Weather Report
It’s a busier-than-usual Monday with 11 games, but it doesn’t appear any of are in danger of getting postponed with very little chance of rain.
Injury Report:
Salvador Perez, Royals C, Concussion -- Perez was placed on the seven-day injured list Sunday after being hit in the mask by a foul ball Saturday against the Astros. The Royals are also missing Freddy Fermin for the rest of the season due to a finger injury, so Kansas City will line up Logan Porter and Tyler Cropley behind the plate for the foreseeable future. Neither Porter nor Cropley offer any type of fantasy value.
Ha-Seong Kim, Padres LHP, Abdomen -- Kim was scratched from the lineup Sunday due to discomfort in his abdomen. As of publication, the results of the testing of the infielder are unavailable, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he’s held out -- maybe even placed on the injured list -- with the Padres all but eliminated from postseason contention.
Tyler O’Neill, Cardinals OF, Foot: O’Neill was placed on the 10-day injured list with a sprained right foot before Sunday’s game. The outfielder will all but assuredly miss the rest of the season and wasn’t exactly playing at an elite level prior to the injury. The Cardinals called up Juan Yepez, a hitter who has had mixed success but put up big numbers in the minors. He could be a sneaky fantasy option when he’s in the lineup over the final weeks.
Top Priced Starting Pitchers for Main Slate (DraftKings)
- Freddy Peralta vs. STL: $11,300
- Zack Wheeler vs. ATL: $10,900
- Justin Verlander vs. BAL: $10,500
- Eduardo Rodriguez vs. LAD: $9,400
- Michael Wacha vs. TEX: $ $8,900
Good options, with Peralta unsurprisingly the most expensive at your disposal. The right-hander has been on a strong run with at least nine strikeouts in four of his last five chances. His ERA has dropped from 4.46 at the start of August to 3.79. With St. Louis playing the string out, there’s plenty of reason to believe Peralta will pile up the strikeouts without much damage inflicted upon him.
Rodriguez vs. Lynn is an intriguing matchup, and there’s added flavor because of what happened -- and what didn’t happen -- at the deadline. Lynn was traded from the White Sox to Los Angeles near the deadline, while Rodriguez evoked his no-trade clause to block a trade to the Dodgers on deadline day.
Both pitchers haven’t been great as of late, but Lynn offers the better chance for a win even with his team no longer having anything to play for with Los Angeles clinching the AL West on Sunday in Seattle.
The highest risk -- but potentially highest reward -- comes with Verlander and his five-figure cost against Baltimore. The right-hander has 5.40 ERA in September, and he’ll be facing one of the best lineups in the Orioles. While that offers risk, Verlander was pitching as well as anyone at the end of August, and he’s gone seven innings in his last two outings with a 13/1 K/BB over 14 frames.
It’s a tough ask, but Verlander is going to be worthy of roster consideration until he decides to retire in 2042 or so.
Sneaky option
Bryan Woo vs. Athletics: $7,200
‘Sneaky’? Against lowly Oakland? Woo’s price point makes him the best pitching option. The rookie right-hander has been up-and-down in 2023, but he’s coming off his best start of the season -- 5.2 scoreless frames with eight strikeouts against the Angels.
The Mariners essentially are in must-win mode in order to stay in the division race as well as the Wild Card, and it’s reasonable to expect quality run support behind Woo with J.P. Sears on the bump for the A’s.
You can add Woo and one of the big-name starters above, and process suggests you should have a nice little Monday.
Stack Attack
Phillies vs. Atlanta (Kyle Wright)
- C J.T. Realmuto: $5,000
- 1B Bryce Harper: $5,000
- 2B Bryson Stott: $4,600
- OF Brandon Marsh: $3,300
Wright has had success at the highest level, but he missed over four months with injury, and he didn't look great in his return to the mound Monday with six runs allowing over three innings. The Phillies are fighting for a chance to host a postseason series as the top Wild Card in the National League, and this stack gives you some “star” options in Realmuto and Harper with some relatively ‘cheap” plays in Stott and Marsh. On paper, this one makes an awful lot of sense.
Brewers vs. Cardinals (Adam Wainwright)
- C William Contreras: $5,100
- 2B Brice Turang: $3,300
- SS Willy Adames: $4,300
- OF Christian Yelich: $5,200
- OF Mark Canha: $3,200
It’s simple -- if Wainwright is starting, take advantage. He’s pitched well in two of his last three outings in terms of run-prevention but hasn’t struck out more than five hitters in a start since May 29. It’s hard to take any recent success too seriously with a 7.95 ERA over his 94 innings.
Get as many Milwaukee hitters in the lineup as you can. Congrats on a great career, Mr. Wainwright, but he’s someone fantasy managers must attack over the last starts of his career.
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