MLB

3 MLB FanDuel Studs to Target on Thursday 7/7/22

Matt Kupferle  —  @MKupferle Jul 7th, 2022
Dylan Cease has monster upside and can thrive in a delicious matchup with the Tigers. Which other high-salary plays should you plug in?

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.

Dylan Cease, SP, Chicago White Sox ($10,400)

Is there anyone running much hotter than Dylan Cease of the Chicago White Sox?

Cease has surged into the AL Cy Young conversation thanks to just an absolutely brilliant campaign. He's logged a 34.3% strikeout rate in 86 1/3 innings pitched, and he has punched out 10-plus batters in two of his last three outings.

The matchup really couldn't be much better today. He faces a Detroit Tigers team that ranks second-worst in team wOBA and last in isolated power (ISO) -- all paired up with a 23.5% strikeout rate, the eighth-highest.

We project Cease for a slate-leading 38.7 FanDuel points. He's the top option on the bump.

Dansby Swanson, SS, Atlanta Braves ($3,800)

After a bit of a rough first month, Dansby Swanson has been straight slammin' at the dish. Facing rookie southpaw Matthew Liberatore, he could add to some gaudy season-long totals tonight.

Liberatore has some ugly metrics this season we can't possibly ignore, although the sample size is small. He's posted only a 29.4% ground-ball rate this season. It's no surprise that it's led to 1.74 HR/9.

Swanson has been other-worldly against left-handers this year, logging a 165 wRC+, .958 OPS, and .235 ISO. That's pretty decent.

With the Atlanta Braves rocking a 5.62 implied team total, Swanson can have a huge night. Get him in your lineups.

C.J. Cron, 1B, Colorado Rockies ($4,400)

Does everyone recognize how good C.J. Cron has been?

Since July 1 of last season, his numbers are MVP-caliber: 660 plate appearances, 37 homers, 126 RBI, .933 OPS and 136 wRC+. In a few words, he's been outstanding.

And with a matchup on tap against veteran southpaw Dallas Keuchel, who is well past his prime, Cron could go nuts. Keuchel has been horrific this season, logging a 5.75 FIP and has allowed what's on pace to be a career-worst 1.52 HR/9.

Roster Cron if you've got the 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.