As we reach the three-week mark of the 2021 Major League Baseball season, new surprises can still happen each day. In daily fantasy, we have the opportunity to pad to our bankroll as players start to get or stay hot. Tonight’s main slate begins at 6:35 p.m. ET. The pitching is fairly light for this slate, but we can still find success. Please note that the Chicago White Sox versus Cleveland Indians game has been postponed, so don’t use any of those players.
All prices are DraftKings.
Hurlers
Tyler Mahle ($9,500)
While Mahle hasn’t lasted long into games – 14 innings across three starts – he has still been solid. Two starts ago, he faced the same team he faces tonight in the Arizona Diamondbacks. In that start, the right-hander pitched four shutout innings while striking out six. He followed that up with seven strikeouts in five innings last week to increase his total to 22 punchouts in 14 innings. The Diamondbacks lineup is hitting just .218 with an 86 wRC+ while striking out at a 24.5 percent rate.
Michael Wacha ($7,200)
The Rays’ right-hander was dominant in his last start against the New York Yankees, allowing just one hit and two walks while striking out nine across six scoreless innings. Wacha didn’t allow a runner to get into scoring position in all six of his innings. He now has 20 strikeouts in 15 innings over three appearances (two starts). His swinging strikeout rate is 15.9 percent while he has a 2.67 FIP compared to his 4.20 ERA (blaze up). The Kansas City Royals are 11th in strikeouts and 22nd in ISO against right-handers.
Boppers
Travis d’Arnaud ($4,200)
In 30 career games against the Yankees, d’Arnaud has only gone 21-for-105. But six of those 21 hits left the yard, including his three-homer game in 2019. He is only hitting .204 against righties so far this year, but he does have two homers in 49 at-bats. Look for d’Arnaud to keep his hot streak against the Yankees going against a struggling Corey Kluber.
Joey Votto ($4,500) * Home Run Call
Votto has been on fire of late and destroyed the Cleveland pitching staff, going 7-for-11 with one homer in their three-game series. He should be able to stay hot against a tremendously struggling right-hander in Merrill Kelly. Kelly throws the fastball and changeup 70 percent of the time against lefties, which Votto destroys. He has a massive .552 xwOBA against the fastball with a 96.5 mph average exit velocity. The Diamondbacks’ bullpen is also significantly worse than the Indians.
Jorge Soler ($3,400)
Soler is very familiar with Wacha and has had his share of success against him. In this BvP matchup, Soler is 5-for-12 with three homers, seven runs, and seven RBI. Soler has been struggling, but in a familiar matchup, he could get back on track.
Stacks
Tampa Bay Rays vs. Jakob Junis
Junis could end up having high ownership with his solid start to the season, but he has allowed hard contact with a 46.4 percent hard-hit rate. He also has had the propensity to allow the home run, giving up 70 taters in 69 starts since 2019. Lefties have hit him well with a 1.55 HR/9, 18.6% HR/FB, 42.2% hard-hit rate, and a .193 ISO over 480 plate appearances. Left-handers Austin Meadows ($4,100) and Bradon Lowe ($4,300) are top targets to consider. Randy Arozarena ($4,900) is another solid option as he has been hitting well. He also has a .277 ISO against righties in his 180 plate appearances against them. Manuel Margot ($2,900), Joey Wendle ($4,200), and Kevin Kiermaier ($2,300) are also options to work out a full-stack.
Cincinnati Reds vs. Merrill Kelly
I already mentioned Votto, but this has a lot of potential for a full Reds stack as well. The wind will be blowing out Great American Ballpark which is very favorable for the Reds lineup in addition to the already hitter-friendly park. Kelly has 13.5 percent strikeout rate, the lowest among today’s probable. Even without Nick Castellanos (suspension) and Mike Moustakas (injured), the Reds look ready to mash. Jesse Winker ($4,500) mashes righties in his home park as he has 21 homers, .404 OBP, and 153 wRC+ in 386 plate appearances since 2018. Tyler Naquin ($5,100), filling in for Castellanos, has six bombs in 52 plate appearances this season. Eugenio Suarez ($5,300) is another power potential guy to round it out with Votto.
Good luck with your lineups tonight.
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