Welcome to an action packed Saturday in daily fantasy baseball. Today we have a full 15 game slate with nine games going off in the afternoon leaving six games in the evening.
Some of the biggest favorites of the day are the Cubs(-285) vs. the Phillies, the Mets(-180) vs. Dodgers, the Brewers(-170) vs. the Reds, the Indians(-165) vs. the Orioles, and the Mariners(-170) vs. the Twins.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball MLB lineup picks for FanDuel on 5/28/16. The DFS lineup picks will range from high-priced to low-priced options and identify options who will out-perform their expectations, including sleepers and value plays on FanDuel.
DFS Lineup Stacks to Target for FanDuel
Toronto Blue Jays vs. Rick Porcello
The Jays bats are starting to heat up and they have won three straight and six of their last eight games including four games where they scored six or more runs. They could be even lower owned than yesterday(10-15% average ownership) in a perceived tough matchup vs. Rick Porcello who has struggled vs. the Blue Jays in the past with a career 7.15 ERA at Rogers Centre. The Jays will also get Jose Bautista back on Saturday afternoon after he served his one game suspension for being punched in the face. With Devon Travis back in the mix it is tough to predict the Jays lineup but I would feel comfortable with almost all of them outside of Troy Tulowitzski, Ryan Goins and Kevin Pillar.
Both Sides of the Reds/Brewers Game vs. Weak Pitching
The Brewers took game one of the series last night in a game with minimal pitching and 14 combined runs. It could be much of the same Saturday afternoon as the starting pitcher outlooks don't look much better. The Brewers bats goup against Alfredo Simon who has been awful this year with a 10.16 ERA and 20.9% HR/FB rate. On the other side of the diamond, the Reds bats will face Chase Anderson who has been almost as bad with a 5.33 ERA and a 19% HR/FB rate. Add the great hitting environment of Miller Park and you have one of the best games to stack on the day.
Seattle Mariners Top Six Hitters vs. Phil Hughes
The Mariners are ranked 7th in the big leagues with a .336 wOBA and 117 wRC+ vs. right handed pitching. The will get a juicy matchup on Saturday night vs. the Twins and Phil Hughes who has been a complete gas can this season. He is a fly ball pitcher(37.7% GB rate) who is giving up the long ball(13.4% HR/FB rate) and not scaring any lineup with his low strikeout upside(4.99 K/9). Hughes has also struggled most against left handed pitching giving up a .375 wOBA against southpaws.
Also Consider - Los Angeles Angels vs. Struggling Dallas Keuchel
DFS Starting Pitchers to Consider for FanDuel
Noah Syndergaard (SP, NYM) $11,500
It is very close at the top today with both Noah Syndergaard and Zack Greinke in terrific matchups. For only $500 more I will take Thor today who has been the better pitcher to this point and comes in having struck out double digit batters in each of his last two games. He is averaging close to 50 FanDuel points per game and gets a matchup vs. the Dodgers who are .500 on the road and rank 25th in team wOBA(.302) vs. right handed pitching while striking out over 20% of the time. He is the top overall pitcher of the day.
Danny Salazar (SP, CLE) $9,500
The early slate has the most games but the fewest playable pitching options. What make sit even worse is that Madison Bumgarner is on the road in Coors Field. While he makes a contrarian GPP play, no pitcher can be trusted in Coors. Take the $1,000 savings and pivot to Danny Salazar tonight vs. the Orioles. When he stays out of trouble by limiting the free passes he is very close to the elite level of starting pitcher. He is striking out over 11 batters per nine innings with an above average 13% swinging strike rate. The Orioles offense does rank 6th in wOBA(.338) vs. right handed pitching but they are striking out over 23% of the time. If you are playing the early only slate he is the top option.
Kyle Hendricks (SP, CHC) $8,000
As of writing this the Cubs are -285 favorites over the Phillies at home on Saturday afternoon. This bodes well for Kyle Hendricks who has limited strikeout upside(7.38 K/9) and needs the win to hit value when he is on the bump. He is a ground ball pitcher who has limited the long balls(6.9% HR/FB rate) and has a respectable 3.30 ERA to this point in the 2016 season. He will get a plus matchup vs. the over achieving Phillies who rank 27th in wOBA(.289) vs. right handed pitching.
DFS Infielders to Consider for FanDuel
Jonathan Lucroy (C, MIL) $3,000
Outside of the Rockies/Giants game this game has the highest total of the day and Lucroy makes for an elite option. He is coming off a big game last night where he picked up a double and a homer run and added three runs batted in. He is hitting .325 vs. right handed pitching this season and has owned Alfredo Simon in the past with seven hits in 12 at bats including two long balls.
Mike Napoli (1B, CLE) $3,000
Napoli has been on a roll lately with hits in four straight games including two home runs with five runs batted in. He makes a great GPP play who hits in the heart of the Indians order and comes with big power upside. With all the great options at first base today he should come very low owned.
Devon Travis (2B, TOR) $2,200
If you are looking to punt the position in the early slate you can't do much better than Travis. He is back in the Jays lineup and has a hit in each of his first three games. At some point it is expected for him to jump back up to the top of the order and it could happen as early as Saturday afternoon. If that is the case, his value is even higher at a low $2K price range.
Jonathan Villar (SS, MIL) $3,800
You would be hard pressed to find a hotter hitter in the month of May. Villar is hitting .340 with an impressive 142 wRC+ this month with 13 RBI, 12 runs scored while adding 10 stolen bases. He comes into this favorable matchup with Simon with hits in four straight and eight of his last nine games with an average of 17 FanDuel points per game.
Josh Donaldson (3B, TOR) $3,600
You should absolutely take advantage of the pricing until he reaches the $4K+ territory. The Jays bats, especially the reigning MVP's, have been heating up and Donaldson is coming off monster game on Friday where he went four for five with two home runs and five RBI. This could be one of the last times we see Donaldson this cheap for the rest of the season.
DFS Outfielders to Consider for FanDuel
J.D. Martinez (OF, DET) $4,200
You don't have to pay up for the top guys to get a high floor/high ceiling player today. After a slow start to the season, Martinez has really heated up with a .474 wOBA and 209 wRC+ since May 9th while adding seven home runs. He gets a great matchup vs. Jesse Hahn who has allowed five home runs in his last three starts.
Bryce Harper (OF, WSH) $3,800
His struggles over the last few weeks are well documented but getting the reigning NL MVP at a price below $4K seems like stealing. There are signs he is coming out of the slump with hits in each of his last two games including a home run on Thursday. Don't trust him in cash right now but makes a great GPP play with huge upside.
Michael Bourn (OF, ARI) $2,200
If he is back in the lineup on Saturday he makes one of the top value punt options on the entire day. Since joining the D Backs he has spent time at the top of the batting order and has hits in all four games that he has started including two doubles, four runs batted in and two stolen bases.
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