Top DFS Pitching and Team Stacking Strategies for DraftKings
In this article, I'm going to take a deeper dive into pitching and team stacking options. Let's take a look at our optimizer's rankings of the pitchers for the DraftKings 11-game main slate, sorted by projected fantasy points.
Visit RotoWire's MLB Daily Lineups to find out where the hitters slot in!
*No rain delays expected.
Despite the large slate, we only have four pitchers priced over $9,000, with the obvious chalky option being Freddy Peralta. He's coming off one of his worst outings of the season but gets a great bounce back opportunity against an Angels squad that leads in the league in strikeout rate. Oh, and Peralta didn't allow a run in any of his previous five starts.
We've also highlighted Logan Gilbert, Eury Perez and Shane Smith in our optimizer. Perez is our top point-per-dollar starter as he gets a $1,200 discount compared to his FanDuel salary against a weak Rockies lineup. Then there's the tale of two pitchers in Gilbert and Smith, with the former having the far superior stuff compared to Smith who has the value salary and favorable Orioles matchup.
There are some pitching situations I'm going to avoid tonight. Tristan Beck is receiving his first start of the season and will be on a limited pitch count, while the Mets are starting Clay Holmes with Sean Manaea in bulk relief. It's difficult to imagine either going more than four innings. And then there's
Top DFS Pitching and Team Stacking Strategies for DraftKings
In this article, I'm going to take a deeper dive into pitching and team stacking options. Let's take a look at our optimizer's rankings of the pitchers for the DraftKings 11-game main slate, sorted by projected fantasy points.
Visit RotoWire's MLB Daily Lineups to find out where the hitters slot in!
*No rain delays expected.
Despite the large slate, we only have four pitchers priced over $9,000, with the obvious chalky option being Freddy Peralta. He's coming off one of his worst outings of the season but gets a great bounce back opportunity against an Angels squad that leads in the league in strikeout rate. Oh, and Peralta didn't allow a run in any of his previous five starts.
We've also highlighted Logan Gilbert, Eury Perez and Shane Smith in our optimizer. Perez is our top point-per-dollar starter as he gets a $1,200 discount compared to his FanDuel salary against a weak Rockies lineup. Then there's the tale of two pitchers in Gilbert and Smith, with the former having the far superior stuff compared to Smith who has the value salary and favorable Orioles matchup.
There are some pitching situations I'm going to avoid tonight. Tristan Beck is receiving his first start of the season and will be on a limited pitch count, while the Mets are starting Clay Holmes with Sean Manaea in bulk relief. It's difficult to imagine either going more than four innings. And then there's Houston's AJ Blubaugh, who pitched an inning Friday and isn't expected to see a normal starter's workload. Note that Cristopher Sanchez, Cam Schlittler and Zebby Matthews rank well in the metrics below.
Here's how each pitcher ranks in key categories (stats are from 2025 season only):
| Pitcher | Fantasy Points | FIP | K% | Opponent K% |
| Freddy Peralta | 1 | 5 | 5 | 1 |
| Logan Gilbert | 2 | 3 | 1 | 21 |
| Merrill Kelly | 3 | 11 | 13 | 17 |
| Eury Perez | 4 | 13 | 12 | 2 |
| Cristopher Sanchez | 5 | 2 | 10 | 11 |
| Shane Smith | 6 | 17 | 14 | 3 |
| Cam Schlittler | 7 | 9 | 7 | 10 |
| Zebby Matthews | 8 | 6 | 9 | 4 |
| Ryan Pepiot | 9 | 18 | 11 | 22 |
| Andrew Abbott | 10 | 7 | 15 | 13 |
| Dean Kremer | 11 | 12 | 17 | 8 |
| Michael King | 12 | 8 | 8 | 14 |
| Eduardo Rodriguez | 13 | 19 | 16 | 9 |
| Jose Berrios | 14 | 20 | 18 | 6 |
| Michael Wacha | 15 | 4 | 20 | 5 |
| Michael McGreevy | 16 | 10 | 22 | 7 |
| Sean Manaea | 17 | 14 | 3 | 20 |
| AJ Blubaugh | 18 | 21 | 4 | 12 |
| Caden Dana | 19 | 22 | 6 | 19 |
| Kyle Freeland | 20 | 16 | 21 | 18 |
| Shohei Ohtani | 21 | 1 | 2 | 15 |
| Tristan Beck | 22 | 15 | 19 | 16 |
Analyzing Team Stack Rankings for Maximum DFS Impact
Here is how each team ranks in implied runs, team OPS against opposing starter handedness and how popular we expect each team stack to be in GPPs:
| Team | Implied Runs | Team OPS vs. Hand | Stack Popularity |
| Brewers | 6.3 | 7 | High |
| Marlins | 6.0 | 21 | High |
| Yankees | 5.5 | 1 | High |
| Diamondbacks | 5.1 | 4 | Medium |
| Mariners | 4.9 | 8 | Medium |
| Rockies | 4.5 | 18 | High |
| Rays | 4.5 | 9 | Medium |
| Mets | 4.4 | 2 | Low |
| Blue Jays | 4.4 | 3 | Medium |
| Reds | 4.4 | 10 | High |
| Dodgers | 4.3 | 5 | High |
| Giants | 4.3 | 22 | High |
| White Sox | 4.2 | 20 | Medium |
| Orioles | 4.2 | 12 | Medium |
| Rangers | 4.1 | 16 | Medium |
| Cardinals | 4.0 | 19 | Medium |
| Royals | 4.0 | 15 | Low |
| Twins | 4.0 | 13 | Low |
| Padres | 3.9 | 11 | Low |
| Astros | 3.8 | 14 | Low |
| Phillies | 3.5 | 6 | Low |
| Angels | 2.6 | 17 | Low |
My primary team stack targets
Marlins vs. LHP Freeland (4.31 FIP, 1.46 WHIP). Key pieces: Agustin Ramirez, Eric Wagaman, Xavier Edwards, Connor Norby, Dane Myers
Reds vs. RHP McGreevy (4.44 ERA, 14.2 K%). Key pieces: Elly De La Cruz, Gavin Lux, TJ Friedl, Noelvi Marte, Austin Hays
Yankees vs. RHP Matthews (5.06 ERA, 1.46 WHIP). Key pieces: Ben Rice, Cody Bellinger, Trent Grisham, Aaron Judge, Jazz Chisholm
Giants vs. LHP Rodriguez (4.46 FIP, 1.55 WHIP). Key pieces: Wilmer Flores, Casey Schmitt, Matt Chapman, Willy Adames, Heliot Ramos
Key Matchups and Batter vs. Pitcher Insights for DFS Success
Notable hitter matchups against the opposing starter today:
- Teoscar Hernandez: 5-for-9, 2 HR; .556 BA, 2.000 OPS
- Bobby Witt: 6-for-12, HR; .500 BA, 1.350 OPS
- Nolan Arenado: 8-for-18, 2 HR; .444 BA, 1.251 OPS
- Salvador Perez: 6-for-16, 2 HR; .375 BA, 1.286 OPS
- Eugenio Suarez: 15-for-33, 2 HR; .455 BA, 1.227 OPS
- J.P. Crawford: 7-for-17, HR; .412 BA, 1.121 OPS
- Matt Chapman: 8-for-21, HR; .381 BA, 1.149 OPS
- Randy Arozarena: 4-for-19, 3 HR; .211 BA, .987 OPS
- Cedric Mullins: 3-for-12, HR; .250 BA, .974 OPS
- Julio Rodriguez: 4-for-14, HR; .286 BA, .786 OPS
- Yandy Diaz: 6-for-20, HR; .300 BA, .883 OPS
For up-to-the-minute updates on injuries, lineups, roster changes and more, head to RotoWire's Fantasy Baseball News & Latest MLB Updates or follow @RotoWireMLB on X.
