This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
I hope you had a nice weekend, but now Monday is here. However, at least it brings with it 10 MLB games starting at 7:07 p.m. ET or later. Here are some lineups recommendations for DFS purposes. Who says Monday can't be as fun as the weekend?
Pitching
Merrill Kelly, ARI at OAK ($9,700): Kelly's had a couple iffy starts this season, but he still has a 3.18 ERA while striking out the most batters of his career and allowing the fewest homers as well. Plus, his road ERA is a robust 1.15. This is a road start, and it is in a pitcher-friendly ballpark. Oakland's offense has proven pitcher friendly as well, as it ranks in the bottom five in runs scored.
Michael Wacha, SD vs. KC ($9,200): Wacha had a couple bad starts, but over his last three starts he has a 2.12 ERA. He's had a couple tough starts in his new home ballpark, but it's only 16.1 innings, and given Petco Park's status as a pitcher's park, I'd be patient on that. The Royals are in the bottom 10 in runs scored and have only just gotten their team OBP over .300, so Wacha can stay hot with this matchup.
Alex Wood, SF vs. PHI ($7,000): Wood has barely gotten to pitch this season, though when he has he's looked good. He's a big-time groundball pitcher who has a career 3.46 FIP, and he's also a lefty. His status as a southpaw is big here, given that the Phillies have a few key batters who hit left handed.
Top Targets
Leave it to Juan Soto ($3,500) to disappoint people while also sporting a .403 OBP. His issue this year is that lefties are handling him better than ever, but he still has an OPS over 1.000 versus righties. Brad Keller is a righty, and since 2021 lefties have hit .279 against him.
Jake Fraley ($3,400) is kept away from his fellow lefties, but since 2021 he has an .856 OPS versus righties, and since joining the Reds last year he's slugged more than .500 against right-handed pitchers. Connor Seabold has allowed 2.00 home runs per nine innings in his career, and now he pitches his home games at Coors Field.
Bargain Bats
It's been an exciting rookie campaign for Corbin Carroll ($3,300), who has slashed .277/.352/.477 with five home runs and 10 stolen bases. The southpaw has already proven himself against righties, as he's posted a .902 OPS in those matchups in his career. Oakland has given Drew Rucinski a spot in the rotation, and it isn't panning out. The righty has an 8.16 ERA and has a higher walk rate than strikeout rate.
Although Jarred Kelenic ($3,100) has slowed down after a torrid start, he still has a .287 average with eight homers and five stolen bases. Meanwhile, Tanner Houck has reached the, "we're going to give him one more start" period of his season thanks to his 5.26 ERA. He's also allowed lefties to hit .284 against him.
Stacks to Consider
Blue Jays vs. Yankees (Jhony Brito): Vladimir Guerrero ($3,800), Matt Chapman ($3,700), Whit Merrifield ($3,000)
Due to injuries, Brito is still in the Yankees' lineup. It isn't going well for the Bronx Bombers, though. The righty has made eight starts and he has a 5.93 FIP. His big problem is that he's allowed 1.74 home runs per nine innings. Brito has allowed righties to hit .292 against him, so I am not worried about getting a lefty in my stack from Toronto.
Guerrero is delivering everything save for perhaps as many homers as you might expect. He has slashed .315/.392/.523, and nobody is going to complain about that. Plus, since 2021 he's posted a .924 OPS against his fellow righties. Chapman has slashed .317/.404/.538. This year he's excelled both at home and on the road, but last year, his first with Toronto, he had an .842 OPS at home. Merrifield is back for hitting for average and stealing bases. He has a .281 average and 12 stolen bases, and just two years ago he swiped 40 bags.
Astros vs. Cubs (Jameson Taillon): Yordan Alvarez ($4,400), Kyle Tucker ($3,000), Alex Bregman ($2,800)
Perhaps Taillon has been unlucky in posting a 6.41 ERA, as he has a 3.64 FIP. However, he has a career 3.77 FIP, so it's not like he's usually lighting it up. Plus, his groundball rate is down, and ever since he returned from Tommy John surgery in 2021, his home runs rate has been much higher. This year, lefties have hit .333 against him, and Houston's two best hitters are left handed, so that's convenient.
Alvarez has a career .971 OPS, and he's hit more than 30 home runs in each of his last two seasons. Don't worry about a lefty out of the bullpen, either. Since 2021 the Cuban has a .938 OPS versus southpaws, incredible for a left-handed hitter. After having 30 homers and 25 stolen bases last year, Tucker has six homers and six stolen bases in 2023. He's getting on base more this year as well, as he has a .358 OBP. Bregman is struggling, but being at home against a righty could help. Since 2021 he has an .812 OPS against righties and an .822 OPS in home games.
Brewers vs. Cardinals (Jack Flaherty): Christian Yelich ($3,100), Rowdy Tellez ($3,100), Brice Turang ($2,500)
Flaherty has come unglued on the mound. He's walked 6.18 batters per nine innings and allowed a home run in each of his last six starts. Hence, Flaherty has a 5.65 FIP, and last year he had a 4.97 FIP in nine appearances. The righty has actually held righties to a .225 average, but lefties have hit .347 against him, so I am stacking three lefties here.
Yelich, like his fellow one-time MVP lefty Cody Bellinger, is having something of a resurgence. He has seven homers and nine stolen bases, and last year he did have 14 home runs and 19 swiped bags even with a .383 slugging percentage. Tellez's game is about power, and since 2021 he's slugged .480 against righties. He's also slugged .486 at home, and that includes 50 games with Toronto wherein he struggled to hit before joining the Brewers in 2021. The rookie Turang hasn't hit against lefties at all. Like, literally. However, he has three homers and five stolen bases against righties, and he's worth a shot against Flaherty right now.
