Wise n' Shine: MLB picks and soccer predictions for Friday, July 21

Good morning Pickswise Nation and welcome to another fantastic Friday of sports. The Open golf got off to a fascinating start yesterday and we have a busy MLB slate today plus the USWNT’s opening World Cup soccer game and Lionel Messi’s debut for Inter Miami, so let’s get straight to making your next bet better.

About Last Night

Awesome day of baseball picks!
The Pickswise MLB team were on a heater on Thursday, going 8-2 with our game picks, cashing our Best Bet as the Astros beat the A’s 3-1 and also hitting our MLB parlay at +614 odds! On top of that, our expert Keith Schmelter went 2-0 with his MLB best bets. The Braves avoided being swept by the Diamondbacks with a 7-5 win, while the Orioles beat the Rays 4-3 in the 10th.

Harman on the move
Amateur Christo Lamprecht, Tommy Fleetwood and Emiliano Grillo shared the lead after Day 1 of the Open Championship golf, but American Brian Harman has been the man on the move this morning, going 3 shots clear of the field as of 7:30 am ET. Justin Thomas was among the big names to struggle, taking a 9 at the final hole of his first round to finish 11 over par.

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Today’s Slate

15 MLB games on Friday
We are back up to a full slate of 15 MLB games today, with Cardinals vs Cubs providing some early entertainment at 2:20 pm ET on Apple TV+, which is also showing Padres vs Tigers at 6:40 pm ET. Read all of today’s MLB predictions.

USWNT begins World Cup bid
We have two big, but very different, soccer games tonight and we have predictions for USA vs Vietnam in the Women’s World Cup, as well as Inter Miami vs Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup as soccer superstar Lionel Messi is expected to make his debut for Miami.

Best Bet of the Day

MLB: Minnesota Twins ML over Chicago White Sox (-160)
9:40 pm ET

White Sox starter Lance Lynn has been an over bettor’s delight for the most part this season. He has a 6-8 record with a 6.06 ERA and 1.43 WHIP. He has a big problem with giving up home runs with 24 allowed through 19 starts and that may be a good sign for the Twins, who rank 8th in the MLB for home runs hit. The Twins’ Joe Ryan has an 8-6 record with a 3.77 ERA and 1.03 WHIP and he has pitched better in home games, sporting an impressive 0.82 WHIP through his 9 home starts. Read our full White Sox vs Twins predictions.

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Must-read

Our MLB mega parlay and YRFI/NRFI Best Bets for today are ready to read, and there’s also just still time to tail a couple of our Open golf Day 2 picks. Before the USWNT’s first game, you can still check out our Women’s World Cup betting guide, along with our UFC Fight Night 224 best bets and UFC four-fight parlay for Saturday’s big fights in London.

Read all of our great sports analysis as it arrives throughout the day on the Analysis tab.

Stat of the Day

The USWNT is bidding to become the first team — men’s or women’s — to win 3 straight soccer World Cups.

Quote of the Day

“Having someone that I know very well and is a ginormous mentor for me that I’ve played previously with kind of helped me feel a little bit more at home and at ease.”

Amateur Christo Lamprecht was delighted to have fellow South African Louis Oosthuizen alongside him for his amazing opening round at the Open.