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.
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves had a disappointing showing in a great matchup last night. Thankfully, they have a rebound opportunity in another excellent matchup tonight. According to FanGraphs, righty Erick Fedde has had a 4.29 ERA and 4.52 xFIP in 16 starts. He's also struck out only 19% of the hitters he's faced with a poor 10.8% walk rate.
Fedde's combination of a low strikeout rate and high walk rate is a recipe for disaster. Moreover, Fedde hasn't been good against lefties or righties. Since 2021, he's allowed a .335 wOBA to lefties and a .326 wOBA to righties. In addition, Atlanta's scoring ceiling is lifted by Washington's pathetic bullpen that has had the fifth-highest ERA (4.52) in 2022.
Gamers are never discouraged from using Ronald Acuna ($4,400) in a Braves stack. Dansby Swanson ($3,800), Matt Olson ($3,700), and Austin Riley ($4,200) are also excellent selections. Swanson has been a thorn in the side of righties in Truist Park. Since 2020, in 479 plate appearances against righties at home, Swanson has had a .357 OBP, .228 ISO, and 132 wRC+.
Meanwhile, Olson and Riley have had thunderous power against righties. Since last year, Olson has had a .231 ISO, and Riley has had a .245 ISO versus right-handed pitchers.
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays also came up short of expectations last night. They don't have an obviously great matchup tonight. However, they might have a high-upside matchup. The Seattle Mariners haven't officially announced a starter, but Roster Resource projects George Kirby.
Kirby has had a promising debut, bypassing Triple-A entirely. However, Kirby has struggled mightily with righties. The right-handed pitcher has allowed a .586 slugging and .393 wOBA to 118 right-handed batters faced. The Blue Jays are basically nightmare material for Kirby's reverse split, trotting out a righty-laden lineup.
George Springer ($3,900) is one of my favorite options after a night off. Since 2021, he's had a .269 ISO and 133 wRC+ against righties. Of course, the usual suspects, such as Bo Bichette ($3,500), Vladimir Guerrero Jr. ($4,200), Alejandro Kirk ($3,400), and Teoscar Hernandez ($3,100), are also nifty picks.
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees face fill-in starter Connor Seabold tonight. The 26-year-old rookie has had a 7.71 ERA in his three starts lasting just 11 and 2/3 innings. Obviously, three starts is a tiny sample. Nevertheless, he hasn't pitched well enough to provide a reason for optimism against New York's loaded lineup.
The Bronx Bombers are tied for second in wRC+ (117) against righties this year. They've also had the second-highest ISO (.190) against righties. Thus, they'd be a handful for even the best righties in MLB, and Seabold isn't anywhere near that caliber of starter. And, of course, Fenway Park is hitter-friendly, amplifying New York's upside and Seabold's challenge.
Aaron Judge ($4,300) is the premium piece in this stack if he returns from a one-game absence with lower-body soreness. Fellow exit-velocity wunderkind Giancarlo Stanton ($3,700) is another elite pick. Since last year, Stanton has crushed righties for a .263 ISO and 136 wRC+. Finally, DJ LeMahieu ($3,300), Anthony Rizzo ($3,700), Gleyber Torres ($2,800), and Matt Carpenter ($3,000) are others to consider, depending on who Aaron Boone pencils into the lineup.
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.