3 MLB Studs to Target for Tuesday 8/1/23

Hitting on value plays in MLB DFS on FanDuel can make or break a lineup on any given day, but locking in strong performances with some of baseball's star players provides the backbone for any good DFS lineup.

These stars rightly come with high salaries, but for good reason -- they usually live up to expectations and sometimes even outclass the rest of their competition.

Tuesday's slate features 28 of Major League Baseball's 30 teams, meaning you'll need to get the top end of your DFS lineups right if you want to triumph in any of FanDuel's contests. Here are three studs to target for DFS contests today.

All advanced statistics via FanGraphs. All projections via numberFire.

Spencer Strider, P, Atlanta Braves ($11,300)

Atlanta Braves ace Spencer Strider carries the highest salary on the slate today, but for good reason -- the star right-hander is averaging 44.1 FanDuel points per game this season. His rate of 14.56 K/9 is the best in the majors this year, and his 2.54 skill-interactive ERA (SIERA) is tops in baseball by a substantial margin. Kevin Gausman's 3.00 SIERA ranks second. Strider has separated himself from the second-place pitcher by the same margin that separates Gausman from the 10th-place pitcher (Jesus Luzardo).

In a matchup with a Los Angeles Angels offense that has the sixth-highest strikeout rate against righties (24.2%), Strider can deliver the goods. Per the MLB odds at FanDuel Sportsbook, his strikeout prop is at 9.5 (-130 on the under), and he's a +110 favorite to lead all pitchers in Ks tonight.

The Angels made the surprising decision to push their chips in for the 2023 season in support of star Shohei Ohtani's world-class performance, but the additions of C.J. Cron and Randal Grichuk shouldn't be more than Strider can handle tonight.

Jose Ramirez, 3B, Cleveland Guardians ($4,100)

Jose Ramirez may have had a slower-than-usual start to his season, but he has reestablished himself as one of the premier third basemen in fantasy baseball this summer. No other third baseman in the league can top Ramirez's 3.9 FanGraphs' WAR this year. Among those who play the hot corner, only Isaac Paredes has bested Ramirez's 133 wRC+ this season, too.

His projections on numberFire -- which have him notching 1.2 hits, 0.7 runs, 0.3 HR and 0.7 RBI -- amount to 13.1 FanDuel points against the Houston Astros today, which ranks third-most among third basemen on today's slate.

Normally, facing Astros lefty Framber Valdez can be a daunting task, but Ramirez should be up to the challenge. His 10.0% strikeout rate is the third-best this season while his .509 slugging percentage is the third-highest at the hard-hitting third-base position. This makes him a tough matchup for Valdez, whose 46.5% hard-hit rate allowed ranks fourth-highest among qualifying pitchers this season. Playing at hitter-friendly Minute Maid Park shouldn't do Valdez many favors this afternoon, either.

Freddie Freeman, 1B, Los Angeles Dodgers ($4,400)

The Los Angeles Dodgers draw a soft matchup against the worst team in baseball, the Oakland Athletics. The A's have won just 30 games so far this season and have fielded one of the worst pitching groups in the majors.

A's pitchers have allowed a league-worst 1.52 WHIP this season and 1.42 HR/9, the third-worst rate in the league, despite playing in a pitcher-friendly home stadium. Their staff has put up the second-worst SIERA (4.79).

Oakland hasn't officially announced a starter yet -- Ken Waldichuk and his 5.30 SIERA might be the most likely starter -- but we can count on the Dodgers to put runs on the board regardless of which hurlers the A's trot out tonight.

Freddie Freeman is well-equipped to punish the Athletics' weak pitching group. Only Shohei Ohtani has put up a better wRC+ than Freeman's 165 mark this season. He was on fire in the month of July, as well, with the fifth-best wRC+ (201) in the majors in that time. Freeman has a $4,400 salary on FanDuel for today's contests and is projected to score 14.7 FanDuel points, the ninth-most among all batters on the slate.

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.