It’s officially September, and the playoff race is on. Rosters have expanded, meaning there will be more lineup variation than ever. With that in mind, be sure to check lineups daily before starting times to ensure that your players are in the lineup. FanDuel does a pretty good job of displaying that for you, but it’s always safe to double-check.

There’s one early game on Thursday, September 3^rd, and there’s five games starting at regular time or later. That means we have a five-game slate to deal with. It might be a good night to take a break if you were looking for the chance, as payouts will likely come down to the production of one or two players who no one thought would be of importance. Because I felt the need to, I did do a little bit of research for the night. But you can see that I kept things rather short, and I pinned this one more on personal preference than stats, seeing as how stats are a good way to have the same lineup as every other entry in your tournament or cash game. But, for those of you who “can’t stop, won’t stop” anyways, let’s get to some analysis.

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Offenses to Target for FanDuel DFS (Pitchers to Pick On)

To make an awkward DFS night even more awkward, we have a Coors Field game to deal with. Ryan Vogelsong (or “VogelDONG” as I like to call him) is the visiting pitcher in Colorado. Lefty Chris Rusin will throw for the Rockies. There will certainly be some bats that are of value based on lineup position and who’s starting, but keep in mind that everyone is thinking the same thing. As for the Giants, it’s always impossible to find where they’re run production will come from, so good luck there. Regardless, there should be plenty of runs to go around.

The opportunity to target Matt Boyd with Royals bats is one that many will pursue, but even knowing that I can’t see myself straying from that approach. Plenty of lefty-mashers led by Lorenzo Cain himself should have a fine day against Boyd, and he stands out as a bad pitcher among mediocre ones (minus Francisco Liriano on a good day).

DFS Starting Pitchers to Target for FanDuel

Francisco Liriano (SP, PIT) - $10,600

I guess Taylor Jungmann can be seen as an option on Thursday, but I just don’t trust him enough yet to employ him against a good offense in a hitter’s park. Don’t get me wrong, he has been good, and he stifled the Pirates early in the year. However, I’ll lean more towards his counterpart in Liriano.

I trust Liriano’s ability to keep the ball inside the fence a little more than Jungmann’s. The strikeout potential is also much higher, which is big for a FanDuel pitcher. Lastly, I feel the Pirates will win (despite the outcome of the first two games of the series), giving Liriano the better chance for that four-point bonus. The price points are admittedly different, but you shouldn’t worry about paying up for hitters, as extreme variation is what is going to win you a contest tonight.

Wanna try to be contrarian and go away from the Pirates/Brewers game? Go for it. As of right now the Nationals haven’t announced a starter. If it is Stephen Strasburg, I don’t know if I’ll take him over Liriano thanks to his injury concern. If it’s someone else like Jordan Zimmerman, it might be worth a look. No one else intrigues me.

Editor’s Note: Jordan Zimmerman will be pitching for the Nationals. He has been on a bit of a roll lately, and gets a good matchup against a struggling Braves offense. While the strikeout potential may be lower than Liriano’s, so is the price point. Zimmerman should get the win, as well.

DFS Infielders to Target for FanDuel

Because of the small slate on Thursday, I’ll touch on a couple of guys at each position very quickly. Research is always good, but on nights like this you almost want to go against the research if you want a chance of winning. Everyone will likely have very similar lineups, so if you have a gut feeling that “so and so” might have a good game, go for it.

Catchers

Lucroy and Posey are probably the top two options that you’ll see on Thursday. However, Salvador Perez has tons of potential value if he is in the lineup. It’s almost impossible to guess when Perez will homer, so this might the night to give it a shot against a poor-pitching lefty.

First Base

Brandon Belt, Adrian Gonzalez, and Ben Paulsen will see high ownerships depending on if they are in the lineup. However, if you want to get chancy, Pedro Alvarez tends to hit well in Miller Park, and Kendrys Morales is always a nice backup option if you don’t want to pay top price. I’ll probably vary my lineup with one of those two.

Second Base

Neil Walker is another Pirate who loves Miller Park. Chase Utley has been one of my favorite under-the-radar plays since he returned from injury. I’ll probably go with either Walker or Utley.

Third Base

Ryan Zimmerman is having himself a nice little end to the season, and he could fly under the radar thanks to the Coors Field game. Narrative Street leads you right to Aramis Ramirez against his former team, but I won’t go there. Matt Duffy is another player I’m considering, and I love his price, but everyone else is likely thinking the same thing.

Shortstop

I love using Alcides Escobar against a lefty when he’s leading off. It seems like a bargain every time. Ian Desmond seems like the other logical play. Jean Segura against a lefty is also intriguing, and he’s on fire as of late. I wouldn’t fault you for picking any of the three. Going either Escobar or Segura is probably my favorite call.

DFS Outfielders to Target for FanDuel

Any starting outfielder in Coors Field is perfectly reasonable. If you want to fade those guys, here are some other options:

Gregory Polanco, Ryan Braun, Bryce Harper, Lorenzo Cain, J.D. Martinez, Andre Ethier, and Joc Pederson.

They aren’t the most under-the-radar crops of the bunch, but if FanDuelers are paying up for Coors Field bats, they likely won’t be able to roster these guys. Good luck, and be contrarian!

Good luck with your FanDuel and DFS lineups RotoBallers!

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