Baseball is so back, baby! This Wednesday is the first full slate of MLB getaway games filling up the midweek afternoon with plenty of action across the diamonds. DraftKings has a huge 10-game slate on tap that gets underway at 1:10 p.m. ET. Let’s take a look at the 20 teams on Wedensday’s slate and examine my top three MLB stacks.
It’s an interesting mix of starting pitchers scheduled to take the mound on Wednesday since some teams are back to the top of their rotation and sending their Opening Day starter back to the hill. Finding the right MLB Stacks is a lot about targeting favorable starting pitching matchups while also considering the current form of the lineup and the environment where the game will take place. Let’s jump right in and find the best MLB stacks for Wednesday afternoon.
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1. New York Mets
Juan Soto ($6,300)
Franciso Lindor ($5,500)
Pete Alonso ($5,300)
Brandon Nimmo ($4,500)
Brett Baty ($2,900)
The Mets are in Miami as they continue their season-opening road trip. They’ll have a favorable matchup against Marlins starter Connor Gillispie ($6,000), who gave up four runs on four hits in five innings to the Pirates in his first start of the year. Gillispie won a job in the rotation with a strong spring but will be making just his second career MLB start and doesn’t have a true “out pitch,” which could leave him in trouble against the powerful Mets order.
Nimmo leads the Mets with five hits and two home runs this season, going 5-for-19 (.263) with 11 total bases. Soto and Alonso each have hit their first homer of the year as well. While the team is only hitting .179 as a unit, they have faced tough pitching matchups and should be able to turn things around in this favorable matchup on Wednesday afternoon.
2. San Diego Padres
Fernando Tatis Jr. ($5,300)
Jackson Merrill ($5,100)
Manny Machado ($4,900)
Luis Arraez ($3,700)
Jake Cronenworth ($3,700)
The Mets have a better matchup, but the Padres are another strong option to consider as they look to remain undefeated and finish out a sweep of the visiting Guardians. While they will be facing the Opening Day starter for Cleveland, that wasn’t Tanner Bibee, who was scratched for food poisoning. Ben Lively ($6,500) took his place and is a much more favorable option for the Padres to face this week. Lively was solid but not spectacular last season and in his first start this season but has historically had a hard time with lefties. In his career, left-handed hitters have hit .273 with a .364 wOBA against him compared to righties, who hit .253 with a .310 wOBA.
Lively’s splits put Merrill in a great spot to attack coming off his extension this morning and a fast start to the season. I highlighted him and Machado as two of my top targets for this afternoon’s slate. In addition to those two anchoring your squad, you can also mix in a red-hot Tatis, who is 9-for-22 (.409) to start the year with a double, a home run and four stolen bases. Cronenworth is a nice affordable way to attack those left-handed splits if you can’t quite afford Merrill as your play to build around.
3. Athletics
Brent Rooker ($5,600)
Lawrence Butler ($5,100)
JJ Bleday ($3,600)
Tyler Soderstrom ($3,300)
Jacob Wilson ($2,600)
So far it’s a ridiculously small sample size, but it looks like Sutter Health Park in Sacramento will be a great spot for MLB stacks. In the two games the Cubs and Athletics played in the park, the teams combined for 32 runs and 11 home runs. The Cubs won both games, but they’ll face lefty Jeremy Springs ($7,500) on Wednesday, so I actually like the Athletics as a better option for my MLB stacks as them take on Jameson Taillon ($6,700). Taillon gave up nine hits and six runs in four innings in his first start of the season and six of those nine hits went for extra bases. After struggling last year, the Athletics’ offense looks much improved, and they now present some very solid fantasy options.
Rooker is the top option in the stack aver going 7-for-26 (.269) with a pair of home runs. Soderstrom isn’t far behind him, though, and is an amazing option at 1B under $3,500 after starting the year 8-for-23 (.348) with a double and three home runs. Butler is off to a slow start but brings both power and speed potential at the top of the order. Jacob Wilson is also a great value piece to add to the stack after starting the season 6-for-20 (.300) with a home run. The one thing the Athletics haven’t done this season is run. As a team, they have a grand total of zero stolen base attempts.
