After looking at all of the tools available at Fantasy Alarm, the example lineups page should be used to help validate your thoughts, as well as help you consider some options that may not have been on your radar for the slate.  In addition to the example lineups, below you will find a breakdown of possible routes to take when building your MLB lineups tonight. While we are focused on FanDuel and DraftKings, this breakdown can be used for all sites. Please use our live chat feature to share your thoughts, and receive any feedback leading up to first pitch.  Good luck!

Please note that this was written before all lineups have been posted, which may open up new routes to consider.  

 

Top Pitching Targets

I always start my lineup building with pitching, as it’s the most important part of building your lineups. I tend to look for pitchers who I believe can pitch six innings, strike out six, and give up no more than two runs.  Feel free to set up whatever parameters you want to, but should set yourself some type of “floor” when it comes to how you select your pitchers.

I believe that the top two priced options in Max Scherzer and Corey Kluber are in play, but prefer Kluber’s matchup vs the Royals more if playing cash games.  Although they are both elite, I think you can get away with going cheaper with pitching tonight if it allows you a few extra bigger bats. Alex Wood and Nathan Eovaldi are both solid options for cheaper than Robbie Ray, while Brent Suter could also be considered if willing to go super cheap.  On FD, Jonathan Loaisiga and Eovaldi are both extremely cheap, and are your better options over Suter.

Madison Bumgarner has a solid FD price tag, but both him and Kyle Freeland are more gpp plays for me.  I’ll likely be sticking with pitchers from names listed above, but there are other mentioned in the playbook and pitching coach that could be in play if looking to be different.

Thoughts from the Fantasy Alarm Team: Our pitching coach, Jon Impemba, likes Kluber and Bumgarner if paying up, and Eovaldi and Wood if going mid-priced.  For value, he would go with James Shields .

Our projections have Scherzer leading the way, followed by Kluber, Wood, and Ray.  Carlos Martínez and Rick Porcello each have a share of fifth place. Wood is the top value play on FD and joined by Suter as the top DK value options.

 

Top Hitting Targets

There are plenty of other routes to take with details given in the playbook, coaches, and our other tools if wanting to look elsewhere. I provided my overall options in the playbook, with some additional thoughts below.

The game in Coors, along with the Yankees and Reds check in as the teams with the highest implied run totals.  I believe the Indians could also be added to that list, but doesn’t mean you can’t target the White Sox, Braves, Dodgers, Rays and others, but just helps when trying to decide between similar priced players.

Catcher is starting to become a tough position to read, as FD combines it with first base, and DK is starting to tighten their pricing for catchers. Buster Posey is your best option if paying up, but with Romine out, Kyle Higashioka works as a plug and play option on DK tonight.  He’ll likely be the overall cheapest hitter starting on DK tonight. The rest of the catchers are best used for team stacks.

If paying up, I like Joey Votto , with Freddie Freeman a solid pivot play.  Edwin Encarnación , José Abreu , and Cody Bellinger lead my options for gpp team stacks, while Brad Miller , C.J. Cron , and Greg Bird would be my top value plays.

Second base provides plenty of routes to take.  Joe Panik will be popular if looking at Coors, while Scooter Gennett , Brian Dozier , and Yoan Moncada are all solid pivots.  Ozzie Albies would be my preferred option if fully paying up with Wilmer Difo and Jedd Gyorko as value play pivots.

José Ramírez and Eugenio Suárez are likely better options over Nolan Arenado , but Arenado could be in play.  Matt Duffy would be my value play, while plenty of other options work in their team stacks.

I prefer Francisco Lindor if paying up, but Didi Gregorius and Trea Turner are both solid pivots for cheaper.  Daniel Robertson would be my value play, while Chris Taylor , José Peraza , and Tim Anderson work best in their team stacks.  

OF is always wide open in terms of routes to consider taking.  If not stacking, I prefer to pay up for one spot, punt the other, and use the last spot to pick a player from a team that I’m already targeting. If paying up, I mentioned a few different routes to take in the playbook, and really comes down to which teams you want to target. Aaron Hicks , Giancarlo Stanton , and Aaron Judge from the Yankees could all have big games tonight, but Gorkys Hernández and Andrew McCutchen may be just as popular.  I also like the OF options in Cincy with Scott Schebler and Avisail García , while Michael Brantley and Lonnie Chisenhall work if targeting the Indians. If looking elsewhere, Kevin Kiermaier , Keon Broxton work as pure punts, while Adam Eaton , Daniel Palka , Joc Pederson , and Austin Slater could all be overlooked sneaky pivots.

Thoughts from the Fantasy Alarm Team:  Our hitting coach, James Grande, likes Judge, Votto, and Freeman if paying up, while Hicks leads his mid-priced plays.  Miller would be his value play.

Our projections have Ramirez leading the way, followed by Arenado, Judge, Belt, and Freeman.  Robertson leads the value options on both FD and DK.

 

GPP’s

If playing gpp’s, your best approach is stacking.  Pick a game, or two teams that you think will blast off, then go all in on them.  Yes, entering your cash lineup, or another type of lineup can cash in a gpp, but if looking to finish in the top 1%, you need to hit with a stack. If paying up for pitching, I like the Rays for salary relief.  If paying up for hitting, I like the Yankees.

Thoughts from the Fantasy Alarm Team: Our stacking coach, Tom Vecchio, likes the Reds, Giants, and Diamondbacks.  



Final Thoughts

I spoke about it in the playbook, but both Bumgarner and Freeland met last week, and both shutdown the other team.  Vegas feels that will be different tonight, but will personally be looking elsewhere for hitting, and will likely use Bumgarner in a gpp lineup.