On the first Sunday of September, Major League Baseball has a pair of games under the Sunday night lights. The final game of the night is a rare Sunday night matchup from the West Coast that doesn’t start until 10:10 p.m. ET. Despite some key injuries, the Dodgers have won the first two games of the series and will look to close out the sweep on Sunday night. DraftKings is ready to roll with some large MLB DFS showdown contests to finish out the night, featuring the Nationals and Dodgers in the weekly Sunday Night Slugfest.
The pitching matchup features a pair of lefties as rookie Andrew Alvarez ($11,000) takes the mound for the Nationals as the highest-priced player on the slate. He’ll be opposed by Justin Wrobleski ($10,800), who is expected to serve as the opener at the start of a bullpen game. In this post, let’s break down this Reds at Cubs matchup from a DFS fantasy baseball perspective.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $80K Sunday Night Slugfest [$20K to 1st] (WSN at LAD)
Nationals at Dodgers DFS Showdown Strategy
Captain Picks
James Wood ($13,800 CP) – Wood has been excellent this season, smashing 30 homers to go with 18 stolen bases in 117 games. He’s just one away from matching his home run total from last year, when he played 40 more games. In 2026, he has also raised his ISO from .219 to .276 and his wOBA from .353 to .394. His xwOBA is even better at .417 due to his 57.9% hard-hit rate and 20.9% barrel rate. Those contact metrics typically would be a great short stretch for any hitter, but Wood has maintained that rate all season.
The 23-year-old came off the injured list earlier this week and has gone 4-for-13 with a pair of doubles and an average of 9.0 FPTS per game since returning. Even though he’s a lefty taking on a lefty in Wrobleski, Wood brings such a high ceiling that he has to be a consideration as a Captain’s Pick on Sunday night, especially with so many of the other big names and top options out of action.
Tommy Edman ($10,200 CP) – The Dodgers have been without Shohei Ohtani (biceps/knee) and Andy Pages (hand), and on Saturday, Max Muncy (illness) and Dalton Rushing (elbow) were late scratches. The Dodgers still won 6-5 despite all those absences, and one hitter who has helped fill in for them over the last few weeks has been Tomy Edman, who has been hitting leadoff while Ohtani has been out.
Edman has been limited to only 65 games this season, but over his last 16 contests, he is hitting .292 with two homers, two stolen bases, and a .367 wOBA. Edman has posted double-digit FPTS in four of his last five games and earned 18 FPTS with a big three-run homer on Saturday. In his five games in September, the veteran is averaging 13.0 FPTS per game.
UTIL Plays
Andrew Alvarez ($11,000) – Alvarez is expensive and in a tough matchup as he faces the Dodgers, but the rookie has been productive enough to still be worth considering. After working his way through the Nationals’ farm system since 2021, Alvarez reached the majors for the first time last year and has appeared in 21 games this season, working 90 2/3 innings. He has a 3.47 ERA and 3.37 FIP for the season, but has been better with a 2.41 ERA and 3.85 FIP in his last seven games. He earned at least 11 FPTS in each of his last six games, with a high point of 22.5 FPTS in his most recent outing. He hasn’t earned a win during that span, despite allowing three earned runs or fewer in each appearance. After six scoreless innings against the Marlins in his last start, Alvarez has shown a high enough ceiling to be a strong play in this MLB DFS showdown contest, and even if he isn’t quite as sharp, he has regularly returned solid value at this salary.
Teoscar Hernandez ($6,600) – While Hernandez’s season-long numbers haven’t been very impressive, he has stepped up during the Dodgers’ recent injuries. He has double-digit FPTS in four of his last six games, averaging 12.3 FPTS per game. He has a reputation for smashing lefties, and he has lived up to that this season with a .283 batting average and .365 in his splits against southpaws. Despite his down numbers overall, he’s a solid value option with upside against Alvarez.
Brady House ($6,000) – House was a regular in the Nationals’ lineup early in the season before going back to Triple-A at the end of May. He returned at the end of July and has hit .275 with three homers and a .335 wOBA in his 34 games since returning. House has plenty of raw power and is up to 10 homers on the year, with his increased contact rate helping boost both his floor and ceiling as a regular fantasy contributor after his latest call-up. House is hitting .341 with a .415 wOBA against lefties, so he’ll be in a good spot against Wrobleski, although it isn’t certain how long the lefty will be around after he makes the start. House has hit safely in seven straight games in which he got an at-bat, averaging 11.7 FPTS.
Fades
Justin Wrobleski ($10,800) – Wrobleski earned an All-Star nod after an impressive first half of the season, but the lefty has struggled since the All-Star break, going 1-5 with a 7.07 ERA and 7.63 FIP. He was on the IL for a few weeks due to forearm inflammation and has only pitched once since returning. He worked two innings against the Cardinals, giving up three runs on two hits in two innings. Since he only threw 36 pitches in that outing, he probably won’t work long enough to be worth this big salary even if he rediscovers his early-season form. Lately, though, he has been so hittable that this is much more of a place to stack the Nats since they bring solid value in what should be a bullpen game for the Dodgers.
The Outcome
Even though the Dodgers have won the first two games of the series, they are dealing with so many injuries in their lineup that it has to catch up with them at some point. Alvarez has been sneaky solid over the last month, and since the Dodgers may use this as a chance to get some lower-leverage guys some innings, the Nationals should have a good chance to avoid a sweep in LA before they head to San Diego to continue their West Coast swing.
Final Score: Washington 7, Los Angeles 2
