It’s a split slate tonight with the main slate being a seven-game slate starting at 7 pm ET with no real weather issues either. Let’s take a look some of the best value plays on the main slate.
Both Sites
Ian Anderson , RHP ATL - In the last couple of weeks the Phillies’ offense hasn’t been good against RHP with a 27.5-percent K-rate and a .288 wOBA and 76 wRC+. Anderson has been good of late, prior to his last start, as he went 13.2 shutout innings with five hits and 12 Ks against the Cubs and Yankees. Mid tier on both sites is a nice price for a pitcher of Anderson’s caliber.
Justin Upton , OF LAA - Upton is a guy who can be hit and miss of the course of a season but in this match-up it’s a solid spot with him having hit Kershaw solidly before with a homer and against LHP this year, Upton is hitting .320 with a .489 wOBA with three homers. Kershaw is coming off his shortest outing of his career as well and the Dodgers bullpen hasn’t exactly been lock down either.
Nick Ahmed , SS ARI - Ahmed is 7-for-16 with two homers and five RBI career off of Joey Lucchesi . Lucchesi has also been hittable by RHHs this year as well allowing .437 wOBA and over a 1.000 OPS to them. It’s been a slowish start for Ahmed this year but at this price if he simply hits Lucchesi like he has in the past he won’t have trouble hitting value.
Nate Lowe , 1B TEX - Lowe might be a bit more than other hitters that are typically in this piece, but there is value here as the 12th and 13th most expensive first baseman on FD and DK respectively. He’s been mashing right-handed pitchers this year with six homers and 19 RBI in 67 at-bats. Ljay Newsome has been only pitching a small period of time but has still been hit hard by left-handed hitters making this a very tasty match-up for Lowe.
DraftKings
Andrew Benintendi , OF KC - Benintendi is 7-for-19 in previous meetings with Lance Lynn , who while being good so far this year is making his first start back from the IL. Benintendi is also hitting .306 with a .378 wOBA off of RHPs so far for a Royals’ lineup that has been pretty good at stringing together hits and scoring runs.
Taylor Trammell , OF SEA - Kohei Arihara has been like a batting practice pitcher to this point in the year to both handedness of hitter. Trammell has the second-most homers off of RHPs on the year for the Mariners with a solid .310 wOBA. While Arihara has been easier on RHHs, Trammell’s cheap price and solid numbers against RHPs make him playable though you could also look at Kyle Seager and Mitch Haniger for costly prices.
FanDuel
Austin Riley , 3B ATL - Riley has been on a tear recently hitting .325 in the last 10 games and against RHPs this year he’s posted a .371 wOBA with three homers. For as much acclaim that Acuna gets, and should, Riley actually has the highest batting average on the team against right-handed pitchers. Velasquez has been lit up by RHHs this year with a .477 wOBA allowed. The price is far too low on FD for Riley today.
Yuli Gurriel , 1B HOU - Gurriel has been rolling against southpaws this year with a .419 wOBA and three homers and 13 RBI which are all at least second-best on the team against lefties. Steven Matz for his part has been hittable this year and is allowing a .345 wOBA and nearly .800 OPS against RHHs. He should be hitting in the middle of a still potent offense which is nice at this price.
Francisco Lindor , SS NYM - Lindor is starting to turn things around and even when he’s not been hitting he’s been making it on base consistently to start the season. While the numbers aren’t great in either average or wOBA even against RHPs, he is facing Merrill Kelly who has been lit up like a light bulb this year in ERA and BAA and wOBA by either side of the plate so Lindor being a switch-hitter gives him either advantage he wants. Get the value here before the price starts to rise again.
Player News
Daulton Varsho picked up three hits, three RBI and a homer in a win over the Angels on Thursday.
Varsho has only played in seven games this year, but they’ve been seven good ones. He’s homered three times already, and his slugging percentage is a remarkable — and entirely unsustainable — .727 over 22 at-bats. Varsho has been a mediocre offensive player in his two seasons with the Blue Jays, but it’s possible at the age of 28 he’s having a breakout campaign. Far from a guarantee, but possible.
Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer in a loss to the Blue Jays on Thursday.
Ward, 31, gave the Angels a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer off Chris Bassitt in the first inning. He’s now gone deep in two of his last three games, and it ‘improves’ his slash to .181/.224/.391. Ward has been one of the most hot/cold players players in the sport over the last few years, so fantasy managers who can afford to make some roster moves may want to look at Ward while the going is good.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. picked up three hits and scored twice in an 8-5 win over the Angels on Thursday.
Guerrero also drew a walk. It gives the first baseman multiple hits in back-to-back games, and it’s the third time in May that he’s reached that mark. That’s helped raise his average from .268 to .295, and the only thing fantasy managers can be disappointed with is his .432 slugging percentage. That number should continue to climb as the season unfolds, but Vladdy Jr. has had some inconsistent seasons when it comes to power production.
Chad Green picked up his first save of 2025 with a scoreless ninth against the Angels on Thursday.
Green got the save after Jeff Hoffman worked in back-to-back games — and struggled — in the first two contests against the Angels. He struck out two and looked the part while needing just nine pitches to get through the inning. Hoffman should remain the closer, but Green is on his tail if the struggles were to continue.
Chris Bassitt allowed five runs — four earned — while working six-plus innings against the Angels on Thursday while picking up a win.
Bassitt allowed three runs over the first two innings on a pair of homers, but settled down over his next four frames. He came out to work the seventh, but ended up being charged for two more runs after leaving the contest. The 36-year-old veteran has forged a 3.35 ERA and outstanding 49/8 K/BB ratio over the first quarter of the season, but this wasn’t him at his best. He’ll get the Rays next week if the rotation order stays the same for Toronto.
José Soriano allowed three runs over five innings while not factoring in the decision Thursday against the Blue Jays.
Soriano left with a 4-3 lead, but it was erased quickly after his departure. The 26-year-old was not exactly dominant in his outing with eight hits allowed and four free passes, but he did strike out six to help balance things out a smidgen. Soriano takes an even ERA of 4.00 into a scheduled start against the Padres in San Diego on Tuesday. There should be better options for that one.