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Thursday is an odd slate as the majority of the games are during the day. With that being said, this article will have picks spanning the entire day. The Washington Nationals and Colorado Rockies will remain popular stacks, but that's just a bit too easy, so we'll look elsewhere for our picks today. As another note, watch the weather in Colorado as early indications show rain and cold, so it may be the rare night to fade a Coors stack. Noah Syndergaard and Chris Sale will keep things difficult given their salary so this lineup will feature a number of value players to consider.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for FanDuel on 4/27/17. The DFS lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options, and of course, value plays. Let's get to it, shall we?
You can read our DraftKings and Yahoo DFS lineup picks as well. If you want to contact me, send me a message on Twitter at @DanMarcus3.
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Offensive Stacks
St. Louis Cardinals vs Mat Latos
The Cardinals haven't been especially impressive offensively, but Mat Latos will be pitching in the Cardinals game that will count for the purpose of FanDuel tomorrow. He can cure a lot, and there are still plenty of hitters in their lineup who can put up points in a hurry. Other factors besides the pitching matchup weigh in their favor as well, as the wind is expected to be blowing out. They also have one of the highest totals for the day.
FanDuel DFS Pitchers
Chris Sale - P, vs NYY($11,300)
With the news of Noah Syndergaard being scrated, it's time to pivot to Chris Sale. He offers a savings of $200 from Syndergaard, which is nice. The matchup is a bit concerning as the Yankees have hit left-handed pitching very well to start the year. However, Corey Kluber, Justin Verlander, and Carlos Martinez have all had their struggles to start the season, so if paying up at the pitcher is the direction you want to take, Sale is the choice.
Ricky Nolasco - P, vs OAK ($7,100)
This isn’t a pick I’d feel comfortable playing, but as previously mentioned, for those who want to fit a Nationals/Rockies stack into their lineup it will be imperative to drop down at pitcher. Nolasco will be facing a poor offense in the A’s and has scored over 20 points in each of his starts this season. With a home start, Nolasco has a legitimate shot to get both the win and quality start bonus, which could reasonably push him above 30 points. That would be enough as long as the high-priced offensive options come through.
FanDuel DFS Infielders
James McCann - C, SEA ($2,400)
McCann has been boom or bust. With a matchup against Hisashi Iwakuma, the chances of tomorrow being a boom game for McCann increase. Iwakuma has allowed a ton of contact in the early going and a lot of it has been hard contact, as he has allowed a home run in each of his four starts. The Tigers lineup isn’t as intimidating as originally expected due to injuries and slumps, but today is a good day to get a piece of this offense thanks to a high Vegas total and the favorable matchup.
Edwin Encarnacion - 1B, HOU ($3,600)
Encarnacion draws Mike Fiers, which is a favorable matchup to say the least. In each of his three starts this season, Fiers has surrendered at least one home run. That includes two games where he has allowed multiple home runs. In addition, over the past three seasons, Fiers has owned a reverse platoon split meaning Encarnacion has a superior matchup to Carlos Santana and also offers savings of $300.
Brandon Drury - 2B, SD ($2,700)
Home sweet home. Drury has been a big beneficiary of Chase Field, as he posted a .932 OPS there last season as opposed to a .637 OPS on the road. Vegas likes the Diamondbacks as a whole tomorrow, as they are the favorites in the second highest run total on the day. Unlike Paul Goldschmidt and some of the other heavy-hitters in the Diamondbacks lineup, he isn’t priced up so Drury is a good way to get exposure to this high-scoring game.
Update: Drury remains a very solid play, however, he did exit Wednesday night's game early. Keep an eye on whether he is in the lineup Thursday, as it was unclear if the injury would cause him to miss any additional time.
Jedd Gyorko - 3B, vs TOR ($3,100)
In case you missed the above comments about the Cardinals, here is a recap. The early game between the Cardinals-Blue Jays will be the one available to play on FanDuel. It is in the upper-echelon of totals for the day, so it’s advisable to get some exposure to the game. Gyorko has odd splits, as he couldn’t hit right-handed pitching during his stint with the Padres, but fared much better against lefties. In his time with the Cardinals, it has been the opposite. Either way, it’s worth finding a spot for him in your lineup based on the matchup against Mat Latos. In his first start of the season, Latos allowed nine baserunners in five-plus innings. He may not be long for the rotation, so it’s time to take advantage of matchups against him while he’s still around.
Francisco Lindor - SS, vs HOU ($3,800)
A mini-stack of Lindor and Encarnacion is much easier to fit in than a Rockies or Nationals stack. Fitting Chris Sale or Noah Syndergaard as well as two elite bats from this matchup against Fiers’ is a foundation worth getting excited about. Not much needs to be said about Lindor anymore, as he has established himself as one of the best shortstops in fantasy baseball. With Corey Seager facing a lefty at a pitchers park, Lindor is the preferable option today.
FanDuel DFS Outfielders
Josh Reddick - OF, @CLE ($2,600)
There’s good news and bad news for Josh Reddick on today’s slate. To start with the bad, he’s facing Corey Kluber who, after a slow first few starts, looked very much like himself in a complete game shutout against the White Sox in his last outing. For the good news, Reddick has always hit righties well, even last year when he was a large disappointment overall. This season, he has five extra-base hits against righties in 44 at-bats. Progressive Field is also a kind park for Reddick as it promotes doubles and home runs at an extraordinary rate for left-handed hitters. The price tag of $2,600 makes the risk of a golden sombrero game more palatable, so despite the tough matchup, Reddick is worth taking a shot on.
Aaron Altherr - OF, MIA ($3,100)
Altherr has proven himself as a player with nice power and speed upside as he has collected two home runs and two stolen bases in the early going of this season. Riding a hot bat is a debatable strategy that would take more space than this article to fully flesh out, but Altherr has been very productive of late. A matchup against Edinson Volquez who has had a rough start to the 2017 season, especially in his road starts, isn’t enough to convince me Altherr will cool down.
Scott Van Slyke - OF, @ SF ($2,200)
A hitter at AT&T Park is difficult to get excited about but Van Slyke should find his way into the lineup on Thursday afternoon as the Dodgers take on lefty Matt Moore. Van Slyke’s numbers are misleading as he has struggled as a pinch-hitter (one hit in 10 plate appearances). However, in his past two starts, he has been able to get on base and produce for DFS formats. Moore has been both good and bad at home, so this is definitely not a play in cash games, but if a punt play is needed, Van Slyke fits the bill.
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