This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
A busy 11-game slate is featured Tuesday at FanDuel, getting underway at 7:05 p.m. EDT. Pitching presents as top heavy, as Hunter Brown leads three arms priced in five figures, while only three more clear the $9,000 threshold. We've got a handful of massive betting favorites, led by the Cubs at (-330), followed by the Mets (-275), Diamondbacks (-250) and Astros (-215).
Offense may be at a premium, as no game has a double-digit run total and only Diamondbacks-Pirates and Yankees-Angels coming in at 9.0 runs. We look dry across the slate, with only minor wind impacts in Chicago (inbound) and Anaheim and San Diego (outbound).
Try our FanDuel MLB Lineup Optimizer to discover more expert recommendations, customize the player pool, set exposure percentage and mass-enter DFS lineups.
Pitching
Corbin Burnes, ARI vs. PIT ($9,700): All of the top pitchers appear to be in great spots Tuesday, but I'll roll with Burnes as my preferred pay-up option given the relatively substantial discount from the likes of Brown. Burnes has cranked out four straight quality starts and six in his last seven and has returned at least 4x value at this salary in three straight. The Pirates aren't a high strikeout team (21.8 percent), but their 79 wRC+ off righties is the second-worst mark in the league.
Cade Horton, CHC vs. COL ($7,600): This figures to be chalk city against a Rockies lineup we target pitching against nightly. Colorado strikes out 26.6 percent of the time off righties and has a league-worst 71 wRC+. The appeal is almost too obvious, and at this salary, Horton needs 30+ FDP for a 4x return. He's yet to come close to that, and hasn't gone more than 5.1 innings in three starts, making a quality start bonus a bit of a reach. He still looks like a fine play, just temper expectations.
Logan Evans, SEA vs. WSH ($7,400): It's rare I'll highlight two true pay-downs in this column, but Tuesday is set up for savings on the mound, with Evans seemingly being less obvious than Horton. We know the Seattle ballpark factor, and the Nationals come with an implied run total of just 3.4. Evans has worked at least five innings in all five of his starts and six in each of the last two. The Nationals are league average against righties with a 100 wRC+ and come with a mediocre 20.4 strikeout rate, which limits Evans' ceiling. Unlike Horton though, he's shown 4x potential.
Top Targets
Rockies' starter German Marquez has an 11.12 road ERA and still-targetable 5.53 xFIP, and it's righties that have been torching him, posting a .516 wOBA and 1.210 OPS. Seiya Suzuki ($4,100) looks like a fine building block as a result.
Milwaukee's Aaron Civale has only faced 32 batters to date, an incredibly small sample, but he's allowing a .558 wOBA and 1.375 OPS to lefties, something Boston has up and down its lineup. Rafael Devers ($4,300) is the preferred choice, leading the team with a .428 wOBA, 176 wRC+ and .312 ISO. Jarren Duran ($3,700) doesn't have great LvR numbers, but does have multi-hit games in four of his last five.
Bargain Bats
Marcelo Mayer ($2,300) will likely be a popular pay-down option, made more so by Civale's early struggles against lefties, but don't ignore Abraham Toro ($2,400). He has eligibility at three positions, just saw an eight-game hitting streak snapped Monday, and has a .402 wOBA off righties.
Jose Altuve ($2,900) is a nightly consideration when priced under $3K. His splits off lefties this season are terrible, but he's 6-for-19 (.316) in his career off A's starter JP Sears, and is 10-for-24 (.417) over his last seven games.
White Sox starter Jonathan Cannon hasn't been bad, but the Mets still come with a 5.5 implied run total, amongst the slate's highest. Outside of their big three, the roster is also very affordable. Cannon is allowing a .354 wOBA to lefties on the road, by far his highest mark. Perhaps rounding out your build with one of Brett Baty ($2,700), Brandon Nimmo ($2,800) or Jeff McNeil ($2,600) can work out.
Stacks to Consider
Diamondbacks vs. Mike Burrows (Pirates): Corbin Carroll ($4,200), Ketel Marte ($3,700), Josh Naylor ($3,000)
Burrows hasn't thrown enough big-league innings to put stock in his splits, and he was actually decent in Triple-A. Arizona has the slate's highest run line at 6.4 though, so it's an obvious spot to go all in on the top of the order. Marte sits with a .462 wOBA, 198 wRC+ and .368 ISO, Carroll at .400/156/.347 and Naylor at .381/143/.187. Naylor helps balance the expense of the two bigger names, and he has a five-game hitting streak going with four RBI and three runs scored.
Royals vs. Brady Singer (Reds): Bobby Witt ($4,000), Vinnie Pasquantino ($2,900), Salvador Perez ($2,700)
It's an interesting spot for Singer facing his former club, but he's not in great form, allowing 17 hits and 12 runs across his last three starts spanning 12.1 innings. He's also been awful on the road with a 6.66 ERA and 4.09 xFIP, allowing a .405 wOBA to lefties and .366 to righties. That makes Pasquantino a fine standalone play, as he's riding a 10-game hitting streak and has 10 knocks in his last four games. Perez is starting to get going after a slow start with six hits, two homers and five RBI in his last four. Witt needs no introduction, and his high salary can be absorbed thanks to the other two being discounted.
