FanDuel MLB: Picks and Pivots for August 12

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.

Follow us on Twitter @FantasyCPR and on Facebook!

Friday’s MLB action kicks off at 2:20PM EST with a game in Wrigley but the main FanDuel MLB slate starts at 7:05PM EST with 14 games!

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	255.1	$ 8,625	25%	75%	$ 3,297	7.29
5 Day	237.3	$ 8,333	24%	76%	$ 3,333	6.78
Prev Day	223.4	$ 9,200	26%	74%	$ 3,225	6.38

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?

Stephen Strasburg ($11,600) at home versus Atlanta: When building your lineups on Friday you will notice some interesting price points (which we will touch on in the hitting section) that easily allow you to pay up for the highest priced pitcher on the slate.

More from DFS

Strasburg gets an ideal match-up with the light hitting Braves offense and comes into the game as a massive -260 home favorite which should allow him to easily pick up the win.

Strasburg has a 30.3% K rate which is 4th in all of MLB and has averaged 41.4 points per game over the last month which is the highest average of any hurler on the slate.

Strasburg has already faced the Braves twice this year, racking up wins in both contests while limiting Atlanta to 3 total runs in two starts while striking out 11.

I am happy to build the safest foundation at pitcher and looking to differentiate my lineup from there!

Next: ARod's Last Stand

Alex Rodriguez ($696) – Read that price again. The tricky folks at FanDuel are having some fun with Alex Rodriguez’s last game with 696 total home runs they have brought his price on Friday to match that!

We had a similar scenario earlier in the year when Kike Hernandez was priced at $300, however that was an error and clearly this is intentional. The question is, should we take the bait?

YES! We can get a starting player for essentially peanuts and if you slot him in with Strasburg you still have $3,243 per player to stack your lineup.

In tournaments, I can understand playing the fade as I expect as news spreads throughout the day of this price that Arod’s ownership will spike to crazy high levels but I am happy to slot him in and take my chances.

Think about it this way – if Arod simply walks one time in the game, gets you 3 points, you have exceeded 4.3x value already! Lock him in and for the only time in my life, I will say let’s go Alex!

Next: Top FanDuel MLB Lineup

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: Omar Narvaez ($2,300) Assuming Narvaez is in the lineup against the RHP, he is one of the top values on FantasyPros

First Base: Joey Votto ($4,000) I think the Reds may go a but overlooked today but with a game in Miller Park against Jimmy Nelson, this is a great spot to differentiate and use the Reds bats including Joey Votto!

Second Base: Jose Altuve ($4,000) The Astros and Blue Jays in Toronto is a great spot to find offense and Altuve gets a matchup against LHP Francisco Liriano. Altuve versus a LHP is always a cornerstone play for me!

Third Base: Alex Rodriguez ($696) Farewell ARod!

Shortstop: Carlos Correa ($3,900)

Outfield: Marcell Ozuna ($3,100)

Outfield: Michael Saunders ($3,200) I want exposure to the other side of this game as well and Saunders is the best LHB to target and sits at a reasonable price

Outfield: Scott Schebler ($2,200)

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!