FanDuel MLB DFS Picks and Helper: Friday 8/2/24

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

With most of Friday's top arms pitching before the main slate locks at 7:05 p.m. ET, Joe Ryan ($10,600) is tonight's clear ace for DFS.

Ryan is averaging 34.5 FanDuel points per game (FPPG) on the year, and he's pitched to a 3.23 SIERA with a 27.2% K rate through 21 starts. Tonight, Ryan faces a Chicago White Sox team that ranks dead-last in wOBA (.270) and has the sixth-highest K rate (24.1%) against righties. He already torched them for 43 FPs earlier in the year, and they've now lost 17 straight games -- talk about a cupcake.

Our MLB DFS projections peg Ryan for 40 FPs, easily the most on the slate.

Others to Consider

• Spencer Schwellenbach ($9,300 vs. MIA) - In larger tournaments, I'll be hard-pressed not to utilize the right-handed Schwellenbach. He's coming off a dominant 64-FP outing that saw him punch out 11 across 7.0 innings. Schwellenbach's SIERA is down to 3.39, and he's up to a 30.1% called plus swinging-strike rate (30.1%) after forcing 32 whiffs across his last two outings. Tonight, he draws a Miami Marlins lineup that has the fourth-lowest wRC+ (86) against righties and strikes out at an above-average clip (23%).
• Yusei Kikuchi ($8,900 vs. TB) -- Kikuchi carries our second-highest projection (34.2 FPs) in his Houston Astros debut. The lefty has been up and down, but he enters with a 3.48 SIERA and 26.2% K rate. He's exceeded 30 FPs only once in his last eight starts, but that one was a 13-K, 59-FP gem, so there's real upside here. The Tampa Bay Rays are seventh in wRC+ (117) against southpaws, but they also strike out at the fifth-highest clip (24.4%) in the split.
• Randy Vasquez ($7,300 vs. COL) - Vasquez coming off outing of -6 FPs, but he previously cracked 30 FPs in three of five starts. His 4.86 SIERA leaves a lot to be desired, but he draws the Colorado Rockies away from Coors. On the road against righties, the Rockies have baseball's third-highest K rate (26.8%) and rank 27th in wRC+. Vasquez is our third-best point-per-dollar value among pitchers (3.82 FPs per $1,000) thanks to his 27.9-FP projection.

Stacks to Target

• Atlanta Braves (5.37 implied total) -- Atlanta gets Miami's Valente Bellozo at home tonight. The rookie right-hander is making his third MLB start tonight but was north of a 4.50 ERA in Double-A and Triple-A this season. The Braves should feast. Against righties, Marcell Ozuna ($4,100; .940 OPS) is the guy to build around, followed by Austin Riley ($3,500; .801 OPS) and the suddenly-heating-up Matt Olson ($3,300; .674 OPS).
• Minnesota Twins (5.26) -- Minnesota's up against Davis Martin and the White Sox. This will be the righty's first start since 2022 when he went 3-6 with a 4.83 ERA across nine starts. The Twins' lineup can vary, but with a righty on the bump, Royce Lewis ($3,800; .923 OPS) is a priority. Otherwise, Matt Wallner ($2,900; 1.089 OPS), Jose Miranda ($3,000; 9.76 OPS), and Byron Buxton ($3,300; .849 OPS) are strong options for this split.
• New York Mets (4.76) -- The Mets are tied for baseball's best wRC+ (120) against lefties, and they're up against an exploitable southpaw in Tyler Anderson. Anderson has an ugly 4.79 SIERA and only an 18.6% K rate on the year, so we can confidently deploy Francisco Lindor ($4,000; .882 OPS vs. LHP), Pete Alonso ($3,400; .798 OPS), and Mark Vientos ($3,100; 1.110 OPS). J.D. Martinez ($3,000; .898 OPS) is projected for 16 FPs, good for our top point-per-dollar value among hitters (5.33 FPs per $1,000).
• Los Angeles Dodgers (4.66) -- The Dodgers get to face Joey Estes' 5.00 SIERA and 53.1% fly-ball rate tonight, and we know LA can pour it on opposing righties. Shohei Ohtani ($4,800; 1.140) shreds in this split while Teoscar Hernandez ($3,400; .747 OPS) and Will Smith ($3,100; .713 OPS) help make his salary work.

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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.