3 MLB FanDuel Studs to Target on Wednesday 9/29/21
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 well, too, 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.
Frankie Montas, SP, Oakland Athletics ($9,900)
Has anyone balled harder down the stretch than Frankie Montas?
Despite an epic, utter collapse from the Oakland Athletics down the stretch, Montas is certainly not to blame. Peep his last start: he dominated the Houston Astros by allowing one earned run over seven innings, whiffing eight batters in one of the toughest lineups in the league.
In the last month, he's continued that excellence. Over 31 innings pitched, he's struck out 33 batters while logging a 2.61 ERA and 1.16 WHIP. If there's a top-notch arm I want to bet on, it's Montas, especially facing a Seattle Mariners team with only a .314 wOBA in the last 30 days.
Byron Buxton, OF, Minnesota Twins ($4,000)
There are certain players who are just very challenging to roster in season-long, and Byron Buxton is one of those players.
But there is no denying or questioning the talent of the center fielder. He's blindingly fast (three steals over the last two weeks), and after smacking 16 long balls a season ago, he's continued that power surge with two more long balls this week while also including a scintillating .500 OBP.
The Minnesota Twins sport a healthy 5.08 implied team total against Casey Mize, so we want parts of this lineup -- and Buxton makes for a great play.
JD Martinez, OF, Boston Red Sox ($3,900)
Death. Taxes. J.D. Martinez launching bombs against southpaws. It's just science, fam.
With southpaw Zac Lowther on the mound, who's allowed 1.82 HR/9, we want all the exposure we can get. And while the Boston Red Sox may be a chalky play, the game will be inside a hitter's dream at Camden Yards (top-10 both in park factor and home run factor), and we need exposure against this pitcher.
This season, spanning 218 plate appearances, Martinez has been up to his usual tricks versus lefties, rocking them for a 110 wRC+ and a .199 ISO. Spend up, and you'll be happy.
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.
