3 MLB FanDuel Studs to Target on 4/2/18

Charlie Morton, P, Houston Astros

Price: $8,500

This isn't in the price range we'd usually consider to be "stud" pitchers, but today's main slate is a bit of an unusual one on that front as Morton is the highest-priced arm. He's also well worth the salary.

Morton wasn't a high-strikeout guy for most of his career, but he showed some big changes in his four games in 2016, posting a 26.8% strikeout rate that crushed his previous career-high of 18.9%. His showed in 2017 that the change was no fluke, posting a 26.4% strikeout rate while his 8.1% walk rate was also below his career average.

That strikeout rate was buoyed by a 10.9% swinging strike rate that sits well ahead of his previous career-best of 8.1%, while his average pitch velocity was also way up from where it had sat for most of his career.

The Baltimore Orioles made for a decent matchup for righties last year, ranking 17th with a 95 wRC+ and striking out at a top-10 rate, and without many changes to their lineup this year, our models have Morton as the day's top-projected arm by a solid margin.