Matt Carpenter of the Cardinals is 15 for 25 vs. Reds starter Homer Bailey. (Getty)
During the course of my daily research for choosing my FanDuel lineup, I came across a couple of batter-pitcher matchups I absolutely needed to take advantage of.
No matter the cost, I was getting these players and I’d worry about filling the rest of my lineup afterwards. You’ll see below the players I needed to have (I say “he was a must-have” or something of that nature). And I got them.
It took some creativity, frugality and a little bit of extra stat digging, but I came up with a lineup I feel comfortable with. And by comfortable, I mean finish in the top half of a FanDuel 50/50 contest and collect some money.
The below lineup is for an all day contest on FanDuel.
FanDuel uses the following parameters: You get a $35,000 cap to spend on 9 players – 1 pitcher, 1 catcher, 1 first baseman, 1 second baseman, 1 shortstop, 1 third baseman and 3 outfielders.
Hitters Scoring:
Single = +1 points
Double = +2 points
Triple = +3 points
Home Run = +4 points
Run Batted In = +1 points
Run = +1 points
Base on Balls = +1 points
Hit By Pitch = +1 points
Stolen Base = +2 points
Out = -.25 points
Pitchers Scoring:
Inning Pitched = +1 points (fractional scoring per out)
Strike Out = +1 points
Win = +4 points
Earned Run Allowed = -1 points
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Here are the best FanDuel lineup picks for April 18:
Pitcher
Jeff Locke has already shut the Brewers down once this season. (Getty)
Jeff Locke, Pirates, $6,800, vs. Brewers
Locke (1-0, 3.00 ERA) is not going to blow it by anyone, so you’ll be missing out on strikeout points, but the Brewers offense is in shambles right now. Locke has already shut them down once this year and in his past 4 starts vs. Milwaukee, the left-hander has given up just 7 runs in 26 innings.
Catcher
Victor Martinez has made a habit of crushing Chris Sale pitches. (Getty)
Victor Martinez, Tigers, $4,000, vs. White Sox
Martinez is one I needed to have in my lineup for Saturday. He absolutely owns Chris Sale – 15 for 29 with 3 home runs. V-Mart has a minor knee issue that kept him out of the lineup, but he’s expected to play Saturday. If he isn’t active, go with Mets backstop Travis D’Arnaud.
First Base
Kendrys Morales can be had for a cheap price and he’s hitting .351. (Getty)
Kendrys Morales, Royals, $2,800, vs. A’s
Morales is quite inexpensive for the nearly 5 fantasy points per game he’s been giving. I needed to find some bargains today and Kendrys totally falls into that category. He’s batting .351 with 5 multiple-hit games, including one Friday. Kind of wanted Freddie Freeman of the Braves, but he was out of my price range. But he kills knuckleballer R.A. Dickey of Toronto.
Second Base
Brian Dozier fares very well vs. Indians starter Danny Salazar. (Getty)
Brian Dozier, Twins, $3,100, vs. Indians
Indians starter Danny Salazar has mostly had success vs. the Twins, but he makes Dozier look like Pete Rose. Dozier is 7 for 11 with a homer against Salazar, so that’s a matchup you need to exploit. Dozier was one of my targets.
Shortstop
The Astros’ Jed Lowrie. (Getty)
Jed Lowrie, Astros, $3,400, vs. Angels
Lowrie has done nothing special against C.J. Wilson of the Angels (4 for 15), but he always finds his way into my lineup. I haven’t been overpaying for shortstops this season and it’s been working, so Lowrie gets the call again.
Third Base
Matt Carpenter, Cardinals, $4,200, vs. Reds
Carpenter was a must-have for Saturday despite that lofty $4,200 price tag. That’s because he’s an unbelievable 15 for 25 (.600) vs. Reds starter Homer Bailey. The law of averages say Homer should get the better of Carpenter soon, but, whatever. I’ll believe it when I see it.
Outfield
Arizona’s A.J. Pollock has two consecutive multiple-hit games. (Getty)
Andrew McCutchen, Pirates, $4,700, vs. Brewers
McCutchen was another guy I had on my wish list for Saturday. His track record vs. Milwaukee starter Kyle Lohse (15 for 44 with 3 HRs and 11 RBIs) is reason enough. But here are two more: 1) Lohse looks horrible right now, and 2) McCutchen has been slumping too long, but appears he’s slowly coming out of it.
A.J. Pollock, Diamondbacks, $3,200, at Giants
I needed cheap, productive outfielders and Pollock fits that bill. He homered Thursday then had his second consecutive multiple-hit game Friday. He’s heating up and should be an inexpensive source of fantasy points.
David DeJesus, Rays, $2,800, at Yankees
DeJesus is the riskiest, but could be the most rewarding pick of the day. DeJesus has been crushing right-handed pitching and gets one today in Masahiro Tanaka, whom he has 2 hits in 3 at-bats against. DeJesus is a New York City native and tends to put on a good showing whenever he’s in the Bronx.
Total Lineup Salary: $35,000 of an allotted $35,000
Each day, we’ll give you the rundown of who to pick for a winning lineup, so stay with us the entire season.
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