Happy Tuesday, Pitcher List fam! It’s a massive night of DFS on DraftKings and FanDuel after a bunch of split slates for Memorial Day. DraftKings kicks us off with 13 games while FanDuel leaves off the second game of the Twins-Tigers doubleheader to provide a 12-game slate. Despite the different number of games on each site, they will both lock at 7:05 pm Eastern as the Mariners-Orioles and Angels-Yankees throw out their first pitches on the East Coast.
Pitching Kings on DraftKings
| Pitcher | Opp | DK Salary | ERA | WHIP | K% | BB% | DK PPG |
| Eric Lauer | at CHC | $9,900 | 2.31 | 1.01 | 29.4 | 6.4 | 22.8 |
| Cristian Javier | at OAK | $9,600 | 3.51 | 1.13 | 29.8 | 8.7 | 16.4 |
| George Kirby | at BAL | $6,600 | 4.50 | 1.25 | 23.5 | 2.4 | 12.5 |
There are murmurings within the fantasy baseball community about Eric Lauer potentially fading as we get closer to June. While his strikeouts have decreased in six consecutive starts, I’m not worried about a matchup with Chicago. Last time out, Lauer faced the Cardinals, a notoriously tricky team versus lefties this year (ask Carlos Rodon). The Brewers’ lefty allowed two runs over five innings but gave up an uncharacteristic four walks. If Lauer can get back on track to his season average (6.4 percent walk rate), I have no qualms about him facing a team that he struck out 11 times in seven innings earlier this season.
It was a close call between Cristian Javier and Frankie Montas for this spot, but I ultimately went with the pitcher more likely to collect the win. While Montas is a fantastic pitcher, the offense backing him is one of the worst in the game, especially versus right-handed pitchers like Javier. In May, Oakland produced a .549 OPS to RHPs with a 0.094 ISO and .249 wOBA.
Meanwhile, the Astros righty has back-to-back nine-strikeout outings and inspired our own Nick Pollack to do a video breakdown of what makes the 25-year-old so special. Of course, Giolito, Gausman, Morton, and Urias are more recognizable names to the average fan, but Javier is your key to unlocking the 13-game slate and getting a leg up on your competition.
Can’t stop, won’t stop when it comes to George Kirby. I had the Seattle rookie in this same spot last week, and he garnered 16.5 DK points after striking out nine over five innings. He was also tagged for four earned runs in those five innings, but those strikeout numbers prove that the upside is there for the right-handed hurler. The strikeout rate (23.5 percent) is reasonable, the walk rate (2.4 percent) is excellent, and a 3.12 xFIP and 3.17 SIERA tell us he’s been a bit unlucky when it comes to the 4.50 ERA. Nevertheless, I believe in his talent, and I’m not scared off by a game in Camden Yards, especially at a salary-saving $6,600 cost.
These Dudes Rule on FanDuel
| Pitcher | Opp | FD Salary | ERA | WHIP | K% | BB% | FD PPG |
| Kevin Gausman | vs. CHW | $10,200 | 2.25 | 1.04 | 29.3 | 2.3 | 41.0 |
| Martín Pérez | vs. TB | $9,700 | 1.60 | 0.99 | 20.2 | 6.4 | 35.22 |
| Adam Wainwright | vs. SD | $8,800 | 3.12 | 1.29 | 17.7 | 8.8 | 29.55 |
Kevin Gausman has made the Toronto Blue Jays front office look like Nobel Prize-winning geniuses in his first year up north. Over 56 innings, the newly-signed righty has 65 strikeouts with a 2.25 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, and mesmerizing 27 percent strikeout minus walk rate. He’s thrown a quality start in six of his previous seven starts and sent at least eight opponents back to the bench via strikeout in six of eight. A matchup with the White Sox is less daunting by the day as they continue to pile up injuries. Gausman is the standout pitcher of choice on FanDuel this evening.
If I could sum up Martín Pérez‘s season with a gif, it would be the one from ‘Breaking Bad’ where Jesse is yelling, “He can’t keep getting away with it.” Still, results are results, and it’s becoming harder to ignore what Perez is doing every five days despite what our preconceived notions say. The left-hander has seven straight quality starts under his belt, including two starts versus Houston and outings against Boston and Philadelphia. He’s also racked up five or more strikeouts in four consecutive contests to show he’s not a zero in that category these days either.
Gausman, Perez, and Adam Wainwright could be the most “boring” combination of pitchers I’ve written about this year, but, at the end of the day, fantasy points are fantasy points. Truth be told, Cristian Javier is $8,700 on FD tonight, but I didn’t want to write him up twice. So I went $100 extra and chose Wainwright. Wainwright logged four quality starts in a row before a tough outing versus Milwaukee in his last start, averaging 34 FD PPG. San Diego seems threatening in your head, but they’ve only mustered a .229/.286/.328 slash line versus RHPs in May, and is a surprising offense to exploit on this 12/13-game schedule.
Tasty Stacks
St. Louis Cardinals vs. San Diego Padres (Blake Snell, LHP)
- The only way Blake Snell is getting out of this one is if he fakes an illness or makes a sacrifice to the god of pitching luck. The Cardinals pummel southpaws to the tune of a .851 OPS and a .377 wOBA. Load up on the Redbirds.
Boston Red Sox vs. Cincinnati Reds (Luis Castillo, RHP)
- Castillo hasn’t been bad since he came back from a preseason injury, but I don’t give him much chance to stimmy the Red Sox offense. Boston’s clobbered 25 home runs off RHPs this month, and they could end the month with a couple more long balls in Fenway.
Colorado Rockies vs. Miami Marlins (Edward Cabrera, RHP)
- When the Rockies play in Coors Field, you find a way to fit in their bats. C.J. Cron is the leading man to watch, but grabbing someone like Randal Grichuk or Brian Serven wouldn’t be a bad two-man combination either.
Value Bats
| Player | Position | Opponent | DK Salary | FD Salary |
| Alejandro Kirk | C | at CWS (Giolito) | $3,600 | $2,300 |
| Franchy Cordero | 1B/OF | vs. CIN (Castillo) | $3,000 | $2,500 |
| Nolan Gorman | 2B | vs. SD (Snell) | $2,400 | $3,100 |
| Taylor Walls | 2B/3B | at TEX (Perez) | $2,700 | $2,200 |
| Ha-Seong Kim | SS | vs. STL (Wainwright) | $3,200 | $2,500 |
| Christopher Morel | OF | vs. MIL (Lauer) | $3,400 | $2,600 |
| Jesus Sanchez | OF | at COL (Marquez) | $3,400 | $3,000 |
| Lourdes Gurriel Jr. | OF | at CWS (Giolito) | $3,000 | $2,700 |