It feels like an eternity since the last time we saw baseball being played. Heck, the NBA regular season has started in the meantime. However, in reality, it hasn’t even been a week. It was Sunday evening that the Dodgers punched their ticket to the World Series with a 10-5 victory over the Mets. Los Angeles will now host the dangerous New York Yankees, looking to secure their second championship in the last half-decade.
Personally, I can’t wait for it all to get started. Let’s dive into Game 1 from a Showdown perspective.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $150K Fall Five [$50K to 1st] (NYY @ LAD)
SHOWDOWN STRATEGY
Captain’s Pick
Aaron Judge ($14,400 CP) – I’m not going to say that Judge is cheap on this slate, but how rare is it to see the sure-fire American League MVP as only the fourth-most expensive asset? It hasn’t been the best October for Judge, yet we’re also dealing with just a nine-game sample. Across 158 regular season contests, Judge hit 58 home runs and slashed .322/.458/.701 with a 218 wRC+. He sat in the 100th percentile in barrel rate (26.9%), expected slugging (.742) and expected wOBA (.484). In layman’s terms, he’s a God among men. Jack Flaherty ($11,400) also hasn’t been at his best in the postseason, pitching to a 7.04 ERA and possessing a microscopic 11.9% strikeout rate. If the RHP had a weakness in 2024, it was the long ball, as he surrendered 1.77 home runs per nine to opposing right-handed bats. Well, Judge is the best RHB in the sport. This sets up nicely for him.
UTIL Plays
Gerrit Cole ($12,000) – I want one of the two starters in my lineup for Game 1 and my preference is clearly Cole. The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner has seen a decrease in his strikeout numbers so far in the postseason, yet I suspect that has more to do with matchups than any flaw with Cole himself. Both the Royals and the Guardians ranked in the bottom five in baseball in strikeout rate during the regular season. Plus, Cole will be super well rested coming into Friday’s action, as he hasn’t started since October 15. Remember, Cole was on fire coming into the playoffs. In his final 10 outings in August and September, the RHP posted a 2.25 ERA with a 2.62 FIP and a 26.0% strikeout rate. His ceiling remains incredibly high.
Max Muncy ($7,800) – Muncy is having an amazing postseason run, which is a little shocking given how many left-handed starters the Mets threw at the Dodgers in the NLCS. In his 47 plate appearances, Muncy is slashing .242/.468/.545 with a 187 wRC+. Still, Muncy remains at his peak in opposite-hand matchups. During the regular season, the 34-year-old registered an .891 OPS and a 145 wRC+ off of right-handed pitchers. RHPs don’t often come as accomplished as Cole, but we’ve got limited options on a single-game slate.
Anthony Rizzo ($5,000) – There’s a few different things to think about when it comes to Rizzo’s viability on Friday. First and foremost, he’s dirt cheap. Secondly, Rizzo’s been hitting well so far in the postseason, slashing .429/.500/.500 in his 16 plate appearances. In fact, he’s been hitting so well that Aaron Boone moved the veteran first baseman up in the Yankees’ lineup for both Game 4 and Game 5 of the ALCS. Rizzo hit sixth in both contests. Finally, we have to talk about the individual matchup numbers off Flaherty. Full disclosure: Most of these stats were collected in Rizzo’s time with the Cubs. Still, in 21 at-bats against the RHP, Rizzo has three home runs and a 1.476 OPS.
Fades
Tommy Edman ($6,400) – I can’t lie, it’s slightly enticing to see the man who just won NLCS MVP with a salary this close to $6K. However, I’m here to tell you — and me — not to partake. As mentioned above, Los Angeles saw a ton of left-handed pitching versus the Mets and that was the perfect recipe for Edman. Yes, the infielder is a switch-hitter, but Edman has long preferred to hit from the right side. For his career, Edman owns a 124 wRC+ against southpaws and only a 91 wRC+ off right-handers. During the 2024 regular season, Edman slashed a paltry .181/.256/.267 off RHPs in his 117 plate appearances. In Game 2, with Carlos Rodon on the mound for the Yankees, we can talk. In Game 1? You’re not touching Edman with a 30-foot pole in DFS.
THE OUTCOME
These are the two best lineups in baseball. That’s not an opinion, it’s fact, as the Yankees and Dodgers finished first and second in wRC+ this season. Still, Los Angeles is at a disadvantage with Freddie Freeman ($7,000; ankle) at less than 100%. New York also has a pretty distinct edge in this starting pitching matchup. Give me the Yankees to take the opener on Friday, beginning the quest for their first World Series since 2009.
Final Score: Yankees 5, Dodgers 3
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $150K Fall Five [$50K to 1st] (NYY @ LAD)
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All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
