We're sitting pretty after a 2-1 performance on Friday. The Phillies and Brewers gave us 2 no-sweat winners, but the Orioles failed to cover the run line. That brings us to 129-96 on the season.
Here are 3 MLB best bets for Monday, August 28th. Let's kick the week off in style before focusing on some college football! Good luck on the diamond tonight!
Best Bet: Tigers F5 (-110)
I know Luis Severino looked better in his last start against the Nationals, but I'm still not believing he's all the way back. As crazy as it sounds, I trust Tigers rookie Reese Olson more than Severino. Olson's strike out rate is almost 6% higher than Severino's, and his walk rate is 2.1% lower.
This Yankees team also continues to struggle overall, as they've only won two out of their last 10 ball games. The Tigers have some young guys that are still battling hard, and they are 5-5 over their last 10.
We know we can't trust the Tigers bullpen, which is why we're playing them in the 1st 5 innings. Detroit has five guys with an expected slugging percentage over .450. How many do the Yankees have? Only three! Let's play the Motor City Kitties.
Best Bet: Red Sox -115
It's good to see that Chris Sale is finally off the disabled list and pitching well. The powerful left hander's career has been dogged by injuries, but he still has an amazing curveball when he's on.
He's a lot more reliable than Houston's starter Cristian Javier, who I don't trust as far as I can throw him. Both of these bullpens have been struggling lately, but I have them rated pretty evenly.
I have these two offenses rated pretty similar also, but Boston has been swinging the bats a little bit better than Houston of late. Boston is averaging 8 runs per nine innings over their last five games. Houston is averaging 6 1/2 over that span. Give me the BoSox and Sweet Caroline!
Best Bet: Rangers F5 (-135)
Man, this Texas team has really been struggling. The bullpen just can't seem to hold a lead, and the lineup just isn't as hot as it was earlier in the season. All that being said, I think the Rangers figure some things out against the Mets.
I'm not a big Jon Gray fan, but he's a much better starting pitcher than Tylor Megill of the Mets. Gray is not a big strikeout guy, but he knows how to miss barrels, which is why his hard-hit rate is fairly low.
Megill's given up 15 earned runs over his last four starts, so I see these Rangers bats waking up in a big way tonight. Again, let's play the first five innings to avoid the aforementioned disastrous Texas bullpen.
