Welcome back to another preview for the coming days action in the world of Major League Baseball. With the All Star Break only a few days away, we are left with only a sparse selection of games this week which is good. A few days away from the game is always refreshing. The Home Run derby and All Star game added in there for some fun. On to a few games I am keen on..
Sunday 13th
Best Bet – 0 runs 1st inning Rays/Jays at $1.68 (2U)
Next Best – Cardinals/Angels at $2.76
Next Best – Twins at $2.40
St Louis Cardinals vs Milwaukee Brewers (6am AEST)
Cardinals ($1.77) – Wainwright
Brewers ($2.10) – Nelson
Over/Under – Over 7.0 ($1.99) Under 7.0 ($1.86)
Prediction
Cardinals. Wainwright continues to dominate, 11-4 with an ERA of 1.79. Despite allowing a base runner in each inning he pitched a scoreless 7 innings in his last outing as he just continues to find a way to get batters out. 15 of his 18 starts have been quality outings. Cardinals have a few injury issues, mainly with All Star catcher Molina on the DL for over a month. They have the depth to their roster to still get the job done however he will be missed in the meantime. They are coming up against a Brewers team which has struggled to get wins and get runs, apart from Saturdays dismantling of Joe “Jelly” Kelly. In a tight race for the NL Central all these games against division rivals are important. Top prospect Nelson is on the mound for the Brew crew and making his second start for the season. He did pitch 5 scoreless innings in late May to pitch his first career MLB win. Can see Wainwright keeping the Brewers under control here, and if the Cards can drive home those Runners in scoring positions (RISP) like they have relied on over the years then they can take this game without too much trouble. Big task for the young Brewers pitcher. Cardinals to win for me and the price is good enough.
Suggested Bet
Cardinals
Toronto Blue Jays vs Tampa Bay Rays (6am AEST)
Blue Jays ($2.42) – Hutchison
Rays ($1.59) – Price
Over/Under – Over 7.0 ($1.99) Under 7.0 ($1.85)
Prediction
Rays. David Price may well be close to pitching his last game for the Rays, this seemed more likely to trade him weeks ago before they went on a little hot streak. It gave the club false hope of a run at the division. The hole they are in is likely to deep to get out of. Will he still be aroud in a few weeks ? Aside from that he has been spectacular of late winning his last 3 starts and pitching at least 7 innings in his last 9 starts. He is 14-2 with an ERA of 2.45 in 18 starts against the Blue Jays. Hutchinson 6-7 on the year with an ERA of 3.86 has been erratic of late and has driven up some high pitch counts. Think the price available for the Rays is a little too short for me, and Rays bats are not consistent enough to have confidence in a -1.5 line. With a hot pitcher on one side and a pretty stagnant offense on the other side, I’ll play the 0 runs 1st inning.
Suggested Bet
0 Runs 1st inning $1.68
LA Angels vs Texas Rangers (9am AEST)
Angels ($1.58) – Weaver
Rangers ($2.45) – Mikolas
Over/Under – Over 10.0 ($1.92) Under 10.0 ($1.92)
Prediction
Angels. LA are on a hot streak and somehow have not allow the A’s to run away with the AL West. Their offense is just deadly with Trout having an MVP season back up by the big hitting Pujols. Weaver is an experienced ace who no longer is the main man in this rotation. That notch goes to the hard throwing Richards. Weaver currently 9-6 on the season with an ERA of 3.50, has his last start cut short with some back issues. Rangers have been decimated by injuries this season and now sit behind the Astros in the AL West basement. Not much to say about the inexperienced Mikolas apart from he has struggled at the big league level. On their day the Rangers at least do have a few bats that can do some damage in Rios and Beltre. Stranger things have happened and after all it is baseball but cannot see the Rangers winning this. Think Angels can continue their runs scoring spree.
Suggested Bet
Over 10.0 at $1.92 or Angels -1.5 at $1.92
Other Suggested Bets
Minnesota Twins vs Colorado Rockies (6am AEST)
Pretty much a slug fest with neither starting pitcher showing any form and ability to shut batters down. Both have big hitters in the lineup and with a few Home Run derby guys lining up here it could be a preview of Tuesdays blasts. Line set at 10.5 so expecting runs as you always do at Coors field. I’m taking this as a coin flip and Twins at $2.40 is insane value. You would take $2.40 on a game of heads and tails any day of the week.
All Prices Quoted via Sportsbet at time of writing.
Hope you all have a good week with your MLB betting, hopefully your thoughts on the games match up with mine. As always these are only a select few games I was interested in, feel free to share your opinions on any games at @MLB_TheProfits on Twitter. Happy Punting.
Please Note:
All of the above are the opinions of the author and are not recommendations or advice. The author may not be taking every bet listed above. Bet at your own risk.
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