Plenty of interesting reasons to roster John Lackey tonight. In the last 30 days, he’s been piling up the strikeouts. His 10.43 K/9 ranks third on this slate, behind only Stephen Strasburg and Clayton Kershaw. It’s not just the K’s for Lackey who is 4-0 with a 1.01 ERA in his last four starts. That’s only three earned runs over his last 26.2 IP while notching 30 strikeouts. Lackey will battle his former team tonight in the Cardinals, who he has seen good success against this season. In two meetings, Lackey has only surrendered three ER in 14 innings (1.93 ERA) while striking out 20!

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Outside of the “Big Four” (Strasburg, Kershaw, Bumgarner, Lackey), there isn’t a ton of compelling options. If you’re desperate, take a quick look at Steven Wright. Wright is not a big strikeout pitcher, only whiffing 6.81 K/9 in the last thirty days. However, he is an innings eater who can give you a chance to win the game. Wright has lasted at least six innings in 11 of his 13 starts this season. He’s pitching well right now, allowing only three ER in his last three starts (19.2 IP). He will battle the White Sox today who have been dismal offensively, ranking 28th in wOBA in the last 30 days.

Drew Smyly has been a fantasy darling as times this season, but no pitcher on this slate has a worse ERA than Smyly in the last thirty days. He has allowed 19 ER and 29 hits over his last 21.2 IP. Opposing hitters are batting .315 off of him in that span! Now he has to travel to Cleveland which is one of the most hitter-friendly parks to take on the Indians who are a top ten offense in the last month.

That’s all folks! Be sure to follow me on Twitter for more player analysis and news as starting lineups are released! Commentary based on DraftKings strategy and scoring.