There's a modest number of Saturday afternoon matchups, leaving us with a nine-game main slate starting at 7:10 p.m. EDT. As we enter the final month of the regular season, it's worth noting we'll start to see unconventional pitching and lineup decisions. A few of those we already know about for Saturday night, so be sure to carefully check lineups before they lock.
Pitching
Trevor Rogers ($9,800) and Nick Pivetta ($9,600) represent the slate's top-valued pitching options, though Logan Gilbert ($9,200) is my favorite for the day with the highest strikeout rate in the pool this season and over the last month while also posting the best SIERA by a significant margin. A matchup against the Guardians is also favorable as they've produced an abysmal .260 wOBA the last 30 days.
Cam Schlittler ($8,500) has gone from getting fortunate results to showing legitimate skills to earn his results having notched at least six Ks in three straight starts. He draws a White Sox side that's actually been respectable of late, but are still striking out a lot. Merrill Kelly ($8,300) is in a similar tier, yet faces the A's at Sutter Health Park where both the matchup and stadium factors are significant obstacles.
The problem is there aren't many desirable pitchers after that. Shane Smith ($7,500) is interesting from a skills perspective, but he'll be going up against the Yankees. He's at home, which helps to make him the best value selection.
Javier Assad ($6,600) and Spencer Arrighetti ($6,200) are both desperation choices. Assad has experienced some big-league success while performing pretty well across three appearances since returning. The problem is he'll be at Coors Field. Arrighetti has started to be more effective, yet can't deliver strikeouts. That provides him a minimal ceiling and he's bound to post a poor fantasy total if he gives up multiple earned runs, though a matchup against the strikeout-prone Angels is a positive.
Check out which projected starters are going and when with RotoWire's Probable Pitchers page!
Top Hitter
We mentioned some of Arrighetti's improvement in that he's been able to limit offense, but he's still allowing plenty of contact with a lot of it being hard (49.2 percent hard hit rate). That should at least put some of the Angels hitters on the radar, with Zach Neto ($4,900) the preferred option.
Merrill Kelly isn't the best one to target on this slate, though Sutter Health Park increases potential offensive upside. Shea Langeliers ($5,300) and Tyler Soderstrom ($4,300) are two solid selections with Nick Kurtz (oblique) potentially sidelined.
Value Bats
The Rangers' lineup has been depleted by injuries, which has pushed Josh Jung ($3,400) into a more prominent spot in the order while Josh Smith ($3,500) is undervalued. The A's are set to call upon Mason Barnett to start and make his MLB debut.
Carson Seymour has a limited history in the Majors, so we can't make any conclusions about his future. For now, he lists a 17.2 K%, and 9.7 BB% and a 2.49 HR/9. He'll be facing a subpar Orioles' offense, but there is value to be found - specifically with Jeremiah Jackson ($2,900) as he's primarily batting second while averaging 7.5 DK points from his last 10 games.
Stacks to Consider
Cubs at Rockies (McCade Brown): Michael Busch ($5,100), Seiya Suzuki ($4,900), Ian Happ ($4,200)
Brown is set to make his second big-league start and surrendered four earned runs and eight baserunners across only 3.2 road innings against the Pirates. Even with the Cubs in an offensive slump, their lineup is considerably better than Pittsburgh's while the hitting environment is extremely favorable. The biggest challenge will be making the salary work, yet there are some good value options to be found.
Padres at Twins (Taj Bradley): Fernando Tatis ($4,800), Manny Machado ($4,600), Ryan O'Hearn ($3,500)
Bradley returned to the bigs for the first time in a month last weekend and promptly got crushed by the White Sox. He's also endured a subpar campaign, highlighted by allowing at least four earned runs in eight of 22 starts and at least five six times.
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