Daily Fantasy MLB Pitchers for FanDuel and DraftKings - 4/11/17 Here's where you can find some recommendations for tournament pitchers target for FanDuel and DraftKings. Find our main set of cash game picks here. Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB optimizer, our NBA Optimizer, and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! First time with MLB? Be sure to read our free MLB and NBA Ebooks on building lineups, general strategy and more. We've got you completely covered.   Pitchers Jeff Samardzija FD 8600 DK 8900 Opponent - ARI (Ray) Park - @SF FD - 33.45 DK - 22.03 You almost have to pay up at pitcher on this slate. We touched on Carrasco, Matt Harvey, and Jameson Taillon in the main picks article. If you're insistent on paying down, Tyler Skaggs, Joe Musgrove, and Robbie Ray are the only guys I would even consider (in GPP's). Still, they hold a ton of risk. Jeff "Shark" Samardzija has a fantastic match-up in an even better ballpark. The Diamondbacks aren't good against righties, ranking bottom 10 in 2016 with a .311 team wOBA. If you remove the games in hitter-friendly Chase Field, that wOBA dips to .297 against right-handers. PNC Park is a top 3 pitcher's ballpark and Samardzija has pitched well there in his career. Shark was above league-average against both sides of the plate in 2016, though much better against righties. With 5-6 big D-Backs bats being right-handed, Samardzija should be able to slice through this lineup. David Peralta and Jake Lamb are the 2 guys to worry about most and if Samardzija gets past them, I think he has a top 2 finish of the night. I like Shark is all formats and he should go pretty under-owned. Tyler Skaggs FD 7100 DK 7800 Opponent - TEX (Hamels) Park - @LAAFD - 28.42 DK - 18.83 One of the first things I do when looking at a slate is to take a look at the Vegas lines. Last night, I was astonished to see the Angels favored over the Rangers. Cole Hamels is on the other side and with an 8 over/under, you can't ignore Skaggs Skaggs was a huge prospect that was supposed to break onto the scene in 2014. He hurt his arm and had to get Tommy John surgery. He returned last year as a guy with a high K rate to match his monstrous BB rate. He only had 10 starts last season, so the sample size isn't nearly enough to completely judge anything. In those 10 starts, 19 of his 23 earned...

Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings - 4/11/17   Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB optimizer, our NBA Optimizer, and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! First time with MLB? Be sure to read our free MLB and NBA Ebooks on building lineups, general strategy and more. We've got you completely covered.   Pitcher Carlos Carrasco FD 9900 DK 9800 Opponent - CHW (Shields) Park - @CLE FD - 36.44 DK - 23.9 Here we have perhaps the best reason for dipping into an all-day slate, because reliable starting pitching is looking somewhat scarce on the night shift. Carrasco's got virtually everything you'd want in your starter. The only knock on him is health, and since he's a much better bet to make it through six innings as opposed to six months, the risk here is minimal. He's been at a K/inning or better each of the last three years, and 2016 was the first time in that span his FIP crept north of 3.00 (still solid at 3.32). Meanwhile, the White Sox are in the middle of a total rebuild, leaving the offense with only a few pieces that inspire anything resembling fear. The ballpark is a mild concern, as it does favor offense, but Carrasco's career numbers at Progressive Field are only marginally worse than his overall marks. All told, it might not have all the ingredients of a no-brainer on some slates, but for all-day cash games on this one, Carrasco is the clear choice. Jameson Taillon FD 8000 DK 8400 Opponent - CIN (Davis) Park - @PIT FD - 32.67 DK - 21.41 So, compared to what we saw a couple of days last week, the pitching on this slate isn't actually that bad. There's nobody outside of Carrasco who qualifies as an ace, but we're got a handful of usable dudes -- Jeff Samardzija at home, Cole Hamel at the Angels, etc. So it's interesting that the projection system has identified Taillon as its top play of on the night slate for overall points. He's a former elite prospect, and he turned in solid work in his first big-league action last season after missing two seasons due to injury. The K totals weren't exactly eye-popping (20.3 K%, 7.36 K/9), but he's still just 25 years old, so there's room for growth in that area, and at these prices we don't really need him mowing guys down. Early lines have the Pirates installed as a -175 favorite in this one with an 8-run total, so the expectation is that he'll be...

Daily Fantasy MLB Pitchers for FanDuel and DraftKings - 4/10/17 Here's where you can find some recommendations for tournament pitchers target for FanDuel and DraftKings. Find our main set of cash game picks here. Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB optimizer, our NBA Optimizer, and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! First time with MLB? Be sure to read our free MLB and NBA Ebooks on building lineups, general strategy and more. We've got you completely covered. Pitchers Tyler Glasnow FD 4400 DK 7500 Opponent - CIN (Finnegan) Park - @PITFD - 32.51 DK - 21.43 On DraftKings, I think you almost have to pay up at pitcher and find ways to pay down elsewhere. On FanDuel, I think Tyler Glasnow is a very interesting GPP option. He's sitting at $4400, which is cheaper than Charlie Blackmon, Nolan Arenado, and Bryce Harper. Glasnow is one of the most promising prospects in baseball. He did struggle last season and ended up in the bullpen, but this is a guy who will be a front-end starter in the next 3 years. This match-up with the Reds is an interesting one, as the lineup is way diverse. Guys like Billy Hamilton and Jose Peraza are atrocious hitters and strikeout a lot, but can get on base and wreak havoc. With Joey Votto in the 3-spot, the Reds are tough if either of those guys are on. After Votto, there are a lot of strikeouts to be had. Duvall, Schebler, and Cozart all hold 24%+ K rates and don't walk much. Glasnow held a 9.61 K/9 in his short 2016 stint, which definitely shows a ton of promise. While Glasnow is far from safe, he has a ton of upside for his price on FanDuel. In cash games, go ahead and target one of the top dogs. Charlie Morton FD 6400 DK 6600 Opponent - SEA (Paxton) Park - @SEAFD - 27.39 DK - 18.18 James Paxton FD 7700 DK 8400 Opponent - HOU (Morton) Park - @SEAFD - 30.52 DK - 20.11 If you're playing the all-day slate, both of these guys are in play. Charlie Morton was surprisingly good last season, sporting a 9.87 K/9 and a 3.09 xFIP. Morton is a quality pitcher and has been extremely consistent for about 25 straight starts. He faced these same Mariners just a week ago, pitching 6 innings and giving up 2 earned runs with 4 strikeouts. The Mariners are a pretty good offense but lack the ability to put together big innings. With a few guys who strikeout a lot, the...

Daily Fantasy MLB Baseball Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings - 4/10/17 Welcome to Monday Baseball! We have 2 separate slates on our hands, starting at 1 and 7 Eastern. The Mariners-Astros game isn't on either of these, so I won't be touching on them. If you're playing an all-day slate, both offenses are in play. We have a few strong pitchers on our hands today with a couple offenses in great spots. Let's get to the top options at each position! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to comment below or join out live chat. You can also find me on Twitter @VarneyDFS. Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB optimizer, our NBA Optimizer, and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! First time with MLB? Be sure to read our free MLB and NBA Ebooks on building lineups, general strategy and more. We've got you completely covered.   Pitcher Early Taijuan Walker FD 7500 DK 8700 Opponent - SF (Moore) Park - @SF FD - 27.37 DK - 18.19 Chris Sale is on this slate, so it's going to be interesting to see how ownership ends up. He still probably has the highest floor and definitely the highest ceiling, so you can obviously go there. We just think Taijuan Walker is better in terms of point per dollar. This early slate has pretty decent pitching as a whole, so I'm finding myself wanting to pay up for the most talented hitters. Walker will certainly help you do that, sitting nearly $4k cheaper than Sale. I think the D-Backs have a pretty good chance of scoring some runs against Matt Moore, as they are lethal against lefties. That should help Walker secure a win and let him pitch comfortably. The Giants are obviously a tough offense to face, ranking in the top 8 against right-handed pitching in 2016. With that being said, AT&T Park is extremely tough to hit in. It ranked dead last in 2016 in run production and home runs. Walker was a huge prospect and has shown promise and potential. In 2016, he sported an 8 K/9 with a 29% hard contact rate, which are both above average numbers. He also saw his SwStr%(Swinging Strike) rise on both his fastball and cutter, which are the pitches he relies on to close at-bats. Walker is going to have another productive season and should be in line for a pretty solid start today. Keep in mind, this is the Giants and a young pitcher. Things can definitely go awry. I will be more apt to play...

Daily Fantasy MLB Pitchers for FanDuel and DraftKings - 4/9/17 Here's where you can find some recommendations for tournament pitchers target for FanDuel and DraftKings. Find our main set of cash game picks here. Now’s your chance to get DFSR PRO, which will give you access to our MLB optimizer, our NBA Optimizer, and our new player lab! Get started for free by clicking the button below. START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW! First time with MLB? Be sure to read our free MLB and NBA Ebooks on building lineups, general strategy and more. We've got you completely covered. Pitchers Lance McCullers FD 8900 DK Opponent - KC (Karns) Park - @HOUFD - 35.8 DK - 0 The Astros finish out their weekend set with the Royals today sending Lance McCullers out there to try and salvage a win out of the series. McCullers had a roller coaster spring, but got the regular season off to a very good start with a win over the Mariners on Tuesday. In six strong innings, he allowed only 1 earned run in 5 hits and 2 walks while also picking up 7 K's. Kansas City will be throwing Nate Karns, who probably shouldn't even be pitching for a Major League team, but he is. So the 'Stros should be able to muster enough run support to get McCullers the win. As long as he is able to duplicate his first start, while building on the number of K's he could pay dividends, while coming in at a price that allows you to fit some pricier bats in as well. Carlos Martinez FD 9200 DK Opponent - CIN (Feldman) Park - @STLFD - 35.72 DK - 23.4 Carlos Martinez takes the hill for the Cardinals today, against the Reds in St. Louis. Martinez was phenomenal in the season opener on Sunday against the Cubs picking up where he left off in 2016. in 7.1 innings, CMart held the Cubs high powered offense scoreless on 6 hits, walking none and fanning 10. The only detraction was that he didn't get the win due to his closer not being able to hold the lead in the ninth. Last year Martinez ended the season with a .818 WHIP and 12.3 K's per 9. The Reds are only striking out 19.4% of the time to start the season, but they're also only scoring 3.5 runs per game. I'd be willing to roll Martinez out in cash or tournament contests. Noah Syndergaard FD 11100 DK Opponent - MIA (Volquez) Park - @NYMFD - 38.6 DK - 25.27 We finish out here with Thor. Noah Syndergaard comes in as a risk/reward type of play, following him leaving his opening day...