FanDuel MLB: Picks and Pivots for July 29

Jul 27, 2016; New York City, NY, USA; New York Mets center fielder Yoenis Cespedes (52) hits a two-run home run during the seventh inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports /

FanDuel MLB: Picks and Pivots for July 29

Welcome to the Friday 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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Friday’s action kicks off at 2:10PM EST with 1 game in Wrigley Field and another 14 games starting at 7:07PM EST on the Main FanDuel MLB slate.

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	255.7	$ 8,631	25%	75%	$ 3,296	7.30
5 Day	260.7	$ 7,800	22%	78%	$ 3,400	7.45
Prev Day	255.0	$ 9,100	26%	74%	$ 3,238	7.29

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 is the top pitching option on Friday's Slate?

Jul 2, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Ivan Nova (47) pitches during the first inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports /

Ivan Nova ($7,000) at Tampa Bay: When looking over the Friday night slate, frankly the pitching options look rather ugly and I am going to attack the slate by saving salary to pay up for hitters while still being able to target a high upside value arm.

Ivan Nova is my top value option as he takes the mound against the Rays in Tampa Bay. Nova over the last 4 games has been a very consistent producer, averaging 36.5 points per game which would exceed 5.2x value at his reduced price point.

Nova gets to face a Rays team that strikes out at a 24.5% clip against right-handed pitchers which is third most of any team in MLB. Nova has struck out 24 batters over his last 23 IP and gets a great opportunity to exceed those totals in a favorable match-up.

I expect many gamers will opt to pay up for Max Scherzer as the clear top option from a point per game perspective however at $11,600 and facing a Giants team that strikes out at a 17.5% clip, second fewest in all of baseball, this makes for an intriguing spot to fade Max and go with Nova at a significant discount.

Next: Top Hitting Options

April 27, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Miami Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon (9) against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /

The benefit of having a sea of questionable arms to select from, is we get a plethora of offensive options to choose from when building our FanDuel MLB lineups. The offensive options are fairly spread across the slate which sets the night up for individual plays and mini-stacks as opposed to full on team slates. By paying down to Nova as our starting pitcher, we can afford an average salary of $3,500 for out hitters which puts us an a great position to build a juggernaut lineup!

Carlos Correa ($3,700) & George Springer ($3,700) against LHP Matt Boyd: One of the top spots I plan to target on Friday evening are the Astros right-handed bats as they take on left-hander Matt Boyd in Detroit. The Astros bats provide unique upside and Boyd has shown this season that a blow up outing is possible as he had back to back 6+ ER outings and has given up 6 home runs in 37 IP against RHB.

Correa and Springer are both averaging over 11 points per game over the last week and make for a great mini-stack as one of the highest upside combinations you can build your roster around.

Dee Gordon ($3,500) at home versus St. Louis. He’s Baaaaaaack! Dee Gordon has been reinstated from his suspension and joined the Marlins on Thursday night back in his lead-off spot ahead of Christian Yelich, Marcell Ozuna and Giancarlo Stanton.

Brian McCann ($3,100) against RHP Jake Odorizzi: BvP fans will love this one! McCann is 12 for 23 (.522 average) with 7 extra base hits and 3 home runs in his career against Odorizzi. Fade the Yankees backstop at your own risk!

Next: Top FanDuel MLB Lineup

Jul 24, 2016; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Reds right fielder Jay Bruce hits a three-run home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the ninth inning at Great American Ball Park. The Diamondbacks won 9-8. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports /

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

Pitcher: Ivan Nova ($7,000)

More from FanSided

Catcher: Brian McCann ($3,100)

First Base: Freddie Freeman ($3,700) Freeman continues to be red-hot at the plate, averaging 17.2 ppg over the last week which is the 2nd most of any 1B on Friday

Second Base: Dee Gordon ($3,500)

Third Base: Nolan Arenado ($3,000) Arenado at only $3k against a LHP in Steven Matz feels like an easy plug and play at this price point. Take a moment to realize he is priced the same as Reid Brignac.

Shortstop: Carlos Correa ($3,700)

Outfield: George Springer ($3,700)

Outfield: Michael Saunders ($3,400) Batting cleanup and at home against a RHP makes Saunders a phenomenal value

Outfield: Jay Bruce ($3,900) No hitter has been hotter than Jay Bruce who is averaging 28.3 points per game, exceeding 9x value at a price point that amazingly still feels too low

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!