There are a lot of afternoon games today, and that leaves us with just a five-game main slate at night. I’m thoroughly digging fading who appears to be the clear cut chalk play at starting pitcher, and I’m enamored with his rookie counterpart who will be making his big-league debut. With that in mind, it’s a great night to play in GPPs, and the roster below is built for them. Because the slate is so small, the honorable mentions will be skimpy, and I’ll be including no honorable mentions at pitcher since the duo I’m suggesting already accounts for 20% of the possible selections.

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Pitcher

Kenta Maeda (LAD): $8,800 vs. Cardinals
Normally, a pitcher coming off the disabled list would cause me a little bit of discomfort to trust in their first start back. It doesn’t seem like Maeda’s injury is serious, though, and he spun a gem in his last start prior to his placement on the DL. In fact, the injury may have been something of the phantom type to allow the Dodgers to sort through a crowded rotation and give Maeda a little extra rest as an added bonus. Regardless, I’m not concerned about his health. The second-year righty’s ugly 5.03 ERA is unsightly, but the underlying stats are much better. Maeda’s plate discipline numbers are very comparable to tonight’s chalk option, Jacob deGrom. Take a look at them here. Maeda’s swinging strike percentage of 15.2% is elite, and he’s used it to punch out 24.5% of the batters he’s faced while walking only 5.5% of them. He and the Dodgers are -137 favorites in a game with just a 7.5 runs over/under total, according to Pinnacle. The Cardinals aren’t a cupcake matchup, but they’re not a scary bunch, either. According to FanGraphs, they rank tied for 12th in wRC+ (101) versus righties and 14th in wRC+ (93) on the road this year.

Dinelson Lamet (SD): $5,300 @ Mets
You can be forgiven if you’ve never heard of Dinelson Lamet. I was unfamiliar with him prior to seeing his name listed as a probable starter for tonight’s game. I read up on some scouting reports, and I’m intrigued. You can read a scouting report from Dave DeFreitas for free at 2080baseball.com, but the short version is Lamet sports a power arsenal at present. His fastball and slider were graded as plus pitches by DeFreitas with his “changeup coming along, but right now is still quite firm and lacks any real depth.” Lamet’s command needs refinement, and his 12.0% BB% in eight starts spanning 39.0 innings in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League this year. The high walk rate has been offset by a jaw-dropping 29.9% K%, and the combo combine to lead him to a 3.23 ERA (3.40 FIP and 3.69 xFIP) and 1.33 WHIP. He’s also inducing a bunch of worm burners with a 50.5% GB%, per FanGraphs. The masses will be flocking to deGrom, and the Mets are big -210 favorites. The game’s over/under total is only 7.5 runs, though, and there’s enough to like about Lamet to make him an enticing play at a tiny salary of only $5,300. The Mets rank tied for 18th in wRC+ (95) against right-handed pitchers this year, 25th in wRC+ (81) at home, and tied for 14th in wRC+ (104) over the last two weeks. The matchup isn’t terribly intimidating, and while it’s possible Lamet could bomb under the spotlight of his first start in The Show, the range of possible outcomes also includes a tidy turn that provides a huge ROI thanks to a minimal salary commitment.

Catcher

Alex Avila (DET): $3,400 @ Astros
I went back and forth between Avila and Yasmani Grandal, and I also feel Jonathan Lucroy is a defensible play as a lower-owned option or alternative if Avila and Grandal get a day off from donning the tools of ignorance. Ultimately, I couldn’t get past Avila’s silly numbers against righties this year. In 82 plate appearances against right-handed pitchers this year, he has a 18.3% BB%, .500 OBP, .328 ISO, 228 wRC+, 31.8% LD%, 47.7% FB%, and 65.9% Hard%. He’s squaring up, lining, and launching just about everything righties have thrown his way this season. He hasn’t been a bad option against righties in his career, either, and since 2014, he has a .362 OBP, .168 ISO, and 115 wRC+ against them.

Honorable Mentions

• Jonathan Lucroy (TEX): $4,100 @ Red Sox
• Yasmani Grandal (LAD): $3,800 vs. Cardinals

First Base

Eric Thames (MIL): $4,700 vs. Diamondbacks
I don’t expect Thames to get as much love as he should in a lefty-lefty matchup. I understand being reluctant to use left-handed batters against Robbie Ray since he’s yielded just a .251 wOBA and punched out a staggering 36.4% of them he’s faced this year. Thames isn’t your average lefty, though. In his return to MLB, he’s knocked southpaws around for a .463 OBP, .500 ISO, 228 wRC+, and 50.0% Hard%. The 30-year-old has also struck out in only 24.4% of his plate appearances against lefties — not exactly an alarming strikeout rate. Lefties who haven’t succumbed to strike three against Ray have hit the ball hard, like really hard with a 50.0% Hard% against him. With a left-handed batter park factor of 131 for homers, according to StatCorner’s 3-year rolling averages, at Miller Park, a well-struck ball from Thames against Ray has a pretty darn good shot of ending up in the seats.

Honorable Mentions

• Paul Goldschmidt (ARI): $5,500 @ Brewers
• Miguel Cabrera (DET): $4,500 @ Astros

Second Base

Jose Altuve (HOU): $4,800 vs. Tigers
One of the luxuries of fading deGrom is having extra money to pony up for a high-ceiling hitter like Altuve. Since 2014, Altuve has a .360 OBP, .147 ISO, and 128 wRC+ against right-handed pitchers. He’s also one of the game’s elite base stealers. The diminutive second baseman has stolen nine bases this year and has stolen 30 or more in all five of his full seasons in the majors. Justin Verlander had been doing a good job of controlling the running game the last few years after struggles with doing so earlier in his career, but this season, he’s allowed five stolen bases in nine starts. Altuve has multiple avenues to pile up fantasy points when factoring in his legs, but don’t overlook his run-production upside with the host Astros favored (-116) in a game with an over/under total of nine runs.

Honorable Mention

• Jonathan Villar (MIL): $4,700 vs. Diamondbacks

Third Base

Jake Lamb (ARI): $5,300 @ Brewers
Remember Lamb’s second-half swoon last year? Yeah, it’s looking more likely every day that was the product of being banged up. Since breaking out last year, he has a .367 OBP, .298 ISO, and 140 wRC+ against right-handed pitchers. This year, those numbers have ballooned to a .435 OBP, .359 ISO, and 181 wRC+ against righties. As an added bonus, Lamb is locked in with a .362 OBP, .426 ISO, and 209 wRC+ over the last 14 days as of yesterday — therefore not including the homer he smacked off Jose Quintana. Zach Davies has been beaten like a drum by lefties allowing a .495 slugging and .352 wOBA to them this year. Sign me up for that matchup with Arizona’s hot-hitting, stud third baseman.

Honorable Mention

• Nick Castellanos (DET): $3,400 @ Astros

Shortstop

Corey Seager (LAD): $4,500 vs. Cardinals
Seager gets the nod over a couple of other stud, young shortstops listed in the honorable mentions. He’s the owner of a .399 OBP, .220 ISO, and 157 wRC+ against right-handed pitchers in his already prolific young career. Michael Wacha is in the midst of a bounce-back campaign, but lefties have still given him problems this year with a .350 OBP, .437 SLG, and .343 wOBA allowed to them.

Honorable Mention

• Xander Bogaerts (BOS): $4,800 vs. Rangers
• Carlos Correa (HOU): $4,300 vs. Tigers

Outfield

Ryan Braun (MIL): $4,600 vs. Diamondbacks
Back to the Brew Crew. Braun is the second of three Milwaukee boppers on tonight’s roster. I believe Ray will garner a decent ownership rate on this small slate, so picking on him has game theory benefits. Lower ownership on a player posting a big fantasy scoring output gives you an edge over the field, and Braun stands out as the most attractive of Milwaukee’s bats. Ray has been far less imposing on righties than lefties with a .320 wOBA yielded to them this year, but Braun’s inclusion on this roster is more about him than facing Ray. Since 2014, he’s scorched the ball against lefties with a .380 OBP, .243 ISO, and 148 wRC+. As impressive as those numbers are, FanGraphs’ splits tool reveals he’s been even more lethal against lefties at home in that time frame with a .420 OBP, .253 ISO, and 165 wRC+.

Domingo Santana (MIL): $3,700 vs. Diamondbacks
The Brewers are off to a surprising start leading the National League Central, and Santana has quietly tallied a .370 OBP, .181 ISO, and 115 wRC+ while frequently hitting fifth. He’s still young at just 24 years old, and he’s already shown he can punish lefties. In his career, he has a .367 OBP, .215 ISO, and 129 wRC+ against southpaws.

J.D. Martinez (DET): $4,600 @ Astros
Martinez has been doing everything he can to make up for the lost time spent on the disabled list to open the year. He’s already reached the seats six times in just 45 plate appearances. Yikes. Since joining the Tigers in 2014, he has a .360 OBP, .239 ISO, and 145 wRC+ against right-handed pitchers. Mike Fiers has been a punching bag for righties this year, and the 78 of them he’s faced have belted 11 homers with a .351 OBP, .800 slugging and .467 wOBA. Martinez will in all likelihood be one of the chalkiest hitters at a very palatable $4,600 salary, but I have no intention of talking you off of him. Swerving off Martinez is a foolish move tonight.

Honorable Mentions

• Mookie Betts (BOS): $4,900 vs. Rangers
• Andrew Benintendi (BOS): $4,600 vs. Rangers
• Keon Broxton (MIL): $3,800 vs. Diamondbacks
• Justin Upton (DET): $3,600 @ Astros

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Josh Shepardson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Josh, check out his archive and follow him @BChad50.