the lowly Rockies. But Liberatore gets a Texas lineup that's striking out 27.5 percent of the time against lefties while posting a 68 wRC+, both of which are in line with Colorado's putrid levels. Liberatore hasn't allowed more than two runs in eight straight starts and has three quality starts in his last four.
Luis L. Ortiz, CLE vs. LAA ($8,300): Ortiz is striking out 9.9 per nine, and his 4.73 comes with a 3.83 xFIP, so there's potentially room for some progression. He gets an Angels team that strikes out at a 26.9 percent clip while posting a below-average 96 wRC+ off righties, ranking 24th. He faced the Angels in his second start of the season and returned only 22 FanDuel points, so there's some concern on the ceiling, but I'd expect more strikeouts here and similar or less damage, with the Angels having an implied total of 3.7 runs.
Kyle Harrison, SF at MIA ($6,800): I actually have some interest in Harrison's adversary, Cal Quantrill ($7,100), as a low-rostered option for GPPs. But Harrison just stands out as an obvious punt on the bump. Most importantly, he's likely to throw more pitches and innings than he has all season, immediately boosting his potential. Miami isn't awful against lefties, striking out just 20.4 percent of the time, but while they rank 16th, they have an 85 wRC+, .298 wOBA and .110 ISO. So long as Harrison is efficient, we can live with low strikeouts thanks to bulk clean innings.
Top Targets
James Wood ($4,200) is in incredible form with three homers and 12 RBI in his last seven, collecting eight hits and six runs. He leads the Nationals with a .416 wOBA, 169 wRC+ and .291 ISO off righties.
Jose Ramirez ($3,600) looks mispriced and is buried down the list of top bats. He's riding a 21-game hitting streak, collecting 33 hits in that span including four homers while adding six steals. The only reason to fade would be popularity due to the low price.
I'd expect many to target Yankees-Dodgers just due to the marquee matchup. The Dodger side isn't easy to trust against Max Fried, who's been brilliant, but perhaps the Yankee side is more appealing. Dodgers' starter Tony Gonsolin is allowing a .429 wOBA and .985 OPS to lefties at home. They are all feast or famine, but the matchup is solid for Cody Bellinger ($3,400) in his return to Dodger Stadium, as well as Trent Grisham ($3,200) and Ben Rice ($3,200).
Bargain Bats
Matt Olson ($3,100) has dominated Lucas Giolito, going 7-for-13 (.538) with four homers. No other Brave has faced him more than eight times, but they've hit .375 off of him overall with eight total homers and are priced down, making them an easy stacking consideration. Ozzie Albies ($2,500) is riding a 14-game hitting streak.
Framber Valdez is allowing a .336 wOBA to lefties on the road, not a hugely targetable number by any means but also his worst split. That's enough to stay on the trains of Brandon Lowe ($2,900), who is on a 10-game hitting streak and eight-game runs scored streak, and Jonathan Aranda ($2,900), who has multiple hits in four straight, scoring seven times.
I'm expecting the Mets will be heavily targeted Friday, but their roster is just 16-of-82 (.195) off Rockies' starter Kyle Freeland, who's been solid away from Coors Field and far more vulnerable to righties overall. But Brandon Nimmo ($2,800) has reached base seven times in the last three games, has moved to the two-hole in the lineup around the bigger names and is 4-for-11 with a homer and a double off Freeland.
Stacks to Consider
Blue Jays vs. Jeffrey Springs (Athletics): Vladimir Guerrero ($3,300), George Springer ($3,100), Bo Bichette ($3,000)
This has little to do with Springs, as he has three consecutive quality starts and has been far better on the road, though the 2.45 ERA comes with a 4.40 xFIP, suggesting some regression is coming. It's more that the A's have lost 15 of 17, and have allowed at least nine runs in five of their last eight games. Guerrero and Springer have elite numbers against lefties, with the former posting a .426 wOBA, 183 wRC+ and .262 ISO, and the latter .441/194/.382. Both homered Thursday, as did Bichette who has gone deep in consecutive games. His splits off lefties aren't great, but he helps form a traditional lineup stack. If you're playing splits, Ernie Clement ($2,600) is the third option.
Giants vs. Cal Quantrill (Marlins): Heliot Ramos ($3,500), Wilmer Flores ($3,200), Matt Chapman ($3,200)
Yes, I have faint interest in Quantrill as a pitching option Friday, but that's strictly because the Giants have lost five of seven. Otherwise, the splits tell us he's been torched by righties all season, allowing a .503 wOBA and 1.169 OPS to them at home. Ramos is locked in, hitting safely in 15 of 19, homering five times. Flores has hit safely in eight of nine and ranks fifth in the league in RBI. Chapman is more of a wild card as the form isn't elite, but he offers a third middle-of-the-order righty with power potential.
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