These picks will be presented without much fanfare due to time constraints. But consider these options heading into your Friday night contests.
Andrew Gould of Bleacher Report (our #2 overall degenerate) was kind enough to offer some insight into his picks:
Mike Foltynewicz, ATL ($7,600 @ OAK)
Alex Wood and Jacob deGrom are chalk choices worth their five-figure salaries, but Mike Foltynewicz is an intriguing pivot for GPP players or anyone looking to roster top-shelf hitters. Only the San Diego Padres strike out more than the Oakland Athletics against righties (25.3%) and the Atlanta Braves’ righty has flourished in June when not facing the potent Washington Nationals. Given his troubles against left-handed hitters, he is particularly enticing if Yonder Alonso misses his second straight game after fouling a ball off his knee Wednesday night. He carries scary downside, but Foltynewicz justifies the risk at just $7,600 on FanDuel.
Curtis Granderson, NYM ($3,500 vs. PHI)
Despite their team’s woes, the New York Mets have tied the Los Angeles Dodgers for an MLB-high 50 home runs in June, and their .349 wOBA ranks second behind the Houston Astros and New York Yankees. They should close the month as a popular stack against Ben Lively, who enters his sixth career start with a 5.93 SIERA and 11 strikeouts in 32.1 innings. There are plenty of Mets to highlight here—Lucas Duda is a great play if he returns to the lineup and Asdrubal Cabrera is red-hot since returning from the DL—but Curtis Granderson is the highlighted pick. Following an atrocious start (common for the streaky outfielder) he has batted .315/.440/.726 in June and should lead off against a vulnerable righty on Friday night.
Ghoji Blackburn of Fake Teams is feeling some exposure to Jake Faria ($8,400) and to a Marlins stack. He did not elaborate but I assume the lefty Christian Yelich ($3,200) is a must-have with the Marlins in that ballpark.
Earlier today on the Two Strike Approach Lance Brozdowski professed his affinity for Rougned Odor ($3,000) on tonight’s slate. Brozdowski has finished in the money each of the past two weeks here at DFS Wars so maybe we should all pay attention. Odor takes on Mike “Big Pelf” Pelfrey, so it’s tough to argue the point.
Finally, yours truly is going to give Lance McCullers a ringing endorsement heading into tonight’s version of MLB DFS Wars. Jacob deGrom ($12,100) and Alex Wood ($10,500) will be popular, but McCullers for a mere $9,500 feels like a bargain–even against the formidable Yankees. Here’s to hoping that a hangover from last night’s late game leaves the Yankees helplessly flailing around for that McCullers knuckle-curve.
Check out the leaderboard heading into tonight’s action! Good luck out there ladies and gents!