Fansided

FanDuel Lineup and picks for Wednesday, April 18th

By Adam Strangis

FORT MYERS, FL - MARCH 11: J.D. Martinez #28 of the Boston Red Sox reacts after flying out to right field during the first inning of the Spring Training game against the Baltimore Orioles at Jet Blue Park on March 11, 2018 in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Mike McGinnis/Getty Images)
FORT MYERS, FL - MARCH 11: J.D. Martinez #28 of the Boston Red Sox reacts after flying out to right field during the first inning of the Spring Training game against the Baltimore Orioles at Jet Blue Park on March 11, 2018 in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Mike McGinnis/Getty Images) /
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Welcome into the Wednesday edition of the FanDuel daily fantasy baseball column! We’ve got a split slate on our hands today so let’s jump right in.

As always, we’ve to take a look at how yesterday performed. The lineup hit a 118.8 and it should have very easily hit the money in 50/50s, although we just missed tournaments. Both Springer and Olson struck out with bases loaded, which really hurt the ceiling of that lineup. The good thing is the lineup has hit eight of the last 10 for 50/50’s and we’ll look to double dip today with two slates on the board!

ST. PETERSBURG, FL – APRIL 1: Pitcher Jacob Faria #34 of the Tampa Bay Rays pitches during the first inning of a game against the Boston Red Sox on April 1, 2018 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images)
ST. PETERSBURG, FL – APRIL 1: Pitcher Jacob Faria #34 of the Tampa Bay Rays pitches during the first inning of a game against the Boston Red Sox on April 1, 2018 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images) /

Starting Pitcher, High End Spend

Early

Jacob Faria, $5,500

N/A

For anyone wondering why I have the cheapest pitcher on the slate in this spot, it’s because I think he might be the best one to own. I was a little surprised to see his price so low. I hope you have your antacid close at hand if you’re playing the early slate because pitching has the potential to be quite the adventure. With only four games on tap, the options are slim. Faria has had an up and down start to the 2018 season but is coming off a solid start against the Phillies. Faria’s stats are out of whack because he’s faced the Red Sox twice so far.

The Texas lineup is definitely beat up at this point and Faria really leans on his fastball. The lowest ranked team in 2018 against fastballs is the Rangers, and they’re just 17th against the slider. The only pitch Faria throws that Texas hits well is his changeup. The metrics set up well for Faria to have a solid start and his price helps out as well. The Rangers strike out almost 26 percent of the time against righties, which should help out Faria today to at least be rock solid.

Main

Gerrit Cole, 

.288(21 for 73), 15.6 strikeout rate

Seattle isn’t the best matchup on the board but I don’t care because the Astros have rewired Cole into one of the better pitchers in the league. There’s some other exciting options on the slate but Cole stands out in my eyes. The strikeout rate has been insane so far and he’s always got a nice chance at a win with the way the Astros offense can play. Tonight will be a very interesting test to see just how good Cole is in 2018. I’ll be along for the ride tonight.

Mid-Range

Early

Kevin Gausman, $7,600

.234(15 for 64), 18.6 strikeout rate

The Baltimore and Detroit game got moved up due to pending weather so Gausman is in play as a mid-range guy in this matchup. Detroit doesn’t have a good offense as evidenced by their .220 average, .625 OPS, .111 ISO, and a .280 wOBA. Detroit struggles against the fastball and slider, which Gausman throws over 80 percent of the time combined.

Main

Robbie Ray, $9,500

.286(36 for 126), 26.4 strikeout rate

One of the very few pitchers who could match the strikeout ceiling of Gerrit Cole is Robbie Ray. He hasn’t exactly found his stride yet this year and it’s worth noting he was worse at home last season. Even still, the Giants are just a disaster on offense right now. They rank 20th or worse in most offensive categories so far and are striking out against righties 25 percent of the time. Cole might be the chalk of the night and Ray is a great pivot off him.

Value

Early 

Seeing as how Faria is just $5,500, he could go here as well. I’ll likely have a lot of him this afternoon and just hope for the best. The great thing is we’re going to have a ton of money to spend on big bats.

Main

Brandon McCarthy, $7,400

.364(16 for 44), 17.3 strikeout rate

The Phillies offense is more than capable of putting up runs but they also strikeout quite often and are far from the most consistent team in baseball. The crafty veteran in McCarthy might be able to take advantage of the large strikeout rate and the lower end batting average. This is definitely a GPP play only but many might overlook him this evening.