DraftKings MLB Picks October 5: Choose your ace(s) carefully!

CLEVELAND, OH – OCTOBER 25: Cleveland Indians fans hold flags after the Cleveland Indians defeated the Chicago Cubs 6-0 in Game One of the 2016 World Series at Progressive Field on October 25, 2016 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

DraftKings MLB Picks October 5: Choose your ace(s) carefully!

The playoffs are in full swing tonight with all four series in action. This is the most we will have to choose from for the rest of the season, so enjoy it! There are big names in action across the board. Where can we find the value to pay for an ace or two? Let’s check it out!

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All four games look clear as far as weather goes. There is a rain chance in Cleveland, but it looks more likely to cause an initial delay instead of anything in game, if at all. The winds are mild everywhere. The only one that may help a little is the 7 mph breeze out to left center in Cleveland.

These tips are based mostly on past performance. This is a nice tool for building a lineup, but should not be the only pieces of information you use. We have plenty of writers on here who give you relevant information no matter which site you play on!

For you first time players, if you would like $10 in free DraftKings dollars, use this link for the referral bonus with your first deposit of $5 or more! We have plenty of advice on the site across all sports to turn that $10 into more!

BOSTON, MA – SEPTEMBER 26: Chris Sale #41 of the Boston Red Sox pitches against the Baltimore Orioles during the fourth inning at Fenway Park on September 26, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

Justin Verlander ($10,000): I do understand a Verlander fade with so many other aces on the hill. Cleveland has hit him pretty well in the past, mostly from his time in the A.L. Central. However, Cleveland has not faced Verlander this year. On top of that, Verlander had at least 30 DraftKings points in every September start. It’s hard to fade that kind of dominance down the stretch.

Chris Sale ($9,600): I could actually see the ownership on Sale being low tonight. First off, he has not gone more than five innings since late July due to shoulder discomfort. The Red Sox treated him with kid gloves after coming off the DL, but now the stakes are raised. Sale had a staggering 237 strikeouts in just 158 innings this year. On top of that, he was filthy against the Yankees, racking up 66.6 DraftKings points in two starts with 19 strikeouts and only one run in 13 innings. I’m willing to take the risk with Sale here based on those numbers alone. Add in the fact that the current Yankees are hitting just .199 off of him in 156 at bats with 60 strikeouts, and Sale looks like the ace on this slate.

Middle Tier:

Corey Kluber ($8,600): By Kluber standards, this has been kind of a down year. By everyone else’s 20 wins, 222 strikeouts, and a 2.89 ERA look really good to me. In two games against Houston this year, Kluber held the Astros to two runs in 13.1 innings with 17 strikeouts, good for 55.6 DraftKings points. I have no problem fading either of the top two for Kluber. When you factor in Kluber’s 2.14 ERA in 17 home starts, I like him as my favorite for the entire slate.

Clayton Kershaw ($8,000): Kershaw hasn’t been his normal dominant self this year, but again, a 2.73 ERA and 155 strikeouts in 161.1 innings aren’t exactly bad numbers. The Braves are hitting just .220 against Kershaw with only one homer and five runs in 109 at bats to go with 41 strikeouts. It’s really tough to pass on Kershaw here, but with Kluber, Sale, and Verlander on the slate as well, I could see ownership being low enough to get a leg up on the competition.

J.A. Happ ($7,700): Happ has a 2.69 ERA since joining the Yankees at the trade deadline. Happ also has allowed just four earned runs in 12 innings against the Red Sox this year. As with most pitchers, there is some risk here, but Happ has proven that he can handle the Boys from Boston. The Red Sox are hitting just .224 with 69 strikeouts in 303 career at bats against Happ, but they do have 13 homers and 40 runs.

Bargain Pitchers:

Jhoulys Chacin ($5,200): Like I said yesterday, you have to take notice of any pitcher facing the Rockies on the road. The Rockies are hitting a solid .256 against Chacin, but they only have three homers and 12 runs in 121 at bats, and those include the Coors stats. Chacin doesn’t have much for strikeout upside even against this team, but considering his price is lower than four hitters and the same as another, he is worth the calculated risk here.

Tyler Anderson ($4,800): Anderson is going to be the chalk play tonight since this is way too cheap for a pitcher of his caliber. Even without a price attached, Anderson is in my top four on this slate. After a rough August, Anderson settled down to put up 58.3 DraftKings points over his last three starts. The caveat here is that Anderson was shelled by the Brewers earlier this year, and his ERA on the road is a full run worse than at home. This is not without risk, but for the price, Anderson is totally worth the risk.

ST. LOUIS, MO – SEPTEMBER 25: Ryan Braun #8 of the Milwaukee Brewers hits a home run against the St. Louis Cardinals in the first inning at Busch Stadium on September 25, 2018 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) /

Top Tier:

As hard as it is to do, I think I’m actually going to fade Yelich with a lefty on the mound today. It also doesn’t hurt that Ryan Braun is 5-8 with three homers and four RBI against Tyler Anderson already. Travis Shaw is 3-5 with a homer and six RBI, so he is in play as well.

Mookie Betts has two career homers against J.A. Happ, but is only hitting .206 in 34 at bats.

Story and Arenado have both homered off of Chacin in the past, but I don’t know that I want to invest that heavily against a guy that has a 2.47 ERA since August 1st.

Aaron Judge has homered against Chris Sale. If you expect Sale to falter, Judge, Stanton, and Aaron Hicks would seem to be the guys to go after him with.

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Middle Tier:

I don’t even want to relive all the times a Dodgers stack let me down in the regular season, but they have clobbered Anibal Sanchez in his career. Machado is 7-15 with three homers off of Sanchez. Dozier has slugged three homers off of him as well. Muncy is only 1-4, but the hit is a homer. I want at least some exposure here.

$4,800 for Jose Ramirez could be cheap. He is 11-27(.407) with two homers, seven runs, two steals, and five RBI against Verlander in his career. Lindor is 10-29(.345) with a homer, nine runs, and seven RBI. Even Michael Brantley has 10 RBI in 76 at bats against Verlander. The Indians are a good way to get separation in GPP and leverage those that roll with Verlander.

Bargain Shoppers:

Steve Pearce is the ultimate BvP beast tonight. Pearce is 11-32(.344) with six homers and 16 RBI against J.A. Happ. Don’t question it. Just capitalize on it! Ian Kinsler has smacked two homers off of Happ. Brandon Phillips has three.

You can save some coin here with Nick Markakis if you are only looking for points. He is 4-9 against Kershaw, but has no counting stats.

Marwin Gonzalez is a good place to get salary relief. It’s only gravy that he is one of the few Astros that has a bead on Kluber. Marwin is 9-20 with two homers and six RBI against Kluber. George Springer is about the only other Astro I would consider here. That’s how good Kluber has been against Houston is his career.

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