Greetings RotoBallers! Ready for another Thursday of games?
Because you should prepare yourself before looking at the main slate of games. We have essentially two sets of slates today, an early slate of games and then eight games in the evening main slate. We have less than half the league in action on the main slate tonight. I'd love to say that it makes up in quality what it lacks in quantity, but it doesn't. Well, maybe the hitting side is decent, but tonight's pitching options are limited. Most of our pitching options are UGH-lee!
So who do I like tonight? Read below to find, as I provide you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for the FanDuel main slate on 6/3/2021. 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 check out today's DraftKings MLB DFS lineup picks, and read more DFS advice and lineup picks for other sports too.
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FanDuel DFS Pitchers
Cash Game/GPP Anchor Play:
Yu Darvish, SDP vs NYM ($11,500)
This is very straightforward. Darvish has been very good this season, the Mets have not.
I want to just leave it at that, but the bigwigs prefer I provide you a little more detail. The Mets have the second-fewest HRs, which might be part of the reason they have the fewest runs in the league. Darvish meanwhile has a 2.16 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 79 Ks in less than 67 innings.
Here's a little visual evidence of how good Darvish is:
Yu Darvish, Sick 84mph Slider. ? pic.twitter.com/dQZvge0kCm
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 23, 2021
On this ugly pitching slate, Darvish is an obvious play, especially in cash games. In GPPs however, things get a little more interesting...
GPP Potential Alternate Play
Tyler Anderson, PIT vs MIA ($7,200)
On the surface, Anderson does not look very attractive. He has a losing record and an ugly 4.63 ERA. But that bloated ERA is mostly due to the one really bad game Anderson had against Atlanta on May 21st. He gave up nine runs to the Braves. He gave up four runs to the Giants in his start before that. But in his eight other games, he gave up three runs or less. Yet even in that Braves games, he still went five innings.
Given the lack of pitching on tonight's slate, Anderson is one of the few who we know will be in line for the win. And if Pittsburgh can give Anderson a little support, he should. Because Miami's offense is nothing to write home about either. They have the fourth-lowest runs and fourth-lowest OPS in the league. Throw in the fact that he is striking out almost a batter an inning, Anderson is a sneaky yet very strong play on Thursday night.
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FanDuel DFS Infielders
Carlos Santana - 1B. KCR vs MIN ($3,500)
The switch-hitting Santana who has double-digit homers and two stolen bases already is facing the left-handed J.A. Happ and his 5.24 ERA in KC tonight. Santana is averaging over 11 FPPG. I like his chances to hit that average tonight and then some.
Jurickson Profar - 2B/OF, SDP vs NYM ($2,700)
I detailed Profar a couple of weeks ago when he was down around $2100 and told you he would rebound. He has and now sees his price currently at $2700, but I expect that to still continue to rise. And that is still relatively cheap, especially given his base-swiping potential. I'm stacking Padres tonight and Profar helps us afford that.
Manny Machado - 3B, SDP vs NYM ($3600)
This price might actually be a little expensive for a player who has only six HRs and only sports a .239 average. He does have half a dozen stolen bases, which is why he is still averaging over 10 FPPG. But I think Machado will go under-owned, making him potentially a high leverage play. I also like the fact that he has at least one hit in his last six straight games. Taijuan Walker doesn't scare me.
Fernando Tatis Jr. - SS, SDP at NYM ($4,700)
On this weak pitching slate, you'd better have some stud hitters. And I would say one of the early front-runners for NL MVP certainly qualifies as a stud hitter.
Tatis is hitting .293 with 16 HRs, three of which have come in last five games. He also has managed to steal a dozen bases. I'm not worried about the oblique that caused him to miss the last few days. Start Tatis.
FanDuel DFS Outfielders
Tyler Naquin - OF, CIN at STL ($3,400)
I recommended Naquin for the first time earlier this week and this is how he responded:
Tyler Naquin CRUSHED this ball pic.twitter.com/lLI5YRvYIO
— And This Blog Belongs To The Reds (@ATBBTTR) June 1, 2021
With the lefty Naquin facing the right-handed Adam Wainwright, I think Naquin can add to his already decent totals of a .252 average, 11 HRs, and four stolen bases.
Nelson Cruz - OF, KCR vs Minn ($3,500)
Cruz has had a bit of a slump in the power department as he has not gone long since May 19th. But he's still hitting .274 on the year and I'm willing to take a chance that he breaks out of his power slump tonight.
Adam Frazier, OF PIT vs MIA ($3,000)
Cruz is a known quantity who is beating father time. Frazier on the other hand is one of those unexciting, "OK, I need someone to start tonight who won't hurt me", under-the-radar kind of players. But he very quietly is putting together his best season yet. If I told you to guess his stats, would you have guessed that he's hitting .330? I doubt it. For one, he's not. He's actually hitting .335 this year. That's pretty good. And against Elieser Hernandez and his 7.71 ERA I like Frazier to help the Pirates give Anderson a little run support tonight.
Good luck with your entries!