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Another Friday means another jam-packed MLB slate with a plethora of aces taking the hill. Shane Bieber, Lucas Giolito, Kenta Maeda, and Luis Castillo headline the pitching. Those four pitchers rank second through fifth in the league in swinging-strike rate which is among my favorite metrics for evaluating a pitcher's skill. With so many top-flight pitching options, ownership in cash games will be through the roof as no one wants to be left out in the cold if one of those talented pitchers goes off for a 60-plus point night on FanDuel.
On the hitting side of things, Mike Trout gets to play in Coors Field and leads the way with a crazy $5,000 price tag. That game has an over/under of 12 1/2 so we'll want a piece of that game, but there are plenty of other pitching matchups to attack. Nights like this will require a high score to compete so it is a good idea to stack players from the same team to maximize fantasy value.
I'll be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for the FanDuel main slate on 9/10/2020. Be sure to also check out all the MLB player news, including late scratches, and the projected and confirmed daily MLB lineups for each DFS slate. You can also read more DFS advice and lineup picks for sites like DraftKings, and other sports too.
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Lucas Giolito - CWS vs. DET ($10,800)
Of all the high-priced pitching options, Giolito has the best matchup and will be highly-rostered as a result. That being said, he also has the highest floor which is critical in cash games. Giolito is dealing this season with a 2.72 FIP, 34.9 percent strikeout rate, and a .185 batting average against. He'll face a woeful Tigers offense that is 29th in the league in on-base percentage vs righties and leads the league in strikeout rate. Giolito's upside is evident based on his two 13-strikeout performances this season and his matchup makes him a safe play because, at worst, he should rack up some strikeouts. Chicago is also -270 favorites, biggest favorites on the slate as of Thursday night, so Giolito is in a great position to pick up a win which could be the difference between him and the other top-tier arms.
Brandon Woodruff - MIL vs. CHC ($7,600)
Woodruff has been knocked around in his last two starts so his price is more palatable than the big arms on the slate making him my favorite play for GPPs. Woodruff isn't the flashiest arm but he's sporting strong numbers across the board including a 28.8 percent strikeout rate, .236 batting average against, and 3.59 FIP. He's increased his changeup and slider usage this season with great success as the pitches are generating whiffs at a 35.1% and 46.2% rate, respectively. A matchup with the Cubs looks tough at first glance, but the North Siders rank 19th in team on-base percentage vs right-handed pitchers.
FanDuel DFS Infielders
Ryan McBroom - 1B, KC vs. PIT ($2,200)
Perhaps it's the football currently on my TV, but a punt-play feels appropriate on a night with so many high-priced options to squeeze into lineups. McBroom only plays vs left-handed starters - so make sure he's in the lineup - but he should be in there tonight vs a mediocre lefty in Steven Brault. McBroom strikes out too much to trust in cash games but his .507 slugging percentage makes him the ideal boom-or-bust candidate to plug into GPP lineups for almost the bare minimum cost.
Tommy La Stella - 2B, OAK @ TEX ($3,200)
TLS has been a staple in my lineups since being acquired by Oakland as he's been batting atop one of the best lineups in the game and his price hasn't caught up to his production, especially at a weak position. La Stella has only struck out eight times this season, six fewer times than the next qualified hitter. He has more than twice as many walks as strikeouts and sports a strong .360 on-base percentage as a result. Texas has a bullpen game planned for Friday so La Stella should bat five times for a team with an implied run total north of five.
Jedd Gyorko - 3B, MIL vs. CHC ($2,700)
Coors Field gets all the love in DFS but its great tasting, less filling counterpart in Milwaukee is a good hitters park in its own right. Tonight, Miller Park will host Jon Lester who has gotten hit hard in his last two starts where he allowed 10 runs in just 8 2/3 innings. Gyorko, on the other hand, has been swinging a hot bat as he's 10 for his last 27 with four homers in that span. He's got better career numbers vs left-handed pitching and should be batting cleanup for the Brewers.
Erik Gonzalez - SS, PIT @ KC ($2,600)
Gonzalez is another sub-$3000 option in a favorable spot to put up fantasy points. He won't break the slate, but he's a solid, high-floor leadoff hitter with the platoon advantage against a mediocre lefty in Kris Bubic. Gonzalez scored at least nine fantasy points in seven of his last 10 games with two 20-plus point games. He's not known as a power hitter, but he is capable of going deep as he has three home runs on the season and is hitting the ball well with a 46.2 percent hard-hit rate that is in the top-12 percent of the league.
FanDuel DFS Outfielders
Christian Yelich - OF, MIL vs. CHI ($4,100)
As mentioned above, the Brewers are in a great spot to put up runs tonight and if that's the case I want Christian Yelich. His .213 batting average is ugly, but he's still getting on-base at a .347 rate and has strong batted-ball data to suggest he's on the cusp of turning things around. He's making hard-contact 50.5 percent of the time and is near the top of the league in expected wOBA on contact and average exit velocity. Yelich has solid reverse-splits as he's actually hitting lefties just fine this year with a .325 batting average through 46 plate-appearances vs southpaws.
Whit Merrifield - OF, KC vs. PIT ($3,300)
Merrifield has good career numbers vs lefties and faces another mediocre one tonight in Brault. The Royals' leadoff hitter makes contact on 89.7 percent of pitches swung on in the strike zone and is facing Brault who barely generates any whiffs. Merrifield has a great eye at the plate and rarely strikes out so he'll either reach via base on balls, or Brault will have to come into the strike zone where Merrifield should be able to hit the ball hard.
Raimel Tapia - OF, COL vs. LAA ($3,200)
We couldn't go this whole time without squeezing part of the Coors game, could we? Tapia will be a popular play for good reason, but the Rockies' new leadoff hitter is in a great place to do damage in what Vegas projects as a slugfest. He'll face Angels starter Griffin Canning who is giving up a .519 expected slugging percentage this season. Tapia should be a staple in cash-game lineups or part of any Rockies stack.
