This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.
An 11-game slate Monday leaves plenty of action for us to enjoy across baseball. It also gives us a ton of options to consider on Yahoo. Let's try to narrow down the field by highlighting some pitchers and hitters who could exploit favorable matchups.
Pitchers
Going into his last start against the Rangers, Zac Gallen ($61) had pitched at least 6.1 scoreless innings in each of his previous four starts. That streak ended when he gave up three runs across five innings. A matchup against a Marlins team that has scored the fewest runs in baseball gives Gallen a great opportunity to bounce back with another dominant performance.
Nestor Cortes Jr. ($47) was originally scheduled to pitch in the previous series against the Rays, but the Yankees pushed him back to allow him more time to recover from a bout of strep throat. The Rangers touched him up for seven runs over 4.2 innings in his last start, but they have been doing damage to a lot of pitchers on their way to scoring the second-most runs in baseball. Cortes will face an easier foe in the Athletics, who have scored the sixth-fewest runs.
Anthony DeSclafani ($42) has shown impeccable control, posting a 2.1 percent walk rate that has helped him generate a 0.82 WHIP. His FIP checks in at 3.39, and he has allowed just four home runs over 38 innings. The Nationals have the third-worst OPS in baseball, so with how successful DeSclafani has been at keeping hitters off base, they could have a very difficult time scoring runs in this matchup.
Top Targets
Talk about two hot hitters. Over his last nine games, Christian Walker ($21) is 16-for-40 (.400) with five home runs and two doubles. Across his last nine games, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. ($19) is 14-for-31 (.452) with four home runs and two doubles. That makes them both worth targeting against Braxton Garrett ($29), who gave up 11 runs to the Braves over 4.1 innings in his last start.
Bargain Bats
Gleyber Torres ($12) has shown tremendous improvement with his command of the strike zone. For his career, he has an 8.9 percent walk rate and a 21.4 percent strikeout rate. This season, he has a 12.9 percent walk rate and a 12.2 percent strikeout rate. He has been one of the Yankees more reliable hitters, and his salary is cheap enough to make him worth considering against JP Sears ($31), who has a 5.06 ERA and a 5.11 FIP.
Zack Greinke ($30) doesn't miss many bats, posting a 16.4 percent strikeout rate. Andrew Benintendi ($11) does a good job of making contact, leaving him with a 15.0 percent strikeout rate this season. With Benintendi having at least one hit in five of his last six games, this matchup leaves him with a favorable opportunity to record at least one more.
Stacks to Consider
Mariners vs. Jon Gray ($34), Rangers: Julio Rodriguez ($15), Jarred Kelenic ($18), Teoscar Hernandez ($13)
Gray is coming off one of the better seasons of his career, recording a 3.96 ERA and a 3.80 FIP over 24 starts. One of the keys to his success was his 1.13 WHIP, which was by far the best mark of his career. His WHIP stands at 1.40 this season, leaving him with a 4.40 ERA and an even worse 6.23 FIP. One of the top options for a Mariners stack is Kelenic, who has a .250 ISO and a .394 wOBA.
Cubs vs. Miles Mikolas ($32), Cardinals: Cody Bellinger ($21), Ian Happ ($17), Matt Mervis ($12)
This game being in Chicago makes the Cubs a team to consider stacking. Since joining the Cardinals, Mikolas has a 3.53 FIP and a 1.02 WHIP at home, compared to a 4.29 FIP and a 1.27 WHIP on the road. Bellinger and Happ are two of the mainstays of the Cubs' lineup, while they hope Mervis will also join that group. He was demolishing Triple-A before being called up, posting a .275 ISO and a .413 wOBA. What's especially impressive is that he had a 16.1 percent walk rate to go with just a 17.0 percent strikeout rate.
Giants vs. Jake Irvin ($25), Nationals: Joc Pederson ($17), LaMonte Wade Jr. ($19), J.D. Davis ($16)
Irvin's first start in the majors was a shaky one. He only allowed one run to the Cubs, but he walked four batters over 4.1 innings. He didn't pitch well over five starts at Triple-A before being called up, recording a 5.64 ERA and a 5.18 FIP. That was his first time pitching above Double-A in his career, so the Giants might be able to exploit his inexperience. Wade has shown an excellent eye at the plate for the Giants, using a 21.0 percent walk rate to post a .418 wOBA.
