FanDuel MLB Daily Lineups: April 3

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

Tuesday’s slate didn’t finish as expected, although we weren’t far off on many of our FanDuel MLB picks. In fact, the biggest problem we had was there are monster picks we just missed, especially Blake Snell.

While our favorite pitcher was Jose Berrios, who failed to deliver over 30 points even with a quality start and seven innings pitched, he only gave us four K’s. Snell, meanwhile, piled up 70 FanDuel MLB points with an amazing 13 strikeouts, getting the win and quality start in seven innings.

But, even while many panned Kyle Freeland as a poor play, we liked him and apparently for good reason. Yes, Freeland only lasted 4.2 innings, but he still had ten strikeouts in that short amount of time, piling up 38 points. Nowhere near Snell, but his just short of matching Scherzer and Ryu, who many touted.

On offense, ironically, the best way to go would’ve been the Phillies. That’s ironic because most of us faded their offense with Max on the mound. But, Scherzer didn’t last long, quickly amassing a high pitch-count in the short period of time. So if you had Franco, Segura, and Harper in your lineup, you had quite the night.

One big thing we need to continue to keep in mind when the Nationals are playing right now, is their bullpen. The Nats starters look solid, but their bullpen is off to a horrendous start and that is helping most offensive bats facing them. Maybe, we should consider the Phils bats again in the Early Only on Wednesday.

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: Thanks to a coastal storm blowing quickly off the eastern coast of the U.S., weather conditions are warming, and improving, for baseball on Wednesday.

However, Nats fans in D.C. may be worried about a strong wind blowing out to RF on Wednesday. That’s a condition we should consider in the Bronx and Cleveland as well. But, no delays or postponements are expected.

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

FanDuel MLB: Top Pitchers Early Only Slate

Fair warning, not only is the Early Only slate difficult for Wednesday, but the Main slate will look difficult as well. One of the biggest problems with each slate, is the great pitching talent not only at the top of the salary list, but also the cheaper options.

Yes, that presents a great opportunity to easily find top pitching with lower ownership. As I suspect ownership, especially in the Early Only slate, will be spread like peanut butter over the lineups. However, which is the best arm? That’s the tough part.

Aaron Nola ($10,700) is a strong consideration with the Nats bats cold in D.C. and their K-rate now at 34.0%, the highest in baseball right now. Given this lineups history, I suspect that’ll drop, but for right now they’re struggling, and Nola is the type of pitcher who can easily exploit that.

The problem with Nola, Corey Kluber ($10,200), and German Marquez ($10,000) is the salary. When you look at the rest of the lineup options and realize there’s not a lot of value in the middle-salary range areas, you notice the pay-up at pitcher forces you to make some risk-grabs later on in the lineup.

For that reason, I’m more inclined to grab Marquez as my top pitcher. Fortunately, he’s facing a Rays team who’s just behind the Nats with a 32.9% K-rate. Also, the Rays have a longer history of struggles at the plate compared to the Nats.

Kluber would normally be a great pick, but compared to the other two match-ups, the White Sox aren’t fanning as high a rate right now.

If you can’t stomach the position any of the top three put you in for the rest of the lineup, you need to take on some risk. Charlie Morton ($8,800) is the safest of the riskier options, but Luis Castillo ($7,600) gives you the highest reward. Given the Rockies 27.8% K-rate right now, I’m most inclined to pick Morton.

FanDuel MLB: Top Pitchers Main Slate

Better for offensive options, but the Main slate presents less options at the pitcher position. Gerrit Cole ($11,200) is a clear favorite, hurling ten K’s with a 0.83 WHIP in his first six innings of the season against the Rays, in Tampa.

Now facing a 23.4% K-rate Rangers team in Texas, closer to home, Cole is likely to replicate that success and around 50 FanDuel MLB points is a reasonable expectation. But, that’s also why he’s so dang expensive.

I don’t like Jameson Taillon ($8,900) or Miles Mikolas ($8,300) in Pittsburgh. They each aren’t off to great starts and face offenses who can exploit that issue. Jon Lester ($7,700) should have a tough time in SunTrust Park, and the rest of the slate below Lester’s salary is ugly.

So, I’ve effectively backed myself into playing Ross Stripling ($9,300) at home against the Giants, or Cole. The problem with Cole, like the Early Only slate, is that if you grab an expensive arm, the offensive options are split between very expensive and very cheap, so building a lineup is very risk with an expensive arm.

For that reason, I’d rather take the safer 25 to 35 points from Stripling and focus in on building the best offensive unit, I can, for the Main slate.

FanDuel MLB: Top Hitting Stacks Early Only Slate

While I’m not sure what we’ll get out of Anibal Sanchez yet, and boy did he look solid for the Braves last season. But, we do know the Phillies offense is smoking hot right now and we already pointed out the Nats bullpen is struggling, regardless of how well their starting pitching plays.

So, we have to consider stacking the Phillies. Bryce Harper ($4,600) is tempting, but you have to wonder if he has an emotional drain after last night’s boo-fest followed by a double and home run from Harper. I’m not sure the value is there with that pick today.

Instead, I’d focus on the value we could be getting from lefty Odubel Herrera ($2,200), who had a great night last night. Also, Jean Segura ($3,400) is a safe 6+ FanDuel MLB point pick with another solid shot at 20 points.

I also like the idea of stacking the Indians, at least the cheaper version, against Carlos Rodon. Yes, I know Rodon had a solid start, but historical metrics tell us there will be regression and the Tribe still have solid offensive players in this lineup.

But the rest of my lineup is focused on stacking the Twins and Reds. The problem is, who? Nelson Cruz ($4,400) is super expensive, and we just talked about how expensive offensive guys are a problem when you’re almost forced to grab a pricey arm. I also like Jorge Polanco ($3,800) against Homer Bailey.

But if you go with a guy like Morton, the safer pitcher play but with lower return, Nelson is affordable. If you get more expensive with pitching, you’re going to have to dig deeper into their lineup, hoping someone like Eddie Rosario ($2,900) finally wakes up.

Regardless of the arm in your lineup, I’m most focused on Jose Peraza ($3,200) and Eugenio Suarez ($3,500) in a hitters park this afternoon against Freddy Peralta and the Brewers.

FanDuel MLB: Top Hitting Stacks Main Slate

Similar to the Early Only slate, the Main slate has some great offensive stacking options but it’s nearly impossible to play the best players in those lineups if you’re also grabbing a top arm like Cole.

So, if you’re going with Stripling, you can more likely afford big bats from the Cubs and Braves game in SunTrust Park, as well as some red-hot Dodgers clubs. But, even with Stripling, the challenge will be which bats to grab.

For example, Kris Bryant ($4,300) and Javier Baez ($4,500) are very expensive. But Julio Teheran is the kind of pitcher who can allow Bryant and Baez to have big offensive nights, potentially piled up a combined 50 to 60 points between the two sluggers.

I also want to get some exposure to the Dodgers lineup, which is also expensive. Given the Dodgers hot offensive play lately, guys like A.J. Pollock ($3,700) are popular and fairly expensive. So, how do we make this work?

Well, we can find some value nuggets in each of the lineups we’re targeting. For example, Dansby Swanson ($2,400) is awfully cheap, likely because of his streaky play. But I’l take some shares of Dansby against Lester in a hitters park.

Also, a potentially sneaky stack for this slate is the Oakland A’s in their home ballpark against Nathan Eovaldi, who struggled against the mariners last week. Eovaldi is bound to swing back into a good place, his metrics just don’t make sense right now and the Mariners are playing at a level looking like another planet right now.

But, the Athletics have some consistent offense from super cheap guys like Mark Canha ($2,200) and solid upside from Ramon Laureano ($2,400). In fact, Laureano is one of my fantasy baseball sleepers this season. He’s the type of hitter who can pile up points quickly with home runs, stolen bases, and a solid spray of hits.

The Main slate offense is a tricky puzzle to put together on Wednesday, but at least we have some solid pieces you should consider, for a good start.

FanDuel MLB: Summary and Example Lineup for April 3rd 2019

Both the Early Only and Main slates on Wednesday give me a headache. They’re tough! Although, that could present great opportunity as the slates are challenging for everyone.

It’s nearly impossible to avoid paying up for a pitcher in the Early Only slate. The best value play is Morton, but if you don’t want that risk, consider Nola or Marquez as your top pitching plays.

For offense, we like stacking the Phillies, Twins, and Reds for this slate. And I may throw in a bounce-back game for Victor Robles, who’s one of the most underrated players for DFS MLB this early season.

For the Main slate, we have a similar problem but less great pitching to consider. I looked at every pitching possibility and essentially backed myself into picking either Cole or Stripling. Cole is the more difficult building piece, because I also love the Cubs and Dodgers offense, and they’re pricey!

I’m likely going to use some value from each position, or grab some value from the Braves as well. The sneaky value play of the night could be some Oakland A’s bats, maybe even allowing me to pay up for Cole. Again, I’m going to sneak another random pick in the Main slate, with Kolten Wong absolutely on fire right now.

With that summary in mind, here’s a look at a sample lineup for the Early Only and Main FanDuel MLB slates for Wednesday, April 3rd 2019:

Early Only                                                                                Main

P                German Marquez ($10,000)                           Ross Stripling ($9,300)

C/1B         Hanley Ramirez ($2,600)                                Willson Contreras ($2,700)

2B             Jose Peraza ($3,200)                                         Kolten Wong ($3,500)

3B             Eugenio Suarez ($3,500)                                 Kris Bryant ($4,300)

SS             Jose Iglesias ($2,100)                                       Dansby Swanson ($2,400)

OF             Victor Robles ($3,100)                                     A.J. Pollock ($3,700)

OF             Odubel Herrera ($2,200)                                 Mark Canha ($2,200)

OF             Nelson Cruz ($4,400)                                       Ramon Laureano ($2,400)

UTIL          Jorge Polanco ($3,800)                                    Javier Baez ($4,500)

Remaining Salary: $100                                                    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!