This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
It's Sunday, and you know what that means: an afternoon full of MLB action! There are 14 games taking place, but you'll have to have your lineups in early since the first one begins at 1:05 p.m. ET. Who should be in your lineup? Maybe these recommendations will help make up your mind.
PITCHING
Marcus Stroman, NYM vs. MIA ($9,400): Stroman's first game of the season went well allowing one run through six innings on the road against the Phillies. It's the first time we've seen the former Blue Jay in a minute, given that he opted out of 2020. The Marlins finished 21st in runs scored last season, which is not good but still better than what people expected. This year, I would imagine things not going as well offensively, especially on the road against Stroman.
German Marquez, COL at SF ($8,600): Marquez is a talented pitcher who has to suffer through pitching his home games at Coors Field. Since 2019, he's posted a 5.86 road ERA on the road, but a 3.34 ERA at home. Getting to pitch at the more pitcher-friendly San Francisco ballpark should help. I'd like Marquez even more if the Giants hadn't surprisingly finished in the top-10 in runs scored last year.
Trevor Williams, CHC at PIT ($8,000): Based on last season, I am beginning the year with a "Whoever is starting against Pittsburgh" policy. After all, the Pirates finished 30th in runs scored last season and had a .641 team OPS. Williams is in line for a "revenge game" against his old squad and went six innings while only allowing two runs against the Brewers in his first start as a Cub.
Logan Allen, CLE vs. DET ($5,900): Allen may have a career 5.33 FIP, but that's in all of 43.1 innings. He's only 23, and I have faith in Cleveland's ability to find and develop pitching. I also have no faith in Detroit's offense, which maintained a .303 OBP last season.
TOP TARGETS
Giancarlo Stanton, NYY at TAM ($3,700): Stanton has struggled to stay healthy, but he's still got a dangerous bat when at the plate. This is someone who has produced a career .545 slugging percentage, after all. Michael Wacha has suddenly become homer happy the last couple of seasons by giving up 1.85 homers per nine innings in 2019 and 2.38 in 2020.
Christian Yelich, MIL at STL ($3,800): A lot of people are picking Yelich for a rebound season, and I am also on that train. A hitter goes from having an OPS of 1.000 or better for two straight seasons and then drops down to .786? His .259 BABIP over a shortened season played a big part in that. Daniel Ponce de Leon may have a fun name, but he also has a career 4.31 FIP and is a right-handed pitcher which should benefit southpaw Yelich.
Jose Abreu, CWS vs. KC ($3,900): Abreu is coming off an MVP-winning campaign where he hit 19 homers in 60 games and managed a .987 OPS. He's always shown tremendous power, as his four seasons with over 30 home runs will prove. Mike Minor has often been homer prone allowing 1.20 per nine innings during his career. While he was solid out of the bullpen last time he was a Royal, he struggled as a starter with a 4.07 ERA over the previous three seasons.
VALUE BATS
Mike Moustakas, CIN at ARI ($3,300): Moustakas had a rough 2020, but that was mostly against lefties. While his .593 OPS versus southpaws was a problem, he put up an .812 OPS against righties, which is more in line with his career numbers. Luke Weaver is a righty and slumped to a 6.58 ERA in 2020.
Anthony Santander, BAL vs. BOS ($3,400): Santander doesn't walk much, but has posted a .261 batting average in each of his last two seasons while boasting power. In 2020, he hit 11 homers in 37 games with a .575 slugging percentage. While Nick Pivetta's first start of this season went well, he still comes in with a career 5.34 ERA.
Max Kepler, MIN vs. SEA ($3,500): Kepler hits a bit better at home and a bit better against righties, and both are in play Sunday. Let's not forget he crushed 36 homers in 2019. Chris Flexen's first start as a Mariner went fine as he pitched five shutout innings. However, he was pretty disastrous mostly pitching out of the pen for the Mets and enters with a career 7.52 ERA.
STACKS TO CONSIDER
Padres at Mike Foltynewicz: Manny Machado ($3,400), Trent Grisham ($2,500), Eric Hosmer ($3,700)
Foltynewicz only pitched 3.1 innings last season and 4.0 this year, so you can't really look at these numbers there for much help. His last full season did end up in a 4.96 FIP and the reason he didn't pitch in 2020 was due to the Braves removing him from their 40-man and him ending up a minor-league free agent. I don't think Texas is the place to turn things around. Machado is a stellar hitter who had five straight 30-homer seasons before last year when he managed a .580 slugging percentage in 60 games. Grisham is healthy again after notching 10 homers and 10 stolen bases last season with a .352 OBP. Hosmer is a lefty facing a righty and contributed a .974 OPS versus right-handed pitching in 2020.
Angels vs. Tanner Roark: Mike Trout ($4,500), Jared Walsh ($3,000), David Fletcher ($2,600)
Roark's first season in Toronto was a disaster as he put up a 6.85 FIP and allowed 2.64 homers in nine innings across 11 starts. His first start this year resulted in five runs allowed over three innings to the Rangers. The Angels boast a much tougher lineup. Do I need to say anything about Trout? He's the best player in baseball, so I'm totally cool paying his salary in this matchup. Walsh had a .646 slugging percentage last season and already has three homers this year. I like Fletcher in Angels' stacks because he tends to bat leadoff with impressive bats behind him. He's also produced a career .289 batting average and .342 OBP.
