RADIO
The Astros are heading to the World Series as the representatives for the American League, which leaves us with the National League Championship Series tonight. The series shifts back to Atlanta as Chris Taylor (three homers, six RBI) powered the Dodgers to an 11-2 win in Game 5. It's do-or-die time for the Dodgers as they need to win on the road to force a Game 7, and they're going with one of their aces as Walker Buehler will take the mound. The Braves will start with the young right-hander Ian Anderson. Neither pitcher could get past the fourth inning in their lone NLCS starts.
I'll be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for the FanDuel main slate on 10/23/2021. You can see our DraftKings and FanDuel DFS lineup pick for the early slate here as well.
Be sure to also check out all the MLB player news, including late scratches, and the projected and confirmed daily MLB lineups for each DFS slate. You can also check out today's DraftKings MLB DFS lineup picks, and read more DFS advice and lineup picks for other sports too. Let's get to it!
Single-game slates are much different than classic slates on FanDuel. Pitchers are taken off the board entirely and only hitters are able to be selected in lineups. There are two multiplier spots: an "MVP" counting for 2x fantasy points and a "STAR" counting for 1.5x fantasy points. The player salaries remain the same regardless of the multiplier designation, which is the main difference from the way DraftKings sets up their single-game lineups. There are no positional requirements, either, so you have the freedom to select five outfielders if you want. These differences make for very distinct lineup-building strategies, and it's obviously critical to select the right players at the MVP/STAR slots.
MVP/STAR Picks
Trea Turner ($7,500)
The Dodgers side of this game is more appealing with their 4.7-run implied total facing the vulnerable Ian Anderson tonight. Turner may go overlooked since he has had a really rough time at the plate ever since the postseason began, slashing .214/.289/.214 with no homers and just two RBI. This is a guy who had a top-3% .296 xBA, .386 wOBA, and 28 homers in the regular season, and he's still hitting in the three-hole for a dangerous offense. He went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI last night, and while he's much better against southpaws, Anderson gives up a high 9.5% barrel rate. Plus, Anderson may not last too long as he went just three innings and was pulled after 55 pitches in his last start.
Mookie Betts ($9,500)
Betts is my favorite high-priced play on the slate, and it's pretty easy to see why. He's just 1-for-9 in the last two games, but he posted 27.7, 27.4, 0, 21.2, and 28.7 FD points in the five games prior. He only hit one bomb in that span and he's due for another - he held a .225 ISO with 17 homers against RHP this season and Anderson has been susceptible to the longball recently with seven homers allowed in five September starts (one homer allowed in two postseason starts).
Freddie Freeman ($9,000)
The Braves hitter I'll be getting the majority of my multiplier exposure to is Freeman, and I don't think that's too controversial of a take. He has been scorching at the plate recently, smashing bombs in each of his last two games and posting at least 15.2 FD points in four of his last six (averaging 24.9 FD points in those four games). He holds a .217 ISO and .398 wOBA vs. RHP this season and his .315 xBA and .571 xSLG marks are best on the slate by quite a bit. The matchup with Buehler isn't ideal, but he went 3-for-4 with 15.2 FD points in their first matchup back in Game 3.
Others: Adam Duvall ($5,500), Corey Seager ($8,500), Austin Riley ($7,500)
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FLEX Picks
Adam Duvall ($5,500)
I really like Duvall as a contrarian MVP or STAR pick tonight, so he's absolutely in play for the FLEX spots as well. He's hitting just 4-for-20 in the NCLS, but he hit a homer in Game 4 and posted over 16 FD points in two of five games. He had a lot of success against RHP this season with a .292 ISO, .345 wOBA, and 32 homers with a high 22.6-degree average launch angle. He strikes out a lot, but Buehler hasn't shown any of his regular-season form when it comes to his strikeout rate (averaging four per game) and Duvall can take advantage tonight.
Cody Bellinger ($6,000)
Bellinger has re-discovered his hitting stroke that has been missing all season, right in the nick of time. He's hitting .355/.429/.484 in the playoffs and he has posted at least 12.2 FD points in each of his last three games. Anderson gives up an above-average amount of barrels and has had an issue with homers in the past month or so.
Will Smith ($7,000)
Smith has had a great postseason to this point, posting a .525 SLG with three homers, six runs, four RBI, and eight walks. He has been quiet recently, though, going 3-for-15 with two runs and four walks over his last four games. It'd be a mistake to sleep on his power (.259 ISO with 19 homers vs. RHP) and this price allows you to fit in whoever else you'd like to stack him up with.
Others: Dansby Swanson ($5,000), Chris Taylor ($8,000), Eddie Rosario ($6,000)
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