The final Saturday night of the MLB regular season has a compressed schedule since Sunday features all 15 games with nearly simultaneous start times. As a result, all 11 games on Saturday’s main slate on DraftKings start within an hour of the 7:10 p.m. ET lock time. Seven of the 11 games are divisional contests, and Coors Field is also in play in one of the three interleague contests.
Whenever you’re playing DFS fantasy baseball, it’s critical to keep up with the latest news about lineups, injuries, and weather issues. Be sure to install the DK Live app and follow DraftKings Network on X (@DKNetwork) for all the latest updates. I’m also on X (@ZT_Sports), where you can keep up with all my picks as the regular season races play out and we get geared up for what should be an outstanding postseason.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $100K Bat Flip [$25K to 1st]
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PITCHER
Stud
Michael Wacha, San Diego Padres at Chicago White Sox ($9,200) – The Padres season has been one of the biggest disappointments in recent memory, but Wacha has actually been pretty solid. He posted a 13-4 record through his first 23 starts with a 3.39 ERA, 4.01 FIP and 8.27 K/9. He has already exactly matched his innings from last season and will reach 130 innings for the first time since 2017 with 2 2⁄3 in this outing.
He had one rough road outing against the Dodgers, which skews his recent splits, but he has produced over 20 DKFP in each of his two outings since then. He faced his former team, the Cardinals, in his most recent outing and went seven innings allowing just two runs and striking out six for 23.6 DKFP. He has a similar upside in this start in Chicago since the White Sox have been a mess all year on offense. They’ve been especially bad lately, ranking last in the MLB in runs scored over the last 30 days while hitting just .234 with a .279 team wOBA. They have the fewest stolen bases in the MLB during that span and the third-fewest home runs. The White Sox only scored two runs on Friday night in the series opener and have been held under four runs in eight of their nine most recent matchups. Wacha is wrapping up the first year of his four-year deal signed last offseason, so he’s expected to be back next year to help San Diego try and turn things around.
Other Options – Spencer Strider ($12,800), Justin Verlander ($9,800)
Value
Joe Boyle, Oakland Athletics at Los Angeles Angels ($7,800) – Boyle is a hard-throwing righty that the A’s acquired via a three-team trade deadline deal that sent Jace Peterson to the Diamondbacks and Sam Moll to the Reds. The hard-throwing righty was ranked the No. 21 prospect in Oakland’s system and has produced results since being called up for his MLB debut earlier this month. The 24-year-old threw three shutout innings as an opener against the Padres in his first appearance and followed that up with six innings against the Tigers, in which he only allowed one unearned run on five hits while striking out five. He earned his first MLB win and 23.9 DKFP.
Boyle has nine strikeouts in nine innings in the majors after racking up 168 strikeouts in 117 1⁄3 innings across Double-A and Triple-A with the Reds and A’s. His strikeout potential gives him a very high ceiling against the Angels, who have the highest K% of any MLB team since the All-Star break. Since September 1, the Angels have scored the third-fewest runs in the MLB with a team batting average of just .224 and wOBA of just .287. Boyle has a high ceiling in this matchup on Saturday night as he looks to make his case that he’s ready to be a part of the A’s rotation next season.
Other Options – Jordan Wicks ($8,000), Kutter Crawford ($6,800)
INFIELD
Stud
Freddie Freeman, Los Angeles Dodgers at San Francisco Giants ($6,200) – Freeman is making a late-season push for 30 homers after hitting three in his past four games to reach 29 on the season. He has been hot all month with a .333 batting average and .414 wOBA over his past 21 games while producing 11.7 DKFP per contest. Freeman had 26 DKFP in Friday’s win and has over 25 DKFP in three of his past four. He should be in a good spot to keep smashing against Giants SP Tristan Beck ($5,500), who has given up six of his 10 home runs allowed to lefties, who have a .339 wOBA against him on the year.
Stud
Ozzie Albies, Atlanta Braves vs. Washington Nationals ($5,700) – Albies is another star finishing the regular season strong and gearing up for the playoffs. On the season, he has a solid .279 batting average with a .358 wOBA, but over the 15 most recent games, he went 27-for-67 (.403) with eight doubles, four homers and a .484 wOBA. He averaged 13.3 DKFP per contest with double-digit DKFP in 12 of those 15 games. He and the Braves will face Joan Adon ($5,700) on Saturday, and they have good team upside since Adon has struggled to a 6.42 ERA and 5.20 FIP in his 11 games this season.
Other Options – Bobby Witt Jr. ($6,300), Jonathan India ($4,900), Xander Bogaerts ($4,600)
Value
Kyle Farmer, Minnesota Twins at Colorado Rockies ($3,800) – Farmer has been a regular in the Twins lineup since Royce Lewis (hamstring) landed on the IL. Farmer has made the most of his opportunity and enters Saturday’s game with a 10-game hitting streak. In those 10 games, he went 13-for-39 (.333) with a .357 wOBA and an average of 8.6 DKFP per contest. When you add in that he’s under $4k, can fill in either at 3B or SS, and that he’s playing at Coors Field in a great matchup against Karl Kauffman ($5,000), Farmer offers a ton of value, and he makes a nice option to get affordable elevation exposure Saturday.
Value
Luis Garcia, Washington Nationals at Atlanta Braves ($3,400) – Garcia is still only 23, although it seems like he has been a Nats’ prospect for a while. He was called back up to the majors earlier this month and has caught fire down the stretch. In his last 12 games, he has gone 18-for-43 (.419) with seven multi-hit games, three homers, a stolen base and a .495 wOBA. Garcia has averaged 10.7 DKFP per game over that stretch and is a solid value play under $3.5K at 2B this Saturday.
Other Options – Cedanne Rafaela ($3,800), Elehuris Montero ($3,600), Michael Stefanic ($2,000)
OUTFIELD
Stud
Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Houston Astros ($5,900) – While Ronald Acuña Jr. ($6,800) is always a great option, the Braves have everything wrapped up already while Carroll’s Diamondbacks still have everything to play for this weekend as they remain in the middle of a fierce NL Wild Card battle. Carroll hasn’t been as consistent all year as Acuña, but he has flashed similar dual-threat potential and comes at almost $1,000 cheaper on Saturday night. The 23-year-old Carroll has been hugely impressive all season and has been at his best while helping Arizona make a strong playoff push. Carroll has six multi-hit performances in his past 11 games, going 18-for-48 (.375) with four doubles, a triple, a home run and seven stolen bases to average 14.1 DKFP per contest over that span. He does have a tough matchup against Justin Verlander ($9,800), but his home splits and his splits against righties are both very strong this season, and he has been coming up clutch all year for the Snakes.
Stud
Juan Soto, San Diego Padres at Chicago White Sox ($5,200) – Soto has been smashing for most of September and helped the Padres make a late push for the Wild Card that ended when they were eliminated on Friday. Over his past 16 games, Soto went 26-for-62 (.419) with seven home runs and a .532 wOBA. He even added three stolen bases to average 15.8 DKFP per contest over that run. As long as he’s still in the lineup for the last two games of the season, Soto should be set up to finish with strong numbers from his first full season in San Diego, including a new personal best in home runs (35) and possibly in RBI since he currently has 108 and his previous career-high is 110.
Other Options – Ronald Acuña Jr. ($6,800), Yordan Alvarez ($5,800), Max Kepler ($5,100)
Value
MJ Melendez, Kansas City Royals vs. New York Yankees ($3,500) – Melendez got Friday off against a lefty, but he should be back in the lineup Saturday against Clarke Schmidt ($7,000) and the Yankees. Over his past 20 games, Melendez went 15-for-52 (.242) while adding two doubles, three homers and 17 walks for a .369 wOBA. Melendez and the other Royals’ lefties are on the strong side of the split against Schmidt, who has allowed a .374 wOBA to left-handed hitters this season. Melendez is a nice value with nice upside, especially if he’s in the heart of the order for K.C. on Saturday.
Value
Austin Slater, San Francisco Giants vs. Los Angeles Dodgers ($2,500) – With the Giants facing lefty Clayton Kershaw ($10,800), Slater is likely to get the start on Saturday and could even slot into the leadoff spot in the batting order. As part of a platoon, Slater has hit .287 with a .346 wOBA this season against lefties. In his past 24 games, he has been even hotter, posting a .354 batting average (17-for-48) with a .394 wOBA. Slater has gone 6-for-25 (.250) against Kershaw in their past meetings, with three home runs and a stolen base. While he isn’t typically an option I chase, I do like the value Slater brings in the split and in this matchup at just $2.5K.
Other Options – Mark Canha ($3,700), Brent Rooker ($3,500), Mauricio Dubon ($3,200)
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $100K Bat Flip [$25K to 1st]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skills and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
