DFS MLB Lineups for October 5, 2017 at Draftkings.com & Fanduel.com
For the rest of this DFS MLB season, we’ll be writing up a group of pitchers and hitters that we’re considering for our cash and GPP lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel. As with any DFS sport, the advice below is relevant for daily fantasy purposes. A player or team might be better or worse from a fantasy perspective than they are in real life due to matchup, price, park factor, etc. This is important when constructing a roster. And if you’re looking for new ways to play DFS, be sure and give BOOM Fantasy and DRAFT a try!
A quick reminder while playing DFS MLB, don’t forget baseball is a game of variance. In the playoffs, the sample size is much smaller and there are bound to be some lucky, or unlucky bounces of the ball.
Pricing on these short playoff slates can be somewhat irrelevant at times, since it’s very difficult to go over the salary cap unless you’re using a very high-priced SP. Go with your gut and pick the batters who you believe you’ll do best, and don’t worry about leaving money on the table.
Another thing to remember outside of making sure your player is in the lineup, is to always check the weather. Always. Make this something that is part of your basic routine. Baseball games can get postponed! Your players receive no points from postponed games!
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10/5/17 MAIN SLATE TOURNAMENT RUNDOWN
DraftKings Moonshot: $3 buy-in, $10k guaranteed
DraftKings Fastball: $33 buy-in, $25k guaranteed
DraftKings Knuckleball: $5 buy-in, $75k guaranteed
FanDuel Squeeze: $4 buy-in, $60k guaranteed
FanDuel Monster: $300 buy-in, $18k guaranteed
FanDuel Grand Slam: $33 buy-in, $15k guaranteed
Best DFS MLB Pitchers for October 5, 2017
The Yankees offense is really rolling right now and that makes Trevor Bauer arguably the riskiest play on Thursday’s two-game slate. Even though he’s been lights out over 2 regular season appearances against the Bronx Bombers, the postseason is a different animal and Bauer lacks experience in that realm.
In Houston, two premier arms could go deep into Game 1 with Chris Sale and Justin Verlander set to duel. The Astros are a tough lineup for lefties to handle, but take away Jose Altuve’s splits and current ‘Stros are just 16-for-94 (.170) with 24 K’s in their careers against Sale.
With the weight of the franchise on his shoulders, Sale could come up huge or continue to struggle towards the end of a long season, so he’s best regarded as a GPP play, whereas Verlander should be able to limit a Red Sox team that posted the third-lowest wOBA (.298) in the Majors over the last 30 days of the season. He’s been borderline untouchable with a 1.06 ERA and 0.65 WHIP over 34 IP since joining the Astros and has more postseason experience than all the other SPs on this slate combined.
Best DFS MLB Hitters and Stacks for October 5, 2017
The missing link in our pitcher breakdown will likely wind up as RHP Sonny Gray, who is expected to be named as the Game 1 starter by the Yanks and could enter contests sometime Thursday morning.
Gray would be a boom-bust option to consider and he’s worth stacking with Yankees elite hitters Aaron Judge, Brett Gardner and Didi Gregorious after all three went yard in an offensive explosion on Tuesday night.
Bauer notably gave up a 1.74 HR/9 ratio with a 4.97 FIP when facing lefties this year and struggled even more with a 22% HR/FB ratio against LHB at home, so Aaron Hicks and Greg Bird are two cheaper Yankees lefties to consider in this matchup.
Sticking with the Indians-Yankees game, which has an 8.5-run Over/Under compared to the low 7-run line in Houston, the Indians could finally break through against Sonny Gray as well. Jose Ramirez is the best hitter to deploy in that lineup given his amazing floor-ceiling combination and he can be paired with Francisco Lindor in GPP formats.
Michael Brantley got his feet wet over the final two games of the regular season and he’s one Cleveland hitter with good career splits (6-for-18, 3 BB) in his career against Gray. Look at Austin Jackson and/or Lonnie Chisenhall for value depending on their placement within the lineup and Yan Gomes or Roberto Perez as a sneaky option at catcher.
In Houston, Jose Altuve is clearly an elite option despite facing an elite LHP in Sale. He hit .365 with a .444 wOBA at home against lefties this year and is 8-for-21 with a HR in his career against Sale. Carlos Correa finished the season on a high note and is worth a look as part of a tournament stack, potentially with Evan Gattis and George Springer or Carlos Beltran, if you believe Sale’s late-season struggles will carry over into the ALDS.
For Boston, Mitch Moreland has had success against Verlander as has Eduardo Nunez, but one is slumping and the other is coming off a knee injury that’s sure to leave some rust. Rafael Devers is likely the best Boston bat to target as a reasonably-priced third baseman who has yet to seem overwhelmed by any big moment during his rookie campaign.
Playing DFS NFL this week? Check out our FanDuel plays and DraftKings plays for week 5
