Two MLB games Thursday! Let us rejoice! Especially since neither of these series seem likely to go seven games! Six might even be a stretch, though the Jays looked good Wednesday! We have Game 3 of the NLCS, now in Los Angeles, and Game 4 of the ALCS, still in Seattle. Thursday's first pitch comes at 6:08 p.m. ET. Here are my MLB DFS lineup recommendations.
Pitching
Tyler Glasnow, LAD vs. MIL ($8,800): Just because Blake Snell and Yoshinobu Yamamoto absolutely tore through the Brewers doesn't mean Glasnow will. That being said, the fact Snell and Yamamoto obliterated Brewer bats does encourage me. So does the fact that Glasnow is an elite strikeout pitcher, and also the fact he had a 2.77 ERA at home this season. On top of that, against the Phillies in that definitive Game 4, he went six scoreless innings and struck out eight, only getting pulled due to cramping.
Top Target
Lefties can hit Luis Castillo, and Daulton Varsho ($4,100) hits righties hard. Varsho has two homers in the playoffs and he hit 20 this season. That was in only 71 games, and 18 of them came against righties. Varsho slugged .591 against right-handed pitchers this season. Castillo doesn't allow a ton of homers, but over the last two seasons lefties have hit over .275 against him.
Bargain Bat
Playoff time is Ki-Ke Time. Enrique Hernandez ($3,300) has taken his game to a new level once again. I don't believe a decent player suddenly becomes a great player because "post" is now preceding "season" instead of "regular." What I do believe, though, is that a decent player can lock in at what happens to work out to be exactly the right time and benefit both his team and DFS players. Hernandez has hit .379 with four doubles in eight playoff games. Brandon Woodruff's injury has really left the Brewers in a rough spot. Jose Quintana might start, or pitch bulk innings, in Game 3. Maybe it will be a bullpen game since it is essentially a must win. Regardless, I don't feel confident in going with a matchup-based play from the Dodgers, so I'll just go with the hot bat on a reasonable salary.
Stack to Consider
Mariners vs. Blue Jays (Max Scherzer): Jorge Polanco ($4,200), Josh Naylor ($3,900), J.P. Crawford ($2,900)
If things didn't seem bleak enough for the Blue Jays after they lost two games at home, they have tapped Max Scherzer for a Game 4 start. That would be the 41-year-old who posted a 5.19 ERA this season. He had a 5.91 ERA on the road! Scherzer has gave up over two home runs per nine innings as well, in case you needed anymore incentive. Since "Mad Max" is a righty, I have three guys who can hit southpaw from the Mariners.
Hitting two homers off Tarik Skubal turned heads when it comes to Polanco, but he had a rebound campaign before the playoffs began. He's a second baseman who hit 26 home runs on the campaign. Also, the switch-hitter had an OPS over .800 against both righties and lefties, which is a good thing when it comes to the bullpen-happy postseason. One imagines Scherzer won't last longer than four innings in this one. Naylor hit .295 this season and stole 30 bases. He's added two more swiped bags in the postseason. With the Mariners and the Diamondbacks, Naylor posted an .843 OPS against right-handed pitchers. Crawford lacks for power, but he's a shortstop, so the fact he hit .265 with 24 doubles is sufficient. He hit .279 against righties but he also hit .271 at home.
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