Daily Fantasy Baseball: FanDuel Pitcher Picks for 4/24

Welcome back to Friday Night Lights – Week 3. This is the place to get the best advice on Starting Pitcher picks for games played on Friday evenings throughout the MLB season.

These selections are tailored toward FanDuel’s pitcher scoring system but these picks can also be helpful in H2H formats with daily rosters where my recommended mid-to-low priced starting pitchers may be available to pick up off the Waiver Wire for a spot start.

More from FanDuel

Before we look at tonight’s slate, let’s take a look at how I did last week and so far this season:

4/17 Summary: 26 Starters, Avg. SP Fantasy Score: 9.1, Avg. Salary: $7800.

High #1 – Bartolo Colon, $9,400 (8th): 7 IP, 1 ER, 5 Ks, & a W for 15 points (3rd)

High #2 – Corey Kluber, $11,700 (3rd): 8 IP, 2 ER, & 8 K for 14 points (5th)

Mid #1 – Jeff Locke, $6,800 (17th): DNP (swapped starts with Vance Worley)

Mid #2 – Adam Warren, $7,200 (21st): 4 IP, 4 ER, 2 Ks for 2 points (25th)

Low #1 – Joe Kelly, $6,600 (21st): 5.67 IP, 2 ER, 3 Ks for 6.67 points (15th)

Low #2 – J.A. Happ $6,600 (22nd): 7 IP, 2 ER, & 3 Ks for 8 points (12th)

Week 2 Record (Based on player outperforming salary rank): 3-1-1; YTD: 6-3-2

More from FanDuel

Before I get to my picks, here’s a couple quick tips to keep in mind when selecting starters:

Don’t over-emphasize a pitcher’s last performance. There are hundreds of factors that impact a baseball game results, so even if a pitcher put up a bad stat line it doesn’t necessary mean they pitched bad or are in a slump. While it’s easy to invoke the Janet Jackson “What Have You Done For Me Lately” principle, remember that it is a long season. So unless there is empirical evidence pointing to a repeat poor performance such as a lack of velocity or an injury, try not to put too much stock in a small sample size of one or even two games.
Not all “Pitcher’s Ballparks” are really Pitcher’s Ballparks. A perfect example is Target Field, which has a reputation for being pitcher-friendly in some fantasy circles but it’s the opposite when you look at the numbers. Minnesota’s home field has ranked in the top 12 the last 3 seasons in ballpark factor for runs scored. A great resource to see how ballparks truly effect statistics using historical data is http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/parkfactor. And remember that the ballpark factor for runs is a totally different statistic than home run ballpark factor. I use the former to better assess a ballpark’s effect on a SP and use the latter more for hitters.

Here are my FanDuel pitcher picks for 4/24:

***Shining Star (Higher salaried pitcher that should put up big numbers to reward your investment):

Scott Kazmir (OAK) home vs. HOU for $9,100: This tough lefty is off to a great start this year with a 2-0 record, 1.33 ERA, and 23 Ks while allowing only 10 hits in 23 1/3 IP. He’s facing an Astros team he already beat this year and has averaged 13.67 fantasy points in his last 5 starts against them. Don’t be fooled by Houston’s surprising 8-7 record, Kazmir should have another good outing at home against a team that is the 6^th worst in the Majors in runs scored (49).

Honorable mention: Andrew Cashner (SD) home vs. LAD for $8,800. Although Cashner (12 FPPG in ’15) is up against the Dodgers’ Zack Grienke, the Padres have a much improved offense and are playing against a LA team which is just 1-5 on the road this season.

Stay Away: John Lester (CHI) at CIN for $9000. Although the Cubs are improved, he’s off to a horrible start with a 6.89 ERA and hasn’t lasted more than 6 innings in his 3 starts.

More from FanSided

**Clearly Visible (Mid-salary pitcher that may put up a star-worthy performance):

R. A. Dickey (TOR) at TB for $8,100: Solid though unspectacular so far in ’15 with a 0-1 record with a 3.26 ERA, the knuckleballer does have 16 Ks in 19 1/3 IP. This has allowed him to earn at least 9 fantasy points in all of his starts. He’s facing a light hitting Rays squad that is rolling out Drew Smyly, who is fresh off the DL. Dickey may not get you a huge number, although he could if the Blue Jays win, but he’ll likely outperform most in this salary range.

Honorable Mention: Carlos Martinez (STL) at MIL for $8,200. Martinez has an impressive 2.08 ERA, .92 WHIP, and 13 K in 13 IP this year. Most importantly, he’s facing the struggling Brewers.

Stay Away: Jose Quintana (CWS) home vs. KC. Quintana has been rocked in two of his three starts and is facing the 11-4 defending AL Champion K.C. Royals. Buyer Beware!

*In the Shadows (Low salary bargain that could produce a decent outing thus giving you extra money to spend on bats):

Aaron Harang (PHI) home vs. ATL for $7,500: This veteran righty has a surprising 1.96 ERA, 15 K and 12.4 FPPG so far this season. Although he’s pitching for a poor Phillies squad, he’s home at Citizen’s Bank Park (24^th in run ballpark factor in ’14) against a Braves team that has cooled off (3-7 in last 10) after a fast start. If you have identified some higher priced hitters you want in your lineup (Hint: there are some great matchups out there), then you may want to look here to buy you some salary cap space.

Stay Away: Everybody else that is $7,500 or below. Too many bad pitchers, bad ballpark combos.

Good Luck!