FanDuel lineup advice for the weekend of Aug. 7-9

As for what we're going to be doing in this space: The goal here will be to direct your attention toward some players who you might not otherwise consider. If you're here and reading this, then you already know that Mike Trout is really good. But when filling out a roster you can't just pick out stars. You'll blow your cap that way and get stuck praying to the baseball gods that a guy like Ruben Tejada actually gets a few hits. No, if you want to win, you have to take advantage of certain matchups -- and in order to do that you have to know where to look. That's what we're here for. Below are three players to target and three to avoid for August 7-9.

Noah Syndergaard, P Mets: One of the best matchups of the month. Tampa has a .296 wOBA against right-handers this season, the fourth-worst mark in MLB, and is striking out in 22.2 percent of its at-bats against right-handers, the third-highest number in baseball. Syndergaard is a hard-throwing right-hander who has recently been even more dominant. In his last seven stars he's thrown 50 innings, surrendered just eight earned runs and has 52 strikeouts compared to 10 walks. On the season Syndergaard has ridden his dominant fastball to a 2.78 FIP. He's the type of pitcher the Rays have been unable to hit all season, and it will be a surprise if Tampa squeezes out more than one run against him on Saturday.

Bryce Harper, OF Nationals: For the first time all season Harper is actually a bargain. He's listed at $4,300 for Friday night; five (healthy) outfielders are more expensive, which seems silly considering the fact that the Nationals get to tee off against the beachball-throwing pitching staff of the Rockies. Colorado has the worst ERA (4.98) and FIP (4.57) in MLB. The team will also be sending two weak southpaws to the hill this weekend in Jorge De La Rosa and Yohan Flande. Harper does bat left-handed, which is likely why his price has been cut. He is, however, hitting .320/.443/.600 off left-handers this year, which makes these matchups ones you shouldn't worry about.

Paul Goldschmidt, 1B, Diamondbacks: Another stud going for a low price ($4,000) for some reason. Five (healthy) first baseman will cost more than Goldschmidt Friday night. That list includes guys like Jose Abreu ($4,200), Lucas Duda ($4,300) and Mark Teixeira ($4,200), which is weird considering Goldy gets to face the weak Reds rotation. The three starters Cincinnati will send to the hill this weekend are Raisel Iglesias (5.13 ERA), Keyvius Sampson (4.50 ERA) and Anthony DeSclafani (3.71), all of whom are right-handed. Goldschmidt is hitting .325/.449/.549 with 15 home runs off righties.

David Price, P, Blue Jays: Price was outstanding in his first start with the Blue Jays, but he'll have to face the lefty-smashing Yankees lineup on Saturday, a group with a .337 wOBA against left-handers this season (third-best in baseball) and striking out just 18.6 percent of the time (fourth-lowest). Price is going to cost around $10,000, and he is the type of pitcher who could render these splits moot. But if you want to bet on the numbers then spend your money someplace else.

Evan Longoria, 3B Rays: As mentioned above, Tampa gets the honor of facing the electric Mets rotation this weekend. On Friday, Jacob deGrom and his 2.09 ERA take the hill for New York. On Saturday the Rays face red-hot Noah Syndergaard and his 2.66 ERA. The struggling Bartolo Colon will get the ball on Sunday, but like deGrom and Syndergaard, he, too, is a right-hander. Longoria this season is hitting just .264/.327/.413 off right-handers. He also has no lineup protection. Translation: stay away.

Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, Dodgers: L.A has a tough slate this weekend as they travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Pirates. Clint Hurdle's group is one of the shiftiest teams in baseball; that Gonzalez has to face the dominant Gerrit Cole and Francisco Liriano this weekend will only make his task harder.

Nelson Cruz is expensive ($5,000), but he and the Mariners will face two left-handers this weekend in Cole Hamels and Martin Perez. Cruz is hitting .387/.467/.731 off southpaws this season. ... The Nationals' great matchup (against the Rockies) is mentioned above, but Anthony Rendon ($3,000) is another Washington batter worth targeting. ... Going with Kolten Wong for $2,800 is a great way to save some cash to spend on some of the bigger names listed above.