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We have a seven-game slate on tap tonight, but it's more like a six-gamer with the Cardinals-Braves projecting to rain out. Pitching is all over the place with Buehler, Lynn, and Valdez at the top and a few very intriguing options scattered along the rest of the salary ranges. There are currently four teams projecting to score over five runs tonight, including both teams (Brewers and Rockies) playing in Coors. Let's get to it.
I'll be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for the FanDuel main slate on 6/19/2021. You can see our DraftKings and FanDuel DFS lineup pick for the early slate here as well.
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. Let's get to it!
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FanDuel DFS Pitchers
Cash Game / GPP Anchor Play:
Walker Buehler - LAD vs. ARI (11,000)
This is going to be the chalk play of the day, so don't be scared to get to Lance Lynn as a tournament pivot against the Astros. However, Buehler's matchup is just so much juicier in the Diamondbacks, who are hitting .218 and hold the lowest wRC+ (68) in the league since the beginning of June. Their season stats aren't much prettier. Buehler has been hot, going 5-0 while allowing just five earned runs in his last six starts. He's not racking up a ton of strikeouts, but he should coast to an easy quality start and win today against this hapless lineup. He has the clearest path to being the slate's top scorer at the position, and it's not particularly close.
Alternate Play(s)
Logan Gilbert - SEA vs. TBR ($8,200)
Gilbert has been solid in his rookie year so far, going 2-2 with a 4.13 ERA (4.88 xERA) and a 24.2% K% over 28 and 1/3 innings pitched. He has stepped his game up in his last few starts, going for 39 FD points against the Angels and 45 FD points in his most recent start against Cleveland. He racked up 13 strikeouts over those starts, and those teams rank in the bottom half of the league in strikeout rate against RHP. The Rays, meanwhile, strike out at the second-highest rate in the league against RHP (26.2%), though their offense is formidable aside from the punchouts.
GPP Dart-Throw
Patrick Sandoval - LAA vs. DET ($7,800)
Sandoval is very intriguing against the Tigers, who are downright awful and strike out at the highest rate (29.4%) in the MLB against LHP. Sandoval has made five starts and hasn't allowed over two earned runs in any of them, highlighted by a 10-strikeout, 46 FD point outing on 6/6 against the Mariners. His strikeout rate isn't high overall at just 22.1%, but his Whiff % is in the 95th percentile and he has pitched well enough to take shots on him in this elite spot. The Tigers have a low 3.7-run implied total.
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Stacks: Angels, Dodgers, Brewers, Padres
FanDuel DFS Infielders
Jose Abreu - 1B, CWS vs. HOU ($3,100)
This is just a really good price on Abreu. Framber Valdez has been stellar, but his 1.42 ERA is bound to come up - he holds a 2.96 xERA, a high Hard Hit %, and a low strikeout rate. Abreu has been hot, recording hits in seven of his last nine games and averaging 12.73 FD points over his last three. He also holds a .597 SLG and .906 OPS against LHP this season.
Jake Cronenworth - SDP vs. CIN ($2,700)
"Rake" Cronenworth is still priced in value territory, and it's time to pounce on him once against here as a one-off or as part of a Padres stack. I'm not even sure how he's still priced here as he has three outputs over 18.6 FD points over his last eight games and is riding a four-game hitting streak with one homer, two doubles, two RBI, four runs scored, and a walk in that span.
Will Smith - LAD vs. ARI ($2,700)
It's not often (or ever) that I'll recommend playing a catcher in the C/1B slot on FanDuel. Smith will likely hit cleanup in a loaded Dodgers lineup that's projecting to score 5.4 runs against Matthew Peacock and the Diamondbacks tonight. Smith has some tidy advanced metrics (.276 xBA, .377 xwOBA) and he hits RHP especially well (.296/.409/.528 with five homers, eight doubles, and 18 RBI). Peacock has been awful no matter how you slice it, but his extreme struggles against LHH are noteworthy. All of the Dodgers are in play here.
I also like Yermin Mercedes and Yasmani Grandal at the C/1B position tonight.
FanDuel DFS Outfielders
Yordan Alvarez - OF, HOU vs. CWS ($3,300)
Air Yordan has eight hits over his last five games and has hit safely in 10 of his last 11, exceeding 18 FD points in five of those games. He's hitting .310/.363/.519 overall and is great against both LHP and RHP. Lynn has been great, but he has allowed four homers over his last three starts and Alvarez has been hitting too well to not get to him at this price.
Tommy Pham - OF, SDP vs. CIN ($3,200)
Pham has been quite solid in the month of June, slashing .308/.438/.519 with three homers and five steals. He has been much better in the RHP split this season with a .252/.378/.358 line and 10 of his 11 steals. Gutierrez, a highly-ranked prospect for the Reds, has been great through four starts with a 2.74 ERA. However, he has a low strikeout rate (20%) and has been much worse against RHH (3.86 ERA).
Christian Yelich - OF, MIL vs. COL ($4,300)
I'd be a terrible analyst if I wrote a whole lineup pick article without recommending a play from Coors Field. He got a late start to the season and is still working with a smaller sample size, but he's ranking among the best in the league in Hard Hit % and has five steals already. Austin Gomber has been better-than-expected this year, but Yelich is too good to not want pieces of him in Coors Field.
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