We went 1-2 again last night with our MLB selections. The Guardians bullpen let us down in extra innings against the Royals and Patrick Sandoval and the Angels got lit up by the White Sox. Thankfully, the Marlins saved us from an awful reverse sweep by beating the Red Sox.
Though we've been riding the struggle bus a bit this week, June has been very good to us with a record of 29-19. That runs the yearly total to 78-61. Let's keep grinding with 4 MLB Best Bets for Friday, June 30.
Best Bet: Orioles (-106)
This line doesn't make sense. Baltimore is 48-31 this season with a home record of 25-16. The Twins have lost 4 of their last 5 and are just 17-23 on the road. Twins manager Rocco Baldelli was outraged at his team's poor performance in their last series with Atlanta, especially with runners in scoring position.
The O's have a much better lineup than the Twins. Baltimore ranks 9th in runs and 10th in OPS, while Minny only ranks 24th and 23rd in those categories, respectively. Look for Anthony Santander (14 HR, 47 RBI) to stay hot in this one and to help the Orioles get a W.
Best Bet: Blue Jays (-134)
We're going to keep fading Boston until they pull out of their slump. The BoSox have lost 5 in a row and are just 1-7 over their last 8 games. Toronto, on the other hand, has won 6 of their last 8 games and are playing some solid ball. Look for Bo Bichette to have a good night at the plate!
We like the fact the Toronto starter Jose Berrios has a hard-hit rate of only 32.8% and a walk rate of only 7.1%. Boston starter James Paxton has been okay, but his stuff is just average at best. The Blue Jays also have a slightly better bullpen than the Red Sox.
Best Bet: Tigers (-112)
Let's be honest, both of these teams stink to high heaven. However, Detroit has a decisive edge in both starting pitching and bullpen arms. Colorado starter Austin Gomber has been just plain awful this season with an ERA near 7 and a WHIP of 1.6. On the flip side, Detroit starter Michael Lorenzen has an ERA of 2.91 in night games.
Detroit's lack of offensive prowess does concern us, but the Tigers do hit lefties (4.54 runs per game) a whole lot better than righties (3.62 runs per game). Look for Spencer Torkelson, who leads the Tigers with 11 homers, to come up big in this one on the road.
Best Bet: Dodgers -1.5 (-125)
The fade KC train bit us yesterday, but we're not afraid to jump on it again tonight. The Royals are bringing up a kid named Alec Marsh to make his MLB debut for this one. Can you imagine having to face this stacked Dodgers lineup in your first big-league start?
To make matters worse, Marsh has struggled with giving up the long ball for most of his professional career. He has an overall record in the Minors of 8-23 with an ERA near 6. Last year, Marsh went 2-16 with an ERA of almost 7! Look for Freddie Freeman, JD Martinez, and Mookie Betts to welcome this kid to the Show in the rudest of ways.
