RADIO
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Daily fantasy baseball leagues (DFS) are becoming the thing to do, and here at RotoBaller we are excited to help our users build their bankrolls. I’ll be covering FanDuel lineup picks, sleepers and general advice every Saturday and Sunday. I’ll also be putting my money where my mouth is by entering my final lineup (at the bottom of the article) into one of FanDuel’s many daily fantasy contests, so that RotoBaller users can compete against me.
My goal with these DFS picks, as always, is to try to choose players who will outperform their expectations. These players can be high-cost players, or they can be sleepers, but we are always looking for players that have a chance to return the greatest value. Additionally, since the weekends generally have many afternoon and night games, I’ll make an effort to distribute my picks to cover all the timeslots going forward so that if you are playing an afternoon/night only league this article will still be useful. So, without further ado, my picks for Sunday April 12th.
Editor’s Note: RotoBaller’s Premium DFS Lineup Picks & Tools help you get an edge for your FanDuel lineups with exclusive access to DFS tools and expert lineup picks. Also our DFS batters vs. pitchers tool helps you analyze today’s matchups and make optimal lineup decisions.
Last Saturday's Review
Last Saturday we played the Early Only $60K MLB Squeeze. Here is how we did:
Entry: $2
Winnings: $0
For the Season: -$2
Pick Highlights: Jordan Zimmermann had terrible control against the Phillies and his high price tag did not pay off. Our sleeper, Devon Travis, didn't wake up for the early games. Freddie Freeman continued to provide nice value anchoring the team with a HR and a 8.5 point performance.
Marital Status: "I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed"
Offense to Target for FanDuel DFS
Colorado Rockies - I try to avoid this when possible because I think we all know that Coors turns average hitting teams into the Hulk, but I just couldn't resist here. The Rockies run into veteran pitcher Tim Hudson tonight who sports a career 7.29 ERA in 42 innings at Coors Field. The Rockies should get to Hudson early and often and FanDuel isn't adjusting their prices enough for the Coors factor yet this season. Load up on Rockies and watch the ball fly through the thin air tonight.
While I'm highly suggesting the Rockies because of the Coors factor, I want to note that people should be careful loading up on their opponents, the San Francisco Giants. The Giants face Jorge De La Rosa tonight. De La Rosa is coming off a miserable two inning start, so you would think that this is a prime time to load up against him. However, De La Rosa has some of the strangest split stats I've ever seen. Over the past three years, De La Rosa has made 65 starts for the Rockies to the tune of a 3.97 ERA. Nothing special. However, in De La Rosa's 30 home starts (Coors Field) he's 20-3 with a 2.97 ERA (4.90 ERA on road during the same time period). The splits make no sense, but it's a big enough sample size that I'm not promoting the Giants as a stack opportunity even though they are in Coors.
DFS Starting Pitchers To Consider for FanDuel
Matt Harvey (SP, NYM) - $10,100
It's impossible to deny how great Harvey has looked thus far in his comeback from Tommy John surgery. He goes up against the Yankees today who lit up Jacob DeGrom last night, but Harvey has a knack for getting the Mets back on track after a tough loss. The Yanks have plenty of swing-and-miss bats in the lineup so I'd expect Harvey to once again approach double-digit strikeouts. My only concern here is that Harvey has yet to pitch into the 7th inning this season or push past 95 pitches. This limits his chances to get a win if the Mets don't jump out to an early lead, but he's been so dominant in his first three starts I'm not sure that it matters.
Kendall Graveman (SP, OAK) - $5,100
On the other end of the spectrum from Harvey we find Kendall Graveman. Graveman is the third cheapest pitcher on the slate today. He certainly doesn't have Harvey's stuff, but he does have all the factors of a big fantasy day leaning in his favor. Pitcher's Park? Check. He's in his spacious home park in Oakland today, one of the ten best pitcher's parks in the league. Facing bad offense? Check. Houston comes in ranked 26th in the league in runs scored. Strikeout potential? Check. While Graveman doesn't have strikeout stuff per se, Houston comes in leading the league in strikeouts at almost 10/game.
DFS Infielders To Consider for FanDuel
Adrian Beltre (3B, TEX) - $3,300
Beltre has gotten off to a slow start this season, but I don't see any cause for concern. If anything, the slow start has made this remarkably consistent player more affordable in DFS. Beltre faces off with division rival and former teammate C.J. Wilson today. Beltre is familiar with Wilson's work, registering 34 career at-bats against the left hander, hitting .324 against him for his career with a home run and five RBI.
Dustin Pedroia (2B, BOS) - $3,000
Pedroia is hitting second in arguably the most potent lineup in baseball. The power has returned for Pedroia this season, notching four home runs already. Today, Pedroia goes up against Wei-Yin Chen in Baltimore. Pedroia is hitting a remarkable .517 in 29 career at-bats versus Chen. Pedroia is going for the same price as fellow second basemen Ryan Brett, Taylor Featherston, Danny Muno, and Tyler Ladendorf...not exactly household names. Pedroia is great value at 2B.
DFS Outfielders To Consider for FanDuel
Matt Holliday (OF, STL) - $3,200
Holliday continues to be criminally undervalued in FanDuel right now. His price point is in the Angel Pagan, Nori Aoki, George Springer range. Meanwhile Holliday is putting up upper echelon outfield numbers. Holliday is hitting a scorching hot .367 and has gotten a hit in all but one game this season. He still hasn’t gone deep yet this year, but he faces off with Wily Peralta today who he hits to the tune of a .435 average with two home runs in 23 career at-bats. The long balls will come and Holliday will remain a consistently good value throughout the season.
Carlos Gonzalez (OF, COL) - $3,100
I have been playing Gonzalez in a lot of daily lineups lately and it hasn't paid off yet. However, a player with this kind of talent, in Coors, at this price is too hard to resist. I'll keep playing him because the monster day is coming.
FanDuel Sleeper Value of the Day
Andre Ethier (OF, LAD) - $2,200
Ethier is on the board for the cheapest price of the day. The issue with Ethier is that he seems to be the the fourth man in the Dodgers outfield and if you haven't watched baseball lately managers generally only start three outfielders. However, one of those three Dodgers starters, Yasiel Puig, went down last night with a pulled hamstring. Ethier should slot right into Puig's spot and it's just in time for him to face off against Ian Kennedy. Kennedy, fighting back from a hamstring injury of his own, has struggled against Ethier in the past allowing two home runs and a .324 AVG in 34 at-bats. I would have expected Ethier in the lineup tonight regardless of Puig's status, but if Puig goes down for an extended period, Ethier becomes a value play every day until his price is adjusted.
My DFS Lineup on FanDuel
Today I’ll be playing in the $75K MLB Squeeze which starts at 7:05 pm EST. Remember to check your lineups throughout the day. You never want to get a goose egg for a guy that didn't play.
MLB & Fantasy Baseball Chat Room
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