We’ve come to Game 3 of the World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves, and the road team needs a win to get home field advantage back on their side. Do we want to back either starting pitcher here, or will this be a high-scoring affair?
Let’s get into it and answer that question.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $225K Game 3 Extravaganza [$50K to 1st] (HOU vs ATL)
Houston Astros at Atlanta Braves
Captain’s Picks
Ian Anderson ($15,600 CP) - I’m shocked that Anderson comes at a cheaper price than Luis Garcia ($16,200 CP). I think the righty has a lot going for him in this spot, particularly his fastball which has increased in velocity from last season. The Astros rank outside of the top 10 this year in pitch value against heaters, so that could be one way Anderson might find his way into this game.
The righty has been brilliant this postseason with a 2.25 ERA, but more importantly from a fantasy standpoint, he’s struck out 12 in 12 innings. It’s seemed on these showdown slates that the smart play has been to captain a pitcher, so if you’re going to do that, I think you need to look here.
Austin Riley ($13,500 CP) - You have to go hunting for a home run if you’re going to take a captain who’s not a pitcher, and I think Riley is a good candidate. He’s hit two so far this postseason, and his .717 OPS is nothing to scoff at. Mix in his great situational hitting over the last couple of weeks and the fact that he owns a 146 wRC+ against righties, and you may have something here.
UTIL Plays
Eddie Rosario ($7,200) - It’s hard to budge off the two men who have provided the most value so far this postseason from a DFS standpoint. Rosario has three homers and a 1.173 OPS so far this postseason and has a pair of hits through two World Series games. He’s historically been great against righties, hits atop the Braves’ order and should be facing the weaker of the two starters. This is a really good get.
Michael Brantley ($6,400) - It seems the secret is out, and that folks have realized Brantley is actually good. I think you need to continue playing him, considering he comes in with five hits already in this series and will face a right-handed pitcher, a situation where he’s been dominant this season. Though I’m admittedly not a huge fan of loading up on Houston, you need to get these two in your lineup to afford some of the nice high-priced options like Freddie Freeman ($10,000).
Fades
Luis Garcia ($10,800) - I can’t get behind a guy who allowed 10 earned runs and walked six over his first two postseason outings. I realize Garcia turned in a gem in Game 6 of the ALCS, but his body of work up to that point was poor. You need to go back to July — when Garcia was effective against the Mariners and A’s — to find a time where he was good against a good offense.
Garcia wasn’t even that good down the stretch either, averaging over two walks per start in his last six of the regular season. There just aren’t a lot of reasons to get behind him other than a one-start sample, and it doesn’t help matters that the Braves have the higher OPS in this series and have hit three homers to the Astros’ one. This is a quality offense.
The Outcome
The Braves should get to Garcia early, at which point the Astros’ bullpen should get back to work. It’s pitched 11 innings already through two World Series games to bring its total to over 60 innings in the postseason. These guys have saved Houston, and at a certain point will be too worn out to keep carrying the Astros.
I think Anderson will shove, meanwhile, and that the Braves will open up the series with a huge win.
Final Score: Braves 5, Astros 2
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $225K Game 3 Extravaganza [$50K to 1st] (HOU vs ATL)
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