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$300
The Detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox will be playing the proverbial rubber match of a three-game series when they clash in Detroit on Wednesday. Detroit recently took advantage of the worst team in baseball (Pittsburgh) but a four-game winning streak came to an end with an 8-4 loss to Detroit on Tuesday. Another loss is likely in the cards with left-hander Matthew Boyd toeing the rubber in this one. Boyd was the Tiger’s Opening Day starter, but he may be the worst “ace” in the entire league. Boyd is 0-1 with a 9.20 ERA through three outings and he has never posted anything better than a 4.53 ERA in five MLB seasons. White Sox right-hander Dylan Cease, on the other hand, has been outstanding in two August starts. He gave up just two runs in 6.0 innings against Kansas City and the blanked Cleveland in 5.0 innings of a 2-0 shutout this past Friday. Chicago is 6-1 in its last seven on the road and 11-5 in the last 16 meetings between the two teams. The Tigers are 9-46 in their last 55 at home against right-hander starters Back the White Sox and do so with confidence.
Boyd faced the White Sox four times last year and compiled a 4.87 ERA. That actually isn’t terrible by his lowly standards but it certainly isn’t good. Cease went 4-7 with a 5.89 ERA during his rookie campaign of 2019, so to say he is unproven despite success so far this season would be a gross understatement. Chicago features five different players with at least three homers–including Eloy Jimenez with four. The over is 40-18-5 in Chicago’s last 63 at Detroit. Take the over.
The Colorado Rockies lost their series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks 12-8 on Monday, but that is just about where the bad news ends for the home team. Colorado is still 11-5 as of Tuesday evening, much better than Arizona (7-10). The Rockies also have to feel great about their chances with right-hander Antonio Senzatela on Wednesday afternoon. Senzatela is 3-0 with a 2.65 ERA and 14 strikeouts compared to just five walks through 17.0 innings of work. On the other side of the coin, National League West representatives have been beating up on Diamondbacks right-hander Luke Weaver. The 26-year-old is a disastrous 0-3 with a 12.19 ERA through three outings, which have come against San Diego (twice) and the Dodgers. In two of the three starts he surrendered six runs (12 total) and against the Padres this past Friday he lasted only 3.0 innings. The smooth-hitting Rockies, who always do serious damage at home, will be happy to inflict more pain on Weaver. Center fielder Charlie Blackmon is batting .484 with three home runs and 19 RBIs. Blackmon and Trevor Story (six HRs) will likely lead Colorado to victory.
Monday’s matchup turned into a slugfest and something similar would not be overly surprising in this one. The thin air of Colorado obviously helps, but Weaver’s struggles are the biggest reason for expecting a lot of runs. That’s not to say Senzatela is a lock to dominate. He is off to a stellar start in 2020, but he had a 6.21 ERA at home in 2019 and a 4.83 ERA at home in 2018. Pitching at Coors Field just isn’t easy. Arizona’s 12-run barrage in the series opener should give the visitors some semblance of confidence at the plate. Lean toward the over.
The Los Angeles Angels and Oakland Athletics will conclude a three-game series when they meet one more time on Wednesday afternoon in Los Angeles. Oakland has been the far superior team this season even though it got edged out in the opener 10-9 on Monday. The Athletics’ 12-5 record includes a perfect 3-0 mark when right-hander Chris Bassitt takes the mound. Bassitt is sporting a 1.08 ERA and he has struck out 15 batters while walking only four in 16.2 innings of work. His 2020 debut came against none other than the Angels, whom he blanked across 4.0 innings en route to a 3-0 victory. Bassitt’s counterpart in that contest was righty Griffin Canning, and the same matchup will take place on Wednesday. Canning has been solid for the most part this year, but he surrendered three runs to the A’s in 4.2 innings. The Athletics are 12-5 in their last 17 on the road, while the Angels are 6-14 in their last 20 at home. Go with Oakland.
Canning bounced back from his loss to Oakland by giving up only one earned run in each of his starts against Houston (6.0 innings) and Texas (3.2 innings). Speaking of Texas, prior to this series the Angels got swept by the Rangers in three straight games and scored a total of just six runs in the process. Outfielders Justin Upton and Jo Adell are both struggling mightily at the plate. The under is 10-2 in the Athletics’ last 12 on the road and 7-1 in their last eight on the road against right-handed starters. Look for this one to stay under the total.
The Cubs had their way with Cleveland as Jon Lester looked brilliant in game one. They will try to follow it up with Kyle Hendricks, who is slated to start game two of this series. Hendricks is 2-1 to start the year with an ERA of 3.54. After his Opening Day complete game shutout, he has struggled, allowing eight earned runs over his next 11.1 innings. He will be opposed by Carlos Carrasco, who has had a fantastic return to baseball after his health issues in 2019. Carrasco is 2-1 on the year with an ERA of 2.50. He is coming off a start where he held the Reds scoreless over six innings, allowing only one hit and picking up eight strikeouts. Hendricks’ struggles could be a sign of more to come and even with his outstanding start to the season, I do not trust him here to keep the Indians’ bats in check. For that reason, I will stick with Carrasco and Cleveland to bounce back and pick up the win.
Even as I mentioned Hendricks’ struggles, I do think he will be able to have success early. Whether or not the bullpen can hold down the fort is a different story as the Cubs have had plenty of issues there. Still, 14 of Cleveland’s 17 games have stayed under the total and I look for the same to be true here. They have a much more reliable starting pitcher than they did on Tuesday and that will be the difference as Carrasco can slow the bats of the Cubbies. I will back an under, but would only take it as a lean because of the power in each lineup and the inconsistencies of this Chicago bullpen.
$100
The hot start for the Marlins has somewhat cooled off as they have now lost three straight games. They will look to get back into the win column as Jordan Yamamoto takes the mound for game two against Toronto. In just one start this season, Yamamoto really struggled, allowing four earned runs over four innings. That includes two home runs and the start came against Baltimore, so he will certainly be looking to do better. Toronto will counter with Nate Pearson, who has not yet earned a decision on the year and has an ERA of 2.70. He has pitched a total of 10.0 innings, allowing just three earned runs. Toronto has the clear pitching advantage, as long as Pearson can limit his walks. I like the Toronto offense more as well, so a lean towards the Blue Jays would be my pick.
The total is hard to call because these are certainly not two of the greatest offenses, but the pitchers are still young and could easily make some mistakes. A majority of the games involving these teams have stayed under the total, seven of 11 for the Marlins and nine of 13 for the Blue Jays. Yamamoto may have struggled in his first start, but he was still very good last year and has the tools to bounce back in a big way. Pearson also is looking like one of Toronto’s better pitchers, so I like him to slow down a still lackluster Miami offense. It would be a lean at best, but I will take the under and look for a decent pitching duel.
The Reds will return Wade Miley from the injured list as they look to get rolling in game two of this series. Miley had a horrible Cincinnati debut, allowing five earned runs over 1.2 innings way back on July 30th. He has been out since then with a left groin injury, so hopefully he will be at full strength now. Brad Keller makes just his second start of the season for the Royals after having also spent time on the injured list during the first few weeks of the season. He had a great debut, pitching five shutout innings against the Cubs last week. Seeing how Miley struggled so much, I am not sure if I would want to back him right away in his return, and he should be rusty with all the time off. The Royals provided plenty of run support for Keller in his first start, and I think we will see them get their bats going against a struggling Miley. It would not be much of a lean, but I will side with the Royals in this one.
If Miley’s first start was anything to go by, I would expect runs in this game. Even though Keller had a great season debut, his team scored 13 runs in that game and that was against the Cubs. The Reds still have a decent offense as well, averaging 4.2 runs per game, while allowing 4.8. They are coming off game one of this series having scored six, so as long as they can ding Keller for a few and get to the bullpen, the offense will likely be fine. I just do not trust Miley at all to limit any offense, so a lean to the over would be my play.
The days of Masahiro Tanaka serving as the Yankees’ ace are clearly over, but the veteran pitcher apparently hasn’t gotten the memo. Through two starts this season, the 31-year-old has allowed only one earned run on five hits and one walk in 7.2 innings pitched. He’ll have a good chance of keeping that going on Wednesday; in his lone career start against Atlanta, Tanaka earned the win after allowing three earned runs in seven innings pitched. He also had a 3.90 career ERA in 22 starts against National League teams.
It won’t be as easy of a day for Braves starter Kyle Wright. Even ignoring his 7.41 career ERA, the 24-year-old has struggled against American League teams, collecting a 9.64 ERA in two games. He’s also been considerably worse against teams with winning records (9.74 ERA) vs. teams with losing records (4.67 ERA). Add in the Yankees’ dominant lineup, and this seems like a pretty easy choice. We’re taking Yankees run line.
The Braves have established themselves as one of the top offenses in all of baseball, but this is partly attributed to several outlier performances. The Braves are averaging an impressive 5.3 runs per game, but they’ve also scored 16 runs over their last two contests (as of Tuesday afternoon). Remove those games from the equation, and Atlanta is averaging a much-less impressive 4.8 runs per game.
In other words, we can’t necessarily count on the Braves to hold up their end of the total. Can the Yankees pick up the slack? Of course, but we wouldn’t bet on it. The Yankees are averaging 4.9 runs per game, but they’re averaging only 3.8 over their last five. We don’t feel super good about it considering the offensive firepower on both squads, but we’re taking the under here.
Considering how Wade LeBlanc has looked in 2020, it’s shocking that the veteran can continue getting work. Maybe teams continue to sign him for situations like Wednesday night. That’s right, despite a career ERA of 4.50, the 36-year-old has been mighty solid against the Phillies throughout his career. LeBlanc has seen time in eight games (three starts), compiling a 2.89 ERA in 28 innings pitched. The Phillies’ offense has been struggling a bit to start the season, so there’s a chance LeBlanc can continue his dominance against the organization.
It probably won’t be a similar story for Phillies starter Zach Eflin. While the youngster looked solid in his only career start against the Orioles, his other splits tell a different story. Elfin had a 4.39 ERA in inter-league play, and he’s allowed a 5.28 ERA against teams with a record of .500 or better. Add in the Orioles’ (surprisingly) surging offense, and this game seems to be pointing in Baltimore’s direction. We know, that sounds crazy, so play it safe and opt for Orioles run line.
Baltimore hasn’t had a whole lot of experience against Eflin, but those who have faced the starter have had success. Plus, in case you haven’t noticed, the Orioles have actually been hitting in 2020; they’re batting .251, they have a .770 OPS, and they’re averaging five runs per game.
The Phillies have a solid offense on paper, but they’ve been limited to only 3.9 runs per game this season. Fortunately, their best player has had success against LeBlanc. Bryce Harper is 3-for-10 against the starter with a homer and three RBIs. If some of this teammates can pick up the slack, the Phillies should score enough to keep up with the Orioles. We’re taking the over on Wednesday.
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Zack Greinke has dominated the Giants throughout his career. Now, we know what you’re thinking: here’s Pickswise exploiting some splits. But no, he’s really dominated San Francisco, and you could make an argument that it’s the opponent he’s had the most success against throughout his career. The veteran is 13-3 with a 2.22 ERA in 130 innings pitched. Add in the Giants’ underwhelming 2020 offense and Greinke’s success at Minute Maid Park (3.62 ERA), and this is looking like it will be a long day for the Giants.
Of course, an attractive pitching matchup hasn’t necessarily translated into wins for the Astros in 2020. That lack of success should clearly be attributed to their ugly .233 batting average and .719 OPS. However, that lineup looked significantly better during their first game against San Francisco, and their recent losing streak to the Athletics makes their offense look a whole lot worse than it really is. This is a long way of saying we’re taking Astros money line on Wednesday.
That aforementioned Astros series against the Athletics was absolutely brutal, as Houston plated only five runs in three games (including a 13-inning affair). Remove those three games, and the Astros’ offense is looking a whole lot better. Specifically, they’re averaging 5.9 runs per game if you ignore those losses to Oakland, and that obviously sounds a whole lot better than their actual 5.1 runs per game. Houston can hit, and they should knock around whoever’s on the hill for the Giants on Wednesday.
While Greinke should shut down the Giants, we have faith that the underdog will be able to score at least a few runs. That should be partly thanks to Brandon Belt, who’s a convincing 11-for-37 with two homers against the veteran pitcher. The Giants struggle to score, but they should be able to chip in enough to make this game go over.
Due to COVID cancellations, the Nats have only played 13 games coming into this one. Nevertheless, it has been a disappointing start as the defending champs are under .500. With Anthony Rendon gone the offense is now being led by Juan Soto. The young outfielder missed time to start the season but is trying to make up for it in a hurry. Rendon’s replacement, Carter Kieboom, is struggling the way a lot of rookies do. Washington still has a strong starting staff but Anibal Sanchez needs to be better. His ERA is close to eight and he has surrender four homers in 10 innings. The Mets certainly have their own problems with the only certainty on the team being Jacob deGrom. The Polar Bear, Pete Alonso, is batting only .200 and without his power stroke the Mets’ lineup is well below average. Robinson Cano was showing some nice life but he is going to be on the injured list until Friday at the earliest. Without consistent offense it is hard to count on the Mets right now. No starter has been listed but unless it is deGrom it is hard to find much to work with there.
Take Washington.
Although neither lineup is looking especially great right now I am tending to look in that direction for the total. I am not expecting Sanchez to do a 180 and dominate. He should be better but giving up a few seems like a given. Ditto for whoever the Mets ultimately put on the mound. I think both offenses will feel pretty comfortable and we get something like a 6-4 final.
Take the over.
The Twins look a lot like they did last year, slugging their way to victory most evenings. Max Kepler and Nelson Cruz are leading the way on offense and there is room for growth there because the team is not actually making much contact. The pitching might be better and deeper than last year and acquired Kenta Maeda has been a part of that. You can actually make an easy argument that the former Dodgers pitcher has been the best starter for the Twins this season. Minnesota has a deep bullpen so his shorter outings are not as much cause for concern. In Milwaukee, they have not been able to find the magic this season. Christian Yelich got the big contract but he is not even hitting his weight this season, so far. Keston Hiura is showing no signs of a sophomore slump but the lineup has not been able to help a pitching staff that has been better than expected. Eric Lauer has made two appearances for Milwaukee and his lone start was disturbing. I don’t like that matchup here.
Take Minnesota.
Lauer is certainly not someone you feel comfortable backing, especially against a lineup that is loaded with right-handed power threats. I can see him easily getting lit up. I don’t expect the Twins to give up more than three or four so we will need their sluggers to do most of the damage on the way to an over. No reason for a few balls to not leave the yard on both sides.
Take the over.
Tampa is doing it again, though I suppose we should not be surprised at this point. No they are not dominating but they look like they are heading back to the playoffs. They only got Austin Meadows back last week and he is an important bat for them. You know they can pitch so if they can get enough offense this team is going to be right where it should be. They are winning even though they are not hitting. Blake Snell is getting the ball for the Rays in this one and he can dominate. The situation in Boston is simple. Their pitching is bad and their offense is not good enough to carry it. Sure there are going to be some nights where they out-slug opponents, it could happen any night, but it is not happening frequently enough. Zach Godley is getting the start for the Red Sox in this spot. He has yet to win a game for his new team. He can miss bats but also gives up too many hits.
Take Tampa.
Snell can quell any offense. He has shown that time and again, though the right-handed power at Fenway Park could be somewhat of challenge. Correlating this with the win projection above it seems more likely that Tampa scores just enough to win. Fenway inflates totals so lets back the under here. Small play though. I am more confident on the side in this one.
Take the under.
Two AL West rivals will play the rubber match of their series here as the Texas Rangers host the Seattle Mariners. Jordan Lyles will start for Texas while Taijuan Walker takes the mound for the Mariners, and I think the Rangers should be a much larger favorite for this one. Lyles certainly isn’t anything to write home about, but neither is Walker, who has a 5.79 ERA through three starts. Outside of a ten-run outburst on Monday the Mariners have been very weak-hitting the past couple of weeks, and I think Lyles will be able to survive without too much damage. The Rangers have started to pick things up after a slow start, and they’ve now won four of their last five games entering this one. Seattle on the other hand is just 3-7 in their last ten games, and the Rangers are always much better at home. Take Texas.
I also like the over a lot here. Both of these pitchers have ERAs well above five, and this one should be a slugfest. The Rangers’ offense is starting to show signs of life, and I think there’s some value on their overs before oddsmakers catch up and adjust after their slow start. It certainly doesn’t hurt that they play in a park which is very friendly to hitters. I think Walker is going to get roughed up, and Lyles is a journeyman with a career ERA of 5.11. The over is also 8-3 in Texas’ last 11 overall, and 7-0-1 in Seattle’s last eight road games.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have now lost two games in a row, and they sure as heck aren’t going to lose a third. Especially not with Julio Urias on the mound against the San Diego Padres. It looks like the 23-year-old is going to have the breakout season he’s been threatening for a few years now, entering this one with a 2.40 ERA through three outings. The Dodgers have gone quiet with only three runs over their past two games, and I think they’re going to come out angry and on fire here. With the shortened season and the way the Rockies have been playing, Los Angeles knows it can’t slack off in the NL West. A motivated Dodgers lineup is the last thing anyone wants to face, as they have the most offensive talent of any team in the league. This is a very good price to be getting at home.
The under also makes a lot of sense in this spot considering the pitching matchup. San Diego starter Zach Davies has been almost as good as Urias, with a 2.87 ERA through three starts. In his most recent outing he gave up zero runs, and each of the Dodgers’ last five games have seen nine or fewer total runs scored. Fernando Tatis Jr. might be the next face of the league, but the Padres still don’t have much around him outside of Manny Machado. The under is 9-4-2 in Los Angeles’ last 15 games, as oddsmakers appear to be overcompensating for their offensive prowess. This should be a classic pitchers’ duel.
The biggest theme of MLB betting is ‘opportunity.’ That’s because teams usually play 162 games a year and on any given day from April to October there are up to 15 games to wager on. The 2020 MLB schedule is different as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a shortened 60-game regular season set to take place, but daily MLB wagering opportunities will still be available. This means if your MLB predictions get hot, you can really build up your bankroll quickly. It also means that if you have a not-so-great day at the sportsbook window, you can get right back on the horse the next day whereas, in the NFL for example, you have to wait nearly a week to get back into your picks.
As with all major sports, the 2020 MLB schedule has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. With the best part of the first four months of the scheduled 2020, Baseball season lost due to the lockdown, the MLB and MLBPA finalized a return-to-play plan on June 23, with the teams’ reporting on July 1st and the MLB opening night 2020 set for July 23rd followed by MLB Opening Day 2020 on July 24.
The delayed start to the season is not the only change to the 2020 MLB schedule, with much of the season’s lost, a 60-game regular season with an expanded 16-team MLB postseason has been agreed upon.
The MLB playoffs expansion will feature 16 instead of the usual 10 teams, with the top two teams in each division earning an automatic berth to the MLB playoffs. The seventh and eighth teams in each league will be chosen from the best records remaining. With 16 teams instead of 10, there will be no one-game wild-card round this year, with the first round being best-of-3, followed by best-of-5 and best-of-7 rounds in the LCS and World Series.
Also, in order to limit travel distances, each team’s regular season will consist of playing their divisional opponents 10 times, with the rest of their 2020 MLB schedule against their geographic counterpart in the other league, for example, AL East vs NL east
While the current situation is fluid, and subject to change, MLB has outlined a season, right the way through to the 2020 World Series, and all of the key dates for the 2020 MLB schedule as they stand, can be seen below.
Parity is such a thing in baseball with 162-games, in theory, the top teams should rise to the top, with only a 60-game regular season, injuries, poor form, and all other key factors in making our MLB picks and predictions could be exacerbated. In this shortened season our expert’s knowledge and analysis are as important as ever to successful wagering on the 2020 MLB season, so be sure to check out our MLB best bets for our top plays on today’s games.
With the situation MLB and MLBPA have found themselves in, changes had to be made in order to get the MLB season 2020 up and running, those changes include the number of games, personnel, and include a few key rules changes that you must keep in mind when making your MLB Picks and Predictions throughout the 2020 MLB season.
The key Changes to the 2020 MLB Season can be seen below.
There are 2,430 total games in the MLB regular season and our expert MLB picks provide insight and analysis into every game, if you’re looking for the best MLB bets today we have you covered.
We offer our MLB expert picks throughout the 6-month MLB season with great success. We have you covered with Today’s MLB Picks, available all of the MLB games today, with some of our MLB predictions coming in the marquee matchups while others are under-the-radar plays away from the spotlights where you often find tremendous value. Pitching matchups, weather, injuries, travel schedule, and many other factors are all taken into account to find the best MLB picks in all of the MLB games today.
MLB 2020 Predictions will provide a different test with the shortened 2020 MLB season, and the reduction of games puts our in-depth research and expert analysis to an all-time level of importance with even more factors to consider ahead of our 2020 MLB predictions.
Our experts spend hours researching and analyzing all of the key information such as statistics, pitchers, team news, weather, travel, and more before making our MLB predictions for every game of the 2020 MLB season.
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The most popular way to bet on MLB is via the Moneyline. This means games are basically handicapped based on each of the team’s starting pitchers. “Sure thing” pitchers such as Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, and Clayton Kershaw are going to cost you, often requiring a $200 or more wager to make $100 (-200). Finding an even pitching matchup or one of those stud pitchers that may be fatigued and going against them is the best way to make money in MLB betting. Our free MLB expert picks help you identify these profitable matchups for every game of the baseball season.
The spread in baseball is known as ‘the run line’. Many bettors feel there isn’t as much value laying -200 on an all-star caliber pitcher because even elite pitchers can turn the game over to his bullpen who will subsequently blow the game and cost them the win. Therefore betting on the run line (-1.5 or +1.5) is a great way to find better MLB prices compared to the Moneyline. A Clayton Kershaw pick on the ML (win outright) for example might be -240 but betting that same game to win by 2 runs or more (run line) could be priced at -120. MLB run line betting works in the opposite way too. There are a lot of 1-run games in baseball and betting on a team +1.5 runs is a great way to string together wagering wins if you think teams can keep games close.
There’s no other sport where the stadiums and the weather are so crucial to the scoring as the MLB. This is why our free MLB picks on the totals see almost as much wagering from the public as the sides of a game.
The dimensions of the MLB parks are also different and need to be factored in when making your MLB predictions. Coors Field for example is located in the high altitude of Denver, Colorado which means it’s not unlikely to see scores similar to 11-8 three or four times a week. Minute Maid Park in Houston for example has a left-field wall that is just 315 feet from home plate compared to AT&T Park in San Francisco that has a right-center field alley of 421 feet.
Weather is a major factor when picking our MLB predictions today. The ball travels better on 92 degree Summer days in Arlington, Texas, or when the wind is blowing out to left field at 23 MPH at Wrigley Field in Chicago. So before you head to the window make sure you check the weather report to give your ticket the best chance of cashing.
There are numerous ways to have success betting on MLB. For example, if you are confident in a team’s starting pitching but have reservations on their bullpen and relievers, sportsbooks offer the first 5 innings lines.
Also if you are really confident in a particular matchup you can bet on alternate run lines or taking a team to win by -2.5 or even -3.5 runs with increasing payouts. Another fun way to essentially bet on all MLB games of the day at once is with a grand salami wager, in which you’re wagering on the over/under for total runs scored in all games on a given day. There’s plenty of fun to be had on a daily basis with our MLB predictions.
In addition to free daily MLB picks, we also provide insight into MLB playoffs betting. From wild card ‘play-in’ matchups to Game 7 of the World Series, there’s nothing quite like the excitement of October baseball. In the MLB playoffs, pitching rotations are shortened and home-field becomes an even bigger advantage but it’s important to make sure the lines reflect that. Our experts analyze every playoff game and give you their expert MLB predictions to help you make the best selections in the MLB Playoffs to finish off the season strongly and in profit.
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