3 MLB FanDuel Studs to Target on Monday 4/11/22
Just like in other sports, the focal point of your daily fantasy baseball lineups will be your high-salary studs. These guys take up by far the biggest chunk of your cap space, but they also offer the highest ceiling. And in the case of pitchers, the high-salary options typically come with the highest floors, too.
For hitters, we're looking for guys with big numbers, strong matchups, and with players around them that are likely to produce, as well, increasing our chances for runs and RBI. For pitchers, we want big strikeout numbers, while the ability to go deep in a game and pick up a win is also valuable.
With your high-salary picks playing such a big role in your lineup, you need to be right on these guys, so let's take a look at a few top-end options you can count on to anchor your lineup today.
Huascar Ynoa, SP, Atlanta Braves ($8,600)
For many fantasy analysts, there was no doubt that the Washington Nationals were likely to struggle offensively. While other-worldly hitter Juan Soto still remains, it's an offense that chugs at a perfunctory level at best.
It's still early, so it could have been just a rough opening weekend. But the Nats currently rank dead last in team wOBA (.204), and they are striking out at a very healthy 28.2% rate.
That makes using opposing hurlers a very tantalizing option, which makes us turn to Huascar Ynoa of the Atlanta Braves.
Spanning 91 innings in 2021, Ynoa recorded a very healthy 26.9% strikeout rate, pegging him as the second-strongest hurler, per our model. We project the Braves' righty for 27.8 FanDuel points, making him a great play.
Brandon Lowe, 2B/OF, Tampa Bay Rays ($3,600)
The Tampa Bay Rays may have struggled at the dish in their first few contests, but that's bound to pick up a bit. If it does, leadoff hitter Brandon Lowe is sure to be at the center of the outburst.
The Rays face Paul Blackburn of the Oakland Athletics, who allowed 1.88 home runs per nine (HR/9) last season despite a 50.0% ground-ball rate. While Lowe sits as basically a league average hitter against same-sided arms (102 wRC+), he's a beast against righties (146).
All of this adds up to Lowe being an excellent option, especially at a tough to roster spot like second base.
Bryce Harper, OF, Philadelphia Phillies ($4,200)
The Philadelphia Phillies offense started off the first weekend with a bang. They rank ninth in the league in team wOBA, and their .231 isolated power (ISO) is one of the league's best marks.
At the center of that lineup is none other than NL MVP Bryce Harper. He seems to consistently be overlooked by the community, but let's recap last season -- a .431 wOBA, 101 runs, and 35 long balls. He's definitely no slouch at the plate.
When we peak at our lineup tracker, the Phillies boast a robust 5.13 implied total today, and you'll want some exposure to this Phillies lineup. Facing Taijuan Walker, who allowed 1.47 HR/9 a season ago, Harper may be ready to go off.
Matt Kupferle is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Matt Kupferle also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username MKupferle. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
