Top Tier
Max Scherzer, WAS - Scherzer gets the Marlins today and while this is a team not striking out a ton, I feel that Scherzer has a case to be an outlier given his elite strikeout upside. He faced them already this season and tossed a complete game effort, allowing just one run while striking out nine.
Zack Wheeler, PHI - Looking to bounce back from a tough effort against the Nationals, Wheeler has been outstanding this season, posting a 2.36 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP while striking out 122 over 99.1 innings. Now, the Mets have given him some trouble this season, tagging him for seven runs on 17 hits over 13.1 innings but I think some redemption is in order given his current stretch of games where he has really turned the corner.
Patrick Sandoval, LAA - Odd to throw Sandoval in a "top tier" category but the Rays strikeout a ton and strikeout a lot against LHP with a 28% strikeout rate. Sandoval has struck out at least nine in two of his last three outings and those two matchups were against teams that also strikeout a lot in Seattle and Detroit. He is a GPP only play for me but could have some nice upside.
Mid-Tier
Sandy Alcantara, MIA - Alcantara has been fantastic this season as well, posting a 2.93 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. His last two starts he has allowed a total of one run over 16.1 innings while striking out 10. This will be his first matchup against the Nationals this season and the Nats lineup has slumped when Kyle Scharber isn't hitting 100 home runs. I like the mid-tier price tag here.
Value Tier
Ross Stripling, TOR - The O's lineup today is bare bottom, with Mullins and Mancini both sitting out today. This should be good news for Stripling as he is already a big favorite to get the win. Stripling has been better of late, allowing no more than a single earned run in four of his last six starts and no more than two earned runs in five of isx during that stretch.