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The top daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for FanDuel and DraftKings on September 16th, 2022. Thunder Dan's MLB DFS analysis and sleepers for building optimal DFS rosters.
Fridays are big MLB DFS days and offer a nice respite from the NFL, who command our attention on Thursdays, Sundays, and Mondays. This slate, like most Friday slates, is a big one as all MLB teams are in action today and 28 of those teams are on tonight's 14-game DFS slate.
This was a tricky slate to analyze, I'll admit. FanDuel has priced up every decent pitcher and a lot of the better arms on this slate have tougher match-ups. We also only have a few teams with 5+ implied run totals, which means ownership on bats should be spread out, too. It's a very tough slate for cash, but a fun one for GPPs since there really shouldn't be too much chalk.
As always, this article will provide my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel. Friday's main slate locks at 7:05 EST on 9/16/2022. The lineup picks will range from some elite high-priced players to mid-priced options and value plays. I'll give you a few of my top pitching options and then some infielders, outfielders, and teams to stack! 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
Robbie Ray @ LAA ($9,800 DK, $10,600 FD)
Robbie Ray has owned the Angels this season, and that's not hyperbole. In three starts against the Halos, Ray has gone 2-0 with a 1.80 ERA and 30 strikeouts in 20 innings! Now I know that L.A. didn't have Trout for a few of those games, but this is still a great spot for Ray and he's the one higher-priced arm that I think I can trust here.
Ray was hit kind of hard in his last outing against the Braves but has been in great form now for the last month and a half. I trust him to bounce back here and I think the strikeout floor here is one of the highest on the slate. I also think he has some solid win equity on FanDuel, as the Mariner offense backing him has a plus match-up against Lorenzen, too.
Taijuan Walker vs. PIT ($8,000 DK, $9,100 FD)
The next tier of pitchers below Ray and Verlander types is pretty weird. We have a lot of guys who are more expensive than we are used to seeing them and my first reaction was an audible groan seeing Walker listed at 9k on FD.
But hey, this is the economy we are living in! Walker happens to be coming off his best start of the season as he whiffed 10 Marlins over 7 innings and now gets a home match-up against the lowly Pirates. His price on DraftKings at 8k is much more palatable and he's probably my pick at SP2 in cash games alongside Ray.
Also consider - Blake Snell vs. ARI, Michael Wacha vs. KC, Lucas Giolito vs. DET
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DraftKings, FanDuel Infielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Joey Meneses - 1B, WAS vs. Jesus Luzardo ($4,700 DK, $3,000 FD)
If you had any doubts if the rookie was a flash in the pan or legit, I think he's proven that he's not going to fade away after his hot start. We are now getting a pretty decent sample size on Meneses, and he continues to hit and hit for power. He's hitting .322 with 8 HR and 22 RBI this season. He has only two goose eggs in his game log for the entire month of September and has scored double-digit DK points in six of twelve games.
I have some interest in using Luzardo, but I am also not afraid to attack with a hitter who matches up well. He gives up plenty of fly balls and hard contact to righties and Meneses is still sporting some pretty darn solid numbers against lefties with a .495 wOBA and .340 ISO. Don't sleep on Joey! He can mash a Luzardo sinker or curveball deep into the Washington night sky tonight!
Rafael Devers - 3B, BOS vs. Jonathan Heasley ($5,200 DK, $3,900 FD)
Devers has had a pretty quiet second half of the season, and therefore we are getting a bit of discount on him here as he was once regularly the highest-priced 3B on every slate. But he's only the fifth-most expensive player at the hot corner on FanDuel and is eighth-most expensive on DraftKings where he is the same price as...Jon Berti! That feels a tad disrespectful as Devers is still one of the better young power hitters in the game.
His recent stats have been pretty below-average, but on the year consider that Raffy is still sporting a .385 wOBA and .266 ISO despite slumping quite a bit.
This match-up with Heasley feels like a spot for Boston to break out. They have the highest implied total on the slate and Heasley has been a mess, with a 6.28 xFIP this year. He definitely gives up more to lefties, too, as southpaws have a .269 ISO against him this year.
Brandon Drury - 2B/3B, SDP vs. Madison Bumgarner ($5,200 DK, $3,200 FD)
It's always tempting to just recommend Manny Machado against a lefty, but I already gave you a third basemen pick with Devers. But the Padre with the best numbers against lefties isn't Machado anyway, it's the versatile Drury, who came over from Cincinnati at the deadline and has had a career year so far this season.
Drury has posted a .377 wOBA and .310 ISO against southpaws this year. That's pretty impressive for a middle-infielder who has basically been a utility player thus far in his career. Facing Mad Bum, he should get some pitches he can drive, too. Bumgarner is always tempting to stack against, but I'm leaning more towards using Machado or Drury as one-off plays here. Drury's price on FanDuel is very appealing and he has dual eligibility there as well.
DraftKings, FanDuel Outfielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Kyle Tucker - OF, HOU vs. Adrian Martinez ($5,600 DK, $3,900 FD)
My initial analysis pointed to Yordan Alvarez here as the top Houston play. And of course, you should play Alvarez, especially if you're stacking up the 'Stros! But I am going to continue to bang the drum for Kyle Tucker, who has been simply awesome this season and would easily be the best hitter on a dozen other teams. He's overshadowed by Yordan quite a bit and almost always cheaper (though not by too much today) than Alvarez.
Tucker's numbers over the last month are actually better than Alvarez's against righties if you want to look at some recent stats and one quick glance at his game log will show you that he's been incredibly productive of late. Martinez is a sinker ball guy and those types of pitchers can certainly troll if they have that pitch working. But they can also get lit up if they leave that sinker up in the zone, especially against a good hitting team like Houston and definitely against lefties who can get under that pitch - like Tucker and Alvarez.
Eloy Jimenez - OF, CHW vs. Matt Manning ($5,000 DK, $3,600 FD)
Not many hitters are as hot as Jimenez right now. He's been barreling up the baseball with great regularity and his hot bat has been a big part of Chicago's late-season resurgence.
Over the last month, Jimenez has posted a .430 wOBA and .274 ISO against RHP. Matt Manning is a respectable pitcher who has made some improvement in his second season but is still a pitcher who I'm not afraid to target with a hitter who is so locked in at the plate.
Oscar Gonzalez - OF, CLE vs. Bailey Ober ($3,700 DK, $3,600 FD)
Baily Ober is coming back off the IL and he could be in trouble today against the Guardians. Not only will he contend with Jose Ramirez and Josh Naylor, but he'll face a very hot Gonzalez in the middle of this lineup.
I usually prefer Gonzalez against lefties as he has really strong platoon numbers, but lately, he's hitting righties, too. Over the last 30 days, he's posting a very solid .334 wOBA and .224 ISO against RHP.
If Ober doesn't last long, then Gonzalez and the Guardians could also do work against this middling Twins bullpen. His DK price is very appealing, especially since I recommended a bunch of other pricey bats so far!
DraftKings, FanDuel MLB DFS Stacks
Here are my top stacks for tonight (in the order in which I like them)
- St. Louis Cardinals (5.5 implied run total) vs. Cincinnati Bullpen
- Houston Astros (5.1 implied run total) vs. Adrian Martinez (4.70 xFIP)
- Boston Red Sox (5.7 implied run total) vs. Jonathan Heasley (6.28 xFIP)
I hope I gave you a head start on your research today and I wish you the best of luck! If you ever have questions about DFS or fantasy baseball, my DMs are always open and I appreciate you taking the time to read my picks today.
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