Pitcher List is proud to partner with DraftKings for the 2019 season. We’ll be featuring our top picks for every daily slate through the season and feature articles dedicated to the GPP.
With four early games on Wednesday, DraftKings has three slates for us to choose from. The main slate starts at 6:35 p.m. eastern and covers 10 games.
Top SP: Carlos Carrasco, CLE ($9,600) at SEA
Even though he’s gotten blown up in two of his three starts, it’s hard to be worried about Carlos Carrasco this early in the season. Carrasco should rebound in this start and provide solid value at his price. While the Mariners have been one of baseball’s top lineups this season, they haven’t convinced me quite yet — Seattle certainly isn’t a lineup to avoid. Because of Cookie’s poor start and Seattle’s hot start, Carrasco may be avoided by many owners. This makes him an attractive contrarian play.
Honorable Mention: Walker Buehler ($9,300) vs. CIN.
Value SP: Jake Odorizzi, MIN ($7,600) vs. TOR
Jake Odorizzi is another pitcher off to an atrocious start, although it’s much scarier because he’s not a great option to begin with. Luckily, he’s facing one of the weakest lineups in the league, the Blue Jays, who have just a .289 wOBA versus right-handed pitching. They’ve also got the second-highest strikeout rate against righties at 29.5%, so Odorizzi has lots of strikeout upside. Odorizzi should be targeted in GPP contests, as his low price and high upside is an ideal combination.
Honorable Mentions: Erik Swanson ($6,000) vs. CLE.
SS Adalberto Mondesi, KC ($3,900) at CWS (RHP Lucas Giolito)
With two homers, five steals, and an .833 OPS so far, Adalberto Mondesi is proving to be a fantasy catalyst. While his poor plate discipline skills make him a sketchy play in cash games, Mondesi’s boom-or-bust profile is perfect for GPP tournaments. He should have a big day batting second against Lucas Giolito, who has an awful 6.19 ERA.
Honorable Mentions: 1B Pete Alonso ($4,400) at PHI (RHP Jake Arrieta); 3B Jose Ramirez ($3,600) at SEA (RHP Erik Swanson).
OF Nelson Cruz, MIN ($3,700) vs. TOR (RHP Trent Thornton)
Nelson Cruz has been punishing the ball this season, posting a 142 wRC+ and continuing to defy father time at 38 years old. He is in a strong spot for runs and RBI batting third for the Twins, and he gets a fantastic matchup against Trent Thornton. Thornton gave up three home runs his last time out, so there’s a good chance he serves one up to Cruz tonight.
Honorable Mentions: OF Juan Soto ($4,000) vs. SF (RHP Jeff Samardzija); OF Ryan Braun ($2,900) vs. STL (Michael Wacha).
Value Bat: OF Starling Marte, PIT ($3,200) at DET (RHP Spencer Turnbull)
Starling Marte is off to a cold start, but there’s no reason for him to be this cheap. He’s an elite fantasy contributor with a power/speed combo that few other players possess. Marte went deep last night and is in a position to continue producing against Spencer Turnbull, who hasn’t found much success thus far. For as long as Marte continues to slide under the radar, I’ll be all over him.
Honorable Mentions: 1B Brandon Belt ($2,700) at WAS (RHP Jeremy Hellickson); OF Randal Grichuk ($2,800) at MIN (RHP Jake Odorizzi).
Lineup Stack: Rangers vs. Angels (RHP Matt Harvey)
Matt Harvey has failed to find himself out west, as he’s given up six runs and eight runs in his past two starts. He’s once again serving up home runs like it’s nobody’s business, which is great news for Joey Gallo ($4,300), who is one of my favorite plays for tonight. Nomar Mazara ($3,700) and Shin-Soo Choo ($3,800) should also get in on the action, but you can include pretty much any Rangers hitters in your lineups.
Honorable Mentions: Giants at Nationals (RHP Jeremy Hellickson).
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is troyklauder) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games on which I offer advice. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings, and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any nonpublic information.