3 FanDuel MLB Studs to Target for Monday 7/17/23

In daily fantasy baseball on FanDuel, rostering the best high-salaried studs is an important aspect of building lineups.

For hitters, we're looking for guys with big numbers, strong matchups, and players around them who 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 these high-salary picks playing such a big role in your lineup, you can't afford to miss on these guys, so let's take a look at a few top high-salary plays for Monday's main slate.

Jesus Luzardo, SP, Miami Marlins ($10,300)

In his third season with the Miami Marlins, Jesus Luzardo is enjoying a career year. Through five separate campaigns in the Majors, Luzardo has a lifetime skill-interactive ERA (SIERA) of 3.80. However, in 2023, he has that figure down to an efficient 3.39. Simply, Luzardo's ability to punch out opposing hitters is driving his season yet again -- he currently carries a prolific strikeout rate of 29.1% on the year.

On Monday evening, Luzardo will face a frustrated St. Louis Cardinals side at Busch Stadium. Per numberFire, Luzardo is projected to produce 32.9 FanDuel points. That is the third-highest total among all pitchers on what is a slate without any truly great pitching options.

Over Luzardo's past four games, he has struck out at least eight hitters in every contest while earning two wins along the way. With Luzardo getting added rest from the recent All-Star break, I believe he'll be in a favorable position to labor deep into tonight's game.

Shohei Ohtani, OF, Los Angeles Angels ($4,500)

It's another day ending in "y", so considering Shohei Ohtani for your DFS lineup is probably a wise move. For the moment, he is still a member of the Los Angeles Angels -- that schedules him for a high-profile matchup on Monday night with the New York Yankees in Anaheim.

The Halos will face Yankee starter Luis Severino, who is grappling with one of his worst MLB seasons to date; Severino has pitched to a 5.05 SIERA in 2023 despite carrying a career 3.54 figure in that department. As a right-handed hurler, he will surrender the platoon advantage to Ohtani.

Not only is Ohtani having a historic season at the plate, but he has clobbered 19 home runs since the beginning of June. He has also gone yard in back-to-back games to add to his MLB-leading total of 34 long balls.

Against right-handed pitching, Ohtani carries a jaw-dropping 1.073 OPS in 2023. We can feel great about Shohei any day but especially against righties.

Among all batters on Monday's slate, Ohtani is the third-ranked hitter at a projection of 15.3 FanDuel points, per numberFire.

Adolis Garcia, OF, Texas Rangers ($4,200)

Adolis Garcia has improved in the batter's box in each of his seasons with the Texas Rangers, and he is currently one of the key cogs perpetuating the best offense in baseball. The Rangers boast the top run differential in the Majors (+159) right now while Garcia has collected 80 RBI on the year -- another figure that paces the MLB.

On Monday, Garcia is set for a home game against the Tampa Bay Rays and 2023 AL Cy Young hopeful Shane McClanahan -- who currently carries +500 odds to win the award, per the Cy Young odds at FanDuel Sportsbook. Regardless of the tough matchup, Garcia has thrived against southpaws all year, boasting a lofty .847 OPS in the split in 2023.

numberFire's model has Garcia as the third-best outfielder on Monday's slate, pegging him to score 14.1 FanDuel points. Not only is Garcia dangerous against left-handed pitching, but Texas carries the second-best team weighted on-base average (wOBA) versus lefties (.372).

All signs point toward the Rangers matching up well against McClanahan, and as has been the case all season, Garcia has the opportunity to play a huge role.

The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author’s advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.