Happy Tuesday, Pitcher List fam! Three “early” games are happening in baseball today, but we are focusing on the 12 games featured in the DraftKings and FanDuel primary contests. Those competitions will lock at 7:05 pm Eastern, so double-check those lineups as they come in throughout the afternoon and early evening.
Pitching Kings on DraftKings
| Pitcher | Opp | DK Salary | ERA | WHIP | K-BB% | CSW% | DK PPG |
| Nick Pivetta | vs. TB | $10,300 | 3.23 | 1.12 | 15.3 | 27.0 | 18.5 |
| Luis Garcia | vs. KC | $9,500 | 3.54 | 1.06 | 19.0 | 28.4 | 16.7 |
| Kyle Hendricks | at MIL | $7,600 | 4.76 | 1.29 | 11.7 | 28.2 | 11.5 |
Quick note: As of this writing, Nick Pivetta is not in the FanDuel player pool for their featured contests. If he’s eventually added, he would be my top option on the site.
It’s time for all the skeptics to sit back down and enjoy the pitching run Pivetta is putting together. Since May 7 (11 starts), the Red Sox righty is 8-1 with a 1.95 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, and has racked up 70 strikeouts over 74 innings. The 29-year-old has pitched six innings or more in 10 of those 11 starts and is locked in now. Since June 1, Tampa Bay strikes out 25 percent of the time versus RHPs, and their .672 OPS with a .297 wOBA makes them a surprising team to try and exploit on this 12-game schedule.
Per game, Luis Garcia comes in as the second-highest scoring pitcher on the slate. However, we are getting him as the fourth most expensive arm on the board, so there’s a tiny bit of value here. Like his windup, Garcia can rock back and forth between meh, good, and great performances at any start. Recently, it’s been more consistently in the good and great columns as the Astros hurler averages 22.2 DK PPG over his last three outings. Kansas City isn’t the type of lineup that gives away strikeouts, but it doesn’t do much damage on offense. So, if you’re looking for a steady-Eddy starting pitcher, look no further than Luis Garcia.
For comparison purposes, Hendricks comes in at $7,600 on DK, but FanDuel values him at $9,600. That’s a big no from me over there, but the former Cy Young contender has recently shown enough of a turnaround to be considered an SP2. He’s registered six or more strikeouts in four consecutive outings and thrown at least six innings in back-to-back starts for the first time this season. Over that stretch, the strikeout rate is up to 26.9 percent, the walk rate is a minuscule 3.2 percent, and a 3.22 SIERA and 3.41 xFIP back up his 3.57 ERA. Milwaukee isn’t bad versus righties (106 wRC+), but they don’t bash them either. That makes Hendricks my favorite sub-$8,000 play.
These Dudes Rule on FanDuel
| Pitcher | Opp | FD Salary | ERA | WHIP | K-BB% | CSW% | FD PPG |
| Jameson Taillon | at PIT | $9,400 | 3.32 | 1.15 | 16.7 | 26.0 | 28.66 |
| Cal Quantrill | at DET | $8,200 | 3.72 | 1.24 | 7.4 | 24.2 | 25.85 |
| Yusei Kikuchi | at OAK | $7,900 | 4.74 | 1.52 | 13.5 | 26.0 | 22.73 |
Taillon has an opportunity to get back on track in a big way in a revenge game against his former team. The Pittsburgh-turned pinstripes pitcher had a phenomenal stretch from late May to mid-June but didn’t record a quality start in any of his previous five outings. Fortunately, a date with the Pirates should set things straight. Since June 1, Pittsburgh owns a .215/.289/.399 slash line against RHPs and a .299 wOBA shouldn’t scare off Taillon’s potential DFS managers. He’s the pitcher most likely to grab a win tonight, and if he can settle down, a quality start should also be in the cards.
These following two arms both come with risks, but the matchups are too enticing to pass on. Cal Quantrill leads us off against a Detroit team rocking a 66 wRC+ against RHPs over the last month. The Guardians pitcher doesn’t do anything in the strikeout department, but he’s good at pitching deep into games and limiting hard contact. The 27-year-old has pitched at least six innings in 10 of his previous 12 starts for Cleveland and bagged a quality start in 90 percent of those such outings. The Tigers’ 24.1 percent strikeout rate provides a little bit of upside, but Quantrill is an acceptable, salary-saving option if you want to load up on some bats.
Kikuchi is the other arm with a great matchup against Oakland. While his teammate, Alek Manoah, didn’t come through last night, the 31-year-old lefty has a chance to earn a second fantastic outing in a row against this lackluster A’s lineup. Since June, Oakland is churning out a .587 OPS versus southpaws with a .207 batting average, .262 wOBA, and .114 ISO. The 21.8 percent strikeout rate is neither good nor bad for Kikuchi’s outlook, but it’s tough to imagine how he gives up multiple runs to the squad. This kind of upside (he scored 49 points last time) is hard to find for sub-$8,000 on FanDuel. If you’re feeling frisky in a tournament, you could do a lot worse than Yusei.
Tasty Stacks
Houston Astros vs. Kansas City Royals (Zack Greinke, RHP)
- This will probably not fall under the revenge game narrative for Zack Greinke. It could get very sad, very quickly. Yordan Alvarez is the best hitter on the planet right now, and Kyle Tucker isn’t a lousy bat to back him up. The Stros have scored 28 runs in their last four games and could hang a couple of crooked numbers on the scoreboard at Minute Maid tonight.
Toronto Blue Jays at Oakland Athletics (Adrian Martinez, RHP)
- Cole Irvin is a decent pitcher, so him shutting down the Blue Jays isn’t the biggest surprise in baseball. However, I don’t believe Adrian Martinez has that kind of skillset to repeat such an occasion. Every Blue Jay bat is worth a look, as a team-wide 137 wRC+ shows just how well they’ve been hitting over the last month.
New York Yankees at Pittsburgh Pirates (Jose Quintana, LHP)
- Yes, Quintana’s had good results in back-to-back games, but those came against the Nationals and Cubs. The New York team is a whole different beast. While Pittsburgh’s park may keep the ball in the yard more than Yankee Stadium, there’s still plenty of room for this Yankees lineup to put up some impressive numbers. A .350 wOBA and .813 OPS should draw a lot of DFS manager’s eyeballs to some players in pinstripes.
Value Bats
| Player | Position | Opponent | DK Salary | FD Salary |
| Francisco Mejia | C | vs. BOS (Pivetta) | $2,700 | $2,400 |
| Vinnie Pasquantino | 1B | at HOU (Garcia) | $2,200 | $2,400 |
| Cavan Biggio | 1B/2B | at OAK (Martinez) | $3,200 | $2,800 |
| Ramon Urias | 3B | vs. TEX (Howard) | $2,800 | $2,500 |
| Nico Hoerner | SS | at MIL (Alexander) | $3,700 | $2,600 |
| Michael Harris | OF | vs. STL (Pallante) | $3,200 | $3,500 |
| Austin Slater | OF | at ARI (Gilbert) | $3,100 | $2,500 |
| Jake Meyers | OF | vs. KC (Greinke) | $2,100 | $2,900 |