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Welcome back to another edition of the FREE DraftKings and FanDuel MLB DFS picks. We have our first full League Championship Series slate Wednesday, as the Yankees finally shook off the Guardians on Tuesday to win their series by a 3-2 margin and advance to face Houston.
The player pool is naturally very narrow Wednesday, so differentiating in tournaments can be a bit trickier than usual. Additionally, on a two-game slate, there's virtually no way to avoid rostering at least a couple of hitters against your starting pitcher (s), but it's still a viable strategy if you pick your spots carefully.
This article will provide my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for FanDuel and DraftKings on 10/19/2022 for the two-game slate locking at 4:35 pm ET. The lineup will range from some elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. You can also read more DFS advice and lineup picks for other sports. It's also essential to monitor injury news and today's MLB starting lineups. If you have any questions or comments, find me on Twitter and ask away!
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DraftKings, FanDuel Pitchers - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Justin Verlander - HOU vs. NYY ($9,100 DK, $10,600 FD)
Verlander held the Yankees to one run over seven innings in his one start against them this season, and current New York bats own just a .161 average and .515 OPS against him in 161 career encounters. The right-hander did get hit hard by the Mariners in his one postseason start thus far (4 IP, 10 H, 6 ER), but he'll be pitching on eight days' rest Wednesday and is facing what could be a bit of a fatigued Yankees lineup that had to travel west after winning their delayed Game 5 on Tuesday against the Guardians. Finally, consider Verlander was nearly unbeatable at home this past regular season, pitching to a 10-1 record, 1.64 ER, 0.88 WHIP, 11.1 K/9, and 0.4 HR/9 across 88 innings.
Aaron Nola - PHI at SDP ($8,500 DK, $9,800 FD)
Nola kept the Padres to one run on seven hits over seven innings in his one start against them this season, recording 10 strikeouts in that outing. The veteran right-hander has allowed just one unearned run across the 12.2 innings covering his two career postseason starts, which have both come this fall.
He catches a San Diego team that just got shut out in Tuesday's Game 1 and that finished the regular season with a 24.6 percent strikeout rate, .291 wOBA, and lowly .119 ISO against righties at home over the final month. Nola has a long track record of success against current Friars bats as well, limiting them to a collective .221 average over 132 career plate appearances.
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DraftKings, FanDuel Infielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Rhys Hoskins - 1B, PHI at Blake Snell ($4,400 DK, $3,100 FD)
Hoskins can deliver on his reasonable salaries with one swing of the bat and comes into Wednesday's contest with a .333 average, a homer, and just one strikeout against Snell in seven career plate appearances versus the left-hander. Hoskins produced a .286 average, .945 OPS, and .404 wOBA against left-handed pitching this season as well, along with a 25.5 percent line-drive rate when facing lefties on the road. Snell allowed eight homers to right-handed hitters at home this season, and Hoskins happens to be an excellent hitter against the four-seam fastball (.366 wOBA), the southpaw's most often-thrown pitch.
Jose Altuve - 2B, HOU vs. Jameson Taillon ($5,500 DK, $3,900 FD)
Altuve went 0-for-16 in the three-game sweep of the Mariners in the divisional round, but the star second baseman is naturally too talented a hitter to be mired in such a slump for long. He could well break out of it against Taillon, who he's tormented for a .444 average in 10 career plate appearances.
Altuve was excellent at home all season as well -- he posted a .328 average, .971 OPS, and .415 wOBA in that split -- and he was nearly as good when splitting out the data for his numbers against righties at Minute Maid Park (.309 average, .387 wOBA). Altuve also struck out at just a 13.4 percent clip in same-handed matchups at home and posted a .456 wOBA against Taillon's trademark four-seam fastball.
Ha-Seong Kim - SS, SDP vs. Aaron Nola ($3,400 DK, $2,600 FD)
The shortstop selections are particularly thin on Wednesday's slate in terms of upside, but Kim carries very reasonable salaries. The 27-year-old showed some reasonable upside this season with 11 homers, 59 RBI, 12 steals, 29 doubles, and three triples. Kim also struck out at a reasonable 17.2 percent clip and produced an 8.8 percent walk rate as well, and Kim also happens to be a very good performer against Nola's trademark four-seam fastball with a .354 average and .211 ISO against the pitch this season.
Alex Bregman - 3B, HOU vs. Jameson Taillon ($4,700 DK, $3,300 FD)
Bregman is another Astros infielder that could get the best of Taillon on at least one occasion Wednesday, as he furnished a .305 average, 16 homers, a .972 OPS, and .416 wOBA at Minute Maid Park in the regular season.
The power-hitting third baseman was even better at home against right-handed pitching, compiling a .322 average, .442 wOBA, and .292 ISO in that split. Bregman hit .333 with a homer and three RBI in the ALDS sweep of the Mariners as well, and he pounded the four-seam, slider, and curve -- Taillon's top three pitches -- for respective wOBAs of .406, .371, and .407.
Other options: J.T. Realmuto - C/1B, PHI at Blake Snell ($5,000 DK, $3,400 FD)
DraftKings, FanDuel Outfielders - MLB DFS Lineup Picks
Bryce Harper - PHI at Blake Snell ($5,800 DK, $4,300 FD)
Harper isn't one of those lefty hitters whose outlook we downgrade because of a same-handed matchup, especially on the road. Harper tore through southpaws when traveling to the tune of a .368 average, 1.095 OPS, and .465 wOBA in a sample of 65 plate appearances this season. He's been swinging a hot bat in the postseason as well, now sporting a .435 average and 1.437 OPS with six XBH, including three homers, and six RBI.
Like his teammate Hoskins, Harper is also an excellent fastball hitter (.344 average, .464 wOBA) -- making him a dangerous opponent for Snell -- and he's also feasted on Snell's second-most thrown pitch, the slider (.311 average, .372 wOBA). Finally, consider Snell yielded a .263 average and 41.9 percent hard-contact rate to lefty hitters at home.
Yordan Alvarez - HOU vs. Jameson Taillon ($5,600 DK, $4,600 FD)
Alvarez is another highly potent left-handed bat on Wednesday's slate, and he comes into this ALCS having slugged a pair of homers and seven RBI versus the Mariners in the ALDS. He put together an MVP-caliber regular season as well and belted 27 of his 37 round trippers off right-handed pitching.
Alvarez also generated a massive .406 wOBA and .340 ISO versus righties at home, while Taillon gave up 11 homers and 30 extra-base hits overall (out of 69 total) to lefty bats. Alvarez's pitch-split profile also bodes very badly for Taillon, as the slugger has posted wOBAs of .492 and .408 against the four-seam fastball and the slider, the righty's top two offerings.
Juan Soto - SDP vs. Aaron Nola ($5,300 DK, $3,500 FD)
Soto is the other Padres hitter that's worth considering against Nola. The lefty-swinging slugger posted a .261 average, .942 OPS, .249 ISO, and .407 wOBA against right-handed pitching this season between his time with the Nats and Padres, and he's reached safely in six of his last seven postseason games this fall.
Soto has also been on base frequently in his many encounters with Nola -- he owns a .489 OBP in 47 career PAs versus the righty thanks to four singles, two doubles, three homers, and a whopping 14 walks. Given his power upside, Soto is worth considering for cash or tournaments, especially at his FD salary.
Other options: Giancarlo Stanton - NY at Justin Verlander ($5,100 DK, $3,200 FD)
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