Aug 16, 2015; San Francisco, CA, USA; A fan turns the K card as San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner (not pictured) records his fourteenth strikeout as another fan holds a broom for San Francisco Giants “sweep” of the Washington Nationals during the ninth inning at AT&T Park. The San Francisco Giants defeated the Washington Nationals 5-0. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

MLB Picks and Pivots – FanDuel Picks April 18

Welcome to the Monday edition of Picks & Pivots, a daily fantasy column focused on providing analysis for the upcoming MLB FanDuel slate. The purpose of this column is to first identify key building blocks that can be used for any roster construction and then identify pivot points to help differentiate your lineup in hopes of a big pay day!

FanSided and FantasyCPR have you covered – For additional FanDuel MLB analysis, take a look at my fellow staff writer Matt Rogers FanDuel Economics column.  Also, Mike Marteny provides Draft Kings MLB Picks analysis giving you some of the best and most thorough content you will find anywhere!

Monday’s games kick off at 11:05AM EST in Boston but the main slate begins at 7:05PM EST with an abbreviated 7 game slate..

I will continue to track winning GPP lineups and compare trends over 5 day periods to help us understand what it takes to remain profitable. I HIGHLY recommend each of you do this each morning to look back on the previous night and understand how the winning lineups are constructed in the games you participate in.

The view below compares the 5 day period April 11-15 and the winning GPP scores from a selection of GPP entries I have entered over the past week with a comparison to how Saturday, April 16th slate played out.

• Average Top GPP Finish Points Scored: 229 Points(5 day) – April 16(237)
• Average SP Salary: $7,500 (5 Day) – April 16 ($11,900)
• Hitter/Pitcher Percentage of Salary Spent: 21/79 (5 Day) – April 16: 34/66
• $ Value Per Point: $6.4 (5 Day) – April 16: 6.8

Saturday’s slate bucked the trend we had seen developing over the previous 7 days as paying up for the stud pitcher in Jake Arrieta  was the difference in GPP entries with his 60 point performance. Many of the mid-tier pitching plays flopped which left the door open for the “safety” and upside that Arrieta delivered on Saturday.

Now on to the picks…