FanDuel DFS – MLB Lineup Picks, Sleepers and Advice for 6/5/2015

It’s very challenging sometimes to make the transition from Thursday’s slate to Friday’s slate. On Thursday, your selection of games is limited, especially if you don’t include any afternoon games. Fast forward one day, and usually every team is playing a late game (like this Friday). It’s a challenge trying to find the right players after the number of possibilities nearly doubles, but that’s what makes the great FanDuel players standout from the so-so players.

On June 5^th, 2015, we have a rare occurrence of seemingly zero aces to pick from. A lot of mediocre and less-than-mediocre pitchers should mean a lot of runs. That makes finding the right pitcher even more important, and it makes finding good hitters a necessity. Let’s get to it!

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Offenses to Target for FanDuel DFS

Miami Marlins (vs. Eddie Butler, RHP)

This is an obvious one. You could go with the Rockies in a stack as well, but for the sake of giving advice that will actually help, I will combine them with the Marlins’ section. Both teams get a right-handed pitcher on Thursday in the thin air of Coors Field. The Dodgers showed us earlier in the week just why everyone picks on these types of games. Hitters like Justin Boar, Giancarlo Stanton, Marcell Ozuna, Charlie Blackmon, Troy Tulowitzki, Carlos Gonzalez, and Nolan Arenado all seem like great plays to me. Find the right stack and you could be sitting pretty by the end of the night.

Arizona Diamondbacks (vs. Jon Niese, LHP)

This is another game where I wouldn’t mind stacking either team. However, the D-Backs lineup really stands out when you put it up against a lefty pitcher. Along with the obvious Paul Goldschmidt, players like A.J. Pollock and Yasmani Tomas seem to be great plays on Friday.

Honorable Mentions: Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants

DFS Starting Pitchers to Target for FanDuel

Jake Odorizzi (SP, TAM) - $8,600

Yikes. If Odorizzi is my favorite “safe” pitcher of the night, we’re really in for some interesting scores huh? The Tampa Bay pitcher has quietly been succeeding in a very balanced approach. He seems to hover right around the six-strikeout mark every time he goes out, and he limits his walks to two or less for the most part. Odorizzi has the safest opponent and park out of the top pitching options Friday (if you want to call them that), so he gets the nod as my cash game play. One of the downsides, however, is the potential lack of run support from an inconsistent Rays lineup.

Kyle Gibson (SP, MIN) - $6,500

On a normal night I would never touch Kyle Gibson. However, this is not a normal night if you haven’t yet noticed. Gibson has been playing with fire so far this season, but he has certainly shown glimpses of a promising pitcher. His two most effective outings were against the slumping Chicago White Sox. Although he doesn’t get to matchup with them again, he does get a similar team in the Milwaukee Brewers. Without Ryan Braun, this lineup is certainly one that allows pitchers to get away with poor pitches. Swing-and-miss players like Carlos Gomez and Adam Lind might help Gibson rack up a handful of strikeouts on the way to a win against the putrid Kyle Lohse.

DFS Infielders to Target for FanDuel

Buster Posey (C, SFG) – $3,700

Posey really hasn’t showed us the elite hitting skills that he usually does season after season. However, it’s still early, and June is usually a good hitter’s month. Maybe Jerome Williams will bring out the best in the former NL MVP.

Jose Abreu (1B, CWS) - $3,700

After missing a couple of games with a finger ailment, Abreu came back in a big way with a homer on Wednesday. He gets a lefty in converted reliever Kyle Ryan on Friday, and I expect, like Posey, Abreu will begin to heat up and show that immense power we saw last year.

Joe Panik (2B, SFG) - $3,100

I still feel Panik is being undervalued in a lot of fantasy owners’ eyes, but hey that just means more for us. He is hitting over .300 and is contributing in every possible hitting category. Williams is no match for the red hot second baseman.

Evan Longoria (3B, TAM) - $3,100

Remember when this guy was good? Like I mean really, really good? Well that raw power is still in there somewhere. Trying to find the games where it will show could be tough, but J.A. Happ seems to bring out the best in everybody, so maybe we should take a gamble on Longo.

Troy Tulowitzki (SS, COL) - $4,800

Usually I try to leave out obvious players, but I wanted to stress how much you need to have Tulo in your lineups on Friday. He is in the middle of a great hot streak right now, and Coors Field plus Tom Koehler does not sound like an antidote to me. Don’t overthink this one.

DFS Outfielders to Target for FanDuel

Giancarlo Stanton (OF, MIA) - $5,300

My reasoning for including Stanton is the same as it was for Tulo. A player like this does not need the good split matchup to be a must-play option. Stanton has been hitting home runs left and right, so it should be fun to watch one of his trademarked bombs travel through the thin air. You simply have to find room for Stanton on Friday.

Brett Gardner (OF, NYY) - $3,300

With a slow-pitching Jared Weaver on the mound, the Yankees will be pulling a lot of balls towards that short porch in left field. It could very well be Gardner who lands one in the bleachers. On top of that, he has steal potential too.

Will Venable (OF, SDP) - $2,400

If you’re going to spend big on guys like Tulo and Stanton, you’re going to need some bargain players. The Padres have been hitting better suddenly, and Venable has been a big part of that. He gets the young righty in Raisel Iglesias on Friday, and he could very well add to his small home run total at the home-run-friendly Citizen’s Bank Park.

Good luck with your FanDuel and DFS lineups RotoBallers!

DFS Q&A with Max Petrie @ 6PM on 6/5

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