This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
Thursday's FanDuel DFS action starts with an early slate at 1:05 p.m. EDT and features more games (six) than the main slate (four) that starts at 7:10 p.m. EDT.
Pitching
The chalk pitcher of the main slate will be Washington's Stephen Strasburg ($10,400), especially with one of the four games taking place in Coors Field. Strasburg has an elite 29.1 percent strikeout rate, while the Marlins strike out 25 percent of the time against right-handed pitching. The Marlins have a .283 wOBA against righties the second-lowest mark in baseball. Finally the Nationals are a -190 favorite in a game with an over/under of 7.5 runs suggesting there's a good chance Strasburg gets both the win and quality start bonuses.
The Diamondbacks' Alex Young ($5,500) is an intriguing option given the ballpark and matchup. His price is at the pitcher minimum, and multiple Dodger bats can be used in a lineup as a result of the discount. The Giants are a good team on which to pick: Their .266 wOBA against the lefties is the worst, and their 24.6 percent strikeout rate is the 10th-highest. Young didn't have the greatest numbers at Triple-A this season, but he did have 64 strikeouts in 54.2 innings, showing some potential. This is the only game on the slate with an over/under below nine runs (8.5). Don't get cute and use him in cash games; tournaments only here.
The best GPP option for the night is the Dodgers' Walker Buehler ($9,600). The combination of his price and pitching in Coors will keep his ownership at a low level, even with only four games to choose a pitcher from. Just because he's pitching in Coors doesn't change the fact that Buehler is a stud pitcher who has put up great numbers this season. The Rockies have struck out 23.4 percent of the time this season against right-handed pitching, the league's 10th-highest mark.
Key Values/Chalk
The Dodger's Cody Bellinger ($5,000) should be the first bat going into lineups tonight. He'll be in Coors against a rookie right-handed pitcher in Peter Lambert, who the Dodgers got to see last Saturday. Using Bellinger and Strasburg can work, and you'd still have an average of $2,800 for the remaining players in a lineup.
The options at shortstop are limited, bringing the Rockies' Garrett Hampson ($2,700) into the discussion. Hampson was just recalled and has been running with two stolen bases in his last three games. Despite the GPP recommendation for Buehler, the Rockies are expected to score around five runs in this game.
Until his price goes up it makes sense to continue using the Angels' Tommy La Stella ($3,200) at third base. He's up to a .385 wOBA against right-handed pitching on the season and will face off against Tanner Anderson. It's a bit strange the A's are still trotting out Anderson, who had a 6.26 ERA (1.70 WHIP) at Triple-A this season.
Second base is a good spot to punt, and the Angels' Luis Rengifo ($2,400) fits the profile perfectly. He's started to come around at the plate with 18.9 fantasy points or more in three of his last six games and he had five home runs in 122 plate appearances at Triple-A. He'll get the same good matchup against Tanner Anderson that La Stella has.
One of the Dodgers who hasn't been completely overpriced is first baseman Matt Beaty ($2,800). He'll have the same lefty-versus-righty matchup in Coors that Bellinger has but is almost half the price. Beaty has had good success as a Dodger with a .311 batting average and two home runs in 76 plate appearances.
Stacks
Dodgers at Rockies (Peter Lambert)
Bellinger, Max Muncy (2B - $4,300), Joc Pederson (C/1B - $4,100), Alex Verdugo (OF - $3,700)
It's possible to go all the way up to Griffin Canning ($7,500) with this stack and still have an average of $2,600 per player for the rest of the lineup. As a team, Los Angeles has a .344 wOBA against right-handed pitching, which is third-best in all of baseball.
Angels vs. Athletics (Tanner Anderson)
La Stella, Rengifo, Mike Trout (OF - $4,700), Justin Upton (OF - $3,800)
Shohei Ohtani ($3,600) and Kole Calhoun ($3,000) are in play here as well; it's a matter of figuring out which players to mix and match. It's always a good idea to stack away from a Coors game (especially in GPPs) since that will be the most popular stack on almost any given night there's a game there.
