FanDuel MLB Daily Lineups: April 2

Welcome BACK to the FanDuel MLB Daily Lineups article. We’re a fantasy baseball column focused on helping you build a DFS MLB optimal lineup for each slate.

We had some hits and misses during yesterday’s Main FanDuel MLB slate. But in a bizarre fantasy baseball night, you could win most cash and GPP plays with only 151 FanDuel MLB points. That’s odd, because on most nights…I get AT LEAST 150 points.

So, what happened? Well, it was a lower scoring night than expected. But also, many of the runs were scored by very low-owned players. Also, most of the top pitching was limited. Unexpectedly, <1% owned David Hess was a top pitching play, with eight strikeouts in 6.1 innings and the win during a quality start.

Hess was admittedly not on my radar. Although, I had little reason to believe he should be. The Blue Jays had a low .245 wOBA heading into the game, but they also had a fairly average K-rate. And, Hess isn’t known for his strikeout ratio. Oh well!

We did have Julio Urias as one of our top pitchers, and he worked out well. Unfortunately, Urias didn’t quite make the 6th inning, which likely would’ve easily given him a quality start. In his five innings, Julio didn’t give up one run and piled up seven K’s. I’m still skeptical the Dodgers do much innings management with Urias, and he should stay on your radar for his next outing.

While the Mariners stayed hot and were a solid stack with six runs, we would’ve done better stacking a dirt cheap Diamondbacks lineup. Ironically, I had been looking at the D-backs for today’s Main slate, last night. We’ll get to that later. But we still got solid enough offense from Domingo Santana and Tim Beckham to make FanDuel MLB earnings in cash plays.

The MLB schedule starts before 7pm ET, again today. However, there’s only two games prior to 7pm and each game starts after 6pm ET. FanDuel MLB decided to start the Main slate after 7pm ET, and that’s what we’ll focus on tonight given it offers the most cash and tournament plays.

Before we get there, a reminder to never take a DFS MLB optimal lineup as ‘bible’ for your personal lineup each day. Use the suggestions as guidance. Also, make sure you follow final lineup thoughts throughout the day on our twitter account @FantasyCPR or me @MattyMcMatt17 look for late breaking lineup news.

Weather Note: For the most part, weather shouldn’t impact most MLB games on Tuesday night. However, there is a coastal storm spinning north along the eastern coast. This storm has a bout a 50% chance of bringing some light rain to the Washington, D.C. area. So, we could potentially see a brief delay during the Nationals and Phillies game. 

I am skeptical we get enough rain for a delay and I’d be shocked if there was a postponement, but it’s possible, not likely but possible, the storm moves further inland and dumps more rain in the area. 

That could present some issues for Scherzer and Eflin. But, I’m also skeptical the Nationals want to delay or cancel this game. It’s Bryce Harper‘s return to D.C. Also, Max Scherzer isn’t easy to keep off the field in any situation, when starting.

With weather-related considerations addressed, let’s get to the top pitching options…

FanDuel MLB: Top Pitchers

This is an odd starting pitcher night. At first glance, we have a long list of top pitching arms. But, there are some land-mines littered in this list. Chris Sale ($10,800) looked dreadful to start the season against the Mariners. But, the Mariners are raking almost anyone so far this year.

So, it’s possible he bounces back agains the A’s in Oakland. I’m going to ignore the drop in velocity talk, starting late last season, for now. It’s way too early to suddenly dump a top arm like Sale. However, there are also better options. Still, this is a very rare night where you could potentially do well with Sale in some GPP lineups, thanks to low ownership.

That being said, Max Scherzer ($11,700) and Justin Verlander ($11,300) each face hot offenses. However, both Max and Justin are the top of elite arms who you can pitch in fantasy baseball regardless of the match up. They’re just that good!

The Rangers had a .409 wOBA heading into last night’s game, third best in baseball to start the season. I suspect that won’t late, and is more of a result related to the matchups they’ve had so far. Verlander is still a top play.

I’m excited to see how the Nationals and Bryce Harper handle tonight’s match-up in Nationals Park. Many will likely spin this game as a revenge game for Harper, not getting the contract he wanted from his first team and leaving for greener pastures.

But, I would also argue (living in D.C.) the Nationals view it the other way around. They may not claim it publicly, but they’re likely unhappy Harper bailed on them for a rival NL East divisional team, and I suspect that adds added intensity to Mad Max’s game. In some ways, you could view this as a revenge game for one of the best arms in baseball.

But, I’m not sure that I’m spending that much salary on my pitching play when we have Jose Berrios ($9,700) and Kyle Freeland ($9,500) in this slate.

After a regression induced 2nd half of last season, Berrios was the surprise top pitcher to start the season late late week. Against a solid Indians offense, Jose piled up ten K’s in 7.2 innings, letting only three on base and getting the win in a quality start. That’s a worth a massive 63 FanDuel MLB points.

The Royals wOBA was a lackluster .276 heading into last night’s game. But, they also currently have a low 18.3% K-rate. That is a little more worrisome, as we may not expect as many strikeouts tonight. Although, the Royals also haven’t faced arms like Berrios.

So, while he’s chalky, Berrios is one of my favorite plays for Tuesday. But, for around the same price, you should also consider a less-sexy Freeland. Yes, Kyle faced a struggling Marlins squad in Miami, piling up five K’s in seven innings for 43 points.

But, I’d argue Freeland’s match-up on Tuesday is even better. Notoriously bad against lefties, and somehow consistently fanning at a high rate, the Rays currently hold a 32.9% strikeout rate this season. That is the worst in baseball!

Thanks to the big arms from Scherzer and Verlander, as well as the chalk play from Berrios, Freeland should be fairly lower owned. At the same time, he’s the cheapest of those four pitchers and has the potential to also land around 50 points. I love Kyle in my lineup Tuesday as well.

FanDuel MLB: Top Hitting Stacks

Unlikely last night, when we looked at the slate of pitchers and saw too many stacking opportunities, Tuesday night’s lineups will consistently see mostly top pitching. But, again, there are obvious stacking opportunities as well.

Andrew Cashner looked dreadful against the Yankees, somehow starting the season for the Orioles. With only four innings pitched, Andrew has a 2.50 WHIP and 13.50 ERA to start the season. Looking back to the second half of last season, he had a 1.58 WHIP and 5.29 ERA. There’s a theme here!

For that reason, I am looking at stacking some colder Blue Jays bats on their home turf. With a .246 wOBA, I’m a little worried about Toronto’s lack of production so far this season. But, that hopefully means they’re lower owned and cheaper.

Of that group, Justin Smoak ($3,600) is a reasonable play at 1B. Randal Grichuk ($2,700) should be in the middle of the order, and Teoscar Hernandez ($2,800) is usually involved in Blue Jays big offensive nights. I’ll admit, this isn’t a sexy play and more intriguing for GPP.

Speaking of non-sexy plays, how about the Marlins in Miami? Yes, the Marlins! Jason Vargas is starting for the Mets and likely won’t last long. But, while on the mound, it’s likely he gives up a lot of walks and hits, making a mini-stack with Starlin Castro ($2,600) and Brian Anderson ($2,700), from the middle of the order, very attractive.

And, to get even more contrarian, we should also consider the Padres in PetCo Park against Zack Greinke and the D-backs. There’s some risk with this play if Greinke bounces back, but he also looked dreadful to start the season.

Eric Hosmer ($2,800) and Wil Myers ($3,700) are my favorite plays from that lineup, but I may also use someone like Manuel Margot ($2,000) as a value pivot hoping for at least six to nine points.

A few of the more obvious stacking plays are the Astros in Texas against the Rangers, Angels in Seattle against Marco Gonzales, the Mets in Miami. I’ll likely pick through each of those lineups and add the best value plays for Tuesday.

FanDuel MLB: Summary and Example Lineup for April 2nd 2019

Before I jump into the total summary, I want to look back at the game in Nationals Park on Tuesday. Trea Turner ($4,800) is rapidly becoming one of those MLB DFS players you want to snag every time he’s on the field.

I’m not sure how long this will last, but Trea is piling up points for your every night with either home runs, hits, runs, or stolen bases. Or, some combination of most of that. For that reason, I’m going to continue to find space in my lineup for Turner, until (if) there’s some regression.

While in D.C., and I tweeted about this recently, I can’t figure out why more MLB DFS players aren’t on Victor Robles ($3,200). The Nats top prospect has at least one hit in every game, and five 11 at-bats. Robles is similar to Turner in that he can get you points with big hits or base stealing. Again, I want him in my lineup right now, especially if he continues to be around 4% owned.

Also, while I already mentioned the Mets stack, I will continue to play Pete Alonso ($3,300) while he’s this hot and this cheap. Like Robles, Alonso is a top prospect who continues to rake, spraying seven hits onto the field, at least one per game in the first four games of the season. With the match-up against Urena, Pete likely has another double-digit point night.

So, with those guys in most of my lineups, I’m looking at stacking the Blue Jays, Marlins, and Padres for value. I’m also going to pick through the Astros, Angels, and Mets lineups for some big bats as well.

Chris Sale is a solid GPP play, even with his salary price-tag. He’s likely going to be low-owned and could bounce back with a better match-up. Scherzer and Verlander are obvious top plays every time they’re on the mound, but I also love Berrios and Freeland.

Berrios my be chalky, which makes Freeland a potentially better play. Either should have a good night with a less expensive salary than Max or Justin. With that summary in mind, here’s a look at a sample lineup for the Main FanDuel MLB slate on Tuesday, April 2nd 2019:                                                                       

P                Jose Berrios ($9,700)

C/1B         Pete Alonso ($3,300)

2B             Starlin Castro ($2,600)

3B             Brian Anderson ($2,700)

SS             Trea Turner ($4,800)

OF             Victor Robles ($3,200)

OF             Kole Calhoun ($3,000)

OF             Manuel Margot ($2,000)

UTIL          Michael Brantley ($3,700)

Remaining Salary: $0

Note: This is a recommended lineup after discussing our top options for today. You should use this as a guide, and provide your own input when building FanDuel MLB lineups.  We are not telling you, or selling you, to use this lineup.

Best of luck in your FanDuel MLB contests and stay tuned to Fantasy CPR for all your DFS news and analysis across MLB, NFL, PGA, and NASCAR this summer!