3 Daily Fantasy Baseball Stacks for Monday 5/2/22
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 that starts on FanDuel at 6:40 pm ET.
Seattle Mariners
Jake Odorizzi has stunk. That's the crux of the reason for stacking the Seattle Mariners tonight. According to FanGraphs, the 32-year-old righty has had a wretched 6.00 ERA and 5.64 Skill-Interactive ERA (SIERA) in 2022.
Further, Odorizzi's struggles aren't limited to a small sample in 2022. In 133 and 1/3 innings pitched since 2020, he has had a 4.66 ERA with similarly bad ERA estimators while coughing up 1.42 homers per nine innings. Thus, Odorizzi is a fantastic target to stack against whenever he takes the ball.
Gamers can stack the Mariners throughout the lineup. However, my must-use picks are Jesse Winker ($2,600) and Eugenio Suarez ($3,500). Since 2019, Winker has had a .391 OBP, .256 Isolated Power (ISO), and 144 Weighted Runs Created Plus (wRC+). Unfortunately, Winker has struggled in the early going for his new employer. Still, he had a three-hit game yesterday, and his batted-ball data has suggested a turnaround was imminent.
Suarez is a great power source. In 172 plate appearances since last September, he has had 11 homers, a .333 ISO, and 180 wRC+. Suarez has also had a fantastic 16.8 percent barrel rate. Therefore, Suarez is tailor-made to punish Odorizzi's homer-prone ways.
Minnesota Twins
Tyler Wells pitched reasonably well in relief for the Baltimore Orioles in 2021. So understandably, the rebuilding O's have attempted to coax more value from him as a starter. Unfortunately, the results haven't been good. In four starts lasting 13 innings, he has had a 5.54 ERA and 5.14 Expected ERA (xERA).
Perhaps most eye-catching on Wells' profile is his homer problems. He has allowed 2.08 homers per nine innings this year and 1.54 homers per nine innings in 70 big-league innings. As a result, the Minnesota Twins have immense homer upside tonight.
Chasing power in Minnesota's lineup starts at the top with Byron Buxton ($3,900). The electrifying outfielder has clubbed seven homers in 2022. Moreover, he has had a .317 ISO against right-handed pitchers since 2019.
Another player I love chasing the long ball with from the Twins is Max Kepler ($2,800). The left-handed-hitting outfielder has had a .264 ISO against righties since 2019. In addition, he's mashed five taters in 2022. Others on the Twins I'm interested in stacking include Luis Arraez ($2,500), Jorge Polanco ($2,900), Carlos Correa ($3,200), and Gary Sanchez ($2,600).
Toronto Blue Jays
I'm the least excited about the Toronto Blue Jays among the trio of featured stacks. Their opposing hurler, Jordan Montgomery, has been the best of the pitchers I'm suggesting stacking against. Still, Toronto's righty-laden active roster is filled with hitters who've beaten up on southpaws in recent seasons.
The two most accomplished hitters against southpaws since 2019 on the Blue Jays have been Bo Bichette ($3,300) and George Springer ($3,800). So, they're a great place to start the stack. And, obviously, they jump-start the lineup from the top two lineup spots. The former has had a 154 wRC+ against lefties since debuting in 2019, and the latter has had a 148 wRC+ against them since 2019.
I also adore Vladimir Guerrero Jr. ($4,200), which shouldn't come as a surprise. Since breaking out last year, he has had a .401 OBP, .242 ISO, and 152 wRC+ in 177 plate appearances. Finally, I also like the power Lourdes Gurriel ($3,500) and Matt Chapman ($3,400) have brought to the table against southpaws. Since 2019, they have had a .243 ISO and .261 ISO, respectively.
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.
