3 MLB FanDuel Value Plays to Target on Thursday 7/7/22
With production being highly variable on a night-to-night basis, daily fantasy baseball plays a bit differently than other sports.
As a result of this, the primary method of selecting hitters is to "stack" certain teams in good spots to produce. Most of the top stacks on a given day come with hefty salaries. In addition to that, a vast majority of pitchers with the upside to win tournaments are high-salaried hurlers.
Therefore, crushing your value plays -- whether it be a pitcher unexpectedly piling up strikeouts or a low-salaried batter racking up points -- can be the secret sauce to taking down a tournament.
Which budget options stand out today on FanDuel?
Spencer Strider, P, Braves ($8,600)
Spencer Strider offers a whole lotta upside at a modest salary.
Strider has produced at least 43 FanDuel points in four of his last five starts, including a whopping 58 last time out in an 11-strikeout effort against the Cincinnati Reds. It was Strider's second 11-punchout game in his past four starts. The dude is electric.
For the year, Strider owns a 37.7% strikeout rate, 16.2% swinging-strike rate, and 2.50 SIERA. Whew.
A matchup with the St. Louis Cardinals is a tough one, and that keeps Strider a tier or two below Dylan Cease and the slate's other elite pitchers. But, Strider notched 43 FanDuel points against the stout offense of the Los Angeles Dodgers two appearances ago, so he can deliver in this spot.
We project him for 31.0 FanDuel points, the sixth-most overall and the most among any pitcher with a salary under $9,700. He has upside for more if he's dialed in.
Jordan Luplow, OF, Diamondbacks ($2,300)
Jordan Luplow is our top point-per-dollar bat tonight (as of early Thursday).
Luplow hit leadoff the last time the Arizona Diamondbacks saw a lefty, and they're slated to face Austin Gomber in this one. Against southpaws this season, Luplow owns a .367 wOBA and 41.0% hard-hit rate.
Gomber is getting pummeled by right-handed hitters this year, allowing a .394 wOBA in the split with a meager 17.2% strikeout rate. He's permitted 1.96 jacks per nine to righties.
We project Luplow for 12.5 FanDuel points, and he's a fantastic one-off salary-saver if you're not up for full-on stacking Arizona (4.51 implied total).
Gavin Sheets, 1B/OF, White Sox ($2,300)
The Chicago White Sox are on the stacking radar against Beau Brieske.
Brieske, a righty, has struggled to a 4.91 SIERA and 15.7% strikeout rate this season. He's permitting a 43.9% fly-ball rate and 1.82 dingers per nine. Chicago's 4.77 implied total is the fifth-best of the slate, and Gavin Sheets is an economical way to get exposure to it.
Sheets is projected to hit fifth, and his multi-position eligibility is handy. With the platoon advantage this season, Sheets has registered a 46.3% fly-ball rate, and he's swinging it well lately, posting a .371 wOBA so far in July.
Our model has Sheets scoring 11.5 FanDuel points and rates him as the third-best point-per-dollar bat.