If you’re looking for late fantasy baseball advice ahead of Friday’s slate, here we have two lineups to stack, one pitcher to target as a buy-low candidate, and another one to fade despite his solid recent numbers.
Why Stacking the Yankees Lineup Against Steven Matz Makes Sense
The Yankees appear to be a favorable matchup for Friday’s slate since several of their hitters have had success against Steven Matz. Giancarlo Stanton stands out, as he has a .316 average and a 1.013 OPS with two homers across 19 at-bats against Matz, but he’s not the only name to watch.
Aaron Judge is a threat to go yard regardless of who’s on the mound, Ben Rice is having an excellent season (3 HR, 11 RBI, 1.155 OPS), and Cody Bellinger has also had success against Matz in the past (.308, 1.053 OPS in 13 at-bats). Furthermore, Matz has allowed current Yankees hitters to sport a .261 average and a .358 wOBA against him, as well as a .397 xSLG. There’s a chance that stacking a Yankees lineup will be costly, but it’s worth the benefits.
Why the Brewers Are an Attractive Secondary Lineup to Stack
If you’re looking for another lineup to stack during Friday’s fantasy baseball slate, the Brewers might emerge as a favorable option in a good matchup against Jake Irvin. Irvin owns an 8.00 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP in nine innings across his first two starts, so his numbers are far from ideal.
But there’s the factor of previous success, with several Milwaukee hitters having strong numbers against the right-hander. William Contreras has hit .286 with two homers and a 1.230 OPS in 14 at-bats against him. Sal Frelick has a .385 average and an .890 OPS in 13 at-bats. Christian Yelich sports a blistering .545 average with a 1.643 OPS in 11 at-bats. The Brewers could feast on a struggling pitcher this Friday.
Walker Buehler Is an Underrated Pitching Target on Friday
Buehler is not the pitcher he once was, and he looked pretty bad in his last start as well, allowing four runs on three hits and three walks across 2.2 innings while striking out four. However, he couldn’t have asked for a better matchup to bounce back on Friday, as he’ll face the Colorado Rockies at Petco Park, which happens to be one of the most pitcher-friendly environments in the majors.
To assess Buehler here, it’s fair to go past the surface numbers, as his 9.45 ERA and 1.95 WHIP don’t do him any favors. However, he’s a pitcher who lives and dies by throwing breaking pitches to right-handed hitters, which is exactly the kind of offering the Rockies lineup struggles against. The floor is very low, but the matchup is appealing. If you need a low-cost arm to round out your pitching staff, Buehler could be an option worth looking into.
Why You Should Fade Chad Patrick as a Streaming Pitcher
Through two outings, Patrick holds a 1-0 record while striking out seven and allowing one earned run on nine hits and four walks across 9.1 innings. His 0.96 ERA looks good, but his 1.39 WHIP suggests he’s been lucky thus far.
Plus, Patrick has yet to pitch more than five innings, and that limits his fantasy upside as well. Don’t target just the ERA when looking for a streaming pitcher. Patrick hasn’t been as good as his ERA indicates, and he’s also in line for a tough matchup since the Nationals own the third-best collective OPS in the majors (.770) ahead of Friday’s slate.
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