The National League Championship Series continues on Wednesday night at Dodger Stadium, as the Los Angeles Dodgers look to turn things around after dropping each of the first two games of the series to the Milwaukee Brewers. These teams met last year in the NLCS, but this year has been a totally different script so far, with the Brewers taking control of the series with back-to-back victories over the two-time defending World Series champs. Can the Brewers go up 3-0, or can the Dodgers get up off the mat and make this a series again? It should be another great matchup on Wednesday night, so let’s take a look at the contest from a fantasy baseball perspective and make some Brewers Dodgers Showdown picks.
It should be a fascinating pitching matchup between two lefties, with Robert Gasser on the mound for the visiting Brewers against Blake Snell of the Dodgers. The Brewers beat Tarik Skubal in Game 1, edging out a 2-1 win, and they beat Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Game 2, breaking out late for a 7-4 win in a back-and-forth contest on Monday. After an off day, the scene shifts to L.A. for Game 3.
The Dodgers are heavily favored at -172 on the Moneyline odds on DraftKings Sportsbook and are getting 68% of the bets as of Wednesday morning. The Brewers are +142 on the Moneyline as heavy road underdogs, with the game total at O/U 7.5 runs.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $150K Bat Flip [$50K to 1st] (MIL @ LAD)
Brewers at Dodgers DFS Showdown Strategy
Captain Picks
Mookie Betts ($12,900 CP) – While the Dodgers lineup has been struggling in this series and even over the last several weeks, Betts has been one of the most consistent hitters in the order. After an underwhelming start to the season, he hit .337 in September with seven homers and a .470 wOBA in 22 games. In the playoffs, Betts has gone 5-for-21 with five walks and 4.5 FPTS per game.
Betts had strong splits at home this season and good numbers against lefties. He has taken over the leadoff spot since the team opted to slide Shohei Ohtani ($9,000) down in the order, which gives him a high ceiling in a premium run production spot at the top of the order. If the Dodgers are going to get back in the series, Betts will likely be in the middle of any offensive production.
Brice Turang ($12,600 CP) – Turang has been one of the stars of the first two games of this series, and even though he’s in a lefty-lefty matchup, he seems hot enough to be considered a Captain’s Pick regardless of his splits against lefties. He hit a home run in Game 1 off lefty Tarik Skubal, posting 16 FPTS by also picking up a walk. In Game 2, Turang was even more productive with 20 FPTS, going 2-for-3 with a double, two more walks, and three runs scored.
Turang and the Brewers are typically good at not chasing pitches out of the zone, and since Snell relies so heavily on chase, it will be a very intriguing matchup to watch. The Dodgers bullpen was heavily used in each of the first two games, and they may not be able to stand up if Snell has another short outing, as he did in the NLDS against the Braves. Turang can be elite when he’s in form, and he seems to have found his groove in the first two games of this series.
UTIL Plays
Robert Gasser ($11,000) – Gasser has allowed zero or one run in five straight games dating back to early September. He posted a 1.19 ERA and 3.72 FIP over his last four regular season starts, and he worked four innings and gave up just one run to the Padres in the NLDS. He earned 10.6 FPTS in that outing and has averaged 17.9 FPTS over his last five outings. The Dodgers lineup has multiple slumping veterans right now and should be a matchup that Gasser can attack this Wednesday. Since the Brewers have been going to the bullpen early and Gasser doesn’t have elite strikeout upside, I don’t like paying up for him in a Captain’s Pick spot, but he makes a very solid UTIL selection for DraftKings Showdown contests.
William Contreras ($8,200) – Contreras had 46 FPTS in the four games against the Padres in the NLDS with a pair of home runs. He started this series slowly against Skubal, but he had 26 FPTS in Game 2 with a home run and several key hits. He usually anchors the heart of the order for the Brew Crew and is 1-for-6 in his career against Snell with a double.
Tommy Edman ($5,400) – Edman joined the starting lineup for Game 2, and he went 1-for-2 with a pair of runs scored and 7 FPTS. He had gone 0-for-7 with a walk, a run, and one strikeout through four playoff games before his solid Game 2. He is a proven playoff performer, after hitting .274 with four homers and a .739 OPS over 32 playoff games in the Dodgers’ postseason runs in 2024 and 2025. Edman hasn’t had a great year this year, but he comes at such a bargain salary that he could be a sneaky value if he can turn back the clock and help the Dodgers get back in the series.
Fades
Shohei Ohtani ($9,000) – Ohtani seems to be less than his best self as he plays through biceps and knee injuries, and he hasn’t been worth paying up for since returning from the IL. Ohtani’s last home run was all the way back on August 18th, and he went 1-for-7 in the two losses against Milwaukee, with a walk and three strikeouts. He’s only 3-for-20 (.150) this postseason with no extra-base hits. He doesn’t bring a high enough ceiling to be worth paying up for in his current form.
