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Daily fantasy baseball leagues (DFS) are becoming the thing to do, and here at RotoBaller we are excited to help our users build their bankrolls. I’ll be covering FanDuel lineup picks, sleepers and general advice every Saturday and Sunday. I’ll also be putting my money where my mouth is by entering my final lineup (at the bottom of the article) into one of FanDuel’s many daily fantasy contests, so that RotoBaller users can compete against me.
My goal with these DFS picks, as always, is to try to choose players who will outperform their expectations. These players can be high-cost players, or they can be sleepers, but we are always looking for players that have a chance to return the greatest value. Additionally, since the weekends generally have many afternoon and night games, I’ll make an effort to distribute my picks to cover all the timeslots going forward so that if you are playing an afternoon/night only league this article will still be useful. So, without further ado, my picks for Saturday May 9th.
Editor’s Note: RotoBaller’s Premium DFS Lineup Picks & Tools help you get an edge for your FanDuel lineups with exclusive access to DFS tools and expert lineup picks. Also our DFS batters vs. pitchers tool helps you analyze today’s matchups and make optimal lineup decisions.
Last Saturday’s Review
Last Saturday we played the $600 MLB Quintuple Up. Here is how we did:
Entry: $2
Winnings: $3.33
For the Season: +$7.33
Pick Highlights: For a high priced pitcher, Jake Arrieta didn't turn in the performance we expected and probably cost us a few bucks in winnings. Pedroia continued to deliver as a under-priced 2B option. My sleeper pick, Andre Ethier didn't record a hit, but home runs from Buster Posey, Anthony Rizzo and constant sleeper Chris Young helped me edge my way into the money.
Relationship Status: “First round's on me”
DFS Starting Pitchers To Consider for FanDuel
Jon Niese (SP, NYM) - $8,100
Niese has the best chance to pick up a win today, in my opinion, against the lowly Phillies. He faces off with opposing pitcher Aaron Harang, but the Mets are still -117 to get the win according to Vegas odds.
Anibal Sanchez (SP, DET) - $8,400
Like Niese, Sanchez also has a great chance to win today as a -144 favorite, the third-strongest odds on the board after Clayton Kershaw (-200) and Madison Bumgarner (-153). Sanchez faces off against Kansas City today, one of the least strikeout-prone teams in the league, but Sanchez's stuff is good enough to get anyone. Additionally, he's thrown at least seven innings in his past five starts against the Royals, dating back to 2013.
Matt Shoemaker (SP, LAA) - $8,500
Shoemaker has no easy task today going up against the 19-11 Houston Astros. He does have strikeout upside though, as the Astros are second in the league in team strikeouts. Shoemaker hasn't yet shown the form that he had throughout last year. He's the riskiest play of these three, but likely has the greatest upside.
DFS Infielders To Consider for FanDuel
Miguel Cabrera (1B, DET) - $5,000
He's still the best hitter in all of baseball, and he's had a resurgence in power thus far this year. Six home runs while triple-slashing .346/.450/.570 is the Miggy we all know and love. In 53 career at-bats against today's opposing starter, Jeremy Guthrie, Miggy is hitting .358 with four homers. I think he's the best bet in the league to go deep today.
Dustin Pedroia (2B, BOS) – $2,900
As I say every week, I refuse to take Pedroia off this list and out of my lineup. At $2,900, Pedroia is less or equally expensive as 17 other second basemen. Of those 17, only four are outscoring Pedroia on average. That's enough for me to keep taking him as a value play.
DFS Outfielders To Consider for FanDuel
Matt Holliday (OF, STL) – $3,500
Another player that I refuse to take off this list. He's on here weekly until he gets into the $3,800 - $4,000 range.
Ryan Braun (OF, MIL) - $3,500
Braun hasn't gotten off to the hottest start this season, but he has shown flashes. He's only hitting .242, but he has launched six home runs including a multi-HR game. I love having players in my lineup that are capable of two home run games and Braun certainly has that kind of power. He's also had success hitting against today's opposing starter, Travis Wood, hitting .333 with two homers in 27 career at-bats.
FanDuel Sleeper Value of the Day
Trevor Plouffe (3B, MIN) - $2,900
Plouffe has been a quality daily play all year, racking up 2.5 points per game on the FanDuel platform while hitting .269 with five home runs. Today he faces off with Bruce Chen, whom he has hit to the tune of a .346 average with three home runs over 26 career at-bats. Plouffe is also a player who has shown some pretty big righty/lefty split differences for his career, hitting 40 points higher against left-handed pitching, which is exactly what he will see today.
My DFS Lineup on FanDuel
Today’s slate has many options, as you can play early, afternoon and late games only, as well as the all-day slate. I’ll be in the Late $15K MLB Sac Fly.
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