FanDuel MLB lineup and picks for Thursday, April 12

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PITTSBURGH, PA – APRIL 02: Miguel Sano #22 of the Minnesota Twins celebrates after scoring on a RBI double in the sixth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates during inter-league play at PNC Park on April 2, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

Third Base, High End Spend

Miguel Sano, $3,900

N/A

I’m not sure I’d go with a full on Twins stack but one of the big power bats that needs to be discussed is Miguel Sano. His bat has cooled off a little since the first week of the season but the power potential is among the highest in the league. So far in his career, San has a great record against the four-seam fastball. He’s kind of in the same boat as Dozier, he’s just a little more unpredictable. He strikes out a ton and that can always be a little scary. You don’t get points when you can’t put the ball in play. So far in 2018, San has a 43.8 flyable and hard contact rate. Combining that with Giolito’s lack of strikeouts should make for a good day.

Also Consider – Anthony Rendon, $3,800

Mid-Range

Luis Valbuena, $2,900

.100/.182/.300 with 1 HR in 20 at-bats

It might be a rare time that Luis Valbuena makes this article but he could fit in a lineup nicely this evening. He draws Royals starter Ian Kennedy, who has been flirting with disaster so far this season. Kennedy has a sparkling ERA and WHIP but is also only generating ground balls around 20 percent of the time so far this year. He’s also giving up hard contact a whopping 46.7 percent of the time. This matches his rate from last year, which was over 40 percent. Last year, he pitched to a 5.38 ERA with those numbers and it’s only a matter of time before things catch up with him. Valbunea is at the perfect price point to make a profit on it this evening.

Also Consider – Evan Longoria, $2,500

Value

Ryan Schimpf, $2,500

N/A

There’s not much to chase here other than a cheap home run. If you believe that Ian Kennedy is still a bad pitcher who has just had a good couple starts, Schimpf has power to spare. He’s got a floor of zero because he strikes out so much. However, he could be a great source of cheap power to load up in other spots. Schimpf is likely a better GPP play than a cash play.