This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
We have a full Saturday night slate featuring nine games. Despite some name value, it's a weak pool for pitchers and that creates a lot of value and stackable options from a hitting perspective.
Pitchers
There are some decent names atop the pitching pool, but there are significant flaws with each. Despite a tough matchup against an Astros lineup that has been very hot, Spencer Strider ($9,700) boasts the highest strikeout rate among pitchers on the slate by five percentage points. Joe Musgrove ($10,100) has been poor across his last six starts with a 5.56 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 31:5 K:BB across 34 innings, yet his value has inexplicably risen. That makes it hard to pay a five-digit salary, but he does get a matchup against the Nationals.
The middle tier offers another interesting set of choices. David Peterson ($8,800), Josiah Gray ($8,300) and Logan Gilbert ($8,000) are all roughly the same salary. Perhaps surprisingly, Peterson and Gray have the superior strikeout rates compared to Gilbert. However, Peterson draws a matchup against the Phillies and Josiah Gray has served up 2.4 HR/9. I don't want to pay up for Peterson, so in large-field tournaments I'd take a chance on Gray. In cash games, I'd pay down for Gilbert thanks to his relative stability and matchup against the Athletics.
Justin Dunn ($5,600) is the punt play of the day based solely on him facing the Pirates.
Top Hitters
Starling Marte ($4,900) isn't known as a power hitter, but he's maintained a .371 wOBA and .190 ISO against lefties this season. A matchup against Bailey Falter isn't imposing as he's allowed 2.3 HR/9 across 39 innings.
Manny Machado ($5,900) has been on fire averaging 14.6 DK points in his last 10 games and now goes against homer-prone Josiah Gray. It's worth noting the Padres lineup has been slightly below average in terms of wOBA in the last 14 days. While that may cause some hesitancy to stack the team, Gray's susceptibility to home runs makes individual players in the lineup interesting.
Dakota Hudson may not be long for the Cardinals rotation with the impending return of Jack Flaherty. That's in large part due to his 13.4 percent strikeout rate, lowest among all pitchers in the pool. I like Christian Walker ($4,700) as a result as Arizona's most prolific power hitter.
Value Hitters
LaMonte Wade ($2,800) has retaken the leadoff role in San Francisco when the team faces right-handed pitching. He'll also get the benefit of hitting at Coors Field, which makes him a fairly obvious value on the slate.
Justin Dunn was mentioned as a potential punt play, but his skills and results have both been horrific in two starts since returning from a shoulder strain. Ben Gamel ($2,500) has been locked into either third or cleanup in the order. So if things go sideways for Dunn, Gamel should be in a good spot to take advantage.
I like both sides of the Pittsburgh game for some offense, and Jake Fraley ($2,500) is a natural player to turn against Tyler Beede. Fraley has shifted to the leadoff spot for the Reds against right-handed pitching, and only Dakota Hudson has struck out hitters at a lower rate than Beede.
Stacks to Consider
Mariners at Athletics (James Kaprielian): Julio Rodriguez ($5,800), Ty France ($4,100), Jesse Winker ($4,000)
Kaprielian has pitched better of late, but he still has a lot of the skills that we look for when targeting pitchers to stack against: a low strikeout rate (16.5 percent) and a high walk rate (10 percent) while also giving up plenty of home runs. The Mariners haven't been particularly hot at the plate and the Oakland Coliseum isn't a strong hitters' park, so this stack could go a bit under-rostered.
Twins vs. Rangers (Glenn Otto): Byron Buxton ($6,100), Carlos Correa ($5,000), Jose Miranda ($3,900)
Otto also checks many of the boxes described above with a 12.5 percent walk rate while allowing 1.3 HR/9. He's gotten better results of late, but still lists a 5.13 SIERA for the season. The Twins have a lineup capable of taking advantage ranking eighth in wOBA and there are a number of ways to build through it relatively cheaply. Luis Arraez ($4,000) has regularly hit third in the order and Max Kepler ($3,400) fifth.
Pirates vs. Reds (Justin Dunn): Kevin Newman ($3,100), Bryan Reynolds ($4,200), Ben Gamel ($2,500)
As was noted, I like both sides of this game. Neither starting pitcher is likely to work deep into the game, and both teams have bullpens ranking in the bottom-four of team ERA with the Reds last. I side with Pittsburgh by a small margin as they're at home and Dunn has been far more homer-prone than Tyler Beede.
