3 MLB FanDuel Studs to Target for Friday 9/29/23

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 as they usually live up to expectations and have the ability to outclass their peers at their position.

Here are three studs to target for Friday's main slate.

All advanced statistics come from FanGraphs. All projections via numberFire.

Lance Lynn, SP, Los Angeles Dodgers ($9,500)

With the Atlanta Braves' win on Thursday evening, the Los Angeles Dodgers no longer have a shot at the National League's best record. However, L.A. still has a testy matchup on hand, closing out the 2023 regular season in enemy territory at the San Francisco Giants.

The Dodgers will hand the ball to Lance Lynn for Friday night. Lynn is making his 11th start since being traded to Hollywood from the Chicago White Sox early last month. Over that span, the right-handed hurler has compiled a 6-2 record while punching out 6.7 hitters per 9 innings.

Lynn will be in a favorable spot all-around against the Giants. With the game taking place at San Francisco's Oracle Park during the evening, most fly balls or would-be home runs will fall short of the warning track. According to Baseball Savant, the ballpark by the S.F. Bay has a park factor score of 95 this year, which is third-lowest in the Majors.

With a 4.28 SIERA at the moment, Lynn's stuff is not as electric as some others on this slate, but he just might have the easiest assignment. His current K-rate of 23.8% leaves more to be desired, yes. Still, San Francisco has been in a rut offensively for some time now.

In 2023, the Giants have gone down on strikes 9.23 times per game. Over the past two weeks, they are hitting just .189 as a team (.600 OPS).

On tonight's main slate, numberFire projects Lynn to be a top-five FanDuel DFS pitcher (31.3 points) versus the archrival Giants. With the rookie Keaton Winn opposing him for S.F., Lynn should be in the driver's seat this evening.

Juan Soto, OF, San Diego Padres ($4,200)

Doing all they can to keep their playoff hopes on life support, the San Diego Padres are somehow still in postseason contention. With only three games left for the Friars in the regular season, they are attempting to catch the Miami Marlins at N.L. Wild Card spot No. 3.

Well, San Diego has fired off 11 wins in their past 13 games to stave off elimination in 2023. Naturally, Juan Soto has been a perpetuator of this late-season success, personally carrying a booming 1.340 OPS over his last dozen contests -- and he has smashed five homers in that stretch.

Soto and the Padres will be wrapping up the 2023 regular season on the Southside, setting their sights on the Chicago White Sox. Righty Dylan Cease will take the hill for Chi-town, and he has been a quality arm this year behind a 4.12 SIERA. However, I am confident in Soto with a platoon advantage here; he holds a .555 slugging percentage versus righties this season. Also, Soto has hit one home run off Cease in only three head-to-head at-bats.

numberFire has Soto as the second-most productive FanDuel outfielder (15.4 points) on tonight's main slate, per their DFS projections. Considering that Soto and San Diego technically still have something to play for, they cannot afford to pull any punches.

We are all thinking it; if the Friars make the postseason tournament, they have the talent to go the distance. Regardless, the Marlins and Chicago Cubs would need to lose all remaining games this weekend, among other things, for that to be a possibility.

Jorge Polanco, 2B/3B, Minnesota Twins ($3,800)

Your 2023 AL Central champions, the Minnesota Twins seem to be turning on the juice at the right time, winning 10 of their most recent 14 games.

Despite missing time earlier in the year, switch-hitting infielder Jorge Polanco has been one of Minneapolis' brightest spots this past summer. On Friday, he and the Twins will essentially get to take batting practice against the Colorado Rockies.

Neither side has much to play for in this final series from Denver. The Rox will send southpaw Ty Blach to toe the rubber, which could play fortuitously for Polanco. Righties -- again, Polanco does both -- are hitting .349 (.941 OPS) versus Blach in 2023.

Polanco is yielding a .340 wOBA in 2023, which would be his third-best figure in that department through a decade of MLB action. Additionally, he has produced his top Statcast hard-hit rate clip this year (40.9%).

As alluded to, Polanco is better at the plate when hitting right-handed, which is what he will do against Blach. Polanco's OPS is .829 in the split compared to .775 when swinging lefty.

This translates clearly into his DFS projections at numberFire today. He is expected to contribute 15.9 FanDuel points, which is the highest mark of Friday's hitters.

With the Twins utilizing the Mile High elevation at Coors, numberFire's game projections show 6.91 estimated runs for Minnesota on Friday. As you'd imagine, that is the most imposing figure on tonight's board.

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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.