MLB

FanDuel Pitching Primer: Monday 6/14/21

Matt Kupferle  —  @MKupferle Jun 14th, 2021
Lance Lynn has been brilliant in 2021, and with a matchup against the Rays, he makes a ton of sense tonight. What other options should we consider?

In daily fantasy baseball, success starts with nailing the starting pitcher spot in your lineup.

When compared to hitters, pitching performance tends to be much more predictable and stable throughout the course of the season. You know what you're getting from a top-level ace when you roster him: probably a dominant effort with only one or two implosions per season. In contrast, even the game's best hitters have days at the plate when they go 0-for-4.

As a result, lineup construction should begin with the starting pitcher. Which pitchers should you consider on today's main slate?

High-Salaried Play
Lance Lynn, Chicago White Sox

vs. Tampa Bay Rays
FanDuel Salary: $11,0000

Lance Lynn is drawing a matchup with the Tampa Bay Rays, who strike out 27.0% of the time against righties this season with a 103 wRC+.

Lynn's Chicago White Sox have money line odds to win of -102, which makes the win a bit of a coin flip. However, the good peripherals int he matchup make for a good floor based on Lynn's strikeout potential.

Lynn has notched a 3.63 SIERA on the season with a 27.7% strikeout rate of his own. Our projections have him generating 32.9 FanDuel points, third-most of the slate, as well as 6.6 strikeouts.

Mid-Salaried Play
Adam Wainwright, St. Louis Cardinals

vs. Miami Marlins
FanDuel Salary: $8,000

Any time the Miami Marlins are on the slate, they do deserve a little bit of our attention -- from an opposing pitcher perspective, at least.

The Marlins have been one of the league's worst teams: they rank in the bottom five of the league in terms of team wOBA, strikeout rate, isolated power, and wRC+.

Now, consider Adam Wainwright's metrics at Busch Stadium. These aren't exactly small samples given that it spans 1,200 innings, but Wain-O has logged a 2.85 ERA over those home innings. That's not a fluke.

If you're looking at a medium-salaried play, Wainwright makes a ton of sense, and he comes in second-best in our projections tonight at 33.7 FanDuel points.

Low-Salaried Play
Vladimir Gutierrez, Cincinnati Reds

At Milwaukee Brewers
FanDuel Salary: $7,100

If you need to save some coin in order to stack some bats, one intriguing option is Spider Neck, a.k.a Vladimir Gutierrez, of the Cincinnati Reds.

While Gutierrez has shown the same control and command issues that he logged in the minors, he's also shown some of that gorgeous swing-and-miss stuff as well, culminating in a 31.3% strikeout rate at his most recent stint in the minors.

Now consider the inept Milwaukee Brewers offense: against righties, they've logged a dreadful 25.8% strikeout rate and only a .291 team wOBA. At a very reasonable price point, Gutierrez and his projected 3.58 value are quite the play.


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.