John Lepore | October 12th, 2019
Today we have both Championship Series going. The Washington Nationals will play Game Two in St. Louis today after shutting down the Cardinals last night. The Houston Astros will host the New York Yankees as their series gets started. Let’s see who should get the nod in your MLB DFS lineups today.
Prices listed are from DraftKings in Classic matchups.
Jose Altuve ($4,700) – The second baseman has been hitting well lately. He was 7-20 with a couple of doubles and three home runs against the tough Tampa Bay Rays’ pitching staff. Altuve has experience and has enjoyed success against the Yankees in the playoffs and, in particular, Masahiro Tanaka, the Game One starter. Altuve is 8-26 with two HRs and a SB against the Yankees’ righty during the regular season. He was also 2-6 against Tanaka back in the 2017 ALCS. Although Altuve is the highest-priced second baseman on the board, the floor is there, so roll him out especially in cash games.
Tommy Edman ($4,200) – Reasonably priced and certainly a bright spot in the Cardinals’ lineup, Edman is a good play to save a few bucks at third base or at second. with Alex Bregman at $5,100 and Anthony Rendon at $4,900, Edman is a value. He was 6-19 with three doubles and a triple in the series against the Braves. He was also the only hitter on the Cardinals to have an OPS above .850 this season. If Max Scherzer has a weakness, it’s early-game gopher balls. Edman could run into one in the first inning today or at least get you on the board with some points.
Ryan Zimmerman ($3,700) – Now this is value. Zimm went 2-4 yesterday with a double and a walk. He also has a nice sample size against Adam Wainwright, the Cardinals starter. Zimmerman is 15-39 with three HRs against the Cards’ big righty. The long-time National is now 7-19 with a HR in the playoffs this season and 25-81 with an .883 OPS for his career in the postseason. He is at the end of his 15th season in Washington, and it may be his last if the Nationals don’t pick up his option. Either way, Zimmerman will look to continue his playoff success against a familiar foe.
Brett Gardner ($4,000) – The Yankees veteran was a solid 3-12 with a HR and a walk against the Minnesota Twins in the short three-game ALDS. Gardner seemed rejuvenated this year as he set career highs in HRs (28) and OPS (.829). He has also had some success against his opponent tonight, Zack Greinke, going 4-12 with a double and a SB. We all know how Greinke struggled last time out as he couldn’t get out of the fourth inning before giving up six runs. Gardner is a solid play especially if you want to save a little money here and pass on guys like George Springer ($4,900) or Juan Soto ($4,800).
A few notes on each of today’s starters.
Max Scherzer ($10,200) – He gives you incredible upside and a great floor especially facing the Cardinals’ anemic offense. If you can save some cash on your bats, Max is as chalk as it gets.
Masahiro Tanaka ($7,300) – This is the way to go as Tanaka has an excellent track record in the playoffs with a 1.54 ERA with a solid 32/8 K/BB rate. In the 2017 ALCS, he threw 13 innings against these Astros and only allowed two runs while striking out 11. Houston didn’t exactly tear the cover off the ball against the Rays either, scoring 19 runs in the five-game ALDS.
Zack Greinke ($6,800) – He was awful against the Rays and the Yankees are well-rested and have a much better lineup than Tampa Bay. I would avoid Zack.
Adam Wainwright ($6,100) – If you want to go cheap, Wainwright is the way to go. He was great in his lone start against the Braves going 7.2 innings without allowing a run and striking out eight. It seems the vet has a little more pep in his step knowing that, like the aforementioned Zimmerman, this may be his last playoff run with the only team he’s known in his career.
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