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Match-up - Rich Hill vs. Tanner Roark
We have a match up here between two guys that are very difficult to predict, Rich Hill and Tanner Roark. While both have been great as wholes, they have been atrocious on occasion and we have seen them go weeks without a quality start. Both of these offenses are similar in a few ways, one of which being the the reliance on the top of the order. If either of these teams struggle up top, it works its way down and will affect the whole offense. Hill is more of a strikeout guy, as evident by his 9.27 K/9 that is backed up by plenty of peripherals and batted ball rates. Roark is more of a cash game option, as he is more consistent and rarely gets blown up. The game will be played in Nationals Park, which is a pretty neutral park. All in all, I am not a huge fan of either of these guys, but they are definitely in play on this slate. I prefer Rich Hill in tournaments and Tanner Roark in cash games, though on DK, you could play both of them in all formats.
The offense is kind of on the same note as both of the pitchers. I am not a huge fan, but they have a bunch of viable options. Hill definitely has struggled on occasion, though the occasion is rare. Because this is the playoffs, we are going to be dealing with a lot of really good pitchers. Because of that, we can't be picky with our hitters and we have to find some diamonds in the rough. I am a bigger fan of the Dodgers, due to the fact that Tanner Roark will rarely throw a clean slate. There is some definite weather concerns, but you can't avoid this game as there are only 2 games on the slate. My favorite 3 hitters from this game are going to be Corey Seager, Justin Turner and Trea Turner. I expect Turner to be low owned as it is a righty righty match up. However, he actually hits righties much better and proved that with a homer against Scherzer last game out. In conclusion, nobody is in a fantastic spot, but both offenses have some upside and will likely put up a few runs, at least.
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Match-up - Jeff Samardzija vs. Kyle Hendricks
This game is actually going to be very similar. We have 2 pretty good pitchers, and 2 pretty good offenses. That being said, my favorite pitcher on the slate is Kyle Hendricks. Our main concern this season with him is the lack of pitches that Joe Maddon allows him to throw. I am not too concerned with that in the playoffs. If Hendricks is dealing, Maddon will stretch him out to at least 100 pitches. The Giants offense has been far inferior to the Cubs this year, as evident by any stat you can find. Against righties, the Giants have been league average with a .318 wOBA that is backed up. Samardzija on the other hand, is probably my least favorite pitcher on the slate. He is facing the best offense in the league, and they know him well. A few of these guys have played with Jeff Samardzija, which could definitely prove to be a problem. Hendricks is my favorite option in both cash games and tournaments, and Samardzija is my least favorite on the board.
Like I mentioned, we are working with some pretty good pitching here. However, we have to look at everything. The Giants bullpen is atrocious, and I am not too confident in Samardzija either. For those reasons, the Cubs are my top offense on the slate and it really isn't too close. No, I don't expect them to destroy Samardzija, but I expect them to get to him early and score around 4 or 5 runs, which I can't say for any other offense on this slate. The game will be played in Wrigley Field, which is heavily influenced by wind speed and direction. Last night, the wind was blowing in and played a huge factor. It looks to be moving sideways as of now, but make sure you check on that a little bit closer to game time. All in all, I will be getting a ton of exposure to the Cubs and fully avoiding the Giants outside of a guy like Brandon Belt or Crawford.Kris Bryant and Rizzo are obviously the best 2 options, but I am willing to play anyone in this lineup.
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