MLB DFS Picks, Projections, Lineups & Stacks Today: Wednesday Playbook (Early)

Wednesday's early slate is only five games, but the top of the pitcher pool is stacked. Jesus Luzardo's been nails all August and now gets a Seattle offense that's dead last in the league against lefties, which feels almost unfair. Chase Field's going to play like a sauna at 115 degrees outside, though the roof takes care of that. And a couple of contrarian stacks lean hard on shaky, homer-prone value arms out in San Diego and Pittsburgh. Here's the full Fantasy Alarm DFS lineup picks for the early slate, built off real matchup data and the weather. Swing by the Fantasy Alarm DFS tools hub once you've built out your pool and want help optimizing.

MLB Weather Today, August 26, 2026

Two of today's five early games are played under a roof, so don't let the wild numbers on the board fool you. Chase Field's going to feel like the surface of the sun at 115 degrees outside and T-Mobile Park sits at a mild 72, but neither one matters once that roof shuts. The one real weather flag is San Diego, where a 41% chance of rain could bring a delay into the Pirates-Padres game. Everywhere else, it's calm.

MLB DFS Lineup Picks: Starting Pitchers

Top Pitchers

Jesus Luzardo (PHI) vs. SEA

Luzardo's been an ace all year, but he's been on another level in August specifically, allowing just 20 hits over his last 27.1 innings. The season numbers back it all up too, a 3.35 ERA and 194 strikeouts across 26 starts, with an 11.19 K/9, a 30.1% strikeout rate and a filthy 2.84 FIP. And now he walks into an absolute buzzsaw of a matchup: Seattle ranks dead last in the majors in batting average against lefties and sits near the bottom of the league in almost every offensive category. It's hard to draw up a better spot for a top arm.

Bryan Woo (SEA) vs. PHI

Woo's command has been elite even in a season with some bumps, a 4.10 ERA that sells him short given a strong 3.29 FIP and a ridiculous 1.89 BB/9, one of the stingiest walk rates anywhere in the league. He's coming back from a shoulder-soreness scare that knocked him out of his last turn and forced a bullpen session in between starts, so keep an eye on his pitch count and hook today. When he's right, though, the swing-and-miss stuff (8.91 K/9) is very real.

Joey Cantillo (CLE) vs. LAA

Cantillo's been piling up strikeouts all year without much fanfare, 144 of them across 27 starts with a 9.94 K/9 and a 25.5% strikeout rate. Control's the flag here, an 11.2% walk rate and a 1.45 WHIP both point to a guy who works behind in counts more than you'd like. Still, the swing-and-miss upside is real against an Angels lineup that's been in sell-mode all summer.

Value Pitchers

Grayson Rodriguez (LAA) vs. CLE

Rodriguez has had a genuinely rough go of it since landing in Anaheim, a 6.41 ERA and a 4.80 FIP over just 14 starts, with an elevated walk rate (10.1%) that's created a lot of traffic on the bases. There's swing-and-miss stuff buried in there (8.32 K/9), but treat this as a real risk-on dart rather than a stable floor piece, especially against a Cleveland lineup that's added some thump since the deadline.

Logan Webb (SF) vs. CIN

Webb's underlying numbers are legitimately good, a 3.75 ERA and 112 strikeouts across 23 starts, with a 3.33 FIP and a stingy 6.1% walk rate. But the word for his recent form is up-and-down rather than steady: he got roughed up in his last outing against the Red Sox, losing his command early and getting hit hard in a game San Francisco lost 6-4. That's the kind of clunker that can happen to anybody, and his season-long profile is still solid enough to trust in a matchup with a Reds lineup that has its own holes, but don't mistake him for a lock coming off that kind of start.

Top Options For Strikeouts

• Jesus Luzardo — 194 strikeouts in 26 starts with a 30.1% rate, both right at the top of the league, and he's been even better in August specifically.
• Joey Cantillo — 144 strikeouts with a 9.94 K/9, legit swing-and-miss stuff even with the walks attached.
• Grayson Rodriguez — an 8.32 K/9 that's real when he's on, even if the walks that come with it are a fair price of admission.
• Bryan Woo — 137 strikeouts and one of the best walk rates in the sport when he's healthy.

Best Odds For A Win

• Jesus Luzardo (PHI) — dominant recent form against the worst offense in baseball versus lefties makes this the safest call on the board.
• Logan Webb (SF) — the underlying numbers and a soft Reds lineup give him a path back to form after a shaky last outing.
• Joey Cantillo (CLE) — his strikeout stuff should be enough to overcome the control issues against this Angels lineup.
• Bryan Woo (SEA) — elite command gives him a strong floor if his shoulder cooperates.

MLB DFS Lineup Picks: Stacks & Hitters

Top Hitters

Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD) vs. PIT

Tatis is still a five-tool force, 17 homers and 30 stolen bases with an .806 OPS and a 125.5 wRC+ through 131 games. His numbers against right-handers (112.2 wRC+) dip a touch below his overall line but stay solidly above average, and Pittsburgh's pitching staff has had its share of trouble missing bats all year. A premium building block no matter how you slice it.

Corbin Carroll (ARI) vs. CHC

Carroll's been outstanding all season, 18 homers and 20 steals with an .836 OPS and a 127.1 wRC+ through 129 games, and today's matchup is about as juicy as it gets. He turns into an absolute monster against lefties specifically, a video-game 179.1 wRC+ and a 1.022 OPS in that split. Power and speed running right into exactly the kind of pitcher he loves to see.

Elly De La Cruz (CIN) vs. SF

De La Cruz is still one of the most electric players in the sport, 21 homers and 22 steals with an .813 OPS and a 121.3 wRC+ through 114 games. His numbers against right-handers (102.5 wRC+) come in a shade below his overall output but stay comfortably above league average, and the strikeout risk (27.5% for the year) is really the only real trade-off that comes bundled with the upside.

Value Hitters

Angel Genao (CLE) vs. LAA

Genao's a small-sample story, just 17 games so far, but he's hit .290 with a .740 OPS and a 112.2 wRC+ in that stretch, and he barely strikes out at all (11.8% on the year). His early work against right-handers (105.7 wRC+ in 50 plate appearances) is encouraging, though it's obviously still a tiny sample to lean on. Cheap, correlated exposure to a Cleveland lineup that's gotten more dangerous since the deadline.

Tim Tawa (ARI) vs. CHC

Tawa's been a solid depth piece for Arizona, 8 homers and a .705 OPS with a 92.6 wRC+ across 72 games, right around league average. One honest flag before you roster him: his numbers against lefties specifically have actually been weak (.574 OPS, 59.3 wRC+ in a 65 plate appearance sample), so today's look isn't the friendly spot you'd want for a value piece like this. He's still cheap, correlated exposure to a good Diamondbacks lineup, just know the individual matchup data argues against him more than it does his teammates.

Jo Adell (CLE) vs. LAA

Adell came over as part of Cleveland's deadline haul and has already gone deep a couple times in his new uniform, sitting on 20 homers and a .701 OPS with a 95.1 wRC+ across two organizations this year. Here's the catch worth knowing before you pencil him in: his numbers against right-handers specifically have actually been rough (.601 OPS, 68.7 wRC+), which is the exact look he's getting today. Think of this one as more of a power-band lottery ticket than a confident matchup-based play at the price.

Top Stacks

Diamondbacks vs. Matthew Boyd (CHC)

Why: Boyd's been solid in spurts, but the peripherals underneath are shaky, a 4.15 ERA and a 4.68 FIP over 16 starts with a modest 18.6% strikeout rate. Arizona's lineup, meanwhile, has actually been excellent against lefties all season (118.0 wRC+), well above league average, and with Corbin Carroll's own split this scorching, this profiles as a real ceiling stack rather than just a name-brand play riding on reputation.

Targets: Corbin Carroll, Gabriel Moreno, Ildemaro Vargas, Geraldo Perdomo, Nolan Arenado

Cubs vs. Eduardo Rodriguez (ARI)

Why: Rodriguez has actually pitched pretty well by ERA (2.61 across 26 starts), but dig one layer deeper and the story changes, a 3.79 FIP and a modest 17.3% strikeout rate both hint that some batted-ball luck has gone his way. Chicago's been even better against lefties than Arizona has this year (126.5 wRC+), the best mark of any lineup on either side of this game, which makes the Cubs a legitimate smash-spot play in the other direction of this same matchup.

Targets: Pete Crow-Armstrong, Seiya Suzuki, Alex Bregman, Nico Hoerner, Michael Busch

Contrarian Stacks

Padres vs. Bubba Chandler (PIT)

Why: Chandler's walk rate (12.1%) is a genuine problem, and his 4.42 ERA paired with a 4.24 FIP both point to a pitcher who's beatable most nights out. San Diego's own numbers against right-handers are just a shade above league average this season (100.9 wRC+), so this isn't an overwhelming split advantage on paper, but a lineup with Tatis and Machado in the middle of it facing a control-troubled arm is a sneaky source of value that shouldn't cost you much to access.

Targets: Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Jackson Merrill, Ty France, Jake Cronenworth

Pirates vs. Randy Vasquez (SD)

Why: Vasquez has been fine but unspectacular all year, a 4.00 ERA and a 4.50 FIP over 20 starts with a strikeout rate (15.2%) that's below average for a starter. Pittsburgh has actually hit right-handers well as a team this year (109.0 wRC+), a real split working in the offense's favor, and with Oneil Cruz's raw power sitting at the top of this lineup, the Pirates are a lower-owned way to attack a hittable arm that most of the field will pass over in favor of the Padres on the other side of this same game.

Targets: Oneil Cruz, Bryan Reynolds, Brandon Lowe, Esmerlyn Valdez, Spencer Horwitz

MLB DFS Lineups: Core MLB DFS Hitters & Pitchers

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