FanDuel MLB Daily Lineups: June 4th Main Slate – Strasburg or Snell?

Welcome once again to the FanDuel MLB Daily Lineups post for your DFS MLB optimal lineups. This post is focused on both the Main slate for Tuesday, June 3rd 2019.

I may not have had a FanDuel MLB Daily Lineups post for you on Monday, but boy do I hope you played that Main slate. I stupidly picked Aaron Nola at pitcher. He pitched only 5.1 innings and gave up six earned runs. Fortunately, he did get me to 13 points with five strikeouts. But, in theory I shouldn’t have cashed in any format. But guess what…I did!

My other move was to stack the Astros and Mariners I could afford. So I had Chirinos (18.7 FanDuel MLB points), Bregman (21.4 points), Josh Reddick (18.7 points), and Mallex Smith (21.7 points).

With some other minor plays, that pulled me to 118.7 total FanDuel MLB points which somehow allowed me to pull in 5 times what I invested. Most slates wouldn’t allow that much cash return with that outcome, but it seems like many top players, sharks, or…whoever typically wins…was on the sidelines yesterday.

With a massive full MLB schedule on tap for Tuesday, that likely won’t be the case again tonight. We have a long list of very good pitchers to consider, and a long list of bad pitchers to target for offensive stacks. It’s likely there will be many great plays out there and we know we’ll have hardly anyone playing DFS MLB on the sidelines this Tuesday.

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: We should see every game played on Tuesday night, but there are possible delays in some locations, like Saint Louis. The delays would mostly be related to thunderstorm risk, but should be brief.

With that said, I’m going to focus on all games for the Tuesday night main slate, regardless of weather and location.

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

FanDuel MLB: Top Pitching – Main Slate

Picking a pitcher is frankly difficult for Tuesday. We have three pitchers over the $11K salary mark, and you can make a darn good argument for any of these three. Blake Snell ($11,000) has an awesome 34.9% K-rate this season, the second highest of all starting pitchers in this slate, and his match-up is fantastic.

Snell is facing the Tigers, in Detroit, who also happen to have a 26.4% K-rate, second highest in baseball. And against lefties like Snell, their K-rate stays the same. So, the Tigers are fanning at a high rate, regardless of the arm-type on the mound.

But, there’s an awfully good argument for Stephen Strasburg ($11,500) on Tuesday night as well. At first glance, Stras may not look as attractive as Snell. He’s got a lower 31.3% K-rate and is facing a slightly worse White Sox team with a 26.0% K-rate.

But there’s a big difference at play between Snell and Strasburg this season. Blake is struggling to get more innings beyond around six per game. So his quality start points are almost always at risk. As are wins, if the Rays offense doesn’t hold up their end of the bargain.

Meanwhile, Strasburg is pitching nearly seven innings per game and is racking up more wins for the Nationals than any other starting pitcher. So, while he’s $500 more expensive, and already at a price-point making offensive stacks difficult, he’s likely still worth top dollar. Stephen is your best shot at 50+ points with just one pick.

If you need to find a cheaper pitcher, there are several on the mound, unfortunately they’re just not set up with great match-ups. You could maybe make a case for Luis Castillo ($9,300) in Saint Louis, against the Cardinals, but I don’t love that match-up as much as Stras and Snell.

If you’re going to pay down at this position, make a bigger splash with more risk. The Padres offense can be hit-or-miss, as can Jerad Eickhoff ($7,300). He only has a 21.9% K-rate, but the San Diego offense is fanning at a 27.1% rate, meaning Jerad is likely a solid sleeper for a ton of points on a low salary. He just needs to keep the run-level down. Especially for GPP’s, he’s worth the risk!

FanDuel MLB: Top Hitting Stacks Main Slate

I struggled with offense almost as much as the pitcher position. Sure, there are some very clear plays, but they’re also quite expensive. I continue to try to find ways to keep guys like Juan Soto ($4,200) and Anthony Rendon ($4,400) in my lineup.

Both Soto and Rendon are hot right now, they’re facing a high-heat pitcher who gives up over two home runs per game (only four starters on Tuesday have as high a rate), and they’re playing in their home ballpark where they’re finally starting to win baseball games.

I likely have to give up one of those spots, and it’s most likely going to be Rendon to Eugenio Suarez ($3,600). We’re saving $800 on a bat also likely 3rd in the lineup, but also facing a pitcher who’s struggling to keep the ball in front of the outfield fence.

In fact, the more I looked at Genesis Cabrera, the more I figured he was worth risking more Reds offense against the Cardinals hurler. Guys like Yasiel Puig ($2,700) hitting clean up continue to make the lineup affordable.

Speaking of pitchers with high ERA’s and home runs per nine inning rates, Ryan Carpenter is struggling for the Tigers. The Tigers are hosting a Rays lineup who can be offensive efficient, while still maintaining relative cheap bats for FanDuel MLB.

Assuming he’s behind the plate on Tuesday, Mike Zunino ($2,500) could be a great right-handed bat against lefty Carpenter. I also like the potential value we’d get from Willy Adames ($2,500) at SS and Guillermo Heredia ($2,100) in the outfield, assume they’re both in the lineup.

Lastly, don’t look now but Brian Dozier ($2,800) is starting to do his summer-heat up for the Nats. He’s a righty facing another righty, but he has a home run and six RBI’s in the last six games. His batting average is starting to jump too. Dozier’s power allows him to be a sneaky shot at 20+ points this week.

So while the Nationals, Reds, and Rays have some expensive bats, their value plays make it feasible to pull in some of the tops bats, while still getting points from the cheaper picks.

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

There is a long list of top pitching talent for the Tuesday night Main slate. I’ve narrowed down my favorite two pitchers to Strasburg and Snell, for this slate, and you can almost flip a coin at that point.

However, the further you dig into the metrics of each pitcher, the more it seems like Strasburg is worth the additional salary. Castillo is another top K-rate pitcher, and a bit cheaper. But if you’re going to look for value, I’d rather have Eickhoff against the Padres.

With some decent shots at 50+ points in the pitcher position, I’m now looking to find offensive stacking. Eickhoff makes playing the top bats from the Nationals, Reds, and Rays difficult. But we can at least negotiate some bit hitters like Rendon, Soto, and/or Suarez into our lineup. That’s thanks to the plethora of value in all three lineups, you just need to pick the right combination.

With that summary in mind, here’s a look at a sample lineup for the Main FanDuel MLB slate for Tuesday, June 3rd 2019:

Main

P               Stephen Strasburg ($11,500)

C/1B        Mike Zunino ($2,500)

2B             Brian Dozier ($2,800)

3B             Eugenio Suarez ($3,800)

SS             Willy Adames ($2,500)

OF             Juan Soto ($4,200)

OF             Adam Eaton ($3,100)

OF             Yasiel Puig ($2,700)

UTIL          Guillermo Heredia ($2,100)

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!