After looking at all of the tools available of FantasyAlarm, the example lineups page should be used to help validate your thoughts, as well as help you consider some options that may not have been on your radar for the slate. In addition to the example lineups, below you will find a breakdown of possible routes to take when building your MLB lineups tonight. While we are focused on FanDuel and DraftKings, this breakdown can be used for all sites. Please use our live chat features to share your thoughts, and receive any feedback leading up to first pitch. Good luck!
Top Pitching Targets
I always start my lineup building with pitching, as it’s the most important part of building your lineups. I tend to look for pitchers who I believe can pitch six innings, strike out six, and give up no more than two runs. Feel free to set up whatever parameters you want to, but should set yourself some type of “floor” when it comes to how you select your pitchers.
As mentioned in the playbook, the pitching prices are extremely different between sites, and the cases could be made to roster roughly five to six of the starters if playing cash games tonight. I also think the slate is best for gpp’s, and worth trying out entering multiple lineups if that isn’t your main approach.
With having to choose just one pitcher on Fanduel, I would lean towards Johnny Cueto, Jon Gray, or Carlos Martinez. I’m a little high on C-Mart than the field and Vegas, but Cueto and Gray are the two favorites up against teams with the lowest projected run totals. The pricing is bunched together on FanDuel, which makes for roughly a personal preference play. I can also see users having some Felix and Sanchez exposure as well for a discounted price.
On DK, the decision becomes on if to pay up for C-Mart or not. Cueto will likely be highly owned, and can see that #2 pitching spot with some spread out ownership. Ideally, you can fit in the two top priced pitchers, but most will likely go with one in the $8K range. Feel free to go cheap with Clayton Richard or Doug Fister in order to really load up on bats, but not sure how necessary that route is tonight.
Thoughts from the FantasyAlarm Team: Our pitching coach today, Tom Vecchio has Gray as his top value arm taking the mound tonight, with Carson Fulmer as his wild card cheap play. Fulmer can be a sneaky play tonight, but Toronto can also put up a 14 spot again.
Our projections has Gray barely above C-Mart as the top evening pitcher, with Sean Manaea checking in as the third highest. Sanchez and Fulmer take the bottom spots, but aren’t as low as where Tillman was the other night.
Top Hitting Targets
On FD, I think avoiding a catcher outside of stacks due to the deep first base options is the way to go. On DK, the catcher spot is wide open, and best to target someone from a team that you already have players in your lineup from. Yadier Molina is the preferred option if paying up, while the playbook, as well as our projections, likes Mark Marjama as the punt play. That’s a nice $1.7K price gap if looking to save some salary to pay up elsewhere.
Everyone will like Justin Smoak once again at the first base spot tonight, but can see some Abreu sprinkled into lineups. On DK, if looking to go different, Carp works well is targeting the Cardinals tonight.
Second base is likely similar to the catcher spot, where it may be best to take a player to pair up with a teammate or two of his. If paying up, DJ LeMahieu is likely the play, but Travis and Panik are both cheap leadoff second base options. Travis may get a bump with Solarte not starting. Panik is best priced on FanDuel tonight. As mentioned in the playbook, I’m a Kolten Wong punt fan if looking to go cheap at second.
If playing cash games, plug and play Josh Donaldson at third. I can see a handful going with Nolan, but better off trying to beat your opponents in another position. Nolan Arenado is a beast, and best for a Rockies stack, or in the utility spot on FD (Always place the player in the later start game in the utility spot).
Shortstop is a tricky one tonight as Paul DeJong, Elvis Andrus, and Tim Anderson will all receive some shares in cash games tonight. I can see others sneaky in Trevor Story or Marcus Semien, but likely best to stick with one of the three mentioned, and the plan of pairing players from the same team up together.
OF is a mess tonight, as everyone loves Charlie Blackmon, but his price tag is $1K higher than the field on FD. He’s in a better spot than Kris Davis, but there are plenty of value options in the OF to consider. Dexter Fowler and Curtis Granderson will likely be the more popular routes, but if your gut tells you different, go with that. It worked with Preston Tucker last night, and our tools have some thoughts on it could be tonight.
Thoughts from the FantasyAlarm Team: Our hitting coach today, Jon Impemba, is big on the Blue Jays , and the Cardinals vs Brewers full game stack tonight. He likes the pairing of Smoak and Granderson from the Jays, and likes the bomb potential with Jose Martinez paired up with Fowler and Matt Carpenter from the Cards. If with him on C-Mart getting hammered, Christian Yelich and Travis Shaw are his targets from the Brewers side.
Our projections have Charlie Blackmon leading the field, with a surprise Tommy Pham ahead of Josh Donaldson on FD. Fowler and Granderson are the top value options. While DK is the same at the top with Blackmon and Donaldson, Avisail Garcia, Howard’s sneaky stack play, sits in the fifth spot, while his teammate Nicky Delmonico sneaks in over Granderson and Fowler in the value department. Finally, the projections agree with my playbook idea to go Marjama over Chirinos to save the salary.
GPP’s:
If playing gpp’s, your best approach is stacking. Pick a game, or two teams that you think will blast off, and go all in on them. Yes, entering your cash lineup, or another type of lineup can cash in a gpp, but if looking to finish in the top 1%, you need to hit with a stack. Of course, Toronto will be the popular team tonight, but as mentioned in the playbook, a case can be made for most teams tonight. After the Blue Jays, the Cards vs Brewers game looks to be a popular route, with the A’s and Rockies as sneaky targets. I’m not on the A’s as much as Vegas is, but also with the chat room as second guessing Vegas placing the COL/SD game with a seven run game total.
Thoughts from the FantasyAlarm Team: Our stacking coach today, Howard Bender, is high on the White Sox and Rockies as stack options tonight. I his Nolan, DJ, Story, Desmond stack option, but as mentioned in the playbook, substituting Desmond for Hosmer is a sneaky way to make yourself different. Same with his Iannetta in place of Story or Desmond play.
Final Thoughts
FanDuel: Cueto, Donaldson, Nolan, Fowler, and Granderson leaves you $3.4K for the other four spots. Adding Blackmon Blackmon leaves you $2.9K, but still affordable.
DraftKings: Cueto, Gray, Marjama, Donaldson, Fowler, Blackmon, and a top three priced SS leaves you with a little over $4.2K for the final three spots.