3 MLB FanDuel Value Plays for Tuesday 8/29/23

Finding low-salary production is one way to get a leg up on the competition in MLB DFS.

Here are some value plays to target on FanDuel for today's main slate.

Advanced statistics courtesy of FanGraphs.

Cole Ragans, P, Kansas City Royals ($6,600)

Cole Ragans was the centerpiece of a trade that sent Aroldis Chapman to the Texas Rangers. It's already looking like the Kansas City Royals did extremely well in that deal.

Ragans has been close to lights out since joining the Royals. In six starts with Kansas City, he has a 33.3% strikeout rate and a 2.08 ERA. On the season as a whole, he has good advanced numbers. His expected ERA (xERA) is 3.16, and he has a 43.4% ground-ball rate.

He'll get a great matchup tonight against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Pittsburgh has the sixth-worst wRC+ against lefties this season (94) and also strikes out at the sixth-highest clip (24.8%) in the split.

The Pirates have an implied team total of just 3.90 runs tonight. Ragans is one of the best low-salary pitchers we've had available to us in a while, and he could be extremely popular on this slate.

Davis Schneider, 2B, Toronto Blue Jays ($2,800)

A key to DFS is to not overreact to small sample sizes. However, when the player comes at a nice value, you can be a bit more lenient.

That's the case for Davis Schneider. He's done nothing but hit since being called up to the Toronto Blue Jays. He has five home runs in 48 plate appearances along with a .569 wOBA and a 275 wRC+.

It's too early to put him in the Hall of Fame, but Schneider was a good hitter in Triple-A this season, putting up 21 homers and nine stolen bases to go along with a .420 wOBA and a .278 ISO.

Schneider will get a good lineup spot for the Jays tonight, and they'll face MacKenzie Gore. Gore has gotten smacked around this season, allowing opponents to barrel the ball 12.0% of the time. He's also sporting a 5.13 xERA.

Obviously, Schneider won't continue this level of ridiculous hitting, but at $2,800, you could definitely do worse than putting him into lineups tonight.

Max Kepler, OF, Minnesota Twins ($2,700)

Max Kepler is known by some as the German Babe Ruth. Whether you subscribe to that nickname or not, he's definitely a good play tonight.

Kepler is having the second-best season of his career, behind his 2019 campaign that saw him hit 36 homers. He has 21 this season, to go with a .345 wOBA and a .238 ISO.

With the platoon advantage, Kepler's wOBA goes up to .354, and his ISO is .251. He will have that advantage in Tuesday's matchup.

The Minnesota Twins will face Gavin Williams at home tonight. Williams has struggled against lefties this season, allowing a .352 wOBA and .209 ISO. He also allows more fly balls (39.0%) than ground balls (37.3%), which is good news for a power hitter like Kepler.

Batting third for the Twins, Kepler should be in a good position to be able to score fantasy points tonight, and his salary is more than reasonable.

Looking to build some MLB DFS lineups? Check out FanDuel’s daily fantasy baseball lobby to see all the offerings for today’s slates.

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.