FanDuel MLB: Picks and Pivots for August 4

Aug 3, 2016; Houston, TX, USA; Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson (20) celebrates with first baseman Edwin Encarnacion (10) after hitting a solo home run during the fourth inning against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /

FanDuel MLB: Picks and Pivots for August 4

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 action kicks off at 12:10PM EST with 5 Early games and another 7 games on the Main FanDuel MLB slate which starts at 7:05PM EST to choose our lineups from!

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	255.6	$ 8,646	25%	75%	$ 3,294	7.30
5 Day	252.8	$ 8,900	25%	75%	$ 3,263	7.22
Prev Day	283.0	$ 8,600	25%	75%	$ 3,300	8.09

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.

Aug 2, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Moore (45) on the bench during game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies defeated the Giants, 13-8. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports /

On the early slate finding a starting pitcher may be a difficult task as we have no clear-cut ace to choose from, but that setup lends itself nicely to tournament play!

Matt Moore ($9,400) at Philadelphia: Moore will get his first start after being dealt from Tampa Bay to San Francisco and gets the most favorable match-up on the board.

Prior to the trade, Moore was on a roll, putting up 44.5 points per start over the last two weeks and has posted a 1.60 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over his last five starts.

The Phillies strike out at a 22.7% clip, which is the 10th most favorable mark of any team in MLB which provides additional upside to the Giants newest acquisition who should be in line for the win.

Next: Top Hitting Options on Early Slate

Jul 20, 2016; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Tigers center fielder Cameron Maybin (4) third baseman Nick Castellanos (9) second baseman Ian Kinsler (3) and left fielder Justin Upton (8) take the field prior to the game against the Minnesota Twins at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports /

Detroit Tigers versus LHP Jose Quintana: Of all the offenses on the early slate, the Tigers present one of the best stacking opportunities as they take the field against LHP Jose Quintana and the White Sox.

Victor Martinez ($3,100) is my top catching play of the day and makes for a great cornerstone play as he has had immense success against Quintana in his career, going 15 for 36 (.417 average) against the lefty.

Cameron Maybin ($3,100) has been averaging 15.5 ppg over the last two weeks, exceeding 5x value and can be easily paired with Justin Upton ($2,600) who has averaged 13 points per game (5x value) during the same time period.

Joey Votto ($4,000) at home versus RHP Mike Leake: My top bat on the early slate is Joey Votto, who has been on fire lately, averaging 18 points per game over the last 2 weeks.

Let’s just hope Joey doesn’t have any fan interaction during this contest!

Next: Top Early FanDuel MLB Lineup

Jul 29, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Twins left fielder Eddie Rosario (20) celebrates with third baseman Miguel Sano (22) after scoring the winning run in the twelve inning against the Chicago White Sox at Target Field. The Twins won 2-1 in Twelve innings. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /

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

Pitcher: Matt Moore ($9,400)
Catcher: Victor Martinez ($3,100)
First Base: Joey Votto ($4,000)
Second Base: Ian Kinsler ($4,000)
Third Base: Jorge Polanco ($2,500) Polanco has come up and delivered offense in each of his first 4 games, averaging 14.8 points per game with 2 hits in 3 of his 4 games
Shortstop: Brandon Crawford ($2,800)
Outfield: Cameron Maybin ($3,100)
Outfield: Justin Upton ($2,600)
Outfield: Miguel Sano ($3,500) The Twins will take on Mike Clevinger who has a 7.71 ERA this season and with Sano’s power upside he makes for a great high upside play

Next: Top Main Pitching Option

Jun 28, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher J.A. Happ (33) delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /

J.A. Happ ($9,100) at Houston: Over the last month, Happ has been flat-out dominant from a DFS perspective, averaging 50.6 points per game which is over 10 points more than any other pitcher on the main FanDuel slate.

Happ over his last two weeks has stepped his game up ever further, putting up 55 points per game which exceeds 5x value at his reasonable price point.

The match-up against the Astros will scare many gamers away but from a tournament perspective realize that the Astros strike out at a 23.5% clip against LHP which is 6th most in all of MLB.

On a short slate, I want the pitcher who has the highest ceiling and Happ’s performance the last month puts him in a class by itself Thursday evening.

Next: Top Hitting Options for Main Slate

Aug 3, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) hits a three run home run in the first inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /

Coors Field – Rockies and Dodgers: Listen, let’s keep this one simple! We have a short slate and a game in Coors with by far the highest totals, you need exposure to this game if you want to compete and I suggest you start here and build out around the Coors Fields bats.

Corey Seager ($4,300) is the top Dodgers bat as he gets the platoon advantage against Tyler Chatwood and I expect is primed for a big night as he has been averaging 12.5 points per game over the last two weeks.

Nolan Arenado ($4,200) against RHP Kenta Maeda may be a tougher match-up but I cannot fade Arenado in Coors field on a short slate with his upside.

David Dahl ($3,900) has done nothing but hit since his arrival and with Trevor Story‘s season ending injury is locked into the 5th spot in the lineup. As others flock to Carlos Gonzalez and Charlie Blackmon, Dahl makes for an interesting pivot while still getting exposure to the Rockies bats.

Next: Top FanDuel MLB Main Lineup

Jul 30, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Seattle Mariners right fielder Nelson Cruz (23) hits a single during the fourth inning against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports /

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

Pitcher: J.A. Happ ($9,100)

More from FanSided

Catcher: Brian McCann ($2,500) Hard to believe McCann’s price is this low but with the short porch in Yankee Stadium and a match-up with Bartolo Colon, I am happy to play McCann at this price point

First Base: Mark Teixeira ($2,600) The Yankees bats are very reasonably priced and after homering Wednesday night, Tex will look to continue that momentum into Thursday

Second Base: Starlin Castro ($2,500)

Third Base: Nolan Arenado ($4,200)

Shortstop: Corey Seager ($4,300)

Outfield: David Dahl ($3,900)

Outfield: Michael Conforto ($2,300) Conforto makes for a great bargain play against Nathan Eovaldi and with 30 points in his last two games, I am happy to keep rolling with the Mets OF

Outfield: Nelson Cruz ($3,600) DFS 101 – Nelson Cruz against a LHP. With so many other people looking at Coors, Cruz may get overlooked but you would be wise to get exposure to a man who crushes LHP

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!