RADIO
We have a 6-game slate on tap tonight with a lot of suspect pitching that should lead to a lot of helpful bats to target. With so many bats in play, there will be a lot of potential value, but finding the right amount will be the key. This article will help showcase some bats and the occasional value arms you can target to open up some salary for your lineups.
In this article, I'll be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for FanDuel on 8/2/2020. Be sure to also check out all the MLB player news including late scratches, and the projected and confirmed daily MLB lineups for each DFS slate. You can also read more DFS advice and lineup picks for sites like DraftKings, and other sports too.
Some of these are daily outlier value plays or lesser thought-of guys. They may lay outside of the main pool of players that folks would be considering, but could vary based on that day's games and lineups. These players can be low cost with good matchups, surprise starters with good matchups, and very cheap players with good matchups. Let's get to it!
FanDuel DFS Pitchers
Dylan Cease - P, CWS @ KAN ($5,800)
It was a very rough outing at Dylan Cease's Opening Day start. He only lasted 2.1 innings and gave up four earned runs on seven hits. These are the numbers that will deflate a player's DFS salary for the next start. He will make another road start and in a massive stadium at Kansas City. The challenge for Cease was his command, as he threw a lot of balls outside the strike zone. He still has nasty stuff that, if he can harness it, will produce a ton of strikeouts and make for a great value play.
FanDuel DFS Infielders
Travis D'Arnaud - C, ATL vs David Peterson ($2,700)
Travis d'Arnaud has only made two appearances on the season so far, but what spectacular showings there were. In those two outings, he has put up four hits in nine at-bats while driving in six RBI. He got the day off yesterday and looked to stay fresh when he faces lefty David Peterson. d'Arnaud hit .276 with ten HRs in only 150 plate appearances against left-hand pitchers in 2019. I usually would say stray away from catchers as a value play, but we are dealing with a small slate and need to consider all options.
Nico Hoerner - 2B/SS, CHC vs Steven Brault/Chad Kuhl ($2,600)
Nico Hoerner is a youngster that has quietly produced when called on. He boasts a .389 batting average and .791 OPS with five RBI in only seven games played. Pittsburg is going to deploy the Steven Brault with Chad Kuhl to piggyback against the Cubs. Hoerner bats very well against both LHP (.375 BA) and RHP (.278 BA). A lower salary play like this could return great value since he plays in a more potent lineup.
Leury Garcia - 2B/OF, CWS at Jakob Junis ($2,800)
The hip injury to Tim Anderson opens the door for Leury Garcia to pick up some extra at-bats. While he is not known for his HR power output, he did put up a two HR day a week ago. Garcia will be going toe to toe with Jakob Junis, who is making his first start of the MLB season. Expect Junis to need still to shake off the rust after the long offseason layover. Being multi-eligible at second base will likely be the spot to play him and then use the savings to buy a bigger elite bat.
FanDuel DFS Outfielders
Jose Martinez - 1B/OF, TAM @ Tommy Milone ($2,900)
I always like to look at Tampa Bay when trying to spot the value plays. The team has plenty of platoon options available. Jose Martinez should be a terrific one to consider. Martinez was explicitly brought into Tampa because he crushes left-hand pitching. Against LHP, Martinez has put up numbers like a .246 ISO and 159 wRC+ with 16 home runs in only 272 at-bats. Factor in that Camden Yards is a very hitter-friendly confine, and he could be dangerous for the Sunday slate.
Hunter Renfroe - OF, TAM @ Tommy Milone ($2,800)
This blurb may seem a little repetitive to Jose Martinez as Hunter Renfroe is also a left-hand hitting monster that Tampa acquired in the offseason. The big difference is Renfroe has substantially more HR power in his bat. Renfroe has a .304 career ISO but struggles with a low batting average due to a very high strikeout rate. When he connects, the ball leaves the park in a hurry. Let's hope he connects on a few of Milone's pitches and puts them into the bleachers.
Brandon Nimmo - OF, NYM @ Kyle Wright ($2,700)
Nimmo is an on-base machine against right-hand pitchers. Against RHP, he has a career on-base percentage of .395 and should bat leadoff in the Mets lineup today. Plenty of significant bats behind Nimmo to drive him in and help boost his scoring. Nimmo is swinging a hot bat with three of his last games in the double-digit point totals. He will face off against Kyle Wright, who could not find the strike zone and walked three batters in 2.2 innings pitched last Tuesday.
