FanDuel DFS picks for Sunday, July 31

At the time of this writing, Miguel Gonzalez has amassed 4IP and 4Ks for a super-solid 24 FDP. Yes, I started him. Read the comment on yesterday's article for my single entry lineup.

A word on the format before I move on. My recent focus with MLB DFS has not waned, but my time to allow for it has. So my way to continue to enjoy the game has been to shift to making a single lineup per day and choosing a single entry tournament to place said lineup in. I aim to share my lineup prior to lock by commenting on each article I submit. You can usually find me in this place on Saturday and Sunday...so feel free to keep coming back.

Today’s Main Slate on FanDuel is comprised of nine games and begins at 1:07pm ET. Saturday had some rainout potential in New York, and with thunderstorms possible in most of our country this weekend it is likely there may be some weather issues today. So check your preferred weather resource prior to locking your lineups in.

Pitching

Noah Syndergaard ($10,300) is my top choice today if I am playing it safe in a cash game. Not much further analysis is needed on that front, in my opinion. I also don’t play cash games, so there’s that.

***Nolan Arenado and Trevor Story are out of the COL lineup today. Thor looks super-safe except for the weather in New York.***

In GPPs, Francisco Liriano ($7,900) deserves consideration, for many of the same reasons that Jameson Taillon did on Saturday. The Milwaukee Brewers have a 24.4% K-rate against southpaws this season, "good" for worst in the MLB. The team .147 ISO (24th) and team wRC+ of 95 (20th) are both uninspiring. Also, Ryan Braun did not play in Saturday’s game due to "right side tightness." I’m no doctor but this is the third game in a row Braun has missed with this particular ailment. So even if he goes, he’s likely not at 100 percent. To be fair, though, Liriano has been pretty bad this season. But a mere nine days ago on July 21 he struck out 13 Brewers over 6.2 innings. That is some tourney-winning upside, folks. And if you want to stack the other side with your chosen Milwaukee hitters in a different lineup, be my guest.

***I literally just read where Jonathan Lucroy is traded to the Indians pending his approval. That is one more dangerous bat out of this already underwhelming Milwaukee lineup. If Liriano and the Buccos can't get it done against Matt Garza today, I'll never consider any of them ever again.***

Michael Pineda ($9,000) is another GPP target for me. The Tampa Bay Rays do know how to hit the home run, as they sport a .178 ISO against RHP, which is 8th-best in the league. Hitting the home run is about all the Rays can do, however, as they have a paltry 91 wRC+ (20th) and a .303 wOBA (25th) against RHP in 2016. They also strike out 24.3% of the time, which is the third-worst mark in the league behind Milwaukee and San Diego. In short, the upside for Pineda in this cushy Tropicana park is fantastic.

Hitting

Do not fall for it and roster Houston Astros in tournaments today. Just don’t. Mike Pelfrey has been mediocre, not terrible as he is so often made out to be. Will he give up a bunch of hits and a few runs, though? It is likely. But just absolutely imploding? We haven’t seen that a ton from Pelfrey this season. He limits the hard contact to RHH (26.2%) and has a supremely healthy 61.1% ground ball rate to RHH. Left-handed bats hit him harder (35.9% hard) but the Astros can really only boast of one (arguably) above average LHH in Colby Rasmus. One hitter is not enough to scare me. Am I rostering Pelfrey today? Absolutely not. I am merely saying the upside in tournaments with Houston seems limited, especially given their strikeout potential and Pelfrey’s ability to not completely implode. That, and their likely high ownership percentage. For cash games feel free to use your Astros, but in a single entry GPP I am looking elsewhere for my bats.

***The only LHH for Houston are Rasmus, Preston Tucker, and Jason Castro.***

PIT @ Matt Garza

I’d prefer for PIT to offer more left-handed hitters, as Garza allows a ton of hard contact to them (41.9%) and more fly balls and home runs. So Gregory Polanco ($3,500) is obviously in play. Garza still hasn’t been good against RHH, though, as they’ve amassed 31 hits in only 20.2 innings and are slashing .330/.386/.473 with a .372 wOBA against him. I would personally love to see Polanco bat third in this one, a move that would bump Andrew McCutchen ($3,500) to the two-hole. But I’m not the boss, am I?

CLE vs. Sonny Gray

I like the bulldog mentality of Sonny Gray, but this is just not the spot for him to begin to right the proverbial ship. Gray has been vexed by right-handed bats this season, as his 1.83 HR/9 and 5.64 FIP easily show. Right-handed hitters are making hard contact against him a startling 39.2% of the time, and that is bad news when the Indians can trot out Rajai Davis (.155 ISO, 998 wRC+), Francisco Lindor (.162 ISO, 120 wRC+), and Mike Napoli (.241 ISO, 108 wRC+). Lefty hitters Jason Kipnis (.234 ISO, 136 wRC+) and Carlos Santana (.288 ISO, 143 wRC+) also aren’t slouches, so this lineup is a dangerous one for Gray. Tyler Naquin (.308 ISO, 179 wRC+) is another dangerous left-handed hitter. The list is long. I will not be afraid to pick multiple spots against Gray.

My lineup may be a little old school today. I am leaning towards a pitcher and three hitters from the same team. We shall see.