3 Daily Fantasy Baseball Stacks for Tuesday 6/1/21
Stacks are the backbone of cashing daily fantasy baseball lineups. Correlation drives upside, creating the potential to place high or even win GPPs when your selected stacks explode offensively.
This column will do the digging and the dirty work to determine which stacks are worth rostering each day. Scoring upside will fuel the stacks that get the nod. Sometimes that will lead to chalky selections, but contrarian stacks will get their fair share of love too.
In addition to utilizing the touted daily stacks in handbuilt lineups, numberFire premium members can throw these highlighted stacks into an optimized lineup using our DFS Sharpstack tool. Our hitting heat map tool is also available to premium members looking for more stacking options. It provides valuable info such as implied total, park factors, and stats for identifying the quality of the opposing pitcher.
Let's take a look at the top stacks on today's main slate.
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins flubbed a great matchup yesterday. However, they have another plus spot tonight. Bruce Zimmermann has been an unimpressive option on the bump in his rookie season. In nine appearances (eight starts) spanning 43 and 2/3 innings this year, he has a 5.15 ERA, 4.43 skill-interactive ERA (SIERA), and 2.06 homers per nine innings allowed.
The plus matchup provides the Twins a fantasy-friendly implied total at hitter-friendly Oriole Park at Camden Yards. According to the park factors at FantasyPros, it has the 11th-highest park factor for runs (1.022) and the fourth-highest park factor for homers (1.171).
The top dog in the stack is premier lefty-killer, Nelson Cruz ($3,500). Since 2018, he has a .412 on-base percentage, .354 isolated power (ISO), and 182 weighted runs created plus (wRC+) against southpaws. Teammate Josh Donaldson ($2,800) isn't a slouch against lefties, either. Further, he's not slowing down with age, totaling a .383 on-base percentage, .175 ISO, and 138 wRC+ against them this year.
The other option I'm specifically locked in on is Miguel Sano ($2,900). His plus raw power has resulted in a .250 ISO against lefties since 2018. That'll play against Zimmermann's .514 slugging percentage and .372 weighted on-base average (wOBA) coughed up to righties this year.
Texas Rangers
The Texas Rangers don't appear to have received the full-blown Coors Field salary boost. As a reminder, Coors Field is a hitter's paradise, ranking second in park factors for homers (1.257) and doubles (.1345), and leading the way in park factors for runs (1.362), singles (1.230), and triples (2.177). There's a reason hitters often receive a salary spike playing there.
I suspect German Marquez's recent run of successful starts is the impetus for the underwhelming salaries for Texas' hitters. Still, this is a pitcher who has a 5.08 ERA and .339 wOBA at home, per FanGraphs. I'm overjoyed about the opportunity to stack against without taking up a significant chunk of salary cap space.
My favorite options start at the top, with leadoff hitter Willie Calhoun ($2,900). He's recorded a 115 wRC+ against righties this year. I'm also digging Nick Solak ($2,800), Joey Gallo ($3,300), and Adolis Garcia ($4,300). Garcia has the only salary above $4,000 on the roster, but he's earned it in a breakout campaign. He's smashed 16 homers, stolen 6 bases, and recorded a .303 ISO and 151 wRC+ this year.
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves round out my favorite stacks tonight. My interest in them is fueled by the decline of Stephen Strasburg. He's not an ace anymore.
The 32-year-old righty's 4.43 ERA in four starts spanning 20 and 1/3 innings isn't any great shakes. It also overstates his competency. He also has a 4.92 SIERA and 1.77 homers per nine innings allowed to the opposition.
The vet's heater isn't humming with the same heat it was during his peak seasons. It has an average velocity of 92.1 miles per hour, well below his 93.9 miles per hour average velocity when he was last good in 2019. Since last year, Strasburg's been rocked for a 5.68 ERA, 5.07 SIERA, 25.7 percent line-drive rate, and 1.78 homers per nine innings in six starts stretched across 25 and 1/3 innings.
The Braves' lineup isn't potent from top to bottom, but the top has a few elite options that offer stacking appeal. Leadoff hitter Ronald Acuna ($4,300) is one of the game's elite players. He's pummeled them for a .261 ISO and 137 wRC+ since reaching The Show in 2018. He's also performed like a worldbeater this year, smacking 16 homers, stealing 6 bases, and rounding things out with a .335 ISO, and 166 wRC+.
Number-two hitter Freddie Freeman ($3,700) is only the reigning National League Most Valuable Player. No big deal. Kidding aside, he has a .413 on-base percentage, .253 ISO, and 153 wRC+ against righties since 2018. He's also raking against them this year, with a .388 on-base percentage, .252 ISO, and 137 wRC+.
Others to consider include Ozzie Albies ($3,100), Dansby Swanson ($2,500), and Austin Riley ($3,400). Let me call your attention to Riley in particular. This year, he's ripped the cover off of the ball in same-handed matchups, roughing up fellow righties for a .427 on-base percentage, .211 ISO, and 160 wRC+.
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.
