FanDuel MLB: Picks and Pivots for June 30

Welcome to the Thursday edition of Picks & Pivots, a daily fantasy baseball column focused on providing analysis and insights into the top FanDuel MLB lineups. The purpose of this column is to first identify key building blocks that can be used for any roster construction and then identify pivot points to help differentiate your lineup in hopes of a big payday!

FanSided and Fantasy CPR have you covered – For additional FanDuel MLB analysis, take a look at Matt Rogers FanDuel Economics column or Mike Marteny who provides Draft Kings MLB Picks analysis giving you the most in-depth DFS coverage for tonight’s baseball slate.

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Thursday’s games start at 1:05PM EST with 3 games in the afternoon and another 8 which start at 7:05PM EST.

I will continue to track winning Tournament lineups and compare trends over 5 day periods to help us understand what it takes to remain profitable. I HIGHLY recommend each of you do this each morning to look back on the previous night and understand how the winning lineups are constructed in the games you participate in.

The view below tracks GPP entries over various time periods, breaking out key metrics to understand the trends and compositions of GPP winning rosters:

Time Period	Score	Pitcher Salary	Pitcher %	Hitter %	Hitter $/Player	Value
Season	255.8	$ 8,610	25%	75%	$ 3,299	7.31
5 Day	253.2	$ 8,669	25%	75%	$ 3,291	7.23
Prev Day	268.2	$ 6,100	17%	83%	$ 3,613	7.66

Now on to the picks…For more DFS Strategy insights, check out my latest article to help take your game to the next level! I highly recommend gamers track their game performance across the various types of games they play – GPP’s, Cash, Multipliers etc – as this simple exercise will help teach you more about profitable roster construction than you can imagine.

Next: Who are the top pitching options on Thursday's Slate?

Another day of split slate MLB action will make this a challenging set of slates to attack with only 3 games in the afternoon and not a single team projected to score 5 or more runs. Be conservative with your bankroll on days like today and be strategic with the contests you target as getting differentiation in your rosters may be difficult so looking at cash games or small tournaments may be a better way to play today.

Carlos Rodon ($9,000) at home versus Minnesota (EARLY): If you are playing the early only slate, I expect Kenta Maeda to be the chalk play against Milwaukee, so pivoting to Rodon against the Twins not only saves us a bit of salary but we have the ability to roster the highest scoring pitcher on the day.

Rodon has limited his opponents to 2 or fewer runs in 6 of his last 7 starts, and racked up 8 K’s in each of his last two starts.

Rodon has solid career numbers against the Twins as well in 2 career starts, pitching 15 innings and only giving up 2 ER (1.20 ERA).

Madison Bumgarner ($12,000) at Oakland (Main): On a short slate, locking in the clear cut top pitcher is my preferred strategy on the main slate as there are no “must play” offensive games to target.

Bumgarner has averaged 45.6 points per start over the last month, and the A’s not surprisingly have the lowest projected point total of any team on the Thursday slate.

Pitching Summary: Locking in Bumgarner on the main slate is a must in all formats as no pitcher has the upside of the Giants star and the other top options all have tough match-ups to navigate through. On the early only slate with only 3 games, I want the relative safety of Rodon who has been rolling over this last month and I expect many others to flock towards Maeda against the Brewers.

Next: Top Offenses to target on Thursday

For those of you who haven’t noticed, The FanDuel algorithm is now more heavily weighting day to day match-ups for hitters which in many cases is following the Vegas predictions for run projections.

White Sox versus LHP Tommy Millone: The White Sox are the top projected scoring team of any on the slate Thursday and with their top bats hitting from the right side they will have the platoon advantage against Millone.

Jose Abreu ($4,100) and Todd Frazier ($4,100) are both priced up for this match up but are clearly affordable without any SP over $10k and I believe they are the top mini stack to target on the early only slate.

Tim Anderson ($3,000) has finally seen his price increase on FanDuel but this price still feels too cheap with him being locked into the lead off spot and I will lock him in at SS in all my lineups.

Robinson Cano ($4,100) is the top priced target on the main slate as he has absolutely owned Chris Tillman in his career going 14 for 34 with 2 home runs and can be easily combined with Adam Lind ($2,900) for a Mariners mini stack.

Next: Top FanDuel Lineup - Early

Below you will find my initial lineup for Thursday’s Early FanDuel MLB slate including notes/comments on my roster construction.

Pitcher: Carlos Rodon ($9,000)
Catcher: Brian McCann ($3,100) Anytime McCann is at home against a righty this makes for an easy plug and play.
First Base: Jose Abreu ($4,100)
Second Base: Rougned Odor ($3,200)
Third Base: Todd Frazier ($4,100)
Shortstop: Tim Anderson ($3,000)
Outfield: Nomar Mazara ($2,900) The Rangers are a great stacking option in the afternoon against Michael Pineda and the Yankees. Mazara has double-digit points in 3 of his last 4 games.
Outfield: Trayce Thompson ($2,900)
Outfield: Mitch Moreland ($2,600)

Next: Top FanDuel Lineup Main

Below you will find my initial lineup for Thursday’s Main FanDuel MLB slate including notes/comments on my roster construction.

Pitcher:

More from FanSided

Catcher: Tyler Flowers ($2,300)

First Base: Adam Lind ($2,900)

Second Base: Robinson Cano ($4,100)

Third Base: Anthony Rendon ($3,200) Rendon continues to rake and with a lefty on the mound for the Reds, this is an easy play.

Shortstop: Asdrubal Cabrera ($2,700)

Outfield: Hyun Soo Kim ($2,800) Kim has double-digit points in 3 of his last 4 and put up 40.9 points in his last game!

Outfield: Steven Moya ($3,000)

Outfield: Brandon Nimmo ($2,000)

Next: DFS Strategy - Take Your Game to the Next Level

Best of luck tonight gamer’s! Make sure to review the lineups as they are announced before locking in your lineups!