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Mike Trout Leads the DraftKings and FanDuel MLB Picks for Tuesday 10/4/22
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Pitchers
Julio Urías FD 10400 DK 9000
Opponent - COL (Ryan Feltner) Park - COL
FD - 47.51 DK - 24.47
With the playoffs all but locked up across the league, we are in tricky spots when it comes to cash games on these final sites. There are a few teams still duking it out for seeding, but they really aren’t on the main slate here and that’s going to leave us with some issues. The Dodgers are taking it easy on their starters down the stretch so pitch counts are problems, but Urias is still coming in here as a -355 home favorite. That’s worth at least something and he isn’t breaking the bank on DraftKings at all. Again, these are weird times when it comes to late season MLB DFS. And while he likely won’t win, Urias is still at least a part of the NL Cy Young race.
Justin Verlander FD 11200 DK 10500
Opponent - PHI (Ranger Suárez) Park - PHI
FD - 39.51 DK - 21.97
Speaking of the Cy Young race, Justin Verlander is currently the odds-on favorite to win in the American League, holding a betting line lead over Dylan Cease. It’s unlikely that this outing changes those odds all that much, but it’s at least something to consider. He draws a tough matchup against the Phillies who are still fighting for some playoff seeding, but Verlander, in terms of skill, is about as good as it gets on this slate.
Strongly consider Sean Manaea (FD $8100 DK $6500)
Catcher/First Base
Freddie Freeman FD 4300 DK 5700
Opponent - COL (Ryan Feltner) Park - COL
FD - 13.14 DK - 9.9
In his first year with the Dodgers, Freeman didn’t have quite the power numbers we’ve come to expect seeing as how he hit *only* 20 home runs down from the 30+ he’d hit in previous seasons with similar numbers of plate appearances. But he still had over a .900 OPS and walked (12%) almost as much as he struck out (14.5%). He’s one of the elite hitters in the game and still makes for a great cash game option.
José Abreu FD 3100 DK 4500
Opponent - MIN (Josh Winder) Park - MIN
FD - 10.05 DK - 7.6
Abreu had a fine season this time around with an .815 OPS thanks to a lower K rate (16%) and some run hot when it came to the BABIP. The power numbers were a bit down this season, something of a concern all things considered, but I like the FanDuel pricing still for a guy hitting in the middle of the White Sox lineup.
Second Base
Max Muncy FD 2800 DK 5000
Opponent - COL (Ryan Feltner) Park - COL
FD - 10.24 DK - 7.57
There’s som risk the Dodgers keep taking their foot off the gas as the regular season winds down, but as of right now we need to assume they run a full-strength lineup. Muncy should be in the middle of the mix there and he was able to turn his season around some after a dreadful start. He has the OPS pushing .700 (a major improvement from where he was) and has gotten to the 20 home run mark as well. The FanDuel price remains too low here.
Jonathan Aranda FD 2100 DK 2200
Opponent - BOS (Nathan Eovaldi) Park - BOS
FD - 7.51 DK - 5.74
He’s not the most dynamic hitter out there but he certainly projects to be better than what we’ve seen far from his time in the majors. Aranda is slated to hit fifth for the Rays when they face off against Eovaldi and he is better than the mid-600s OPS would suggest. Plus, he’s coming at about the minimums on both sites so we are potentially getting significant value here.
Shortstop
Trea Turner FD 3900 DK 6000
Opponent - COL (Ryan Feltner) Park - COL
FD - 12.63 DK - 9.73
As long as he is in the lineup, I think that the shortstop decisions start and stop with Trea Turner on this slate. He should be in the two-spot for the Dodgers and is one of the best fantasy options out there. On the season, he has 20 home runs and 27 stolen bases, both down a bit from previous years but not by a ton. He puts the ball in play around 75% of the time and brings in an .809 OPS. He’s a tough fade on this slate considering the spot the Dodgers are in against Feltner and how their run line is about one run higher than just about every other team on the slate.
Consider Elvis Andrus (FD $2400 DK $4000) hitting leadoff for the White Sox.
Third Base
Justin Turner FD 2900 DK 4500
Opponent - COL (Ryan Feltner) Park - COL
FD - 10.41 DK - 7.85
Turner, like Muncy, is just coming way too cheap on FanDuel at $2900 and even not hitting in the heart of the Dodgers’ order is still very much a value. He’s rounded out his season with a .795 OPS even though the 13 home runs mark a noted decline in the power output. He’s still been able to get the job done from a fantasy perspective on a lower K rate and the fact that the Dodgers just score so many freaking runs. Seeing as how the LA run line is about 20% higher than the next closest team, we are going to want all the bats we can get from their lineup.
Consider Buddy Kennedy (FD $2300 DK $2100)
Outfield
Mookie Betts FD 4500 DK 5900
Opponent - COL (Ryan Feltner) Park - COL
FD - 12.85 DK - 9.67
Let’s round out the Dodgers plays here with the guy who should be hitting at the top of the lineup. Betts is having an MVP-level season and though he’s not really in the running there, it isn’t for lack of effort. The dude has a career-high 35 home runs with an .880 OPS and has even added 12 stolen bases. He’s been part of the offensive engine that has been the Los Angeles Dodgers this season and there’s a reason he’s coming so expensive here.
Stone Garrett FD 2700 DK 3300
Opponent - MIL (Eric Lauer) Park - MIL
FD - 8.55 DK - 6.54
Jordan Luplow FD 2400 DK 2500
Opponent - MIL (Eric Lauer) Park - MIL
FD - 9.66 DK - 7.25
Garrett and Luplow should hit first and third for the Diamondbacks when they face the lefty Eric Lauer on Wednesday. Garrett has come out of the gate hot for Arizona with an early .883 OPS in his first 80+ plate appearances. He strikes out quite a bit for sure, though Lauer is putting down batters at fewer than a hitter per inning. I like the prices on both sites even with Arizona’s reduced implied run line.
Meanwhile, Luplow has struggled at the plate this season for sure, but this is a guy who has handled lefty pitching very well for his career. He has an .844 OPS and .356 wOBA in that split over a large sample size and at reduced prices we can definitely target him in this matchup.
Consider Eloy Jiménez (FD $3200 DK $4800)
