We have four games on the slate today as the MLB Playoffs begin with the American League. This is a different kind of pressure so we need to look at experience and not just stats. There will be players stepping up, as there will be players labeled as chokers. Let’s get right to it.
Pitchers
Gerrit Cole ($8,600) at Cleveland Indians
Cole has been as good as advertised this season. He has also been very good in his postseason career posting a 2.60 ERA with a 76/18 K/BB rate and a sub-0.90 WHIP. The Indians didn’t get to the postseason on the strength of their hitting. Ride with the Yankees right-hander for the strikeout upside as well as the near guarantee that he shuts down a Cleveland offense that scored the third-fewest runs in the AL. Plus, he is $400 cheaper than Shane Bieber.
Blake Snell ($7,800) vs. Toronto Blue Jays
Snell has settled in somewhere between his Cy Young season of 2018 and a subpar season last year. While the Tampa Bay lefty hasn’t had much experience in the postseason, it is more than the young bats of the Blue Jays. Snell has pitched well against Toronto over the past two years. In 22 IP he has a 32/8 K/BB rate allowing only 17 hits with a 2.45 ERA.
Bats
Matt Olson ($4,700)
Take the lefty power bat at home against a righty who has never pitched in the postseason. Olson has a .747 OPS vs. right-handers as opposed to .684 against left-handers. He also has an .880 OPs at home vs. a .576 on the road. While Lucas Giolito has been decent this season, he’s allowed six walks and three HRs over his last two starts.
Willy Adames ($4,100)
Adames has hit well against lefties this season slashing .311/.380/.578. He is also 2-3 with a double and a walk against Blue Jays starter Hyun Jin Ryu. There are a lot of small sample sizes this season, but let’s take the price for Adames and spend up somewhere else. The Rays shortstop was also very good against the Houston Astros last season in the ALDS going 5-13 with a couple of HRs.
Check us out on our socials:
Twitter: @PTSTNews and @TalkPrimeTime
Facebook Page: Prime Time Sports Talk
Join our Facebook Group: Prime Time Sports Talk
Instagram: @ptsportstalk
Follow Johnnie Black on Twitter @jball0202
Main Credit Image: Embed from Getty Images
