MLB

3 MLB FanDuel Studs to Target on Monday 5/2/22

Matt Kupferle  —  @MKupferle May 2nd, 2022
On a slate where runs could be hard to come by, Alex Bregman stands out on the Astros. Who else should we think about tonight?

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, as well, 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.

Pablo Lopez, SP, Miami Marlins ($10,500)

This slate is lacking elite pitching, and that's not exactly a bold proclamation when you take a quick peek at the options.

Among the high-salaried arms, we are essentially forced to pick from Pablo Lopez and Chris Bassitt. Let's parse through why Lopez makes so much sense, and a lot of it has to do with his outstanding opponent, the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Snakes are not good at the plate; they are actually downright horrid. They rank second-worst in team wOBA (.275), and their 25.2% strikeout rate checks in as the fifth-worst in the league. On the other hand, Bassitt gets an Atlanta Braves that whiffs at a healthy clip but also has plenty of pop and a solid team wOBA.

We project Lopez for a slate-best 33.2 FanDuel points, and with his 27.1% strikeout entering this matchup, he makes a ton of sense.

Alex Bregman, 3B, Houston Astros ($3,900)

If I told you that the Houston Astros were sporting the best implied team (4.45 runs) on the day, you'd probably throw up in your mouth a little bit, right? That is unfortunately the best option we have on a very small main slate.

Now, the good news is that the 'Stros face Marco Gonzales, who's currently sporting a 5.87 FIP on the season. That ugly number is due to 2.57 HR/9 allowed this season, and while there's time for these numbers to course-correct themselves, opposite-handed righties are bashing him for a .638 slugging percentage on the year.

With such poor choices at your disposal, don't overthink this one, and get Alex Bregman into your lineups. Bregman has a .351 wOBA and .203 ISO so far this year.

Ty France, 1B/2B, Seattle Mariners ($3,500)

We are going to stay in the same game, but let's head to the opposite side of the matchup and dive into Ty France and the Seattle Mariners.

Jake Odorizzi should be on the mound against the M's, and he's had problems throughout his career stopping same-sided righties. He's fired a 4.60 FIP while allowing 1.42 HR/9 and a .423 slugging percentage in 606 1/3 innings pitched.

France, meanwhile, has been pretty even against both lefties and righties in his career, including a solid 126 wRC+ against righties. You should able to afford France at a reasonable salary.


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.