The week in Major League Baseball continues with a full 15-game slate on Saturday. It is headlined by a couple of regionally televised showdowns on FOX at 7:15 pm ET, with Seattle hosting Texas and Atlanta visiting Philadelphia. Other matchups include Mets vs Cubs, Red Sox vs Tigers and Blue Jays vs Diamondbacks.
Here are my best bets, and also make sure to check out our MLB picks for predictions throughout the 2026 season.
Pittsburgh Pirates ML over Tampa Bay Rays (-165)
The Rays were on a 6-game winning streak before losing to the Pirates on Friday – and that wasn’t even with Paul Skenes on the mound for Pittsburgh. Unfortunately for the visitors, they will have to go up against Skenes this afternoon. The right-hander struggled in his season debut against the Mets (largely due to the fielding mishaps of Oneil Cruz), but the normal Skenes has been on display of late. He has allowed only 1 run in each of his last 3 starts. Tampa Bay is countering with a red-hot Drew Rasmussen, so the margins in this matchup will surely be small. Still, the Pirates dominated the series opener and now have one of the best pitchers in baseball on the mound. You have to like their chances.
Seattle Mariners ML over Texas Rangers (-144)
Seattle’s George Kirby and Texas’ Nathan Eovaldi have already gone head-to-head once this season. Last Tuesday’s matchup saw the Rangers prevail 3-2, but now it is the Mariners who have home–field advantage. I’m rolling with Kirby to get revenge, as he has a history of dominating the Rangers’ current lineup. Corey Seager is 1-for-18 lifetime against the right-hander; Brandon Nimmo is 1-for-11; Josh Jung is 1-for-8; Joc Pederson is 1-for-7; Wyatt Langford is 2-for-14; Josh Smith is 4-for-20; Jake Burger is 0-for-6. In 2025, Kirby compiled a 3.38 home ERA compared to a 5.16 mark on the road. The 36-year-old Eovaldi comes in with a 5.40 ERA this season – including 6.32 on the road.
Arizona Diamondbacks ML over Toronto Blue Jays (-120)
Arizona was an easy winner for me on Friday and I’m going right back to the well for the second game of this series. Toronto may be enduring a bit of a World Series hangover, which would be entirely understandable following their heartbreaking near-miss against the Dodgers. Since opening the season with a sweep of the A’s, the Blue Jays have lost every series. The Diamondbacks, on the other hand, recently took 2 of 3 in their series against the Mets, Phillies and Orioles. Now the Snakes are back at home with far more momentum than the opposition, which continued with a 6-3 victory last night. Arizona’s Zac Gallen is sporting a 2.25 ERA through 3 April appearances; Toronto’s Max Scherzer allowed 8 runs in just 2.1 innings in his last start against Minnesota this past Sunday.
Click here to add us to your Google preferred sources and never miss a story
