After only a few afternoon games on Wednesday, Major League Baseball has a massive 11-game slate on tap under the lights. The action starts a little early at 6:35 p.m. ET to include the games that get underway just before 7:00 p.m. ET, providing a very busy early wave followed by just a few games as the night goes on. The National League has a few key matchups to keep an especially close eye on Wednesday as the Braves visit the Giants and the Brewers host the Dodgers in games between teams that are hoping to make pushes in the playoffs. The Mets are also in the middle of the Wild Card race as they host the A’s.
With plenty of depth in the 22-team player pool, here are a few of my top fantasy options on the board this Wednesday.
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PITCHER
Stud
Bryan Woo, Seattle Mariners at Detroit Tigers, $9,000 – While everyone will likely be flocking to Robbie Ray ($8,600) against the Braves after his strong return from Tommy John surgery, I actually think Woo is in a better spot as the Mariners face the Tigers in Detroit. Even after their 15-run onslaught in the opener of this series, the Tigers have the second-worst wOBA in the MLB over the last 30 days and have hit just .224 with a 24.0% K% over that span. Woo faced them last week and earned 19.4 fantasy points in a no-decision while working 6 2/3 strong innings with seven strikeouts. Woo has over 19 fantasy points in three of his last four outings, and he was pitching well in his other start during that stretch before leaving with hamstring tightness. That issue appears to be behind after two long outings, though, and he has shown a high ceiling this year by spiking for over 28 fantasy points three times in his last 11 starts. On the season, the 24-year-old righty has a shiny 2.27 ERA and 2.87 FIP. His strikeout numbers haven’t been great all year but have been trending up lately.
Value
Grant Holmes, Atlanta Braves at San Francisco Giants, $7,600 – The Braves have won the first two games of their stop in San Francisco after dropping seven of eight before arriving. The Giants have struggled at the plate, scoring just four runs in the series, and Holmes will look to continue their slump on Wednesday night. Holmes has pitched 38 innings for the Braves this season and has 41 strikeouts to go with his 3.79 ERA and 2.84 FIP. He worked out of the bullpen in his first 10 games but has started each of his last three appearances, stretching out to 98 pitches in his most recent outing. In two of his three starts, he produced exactly eight strikeouts while totaling 20 strikeouts in his 14 2/3 innings as a starter. Holmes has huge strikeout upside against the Giants and is due for a little positive regression in runs allowed. Over the last two weeks, the Giants have the fourth-worst team batting average and team wOBA in the MLB and rank in the top 10 in K%. While Ray is a strong play on the other side, I actually think Holmes is an excellent pivot as well.
INFIELD
Stud
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blu Jays at Los Angeles Angels, $5,500 – Guerrero’s massive 22-game hitting streak came to an end on Sunday, but the slugger had two more hits on Monday and another home run on Tuesday to produce double-digit fantasy points in each game. Over his last 25 games, Vladdy is hitting an unconscious .457 (43-for-94) with 12 doubles, 11 homers and a .599 wOBA. He has also mashed lefties on the road all season with a .343 average and .509 wOBA against southpaws away from Rogers Centre. He will be in that split against lefty Tyler Anderson ($8,700) on Wednesday night, and is one of the best cornerstone power bats to build around.
Stud
Xavier Edwards, Miami Marlins at Philadelphia Phillies, $4,400 – While his star power isn’t nearly as bright as Vladdy’s, Edwards has also been excellent over the past few weeks for the Marlins. After a late start to the season, the 25-year-old replaced Tim Anderson as the everyday SS and took over the leadoff spot after the Jazz Chisholm Jr. trade to New York. Since being called up at the start of July, Edwards has hit .368 (50-for-136) with a .386 wOBA. While his power production has been limited, he makes up for it on the basepaths. He has 14 stolen bases in his last 18 games, including five in his last three games. He clearly has the green light and has been causing all kinds of havoc from the top of the Marlins’ order, and the team has been playing much better lately coming into their Wednesday matchup with Tyler Phillips ($8,000), who has looked very hittable in his last two starts, surrendering 12 runs on 11 hits in 6 2/3 innings.
Value
Junior Caminero, Tampa Bay Rays vs. Houston Astros, $3,100 – The Rays called up top prospect Caminero for his 2024 MLB debut on Tuesday, and he went 1-for-4 with three strikeouts. While he hasn’t had success in the majors yet, the 21-year-old has one of the most intriguing skillsets of any top-level prospect and was recently ranked as the No. 2 prospect in all of baseball by MLB Pipeline. Caminero had 13 homers in 53 games at Triple-A, where he had a .360 wOBA. He was sidelined for a month earlier this season with a quad strain and hit .292 with a .401 wOBA in his 25 games after returning. He has a ton of upside for a play barely over $3,000.
Value
Oswaldo Cabrera, New York Yankees at Chicago White Sox, $2,600 – With Jazz likely headed to the IL and at least out Wednesday, Cabrera should get another start in this great spot against the White Sox. In limited opportunity, Cabrera has been solid lately, going 11-for-38 (.289) with three homers and a stolen base over his last 12 contests. He usually hits towards the bottom of the order, but his spot in such a high-scoring lineup gives him good run-production potential. He has nice eligibility at both 2B and 3B, so he fits into multiple roster builds at this low salary against Davis Martin ($6,500) and the White Sox. If you’re building around other big Yankee bats, Cabrera is a nice bargain option to add to the mix.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Juan Soto, New York Yankees at Chicago White Sox, $6,400 – It’s hard to go wrong paying up for either New York superstar outfielder since both Soto and Aaron Judge ($6,900) have been crushing the ball lately. Since he’s a little cheaper, I’m going with Soto in this spot after his three-homer game on Tuesday. He also had a multi-homer game on Sunday and is now up to 33 long balls on the season with a .440 wOBA which would be the second-best mark of his career. Soto is hitting .348 with a .515 wOBA in his 23 games since the All-Star break and is on the strong side of his splits against righties like Martin.
Stud
Yordan Alvarez, Houston Astros at Tampa Bay Rays, $6,000 – Since I went a little cheaper in the infield, I’m loading up on another $6K slugger and going with Air Yordan. Alvarez has been in “go mode” most of the season with a .306 average and .399 wOBA, but he has been especially scalding lately. In his 11 games in August, Alvarez has gone 16-for-40 (.400) with three doubles, five homers and a .548 wOBA which has helped him average 13.5 fantasy points per game.
Value
Will Brennan, Cleveland Guardians vs. Chicago Cubs, $2,800 – Despite spending a little time in Triple-A recently, Brennan seems to be locked into the strong side of the platoon in RF for the Guardians and has been batting second in the batting order against righties like Jameson Taillon ($8,200). Since being called back up last week, Brennan has hit second in three of his four starts and gone 7-for-17 (.412) with a double. In his eight games with Columbus, he went 13-for-31 (.419) with a .488 wOBA and four stolen bases. If he can continue carrying over that success and hitting second in a productive lineup, Brennan will be a great sub-$3K play. He brings both a much higher ceiling and a much higher floor than other similarly-priced options.
Value
Austin Slater, Baltimore Orioles vs. Washington Nationals, $2,200 – Since many of their recent outfield call-ups hit left-handed, the O’s added Slater to their outfield mix at the trade deadline. The 31-year-old has hit .275 against lefties in his career with a .348 wOBA and has worked as a platoon player for the last few seasons. He has gone 5-for-12 (.417) in his limited work as an Oriole, but he’ll likely be in the lineup against Nats’ lefty D.J. Herz ($7,500) on Wednesday. At barely more than the minimum salary, Slater is a good punt play that brings upside from a strong lineup and can help balance out your spending.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $175K Bat Flip [$50K to 1st]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
