FanDuel MLB: Picks and Pivots for July 30

Jul 27, 2016; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Andrew McCutchen (22) is greeted as he crosses home plate by shortstop Jordy Mercer (10) after hitting a three run home run against the Seattle Mariners during the eighth inning of an inter-league game at PNC Park. The Pirates won 10-1. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

FanDuel MLB: Picks and Pivots for July 30

Welcome to the Saturday 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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Saturday’s action kicks off at 1:07PM EST with 4 “early” games and another 11 games starting at 7:10PM 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	255.5	$ 8,639	25%	75%	$ 3,295	7.30
5 Day	256.9	$ 8,167	23%	77%	$ 3,354	7.34
Prev Day	232.3	$ 10,000	29%	71%	$ 3,125	6.64

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 Saturday's Slate?

Jul 25, 2016; San Francisco, CA, USA; Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Anthony DeSclafani (28) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports /

The main slate on Saturday night only has one pitcher over $10k and frankly the options at the top will lead me to look to a value arm with high upside and utilize the salary savings on my offensive players.

Anthony DeSclafani ($8,100) at San Diego: Of all the pitchers on the main slate Saturday, the Reds ace stands out as one of the best plays of the day and may continue to go overlooked by casual gamers.

DeSclafani has averaged 40.2 points pints per game over the last month, the top mark of any pitcher on Saturday evening and has at least 30 points in each of his last 7 starts which makes him a relatively safe play.

The match-up against the Padres kicks DeSclafani up an additional notch as the Padres strike out at a 24.6% clip against RHP which is the second most in all of MLB.

Of all the pitchers on the slate, no starter is projected to give up fewer runs than DeSclafani, per FantasyPros.com, where their models expect him to surrender less than 2 runs and strike out 5 batters over 6 IP.

The price point at only $8,100 allows you to spend $3,363 per bat which will give you an incredibly high upside lineup with your pick of the top hitters across the slate.

Next: Top Hitting Options

Apr 14, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor (12), center fielder Rajai Davis (20) and center fielder Tyler Naquin (30) high five after they beat the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Cleveland Indians defeated the Tampa Bay Rays 6-0. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

Similar to the Friday night slate, Saturday sets up nicely to spread out offensive options among the slate with no clear-cut must stack.

Indians versus LHP Dillon Overton: My favorite spot for offense on Saturday night is to target the Indians bats against LHP Dillon Overton of Oakland. Overton has been an absolute mess in a small sample this season, giving up 14 ER and 6 HR’s in only 15 IP.

Overton has been hit hard by batters from both sides of the plate which puts the entire Indians lineup in play.

Francisco Lindor ($3,600) makes for a great play at SS, averaging 11 points per game over the last two weeks and gets a very exploitable match-up.

Pirates RHB versus Chase Anderson: From a “stack” perspective, look towards the Pirates right-handed batters as they get a favorable hitting spot against Brewers RHP Chase Anderson. Anderson has really struggled against RHB this season, giving up a .335 average and 12 HR in only 48 IP.

Starling Marte ($4,000) has been red-hot over the last two weeks, averaging just under 16 points per game and makes for one of the top bats to target on the slate. Teammate Andrew McCutchen ($3,700) coming off a massive 41 point outing on Thursday, makes a great addition to a Pirates mini-stack.

Next: Top FanDuel MLB Lineup

Apr 9, 2016; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Tigers second baseman Ian Kinsler (3) and first baseman Miguel Cabrera (24) celebrate after scoring in the fourth inning against the New York Yankees at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports /

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

Pitcher:

More from FanSided

Catcher: Salvador Perez ($3,600) The Royals bats gets to tee off on LHP Martin Perez who has given up a .298 average and 12 home runs to LHB this season making Perez a great option at Catcher

First Base: Miguel Cabrera ($3,400) The Tigers face off with Mike Fiers who has been hit harder by the right-handed bats and with Miggy heating up (2 straight 27+ point games), targeting Cabrera and his second base teammate make a great stack

Second Base: Ian Kinsler ($3,600)
Third Base: Martin Prado ($2,900) Prado has been raking during the month of July, averaging just over 11 points per game and has back to back 20+ point outings heading into Friday
Shortstop: Francisco Lindor ($3,600)
Outfield: Andrew McCutchen ($3,700)
Outfield: Starling Marte ($4,000)
Outfield: Nomar Mazara ($2,100) Mazara continues to bat near the top of the Rangers lineup and makes for a great punt play against the Royals

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!