Opening Day picks and lineup for FanDuel, March 29th

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TEMPE, AZ – FEBRUARY 28: Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels in action during the game between Cleveland Indians and Los Angeles Angels on February 28, 2018 in Tempe, Arizona. (Photo by Masterpress/Getty Images) /

Outfield – High-End Spend

Early Slate

Starling Marte, $3,700

.100/.100/.100 with 0 HR in 10 at-bats

You may have picked up on a theme here but one of the best ways to score points with batters is with stolen bases. Not many other outfielders on the early slate carry that upside like Marte does. He also smashed right-handed pitching in his suspension shortened 2017 season. He’s hitting lower in the lineup than some expected. The good part is he hits right next to Corey Dickerson, so linking those two could pay off.

In Consideration – Kyle Schwarber, $3,700 and Nick Castellanos, $3,500

Main Slate

Mike Trout, $4,800

.370/.433/.704 with 2 HR in 27 at-bats

It’s Opening Day of the baseball season, who doesn’t want to play the best player in the game? Trout can do it all and can be the difference between making money or not just on his own. He’s also in a great matchup despite being on the road. Trout has killed starter Kendall Graveman in his career. He’s got a high price tag but he could easily pay off.

In Consideration – Mookie Betts, $4,200 and Giancarlo Stanton, $4,600

Mid-Range

Early Slate

Tommy Pham, $2,900

.500/.500/.500 with 0 HR in 4 at-bats

Pham should come in a pretty low ownership spot since not many players will target offensive players against Noah Syndergaard. Pham is a solid all-around player that can rack up points in plenty of ways. It’s not wise to go crazy with Cardinals but on a small slate, some risk can’t be avoided. It’s best to target a player like Pham that has multiple ways to points. Hopefully he’s figured out his swing issues during the spring.

In Consideration – Corey Dickerson, $2,600 and Yoenis Cespedes, $3,200

Main Slate

Byron Buxton, $3,100

.000/.000/.000 in 0 HR in 5 at-bats

The Twins outfielder appeared to come into his own during the second half of the 2017 campaign. He’s realizing his promise of a five-tool player and can hit the ball out of the park and steal bases. If his second half surge was real, he won’t be at this price tag for long. It’s worth it to find out before he’s near the $4,000 range, especially in Camden Yards versus pitcher Kevin Gausman.

In Consideration – Andrew Benintendi, $3,100 and Khris Davis, $3,100

Value

Early Slate

Adam Frazier, $2,000

No at-bats versus Jordan Zimmerman

We’ll keep driving the point home with another Pirates player as a possibility and he is bare-minimum on FanDuel, which makes him very appealing. Frazier showed an ability to hit at a pretty decent clip even though he was worse against righties in 2017. When a minimum priced player gets a crack at a tomato can like Zimmerman, he demands attention.

In Consideration – Cameron Maybin, $2,200 and Lewis Brinson, $2,100

Main Slate

Kole Calhoun, $2,500

.194/.242/.323 with 1 HR in 31 at-bats

It’s not quite clear where Calhoun will land in the batting order but he should still have a crack at being in front of Mike Trout. If that’s the case , he’s certainly in play. If he gets on base once or twice he could score at least a run and has some pop. There’s potential here at a very cheap price.

In Consideration – Randal Grichuk, $2,400 and Stephen Piscotty, $2,100