Welcome to Tuesday, fellow DFS degenerates. Today we are going to be riding some hot hands, hopefully all the way to the bank. It’s a banger tonight, meaning a stacked 15-game slate in MLB. Plenty of solid options to choose from to put your lineups head-and-shoulders above your opponents.
There are a few storms moving through which may cause a few delays (particularly pre-game), but not too much to worry about as far as the dreaded PPD is concerned. I’ve noted below if a certain pick might be affected by rain.
As always, we are going bargain shopping for the lesser-used names in lineups. Additionally, we’ll go medium-spend on our pitching. These two things will enable us to fill in our studs as necessary afterwards. I’ve listed my favorite big boppers after the value plays.
***All prices listed are DraftKings***
Value on the Hill
Pablo Lopez – vs. Colorado ($8,700)
Oh, to be Lopez. The righty was slated to start a one-game makeup in Boston last night, but Miami decided to push him back a day. His reward is instead of facing the dangerous Red Sox lineup, he gets a Rockies squad that is a completely different team at home (20-14) than on the road (4-22). The Rockies have a hard enough time pushing runs across the plate when they are living out of a suitcase and now will deal with Lopez, who is near the top of the league in limiting hard hit percentage and allows a low exit velocity, resulting in a lot of easy outs.
Lopez has a 2.82 ERA and 1.15 WHIP this season, while striking out 68 batters in 67 IP. A 10-strikeout performance is completely feasible tonight against Colorado. If Miami can score some runs in the affair, he’ll coast to a dub.
Framber Valdez – at Boston ($8,600)
Remember what I said about the Boston lineup? Well, let’s qualify it. Boston cannot keep up the pace they began on and may still be without J.D. Martinez (wrist) tonight. Valdez only has two starts since coming off the injured list and the initial idea was to slowly stretch him out on his way back. So much for that, as he hurled seven innings with 10 strikeouts and allowed just one run to *checks notes* Boston last week. He threw 102 pitches and allowed just two walks and five hits. Valdez will not be a popular play in tournaments as people will be scared off by the word “Boston” in the opponent column. Buck the trend and get him in there.
Weather note: This game is likely to experience a delayed start time, and quite possibly a delay during the game. I’m not letting that scare me off from Valdez, but if it concerns you, Chris Bassitt (vs. ARI) for $200 more is a great pivot.
Value in the Field
Tucker Barnhart, C – vs. Milwaukee ($3,400)
Barnhart and Tyler Stephenson have been in a minor platoon situation, though the latter has gotten more than a few starts at first base in Joey Votto’s absence. Well, Votto is back beginning this evening and Barnhart continues to hold court as the main catcher in Cincinnati. At this price, it’s worth it to get any Cincinnati batter into the lineup, and the backstop will be batting sixth behind the big-names. He’s been more than serviceable this season, hitting .266 with a .744 OPS to go alongside three homers, 19 RBI, and 25 runs scored.
Nick Gordon, 2B – vs. New York Yankees ($2,900)
We are still riding the “hot hand”, as it were, so how apropos to toss in the son of MLB relief great Tom “Flash” Gordon. The younger Gordon has had a tough time in his acclimation to the major league level but has started to (ahem) flash some of the potential that made him a top prospect. Gordon is 7-for-16 with two runs, two RBI, a stolen base and a 423-foot ding-dong for Minnesota. He started four of the last five games, and I don’t view this as a punt as much as a great value for the price point.
Tony Kemp, OF – vs. Arizona ($2,700)
Here’s another underpriced guy who’s been playing well. With the absence of Ramon Laureano lasting longer than expected, Kemp is seeing more at bats and is trying to make the most of them. In the last 14 days, he’s batting a cool .353 and the season triple slash stands at .287/.391(!)/.457, an .849 OPS for those of you who are mathing. Two moonshots, 12 R, 11 RBI, and three stolen bases round out the 2021 stat sheet. At this price, it would be a crime not to use him against the Diamondbacks’ Jon Duplantier, who has yet to make it out of the fifth inning in two starts this season.
Stud Finder: Kris Bryant (1B – CHC), Rafael Devers (3B – BOS), Brandon Crawford (SS – SFO), Jesse Winker (OF – CIN), Randal Grichuk (OF – TOR)
Nothing but smokin’ bats here. Bryant is on fire, Devers has a bigger role with Martinez shelved, Crawford is having a career year, Winker and Grichuk have the power surge in full effect.
Saving a few bucks on pitchers and a trio of inexpensive value plays in the field leaves you plenty of money to load up on just about any big names you want. It’s a 15-game slate, so ride the hot hands… they won’t be hard to find.
Don’t forget to check your weather reports just before gametime. Best of luck tonight.
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