Zach Thompson gives his top studs and value plays for Wednesday’s fantasy baseball slate on DraftKings.
The Division Series has already brought plenty of drama, storylines and fantasy baseball fun to the table this week, and this Wednesday will be the final day of 2024 with four games on the MLB main slate for DraftKings. The action starts at 3:08 p.m. ET in Detroit, so be sure to have your lineups set and ready to roll for another great day of DFS action.
The Tigers and Guardians start the day with Game 3 of their best-of-five series which is leveled 1-1. The Yankees visit the Royals in the same situation in the third of the four games, which begins at 7:08 p.m. ET. Over in the National League, we had a pair of Game 3’s on Tuesday and the Mets and Padres both won at home. Either of both of those two teams could move on to the National League Championship Series with a win on Wednesday.
It should be another wild Wednesday of wall-to-wall postseason baseball, so let’s dive into my top studs and values for the full-day, four-game slate.
Set yourDraftKingsfantasy baseball lineups here:MLB $150K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
For up-to-the-minute news, analysis and lineups, download the DK Network app. You also can follow DK Network on Twitter @dknetwork.
PITCHER
Stud
Seth Lugo, Kansas City Royals vs. New York Yankees ($8,500) – The Royals are a fascinating blend of very young rising stars and some established veterans, and Lugo has been a key vet in their rotation after he signed with them this past offseason. The converted relief pitcher made 33 starts and went 16-9 while compiling a 3.00 ERA, 3.25 FIP and 7.88 K/9. Even though he had never come close to this many innings in the past, he looked strong down the stretch, posting a 2.08 ERA and 9.09 K/9 over his final six starts of the regular season.
Lugo also was solid in his first career postseason start last week. He allowed only one run to the Orioles while earning 15.6 fantasy points in a no-decision. He also had a strong outing against the Yankees back in September, holding them to three hits with 10 strikeouts over seven shutout innings on his way to 38 fantasy points. While he may not be able to duplicate that performance, I do think he’s by far the best stud to build around on Wednesday’s slate. Facing the slugging Yankees always brings risk, but Lugo has been good enough to be a solid play at this price, especially compared to the other options available, which all come with even higher risk factors.
Value
Jose Quintana, New York Mets vs. Philadelphia Phillies ($7,200) – Quintana bounced around in 2021 and 2022 but has settled in with the Mets over the last two seasons. He went 10-10 on the season in 31 starts, posting a 3.75 ERA, 4.56 FIP and 7.13 K/9. While those numbers aren’t all that inspiring, the veteran lefty looked dominant for the last six weeks of the regular season and carried that success into the playoffs last week.
In his last six regular season starts, Quintana went 4-1 with a 0.74 ERA and 2.48 FIP. He had 29 strikeouts in 36 1/3 innings during that run, which included a great start in Philadelphia, where he held the Phillies scoreless for seven innings with just three hits. Quintana earned 26 fantasy points in that win and earned 20.5 fantasy points in a no-decision against the Brewers in the Wild Card round. He has produced 19+ fantasy points in each of his last six starts, and he’ll look to vault the Mets to the Championship Series with another strong outing Wednesday.
INFIELD
Stud
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Diego Padres ($6,500) –Ohtani still brings a ton of upside even though he has only totaled five fantasy points over the last two games. He homered in Game 1 off of Dylan Cease ($8,900) and had 23 fantasy points before his down-games in Game 2 and Game 3. After 54 home runs, 59 stolen bases and a .439 wOBA in the regular season and his first career postseason appearance, Ohtani will look to put together another signature performance to help the Dodgers avoid elimination. With a bullpen game as their best option, the Dodgers will need to score plenty of runs, and that usually starts with Shohei.
Stud
Salvador Perez, Kansas City Royals vs. New York Yankees ($4,300) – Perez is eligible at either catcher or 1B and can fit in multiple roster builds as a result. He homered in Game 2 of the ALDS and finished with 14 fantasy points. The home run was his sixth career postseason dinger and extended his hitting streak to five games. The 34-year-old hit a solid .271 this season with 27 homers and a .335 wOBA while playing an impressive total of 158 games. Perez and the Royals will face Yankees righty Clarke Schmidt ($7,900) on Wednesday. Schmidt gave up 10 runs in 14 1/3 innings over his last three starts, so the Royals have the potential to be a good source of value at home in this matchup.
Value
Michael Massey, Kansas City Royals at New York Yankees ($3,700) –Massey hit leadoff in Game 1 of this series and in both the two games in the Wild Card series against the Orioles and will likely be back in that spot against the righty Schmidt on Wednesday. He has hit safely in all four of Kansas City’s postseason games, going 6-for-15 (.400) with two walks and a double. He hit 12 of his 14 regular season homers against righties and had a .317 wOBA overall this season. After a strong finish to the regular season, the 26-year-old lefty has continued his roll into the postseason and is a good way to get good upside at 2B while spending under $4,000.
Value
Edmundo Sosa, Philadelphia Phillies at New York Mets ($2,800)–Sosa got the start in Game 2 against lefty Sean Manaea and will likely be in the lineup again on Wednesday against Quintana. He went 1-for-2 with a run scored and seven fantasy points on Tuesday and brings great energy whenever he has been called upon to fill in for any of the Phillies’ injured infielders this season. On the year, Sosa hit .284 against lefties with a .367 wOBA and 136 wRC+. He is 3-for-9 with a double in his career against Quintana and makes sense as a value solution either at 2B or 3B depending on how the rest of your roster fits together.
OUTFIELD
Stud
Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego Padres at Los Angeles Dodgers ($5,700) – Tatis has been carrying the Padres this postseason and hit another home run on Tuesday night. He has four home runs this postseason and has posted at least 13 fantasy points in each of the Padres’ five postseason contests. He finished the regular season on a roll with seven home runs in 22 games with a .366 wOBA and 140 wRC+. He has carried that over into the postseason and terrorized the Dodgers in their three games this series. If San Diego can close out their division rival, Tatis will be a huge part of the team’s growth and success. He’s been awesome throughout the postseason and will look to continue to leave his mark on October this Wednesday.
Stud
Nick Castellanos, Philadelphia Phillies at New York Mets ($4,400) – Castellanos has continued his flair for the dramatic this postseason, including his walk-off winner in Game 2 which is the only thing that has kept the Phillies from being swept. He had 24 fantasy points in Game 2 and went 1-for-4 with an RBI and five more fantasy points in Game 3. Over his last 12 games dating back to the regular season, he is an impressive 19-for-41 (.464) with seven extra-base hits and an average of 10.6 fantasy points per contest. Castellanos is 13-for-53 (.245) with a pair of home runs against Quintana in their extended history. He has strong splits against lefties and is a nice mid-range outfield option with a high ceiling.
Value
Starling Marte, New York Mets vs. Philadelphia Phillies ($3,400)–On the other side of the matchup of lefties in the NL East, Marte is one of the few Mets with good career numbers against Ranger Suarez ($8,200). Marte has gone 6-for-19 (.316) against him in the past. While he slumped towards the end of the regular season, Marte has been solid in the postseason, going 4-for-18 (.222) with two walks and five RBI. He hit .310 this year against Southpaws with an excellent .368 wOBA.
Value
David Peralta, San Diego Padres vs. Los Angeles Dodgers ($3,000)–Peralta didn’t start in Game 1 against his former team and didn’t play at all against Atlanta, but he has been excellent in the last two games for San Diego. He homered and had 16 fantasy points in Game 2 and had two more RBI with a double and 11 fantasy points in Game 3. Since the Dodgers will throw a variety of relievers on Wednesday, Peralta is a nice, cheap way to get exposure to a lineup that should be very productive.
Set yourDraftKingsfantasy baseball lineups here:MLB $150K Relay Throw [$50K to 1st]
The Crown Is Yours: Sign up for DraftKings and experience the ultimate host for games and betting experiences!
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKingsand do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups.I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.