Fantasy Alarm DFS MLB: Wild Card Breakdown Rockies vs Cubs

Welcome to the MLB playoffs and personally I love the one-game wild card contest.  Something about win or go home games that always make for some of the best theater.  In tonight’s game we have the Rockies, who lost yesterday to the Dodgers, against the Cubs who failed to beat the Brewers.  Both teams are sending their top pitchers to the mound in Kyle Freeland for the Rockies and Jon Lester for the Cubs.  Freeland finished the 2018 season with a record of 17-7 and an ERA of 2.85.  Freeland struck out 173 over 202.1 innings.  Unlike most Colorado pitchers, Freeland had a higher road ERA at 3.23 than home ERA at 2.40.  In his lone start against the Cubs this season Freeland allowed three runs on six hits while striking out five and walking one over seven innings in a loss but that start came all the way back in April.  For the Cubs, Lester went 18-6 with a 3.32 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP.  Lester’s strike out totals dipped to career lows as he fanned just 149 over 181.2 innings.  Lester faced the Rockies once this season and it was actually in the game which Freeland pitched. In that contest Lester allowed just two unearned runs on five hits while striking out five and walking three over 5.2 innings.  Both the Cubs and Rockies went deep in their bullpens during Monday’s tiebreaker games so it’s likely they will be looking for their starters to go a bit deeper into today’s contests.

Tonight’s lineups are in and as you can see from the graphic above there are some Rockies’ hitters who have some good numbers off Lester with Arenado, Holliday and Iannetta having also taken him deep over the course of their careers.  Freeland has a limited sample size against the Cubs lineup but its glaring that both Anthony Rizzo and Javier Báez are a combined 0-for-12.  Just based off performance this season and I am expecting the Rockies to take this one.  Lester’s overall record may be solid and he is a different animal in the playoffs but his stuff just did not seem to be there this season and this Rockies lineup has some real boppers.