The final day of the long grind of the MLB season has arrived. 161 games are in the books for each franchise, with the postseason beginning tomorrow. There is still plenty to be decided on the final day as the New York Mets and Cincinnati Reds fight for the final playoff seed in the National League, the Yankees and Blue Jays battle for the top AL seed, and the Guardians and Tigers fight for which team will represent the AL Central and which will be a Wild Card seed. There are numerous ways to get involved in the action, with all 30 teams playing today. All 15 games will begin in the 3:00 p.m. ET window. It is worth paying attention to which teams have something to play for and which players are being held out, but the action will take place nonetheless. One of the more unique ways to play is with one of the newest features on DraftKings this year in Pick6 Fantasy Baseball!
This article will look at my top Pick6 plays for today’s action. You simply choose whether each set statistic will be more or less than the set number. With the stage set, here are my top three picks on today’s MLB slate.
Cristopher Sanchez More Than 4.5 Strikeouts
The Philadelphia Phillies have officially locked up the second seed in the National League, but will be looking to stay sharp before resting on the bye week. Cristopher Sanchez will make his 32nd start of the season and has been every bit the Ace the Phillies have needed since Zack Wheeler’s season was forced to end early. Sanchez is posting a 13-5 record, a 2.57 ERA, and has struck out 204 while only allowing 169 hits across his 196.1 innings pitched. Assuming he goes at least four innings in this matchup with the Twins, this will be the first time in his career that the one-time All-Star has thrown over 200 innings in a season.
Sanchez is posting a career-high 9.4 strikeouts per nine innings this season. He has tallied at least five strikeouts in 26 of the 31 starts thus far. Minnesota is averaging 8.42 strikeouts per game as a team and has tallied 11 strikeouts in each of the first two games of this series. This likely will not be a lengthy start for Sanchez, but this is a Twins team with nothing to play for, and he has looked in prime form. Count on him recording more than 4.5 strikeouts and putting a nice bow on a stellar regular season.
Rafael Devers More Than 0.5 Home Runs
The San Francisco Giants have been eliminated from playoff contention and did not get the second-half boost they hoped for after trading for Rafael Devers. But they will finish off the regular season in a friendly matchup with the Colorado Rockies. McCade Brown will get the start for Colorado and has thrown just 22.2 innings at the MLB level. He is allowing a 7.54 ERA across these opportunities with four home runs allowed. The Rockies also have the worst team ERA in baseball at 5.99, so the outlook when it gets to the bullpen does not get much better.
Rafael Devers has not quite lived up to his sky-high standards, but he is still one of the most dangerous hitters in baseball. The left-hander is slashing .252/.372/.476 with a .848 OPS on the season overall. He has 34 home runs and 108 RBIS on the season, with 25 of the long-balls coming against right-handed pitching. He is also batting .273 with three home runs over the past week.
Brown has struggled against left-handed pitching this year as well. He is allowing a 1.044 OPS to lefties compared to .726 to right-handed hitters. Look for Devers to punish the inexperienced pitcher and put one over the walls for his 35th home run of the season as he closes down the year.
Aaron Judge More Than 0.5 Home Runs
The New York Yankees are still playing for the overall number one seed, and Aaron Judge is looking to add a final bullet point to his MVP resume. They will take on the Baltimore Orioles to close down the season today. Judge is slashing an MLB-best .331/.448/.691 and posting a ridiclous 1.149 OPS on the season. He is hitting .400 with a 1.636 OPS over the last week and has four home runs over his past six games. The two-time MVP also has 11 home runs over his past 25 games played and is posting a .378 batting average across this stretch.
Kyle Bradish will get the start for Baltimore, who has allowed two home runs in five starts this season. The Orioles’ bullpen is also posting a collective 4.58 ERA and has allowed 80 home runs on the season. Bradsh ranks in the bottom half of the league in average exit velocity, barrel rate, and hard-hit rate this year. Look for Judge to make his final push for his second consecutive and third MVP of his career by putting one over the fence today. He has been red-hot at the plate, and this is not a matchup that should expect this to change.
What is DraftKings Pick6?
Pick6 is a peer-to-peer fantasy variant where you build a lineup (your “Pick Set”) of 2+ players and select whether you believe each will outperform their listed stat projection. Enter your Pick Set in Pick6 contests to compete against other users. Get enough picks correct and win a share of cash prizes.
How to Play
Create a Pick Set
Create a Pick Set by choosing 2+ players from the same sport and Pick Group (a set of picks available from a group of set competitions). For each player, simply select if you think they’ll have more or less than their listed stat projection. In each Pick Set, you can not pick the same player twice and you must pick players from at least two different teams.
Enter an Amount
Once you finalize your Pick Set, choose your entry fee amount. Your entries will be automatically distributed into available contests, subject to your confirmation.
Sweat Your Picks
When the games go live, use the My Picks tab to follow your picks in real time to track how your players are performing against their projections and how they stack up against other users.
Compete for Prizes
Make enough correct picks and win a share of the contests’ guaranteed prizes. Any prizes won will be credited to your DraftKings account after contests are finalized.
Play at DraftKings Pick6 or by downloading the DraftKings Pick6 app on Apple or Google!
