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The Saturday night Showdown on DraftKings this week is a National League West matchup between the surging Los Angeles Dodgers and struggling Arizona Diamondbacks. The Dodgers have improved to 42-27 by going 8-2 in their past 10 games and are just 2.5 games behind the Giants for first place in the division. The Diamondbacks continue to trend the opposite direction, though, sinking to 20-51 by losing 15 straight games coming into this contest. The series got underway Friday night with a 3-0 win by the Dodgers as Trevor Bauer dominated and Steven Souza Jr. ($6,000 CP; $4,000) hit his first home run of the season in his return to Arizona, where he played in 2018 before suffering an awful knee injury.
The Dodgers will look to continue Arizona’s losing streak by giving the ball to Walker Buehler ($17,100 CP; $11,400), who will be opposed by Matt Peacock ($13,800 CP; $9,200). The Dodgers are not surprisingly heavy favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook with a -210 moneyline while the over/under for this game sits at 8.5 runs.
Despite the Diamondbacks’ slide, they still have some interesting fantasy to consider, so let’s take a look at to construct your DraftKings lineups for Saturday night’s Showdown contest.
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Captain’s Picks
Walker Buehler ($17,100 CP) - Buehler is extremely expensive to captain, but you have to consider it since he is averaging an impressive 21.0 DKFP per start and has allowed one run or fewer in five of his past six outings with an average of 22.4 DKFP over that stretch. He faced Arizona once during that run and picked up the win by allowing just one hit over seven shutout innings and striking out seven on his way to 30.8 DKFP.
Buehler is 6-0 in 13 starts and has a solid 8.32 K/9 with a 2.38 ERA and 3.72 FIP. He should be able to dominate the Diamondbacks, who rank in the bottom third of the MLB in home runs, wOBA, and wRC+. Over their 15-game losing skid, the team is hitting only .213 with 11 home runs and 53 runs (3.5 per game) while striking out 130 times (8.7 per game). Snapping out of their slump will be a tall task for the Snakes in this matchup, which should make Buehler an excellent place to start your lineups.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Dodgers OF Steven Souza Jr. is not in the lineup tonight vs. the Diamondbacks.
Steven Souza Jr. ($6,000 CP) - Souza broke a scoreless tie with his first homer of the season on Friday and is a very interesting Captain’s Pick pivot on Saturday. Playing Souza as a very cheap captain allows you the freedom to spend up for Buehler in the flex and stack him with the more expensive Dodgers bats like Mookie Betts ($15,900 CP; $10,600), Justin Turner ($14,700 CP; $9,800), and Chris Taylor ($14,400 CP; $9,600).
Souza was just recalled earlier this week from Triple-A Oklahoma City, where he hit .279 with a 1.047 OPS thanks to six home runs to go with 16 RBI and 18 walks. He is known as a patient hitter with power and will look to establish himself in the Dodgers’ corner OF mix. He started each of their two most recent games in right field batting seventh and has gone 1-for-3 in each game with 5.0 and 16.0 DKFP. If he is back in the lineup again facing his former team, he is a very intriguing way to build around someone other than Buehler and leave plenty of salary to play with for your flex spots.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $5K Extra Inning [$1K to 1st] (LAD vs ARI)
Value Plays
Josh Rojas ($8,800) - Rojas has been about the only productive Diamondbacks batter lately, as he continues to move around from 2B to SS to RF but stays locked into the top spot of the batting order. He has a solid .195 ISO and .343 wOBA in his 66 games this season and has a team-high 1.7 WAR. Rojas had a red-hot May but has cooled off a bit in June. However, his power numbers have actually surged with four home runs already in June, giving him a .241 ISO so far this month. Rojas has also been much more productive at home this year, where he has a .227 ISO and .353 wOBA. You have to play a Diamondback in the showdown format, and Rojas has been the best one most of the season.
Gavin Lux ($7,600) - Lux typically hits second against right-handed starters like Peacock, putting him in a great run production spot in front of the Dodgers’ big bats. He has struggled at times against lefties this year but is hitting .282 with all six of his home runs coming against right-handed pitchers, who he has posted a .188 ISO and .341 wOBA against with a 34.5% hard-hit rate. He has averaged 8.2 DKFP per game over his past nine contests and has at least seven DKFP in four of his past six.
Fades
Eduardo Escobar ($8,600) - Escobar is just one of the many Diamondbacks hitters that have been scuffling lately at the plate, and he stands out in this matchup as an option to avoid due to his 2-for-18 (.111) career history against Buehler as well. Escobar has had a couple of home runs over his past 10 games and does offer some pop, but he has only hit .235 in 43 games since May 1 with a .182 ISO and .300 wOBA. He’s one of Arizona’s best hitters, typically, but I’m staying away from him at this price in this matchup and going with the hotter-hitting Rojas in this price range.
The Outcome
The Diamondbacks will have to win at some point since I don’t think they’ll finish the season 20-142 on a 106-game losing streak. However, this is an extremely difficult matchup against Buehler, and Peacock has been serviceable but not spectacular. He doesn’t work deep into games, so there will be a lot of pressure on the bullpen, which has been a mess most of the season. The Dodgers’ lineup has been thinned by injuries, but they should still have enough offense to get to Arizona’s bullpen and produce enough run support for Buehler to get the win and improve to 7-0 on the season.
Final Score: Dodgers 5, Diamondbacks 2
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB Showdown $5K Extra Inning [$1K to 1st] (LAD vs ARI)
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