This article is part of our DraftKings MLB series.
This is the best time to be a baseball fan. We only have eight teams remaining, and it's impossible to know who will take down the World Series. Many people speculate the Yankees should come out of the American League, but if the Wild Card Round is any indication, who knows what will happen? That's why this slate is exciting because we're looking at the two ALDS matchups. Having only four teams will lead to an abbreviated slate, but it should be a fun one to discuss.
Pitching
Tarik Skubal, DET at CLE ($9,100)
Not much needs to be said when recommending the American League Cy Young winner. That's what Skubal is about to be, posting an 18-4 record behind a 2.39 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. His consistency is even more impressive, scoring at least 15 DraftKings points in 16 straight starts while totaling a 2.29 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 10.9 K/9 rate in that stretch. Cleveland can be a concerning matchup, but Skubal has allowed just two runs across 13 innings in their last two matchups. They've also struggled in the second half. You better believe Detroit will ride their horse in this must-win game.
Top Targets
Bobby Witt, KC (vs. Carlos Rodon) $6,100
Witt has been one of the best players in fantasy, averaging 10.8 DraftKings points per game. That's the second-highest total on this slate and the third-highest in the league. We're willing to bet he does something similar here because he faces an inconsistent lefty in Rodon, who has a 4.30 ERA since the opening month of the year. It also gives Witt the platoon advantage from the right side, registering a .854 OPS against southpaws since last season. Stacking Kansas City is challenging but Salvador Perez ($4,100) would be the best pairing with Witt behind his .852 OPS against lefties this year.
Bargain Bats
Gleyber Torres, NYY (vs. Cole Ragans) $4,200
Torres was terrible through the first half of the season, but something clicked after the All-Star break. The second baseman has a .298 batting average (AVG), .366 on-base percentage (OBP) and .796 OPS across his last 58 games. He also has a .386 OBP and .870 OPS at home in that span, but his splits against southpaws are spectacular. Torres has tallied a .363 OBP and .855 OPS against lefties since the start of last season. If you want to stack the Yankees, Aaron Judge ($6,500) and Giancarlo Stanton ($4,500) are two of the best power hitters in the game. They both have the platoon advantage against Ragans.
Andy Ibanez, DET (vs. Matthew Boyd) $2,800
I was shocked to see how cheap Ibanez is. Finding any bat below $3,000 is a godsend for filling out your lineup because it allows you to use anyone else you want. Ibanez is an ideal lineup-filler because of his super splits, sporting a .349 OBP and .807 OPS against lefties this year. That's all you can ask for from such an affordable bat, especially since Detroit is the only team that doesn't face an elite pitcher. We'll get into that in the next section.
Stacks to Consider
Detroit Tigers at Cleveland Guardians (Matthew Boyd): Matt Vierling ($4,000), Spencer Torkelson ($3,400), Colt Keith ($3,300), Andy Ibanez ($2,800)
It will be challenging to use hitters against Cole Ragans, Carlos Rodon and Tarik Skubal, so we want to stack against Boyd. The lefty got off to a fantastic start in his return from the injured list (IL), but he closed the year by posting a 4.09 ERA and 2.09 WHIP across his last three starts. That WHIP is wonderful for a hot team like Detroit, particularly considering how cheap all these bats are.
Many people will consider Riley Greene as the key piece of this stack, but we hate his splits against southpaws. That's why Vierling will be the top option, hitting .278 against lefties since 2021. He's also projected to bat third, which is awesome since he has a .360 OBP and .758 OPS across his last 43 games. Torkelson has also looked like a different player since being recalled from Triple-A, accruing a .781 OPS across his final 39 games. He also has the platoon advantage against Boyd, just like Keith. Keith has compiled a .308 AVG and .352 OBP against left-handers this year.
