RotoCole’s Daily Fantasy Baseball Lineup Advice: April 3rd Edition
In the preseason, we brought you Daily League Strategy Part 1 and Part 2. Now, all season long, I will be giving you my advice on who to start in your daily fantasy lineups. Initially, this advice will cater to those who play on Fanduel. They offer some of the best gaming options for beginners, intermediate, and expert level players. Our job here at RotoBaller is to make your daily fantasy gaming experience a fun and successful one. Whether you are new to the daily fantasy scene or have been playing for years, our columns will be up-to-date and useful for all levels of experience. If you are indeed new to the scene, tweet me at @RotoCole and I will personally show you the ropes. Let's win together. Ladies (one or two reading this) and gentlemen, here is your Daily Fantasy Baseball lineup advice for April 3rd, 2013:
We got back to .500 yesterday by doubling up and today we look to start a streak. Our prime time play, Lance Berkman, had a nice game and put up 5.75 FP. The best overall pick in our lineup had to be Jaime Garcia who shut Arizona down over 5 2/3 innings and picked up a win. It was also nice to have our stars (Braun, Tulo, Cespedes) show up. We won't lose often when that happens.
Prime Time Play: OF Adam Jones ($3,600) – On Tuesday in Tampa Bay, Jones went 3-5, had two RBI and scored twice. He is 9-28 in his career vs Jeremy Hellickson, who he’ll face Wednesday.
Wednesday’s Specials
1. Matt Wieters ($3,300) – Coming off a game where he homered and reached base 4 out of 5 times, Wieters has a nice matchup against Tampa Bay’s Jeremy Hellickson.
2. David Wright ($4,400) – He is expensive, but if you can afford him Wright should explode against Clayton Richard.
3. Paul Maholm ($6,300) - If you are looking for a cheap guy who is nearly a lock for a quality start then Maholm is your man.
Suicide Squeezes - squeezing these players into your lineup will likely result in fantasy suicide:
1. SS Starlin Castro ($3,700) – It’s a small sample size, but Castro is only 4-19 in his career against the man he’ll face Wednesday, Wandy Rodriguez.
2. P Roy Halladay ($8,300) – He could still have a decent game, but at $8,300 you are simply paying too much money for a guy who doesn’t have his old stuff back yet. Wait a couple starts to pay anything close to this price.
3. OF Giancarlo Stanton ($4,000) - Just 0-3 in his career against Gonzalez, but the question is why pay so much for a guy facing the best pitcher hurling on Wednesday night? Go with Jones instead.
RotoCole’s Fanduel Lineup for April 3rd, 2013:
C: Matt Wieters ($3,300) – Nice price, nice matchup, and he homered yesterday. Ride him while he is hot.
1B: Adam Lind ($3,300) – Solid 1B against RHP and he will face Ubaldo Jiminez who is a shell of his former self. He could have a big game.
2B: Jason Kipnis ($3,700) – Kipnis has a nice lefty vs righty matchup against Brandon Morrow. I like him a lot while he is hitting third in Cleveland’s order.
3B: Ryan Zimmerman ($3,900) – He should bust out against Nate Eovaldi of Miami. Cheapest elite 3B option.
SS: Jose Reyes ($4,200) – Has the same sweet matchup as Lind against Ubaldo. Start him if you can afford him.
OF: Adam Jones ($3,600) – He is 9 for 28 in his career against Jeremy Hellickson. Three of the nine hits were home runs. Plus, he had three hits and two RBIs yesterday.
OF: Jason Kubel ($3,700) – I love Kubel against RHP Lance Lynn of St. Louis. He is an animal against almost any righty.
OF: Josh Reddick ($3,100) – Not the greatest matchup against LHP Joe Saunders, but he hits out of the three hole and you know I love that.
P: Matt Harvey ($6,100) – Low price, high celing. Harvey could double up your team himself if he is on. 7 IP with 9 K sounds reasonable.
Budget: $35,000
Lineup: $34,900