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The top daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for FanDuel and DraftKings on May 12th, 2022. Thunder Dan's MLB DFS analysis and sleepers for building optimal DFS rosters.
Happy Thursday, RotoBallers! This is John Brubaker once again pinch-hitting and dropping some of my favorite plays for tonight's slate. We have just a four-game slate this afternoon, the main slate on DraftKings and the early only slate on Fanduel. We'll have to get a bit creative due to it being a smaller slate, and on slates smaller than five games I usually just stick to playing tournaments, so my picks today will reflect that.
This article will provide my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on 5/12/2022 at 1:05 pm EST. The lineup picks will range from some elite players to mid-priced options, and value plays. The main slate is four games on both DraftKings and FanDuel.
You can also read more DFS advice and lineup picks for other sports here. It's also essential to monitor injury news and today's MLB starting lineups. Now that we got all of that out of the way, it's onto the picks!
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DraftKings, FanDuel Pitchers - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Josh Winder, MIN vs. HOU ($8,700 DK, $8,900 FD)
While I feel like most people will go with Luis Garcia as their top arm on the slate, I'll pivot over to Josh Winder. Winder is coming into this one with a 1.61 ERA and 2.90 xFIP. After a slow start to the season, Winder has thrown back-to-back quality starts against the Athletics and Rays respectively, while logging 15 strikeouts in 12 innings.
While the Athletics are a bottom-tier lineup and the Rays' bats are cold right now, I believe Winder can keep the momentum going against this Astros lineup. Winder grades out to an 85.8 rating on my model, by far the best on the slate. I like him as a pivot off of Garcia obviously, but will have shares of both.
Taijuan Walker, NYM at WSH ($6,400 DK, $6,800 FD)
Outside of Garcia, there isn't really a solid "number two" option on this slate. I don't have the faith in James Kaprielian or Beau Brieske, I rate the Cardinals as my top stack against Keegan Akin, and I can't think that Jordan Hicks is going to make it into through the fifth and be eligible for the win. So that leaves us with Taijuan Walker.
Walker comes into this one with a 4.91 ERA and 4.23 xFIP, but it's an interesting case. This will be Walker's fourth start of the season, but the first start against a team other than the Phillies. After showing dominance in the first two innings of his first start against Philadelphia before leaving with an injury, Walker threw five scoreless innings of two hit ball in his second start. He got touched up his third start against Philly, but I can see him bouncing back due to simply facing a different team.
Also consider: Luis Garcia -- note that Garcia is actually my second favorite pitcher on this slate, but I won't play both Garcia and Winder in the same DraftKings lineup, however, if I were playing more than ten entries I would use a Twins stack.
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DraftKings, FanDuel Infielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Nolan Arenado - 3B, STL vs. Keegan Akin ($6,000 DK, $4,400 FD)
I really like the Cardinals today against likely starter Keegan Akin. Akin has had a solid start to the year, coming into this one with a 1.96 ERA and 3.08 xFIP, but I think the Cardinals get to him today.
While Arenado has never faced Akin, he crushed similar pitchers. He has a .743 wOBA + ISO and .664 xwOBA + xISO against Akin's pitch types, good for a rating of 45.12. He's the staple of the Cardinals stack I'll be playing today, so I'll be quite heavy on him on both sites.
Francisco Lindor - SS, NYM vs. Patrick Corbin ($5,100 DK, $3,500 FD)
My second hitter of the day will be my first Met, shortstop Francisco Lindor. He went 0-4 yesterday but logged two hits and a stolen base on Tuesday when I wrote him up. He should bounce back today against Joan Adon if he gets something to hit. In three plate appearances against Adon, he's walked twice. He grades out with a 45.13 pitch type data rating and a 58.57 player rating, by far the best player rating among shortstops on the slates.
Sheldon Neuse - 2B/3B, OAK vs. Beau Brieske ($4,300 DK, $2,800 FD)
While the A's have been somewhat struggling offensively, Neuse has been hitting well, coming into this one with a .290 average with two homers and four stolen bases. He'll take on Tigers starter Beau Brieske, who comes into this one with a 4.20 ERA and 5.84 xFIP.
Neuse grades out to a 35.23 pitch type rating and a 51.99 player rating. Despite Beau Brieske's struggles, I don't really want to stack the A's today because they don't grade out great against him, but I really do like Brieske as a one-off to mix in with Cardinals and Mets stacks.
DraftKings, FanDuel Outfielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Byron Buxton - OF, MIN vs. Luis Garcia ($6,300 DK, $4,600 FD)
While I mentioned Luis Garcia being my second favorite pitching option on the slate tonight, I'd be remiss if I failed to mention Byron Buxton. Buxton's coming into this one hitting .278 with nine home runs on the year, and comes into this one with a whopping 38.7% hard contact rate against right-handed pitching.
Buxton comes into this one with a 59.97 pitch type rating, second among outfielders just behind Yordan Alvarez. His 56.8 player rating ranks best among outfielders, and while I won't have him in overlapped lineups that I have Garcia in, he'll for sure be in all my other lineups.
Jeff McNeil- 2B/OF, NYM vs. Joan Adon ($4,200 DK, $2,900 FD)
McNeil has been raking, hitting .311 with a homer and a stolen bag. I love the Mets today and McNeil grades out as my second-highest rated Met on my model. He comes in with a 35.36 pitch type data rating, which is roughly middle of the pack on the slate, but his 54.9 player rating is third among outfielders. I'm not sure how much exposure I'll have to him in my Mets stacks, it'll depend on where he hits in the lineup. Should he be near the top, I'll want him in most if not all of my lineups.
Austin Meadows - OF, DET vs. James Kaprielian ($4,000 DK, $3,000 FD)
My second-highest-rated outfielder on the slate is Austin Meadows. While Meadows comes into this one hitting .281, he hasn't left the yard yet this season. His 32.1% hard contact rate gives us hope that eventually leave the yard, and at worst find some gaps against James Kaprielian this afternoon. Meadows has just a 34.86 pitch type rating, but his 55.77 player rating intrigues me to give him a solid amount of exposure across my lineups. I will be stacking the Tigers in a few lineups, but I'll prioritize Meadows in my other lineups as well.
DraftKings, FanDuel MLB DFS Stacks
St. Louis Cardinals vs. Keegan Akin
While Keegan Akin comes into this one pitching well, the Cardinals absolutely crush lefties. They rank first in the majors in OPS, wOBA, and wRC+ against southpaws, and I don't think today should be any different. Keegan Akin ranks as the worst starting pitcher on my model, and the Cardinals' 48.95 stack rating is at the top.
New York Mets vs. Joan Adon
Joan Adon pitched has had a bit of an up and down season, coming into this one with a 6.99 ERA and 4.90 xFIP. Adon has now lost three straight starts and now has to face the Mets who rank third in OPS, wOBA, and wRC+ against right-handed pitchers. I have Adon ranked fifth of the eight pitchers on the slate, but the Mets grade out to a 47.74 stack rating, the third-highest on my model and just behind the Tigers at 48.17.
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