This is a going to be a fun Friday night of DFS action. It's an ace party! We've got several teams number one guy on the bump tonight and a handful of other quality pitchers to choose from. Fourteen games on the Main slate, with just the Pirates at Cubs taking place this afternoon.
Even with all the strong pitching options we have on the board tonight, there are still quite a few teams with lofty run projections over five runs. That list starts with the Astros (5.4), followed by the Diamondbacks, Blue Jays and Rockies all at 5.3, the Red Sox (5.2) and Cardinals (5). As for moneyline favorites, the Red Sox and Chris Sale are enormously favored (-290), followed by the Astros (-196), Nationals (-191), Blue Jays (-189) and the Dodgers (-175) round out the notables.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for FanDuel on 6/8/18. The lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. You can also read more DFS lineup picks for DraftKings and other sports too. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me up on Twitter @kpLuch.
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FanDuel DFS Pitchers
Chris Sale - SP, vs CWS (11,500)
You think Chris Sale might be a little fired up to face his old squad again? Even without that narrative, this is a pretty dreamy matchup, and due to subpar (by his standards) performances, we get him at what I would consider a relative bargain price tonight. In looking through his subpar starts, there isn't anything alarming in the peripherals - the velocity remained the same, he still pounded the strike zone, and his opponent hard hit percentage was just 21%. Tonight, he'll take his 1.0 WHIP and 12.8 K/9 and contest a team whose projected lineup owns a 29% strikeout rate and just a .280 wOBA split. The ceiling is high for Sale here, and he's my favorite option on the board.
Garret Richards - SP, at MIN ($8,100)
Richards has been impressive at times this season - in his last start, he racked up 9 strikeouts and threw a season high 101 pitches - but the results throughout 2018 have been up and down. He's a volatile pitcher, so we're only targeting him in tournaments here, but there is no doubt he has upside and could end up being a strong point-per-dollar play. Dating back to last season, he owns a 1.1 WHIP, 0.8 HR/9 and an impressive 10.2 K/9. He squares up with a Twins projected lineup that has a 27% strikeout rate but a .320 wOBA split against right-handed pitchers this season.
Also Consider for Cash games: Stephen Strasburg - SP, vs SFG ($10,400)
Also Consider for Tournaments: Jacob deGrom - SP, vs NYY ($10,800); Vince Velasquez - SP, vs MIL ($8,800)
FanDuel DFS Infielders
J.R. Murphy - C, at COL ($3,000)
Murphy seems to have made some serious adjustments to his swing in the off-season, and the results (albeit in a small sample size) have been pretty impressive. He's a great value here priced at just 3K, hitting fourth in the Diamondbacks order, and getting a major park uprade playing at Coors Field. His ISO split now sits at .200 and over the past week, he's had a 41% hard hit rate and a 54% fly ball rate.
Mitch Moreland - 1B, vs CWS ($3,500)
With so many top pitching options tonight that appear to be "must play", it will be crucial to find players that wont break the bank with their price tag and also offer upside and good lineup context. Moreland fits the mold well, as he gets a good matchup and his hit right-handed pitching to the tune of a .354 wOBA and .254 ISO.
Ian Kinsler - 2B, at MIN ($3,200)
Speaking of moderate price tags, value and upside - Kinsler also fits this mold. The leadoff man will get a park upgrade tonight and face a struggling pitcher in Lance Lynn. Over the past two weeks, Kinsler has been seeing the ball well and making great contact, producing a 40% hard hit rate.
Jake Lamb - 3B, at COL ($3,900)
Considering the stadium upgrade and the pitching matchup, I'm surprised Lamb isn't priced up even more. The lefty matches up well with right-handed pitching, producing a .347 wOBA and a .206 ISO over the past 12 months - and in the last two weeks he's smashing the baseball (45% hard hit rate).
Marwin Gonzalez - SS, at TEX ($2,500)
Marwin is my super-saver play of the infield. He's ridiculously cheap, gets a good matchup, lineup context and a park upgrade. He brings a pretty good .362 wOBA split to the dish and lately has some impressive batted ball data. Over the past 11 games, he's posted a 46% hard hit rate and a 30% line drive rate.
FanDuel DFS Outfielders
Curtis Granderson - OF, vs BAL ($2,500)
Granderson is a great value that I love deploying against fastball-throwing right-handed pitchers, and he gets that matchup tonight against Andrew Cashner. The .243 ISO split is what I'm most attracted by, and also the fact that his leadoff spot in the order and .346 wOBA split create a nice points floor.
Dustin Fowler - OF, vs KCR ($2,700)
Keeping the value + upside plays rolling with Dustin Fowler. The lefty is too cheap today, and matches up well with Jakob Junis. His batted ball data is insanely good of late (53% hard hit rate) and he boasts a .203 ISO split.