RADIO
Now that the league-wide interleague play is over, we can get back to some “regular” baseball. No worries about DH or no DH. No two-game series’. Every team has a nice three-game tilt to end the week. I’m hoping to keep my success going, and hopefully this article can help you do the same.
Friday, June 19th contains 15 games which will all come at night. A big slate is always good for dedicated FanDuelers, as it provides more variance. The inexperienced players have less of a chance of choosing the same lineup as the experienced ones. So, be an experienced player, do your research, and go build your bankroll. Let’s break it down.
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Offenses to Target for FanDuel DFS
St. Louis Cardinals (vs. Phillipe Aumont, RHP)
Well, the Orioles have reentered the real world of baseball. They can no longer pulverize the terrible Phillies pitching staff. Now the Cardinals get their chance, which is a terrible situation for me as a Pirates fan. Triple-A call-up Phillipe Aumont will matchup against righty mashers like Kolten Wong, Matt Carpenter, and even Jason Heyward as of late. Although it’s usually important to use split numbers to your advantage, most Cardinals are in play on Friday night.
Colorado Rockies (vs. Taylor Jungmann, RHP)
Taylor Jungmann has fared pretty well in his first two major league starts in 2015. However, he gets Coors Field in his third start, and I don’t expect his success to continue. Rockies players like Charlie Blackmon and Carlos Gonzalez have been dominating right-handed pitching as of late. D.J. LeMahieu and Ben Paulsen could be good options as well if they find their way into one of the top six spots in the lineup.
Honorable Mentions: Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays
DFS Starting Pitchers to Target for FanDuel
Chris Sale (SP, CWS) - $11,000
I’ve been picking on the Rangers whenever they play lefties because of their lefty-heavy lineup and their high strikeout tendencies. Well, they get Chris Sale on Friday. If you’re playing a 50-50 or head-to-head game on Friday and Sale is not you’re pitcher, you deserve to lose. The lefty ace has been absolutely dominant since his slow return from injury in 2015. Lefties like Shin-Soo Choo, Prince Fielder, Joey Gallo, and Mitch Moreland will likely find themselves behind in a lot of counts and guessing wrong on strike three. The only thing working for them is that they did face Sale a couple of weeks ago. Still, my money is on Sale to mow down the Texas hitters at home on Friday.
Sonny Gray (SP, OAK) - $10,100
Can you say Cy Young? Sonny Gray has been extremely impressive thus far in 2015. He gets an Angels team on Friday that doesn’t hit righties particularly well, and the game is in the very spacious Coliseum in Oakland that made even Ian Kennedy look like an ace. I usually go for a lower option to use in tournaments, but I don’t see a reason to on Friday. Maybe you could take a chance on Carlos Carrasco against the Rays, but it’s very unlikely that the two pitchers above will both struggle. Pay up for pitching on Friday and look for the bargain bats and stacks.
DFS Infielders to Target for FanDuel
Matt Wieters (C, BAL) - $3,400
If I pay up at catcher, I want it to be a sure thing. I think Matt Wieters in a hitter-friendly park against a fly-ball pitcher in Marco Estrada is about as sure as it gets. Wieters had a day off on Thursday too, so he should be well rested and ready to park one on Friday.
Adam LaRoche (1B, CWS) - $2,500
LaRoche has cooled down tremendously in the previous weeks and his price tag has followed him. He gets a righty in Colby Lewis on Friday, so maybe it’s time for a big game. After a long drought of runs against the Pittsburgh rotation, the White Sox are due for a big game against a mediocre pitcher.
Kolten Wong (2B, STL) - $2,900
I mentioned Wong earlier in my Cardinals stack, and with this price I don’t see a need to name anyone else here. For a guy who can do it all at the top of a solid lineup against a rookie right-handed pitcher, this price is a steal.
Manny Machado (3B, BAL) - $3,800
If you follow my pitching advice, then you’re not going to have much spending room. However, Machado might be the guy you have to reach for. He has been excellent lately, homering three times in his last three games. He too gets Estrada in a hitter’s park and another righty to aid his reverse splits.
Alcides Escobar (SS, KAN) - $2,400
At the rate he’s hitting, Escobar’s price should begin to rise very soon. He has at least two hits in three of his past four games, and he’s setting a great pace for the dangerous Royals lineup behind him. Lefty Eduardo Rodriguez blew up in his last start, and the Royals are a team that could cause another explosion.
DFS Outfielders to Target for FanDuel
Christian Yelich (OF, MIA) - $3,000
Not including Thursday’s game, Yelich has hits in eight of his last nine games. He gets a hitter-friendly ballpark in Cincinnati against a righty in Mike Leake. One thing I love about Yelich is he is very often in RBI situations with Dee Gordan ahead of him, and if he gets on he has the RBI leader in Giancarlo Stanton behind him to drive him in. Points everywhere!
Lorenzo Cain (OF, KAN) - $2,900
Cain was one of the players I really liked earlier this year despite experts’ opinions. He’s starting to break out of his long slump recently with an eight-game hitting streak and a couple of homers in the past week or so. Cain gets a lefty in Rodriguez to continue his hot hitting and all-star bid (along with all of the other Royals, but that’s a story for another article).
Kyle Schwarber (OF, CHC) - $2,500
Hot, new prospect Kyle Schwarber has made quite the splash in his first few MLB games. He followed up his four-hit game with a homer on Thursday. Schwarber is a bargain at this price, and he gets a very hittable righty in Phil Hughes on Friday. Hopefully he can keep this impressive hit-streak going.
Good luck with your FanDuel and DFS lineups RotoBallers
DFS Q&A with Max Petrie @ 6PM on 6/19
