Stacks are an integral part of daily fantasy baseball. They can push a team to the top of a GPP by driving upside. However, they're also viable in cash games, namely smaller (two-person or three-person) stacks that mitigate the volatility of a full four-person stack.
This article is your home throughout the 2022 Major League Baseball season for the day's top stacks. The primary goal is to identify the highest-scoring upside stack. Still, game theory will play a role in contrarian stacks making the cut as GPP options. Nevertheless, chalky stacks will make appearances in this space, too.
Beyond my analysis in this space, I strongly suggest numberFire premium members using our DFS Sharpstack tool and hitting heat map tool. The DFS Sharpstack helps plug stacks into optimized lineups, allowing you to change parameters and lock or exclude players and teams. Meanwhile, the heat map offers a one-stop-shop for the opposing starting pitcher, implied total, park factor, and other notable goodies.
Now, let's look at the top stacks on today's main slate.
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays have been MLB's best offense over the last two weeks. According to FanGraphs, they've had the fourth-highest ISO (.240) and highest wRC+ (164) during their heater. Tonight, they face another pitcher and bullpen that should help them shine.
In eight starts spanning 37 and 2/3 innings, rookie Kyle Bradish has been drilled for a 6.45 ERA, 6.04 Expected ERA (xERA), and 2.39 homers per nine innings. Bradish has been crushed by righties, allowing a .716 slugging and .488 wOBA. In addition, the relievers for the Baltimore Orioles have been terrible, sporting the ninth-highest ERA (4.22). Therefore, the Blue Jays should produce fireworks tonight.
The best stacking options from the Blue Jays are their top-four hitters, George Springer ($3,700), Bo Bichette ($3,900), Vladimir Guerrero Jr. ($3,900), and Teoscar Hernandez ($2,700). Springer has been the team's second-best hitter against righties this year, tallying a .244 ISO and 133 wRC+. Guerrero and Bichette have been the third and fourth-best hitters against righties, with a 123 wRC+ and 116 wRC+, respectively. However, Alejandro Kirk ($3,000) is another enticing stacking pick, leading the Blue Jays with a 157 wRC+ against right-handed pitchers.
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves also have a great matchup tonight. Second-year righty Josiah Gray has had a 4.94 ERA, 4.75 xFIP, and allowed 2.23 homers per nine innings in 133 innings in his big-league career. Further, he's been mediocre against righties and terrible against lefties. Right-handed batters have had a .320 wOBA against Gray, and lefties have roughed him up for a .533 slugging and .377 wOBA.
Thankfully, the fun shouldn't stop for the Braves after Gray gets the hook. The relievers for the Washington Nationals have been the worst in MLB. This year, they've had a league-high 5.32 ERA, serving up 1.26 homers per nine innings for good measure.
Since Gray has been worse against lefties than righties, Matt Olson ($3,500) is the top stacking option from the Braves. This season, he's had a .220 ISO and 130 wRC+ against righties. Austin Riley ($3,800) is another excellent pick, muscling up for a .231 ISO against righties this year. As a bonus, Riley and Olson project to his third and fourth, creating a scoring correlation if both explode.
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks aren't an elite offense, but they have a mouthwatering matchup tonight. Mike Minor has been a mess in two starts, ceding an 8.64 ERA, 7.93 xERA, and 5.40 homers per nine innings. More importantly, his awful two starts haven't been merely a blip on the radar. Since 2020, Minor has had a 5.31 ERA while coughing up 1.69 homers per nine innings.
Additionally, the Diamondbacks make it a clean sweep for the three suggested stacks facing horrible bullpens. The Cincinnati Reds have had the second-highest bullpen ERA (5.30) this season. Moreover, they've had the third-highest homer rate against, allowing 1.37 homers per nine innings. As a result, the Diamondbacks have a sky-high ceiling tonight.
The three most intriguing options from Arizona are Jordan Luplow ($2,500), Ketel Marte ($3,200), and Christian Walker ($3,100). Luplow is a lefty-killer, owning a .367 OBP, .315 ISO, and 146 wRC+ against them since 2019. Marte has been Arizona's best hitter against lefties since 2019, teeing off for a .399 OBP, .283 ISO, and 169 wRC+. Finally, Walker is a nifty power source, amassing a .262 ISO against southpaws this season.
Joshua Shepardson is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Joshua Shepardson also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username bchad50. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.