Another day another dollar– we went 2-1 Tuesday which makes us 5-1 in MLB betting this week. Let’s keep the wheels turnin’– here are 3 plays for hump day!
White Sox -1.5 (-105), 1.05 units: I’m keeping this one really short and simple. The White Sox are too good to lose more games in a row, especially to an inferior team like Pittsburgh. Although the Pirates have some quality skill players on offense and a few pitchers that can get the job done, today the White Sox are up against Chase de Jong (4.26 ERA, 1.42 WHIP) in only his second start. Dylan Cease (3.99 ERA, 1.30 WHIP over 70 innings) isn’t magnificent but has more than enough command to hold the Pirates in check. Expect a show-out performance from the Chicago lineup and a win by margin today–sometimes these games are more about offense, not the pitchers. I think Chicago’s 5-game slide ends in big fashion.
Giants win (-111), 1.5 units: As enigmatic a personality and player as Shohei Ohtani (3-1, 2.70 ERA, 1.16 WHIP over 53.1 innings) is, I can’t bet against the Giants right now. Fresh off a 5-0 beat-down of the Angels last night, Kevin Gausman (8-1, 1.51 ERA, 0.77 WHIP over 89.2 innings) and the elite San Francisco Giants march into their fourth contest against LAA and they’re lacking no confidence. Gausman continues to dominate in nearly every start, going 8 innings in his last outing and allowing only 2 runs against the hapless Diamondbacks. With a bullpen that’s fresh and arguably their best pitcher on the mound, I can’t side with the home team Angels today. The Angels are in a 2-game slump and while Ohtani’s dual threat adds an exciting element for the crowd, the Giants are not only dominant in pitching but lately their bats are surging, too. That’s pretty scary. I love playing on Gausman and I don’t see any reason to anticipate negative regression. Give me the Giants at a low price.
Dodgers win (even), 1.5 units: The Dodgers have lost 6 of their last 7 games against the Padres and now they go up against Joey Musgrove (2.28 ERA, 0.85 WHIP over 79 innings) and a San Diego unit that’s now won 6 straight. Good for the Padres but I say the buck stops tonight. San Diego is now only 1.5 games back behind the Dodgers in the NL West and the Dodgers are dealing with a slew of injuries. But we’ve seen this story before. LAD knows how to respond when the chips are down and I love playing on Trevor Bauer (2.45 ERA, 0.94 WHIP over 95.2 innings), who looked back to form in his last start against Arizona. Sometimes a great pitcher needs a weaker foe to recalibrate and I expect a sturdy showing from Bauer again today. In 12 innings against the Padres this season, he’s only allowed 4 runs. The Dodgers are one of the deeper rosters in MLB and I expect them to respond appropriately. I’m on LAD at a lovely price.
