FanDuel MLB DFS Picks and Helper: Monday 8/12/24

Our daily fantasy helper is available every day to analyze FanDuel's main slate and give you a starting point when you're building lineups.

Be sure to incorporate our MLB DFS projections -- which are powered by numberFire -- into your research process. numberFire also has the latest starting lineups and weather as well as heat maps to help you find the best matchups.

Let's check out the top options on today's main slate.

Note: All MLB odds come from FanDuel Sportsbook. All stats come from FanGraphs and Baseball Savant unless noted otherwise.

MLB DFS Picks

Pitcher Breakdown

There are only three pitchers with five-figure salaries in tonight's eight-game main slate, but all three have plus matchups. There's some value toward the bottom, but I'm prioritizing high-end pitching tonight. FanDuel's main slate locks at 7:10 pm ET.

It's hard to identify what could go wrong with Luis Gil ($10,800) against the Chicago White Sox. Gil's gotten back on track after a mid-summer scare, pitching to a 1.93 ERA while averaging 40 FanDuel points per game (FPPG) over his last five starts. His K% is back over 30% during that stretch, offering a sizable ceiling against Chicago. The Sox are dead-last in wRC+ (72) and ISO (.127) versus right-handed pitchers. They have the seventh-highest K% (24.2%) against in that split.

Blake Snell ($10,200) is my favorite upside play tonight. Snell's been in Cy Young form of late, pitching to a 1.15 ERA with an eye-popping 36% K% across his last six starts. He's averaging 46.8 FPPG and has exceeded 65 FPs twice in that stretch. At Oracle Park -- Statcast's fifth-best venue for pitchers -- he'll face an Atlanta Braves lineup that's 11th in wRC+ (108) but has struck out at the 11th-highest clip (23.9%) against southpaws.

Others to Consider

• Chris Sale ($11,200 at SF) - Sale's averaging 42 FPPG for the season, but he's been held under that mark in three of his last four starts. Still, he ranks second among qualified pitchers in SIERA (2.78) and K% (32.6%). His salary is a lot to build around, and the San Francisco Giants are fifth in wRC+ (119) versus LHP, but there's still upside with their 23.5% K% against southpaws. He's projected for a slate-best 36 FPs, according to our MLB DFS projections.
• Davis Daniel ($7,000 vs. TOR) - I don't love any of the sub-$8K arms, but Davis Daniel is the closest thing you'll find to a value pitcher tonight. He's been pretty hit-or-miss through five MLB starts, peaking with a 58-FP gem in his debut but also failing to crack double-digit FPs twice. Still, his 21.1% K% isn't too shabby, and the Toronto Blue Jays are just 14th in wRC+ (98) against RHP. With a 26.1-FP projection, he's the top point-per-dollar value among pitchers (3.73 FPs per $1,000).

Stacks to Target

• New York Yankees (5.65 implied total) -- Ky Bush struggled against the A's in his first career start, and his 6.16 Triple-A ERA doesn't suggest much will change against the Yanks. With a lefty on the bump, prioritize at least one of Aaron Judge ($4,700; 223 wRC+ vs. LHP) and Juan Soto ($4,200; 180 wRC+). Turn to Gleyber Torres ($2,600: 110 wRC+) for some salary relief.
• Arizona Diamondbacks (5.26) -- Cal Quantrill is tentatively slated to start for the Colorado Rockies, so we can look to target his 5.10 road ERA with some D-backs bats. Ketel Marte ($3,800; 124 wRC+ vs. RHP) is the headliner here, but the snakes have plenty of quality bats for this split. Consider Josh Bell ($2,800; 107 wRC+), Joc Pederson ($3,100; 163 wRC+), or Corbin Carroll ($3,300; 106 wRC+) as value plays.
• Boston Red Sox (4.93) -- Boston's at home against Tyler Mahle -- a righty that's thrown just 30.2 innings the last two seasons but has a career 4.28 ERA. That'll play, especially when Rafael Devers ($3,700: 187 wRC+ vs. RHP), Wilyer Abreu ($3,200; 139 wRC+), and Masataka Yoshida ($2,900; 126 wRC+) have hit righties so well.
• Texas Rangers (4.57) -- Texas can take advantage of Fenway, too, especially with Brayan Bello on the bump for the Sox. Bello hasn't pitched as poorly as his 5.16 ERA would suggest, but it's not far off. Against a righty, I'm building around Corey Seager ($3,500; 156 wRC+ vs. RHP) with guys like Josh Jung ($3,200; 159 wRC+) and Josh Smith ($3,000; 117 wRC+).

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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.