MLB

3 Under-the-Radar MLB FanDuel Plays for Monday 4/26/21

When being contrarian in daily fantasy sports, there's a fine line between taking a calculated risk and being reckless. But differentiating your lineups from everyone else is the name of the game if you plan on taking down one of those highly lucrative DFS tournaments. Whether it's because of Vegas totals, other options at a given position, or some gem you've found that everyone is overlooking, we can always find potential under-rostered plays if we look hard enough.

Here are three such players to consider branching out for on FanDuel's main slate.

Anthony DeSclafani, P, San Francisco Giants ($6,800)

Tonight's nine-game MLB slate is going to be very interesting when it comes to which pitchers are popular.

There are a few very good, very clear options at the top-tier of pitchers, and then there's everyone else. This means we should see those pitchers be very chalky tonight, while everyone is going to be overlooked.

This is where we turn to Anthony DeSclafani, who has an unbelievable matchup and is very affordable tonight. DeSclafani is at home in San Francisco, which is a fantastic pitcher's park, and is taking on the Colorado Rockies, who are terrible on the road this season.

To start the year, the Rockies are carrying a .191 ISO versus right-handed pitchers, which is the fourth-best in the league. However -- and it's a big, HOWEVER -- that number drops to a .056 ISO versus right-handed pitchers on the road, which is the worst in the league. Holy smokes. The Rockies are legitimately producing no power when they are away from Coors.

On top of that, their 75 wRC+ versus right-handed pitchers on the season drops to a 40 wRC+ while on the road. We are talking about zero offensive potential from their lineup. With this pitcher's park behind him, DeSclafani is in a spot to cruise all night long with very little threat from the Rockies.

DJ Stewart, OF, Baltimore Orioles ($2,800)

What can we expect from Deivi Garcia on the mound tonight? Garcia will be on the bump for the New York Yankees, and while he is one of their top pitching prospects, we should be looking to some of the Baltimore Orioles' hitters tonight.

Garcia made his MLB debut last season and only has a total of 34.1 innings pitched under his belt. In that time, he allowed a 6.00 xFIP, a 54.9% fly-ball rate, and a low 16.4% strikeout rate versus left-handed hitters. None of that is very impressive, but we're dealing with a small sample size, so take it with a grain of salt. I'm still willing to attack a pitcher who is largely unknown with a hitter who has power upside.

That hitter could be D.J. Stewart, who has only been in the Majors for three years, but in that time, he carries a .237 ISO, a 116 wRC+, and a 47.7% fly-ball rate versus right-handed pitchers. For a player under $3,000, those are some serious power numbers to take a shot on in tournaments.

Matt Chapman, 3B, Oakland Athletics ($2,900)

Matt Chapman is having a slow start to the year but still has plenty of power versus left-handed pitchers.

Chapman is having a weird start to the 2021 season, as he is striking out over 30% of the time versus both lefty and righty pitchers. That is a good bit higher than his 25% career strikeout rate, and this means he is leaving opportunities at the plate. While the strikeout rate is unusual, what is normal is his .273 ISO versus lefties compared to his .221 career average.

Much of the same can be said for his wRC+, fly-ball rate, hard-contact rate, and wOBA. His hitting numbers are essentially the same, but they just aren't coming as frequently because of the higher strikeouts.

Since the power is still there, I'll be looking to him versus Rich Hill, who over the last three years is giving up 1.30 HR/9 and a 4.36 xFIP to right-handed hitters, along with a nonthreatening 20.4% strikeout rate.