3 MLB FanDuel Studs to Target on Wednesday 8/10/22
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 on FanDuel.
Justin Verlander, P, Astros ($11,300)
Even if rain wasn't a potential issue for Sandy Alcantara ($11,200) tonight in Philly, Verlander would still be my top guy. Verlander has more strikeout juice than Alcantara (25.5% strikeout rate to 23.3%), and he has a much, much better shot to get a win (-330 to +110).
It's pretty nuts what JV is doing a year after Tommy John in his age-39 campaign, pitching to a 3.36 SIERA. There are a few warts in his profile -- namely a 42.4% fly-ball rate -- but he should be able to have success against the Texas Rangers, an offense that holds a slate-worst 2.81 implied total.
We project Verlander for 33.7 FanDuel points, tops on the slate. There's enough value offensively that it's not super hard to use Verlander and also get exposure to Coors (11.5-run over/under).
Paul Goldschmidt, 1B, Cardinals ($4,500)
Speaking of Coors, Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado ($4,300) are fantastic plays today versus Kyle Freeland. They're both up there in salary, but you can argue that their salaries aren't high enough.
Against righties this year, Freeland has punched out just 16.9% of batters. He should be in a world of hurt against the St. Louis Cardinals and the likes of Goldy, Arenado, and Tyler O'Neill ($3,500). The Cards' 6.31 implied total says as much.
Goldschmidt is absolutely destroying left-handers this year, slugging his way to a .576 wOBA in the split with a 41.1% fly-ball rate. He and Arenado project as the top two bats, per our model, and both offer sky-high upside in this spot.
Ronald Acuna, OF, Braves ($3,700)
There are a few guys who have a claim as the night's top non-Coors bat -- Ronald Acuna, Yordan Alvarez ($4,300), and Jose Ramirez ($4,000) to name a few. All three are excellent options. I'm taking Acuna.
In the midst of a somewhat disappointing season by his lofty standards, Acuna is starting to raise his game. Across his past six outings, he's put up a .494 wOBA with a homer and 2 steals. He tallied three hits, three runs, and a steal last night at Fenway, and he can keep the good times rolling tonight against Nick Pivetta.
Pivetta looked like a possible breakout hurler for a hot minute, but he's reverted back to the same old Pivetta. His season-long fly-ball rate is 42.9%, and in July, he pitched to a 4.99 xFIP while permitting 2.25 dingers per nine.
The Atlanta Braves' 5.05 implied total is the night's top clip outside of Coors, and Atlanta's high-salary bats likely won't be as popular as the Cards' top sticks.
I love Acuna in this matchup and at this salary.
