Top 3 MLB Picks & Predictions: Friday (6/19)
Welcome to the Friday baseball slate. We're over two months into the season, with teams showing their true colors. I'll continue to be here once a week to provide you with the best MLB picks across the day.
Baseball is the best sport to get specific with your bets, and there are plenty of angles to attack any given game, with almost every day offering a loaded slate of opportunities. It's the best time of year.
We took a step back last time out, so let’s get back on track. Here are the best MLB picks & predictions for Friday, June 19th.
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Friday's Best MLB Picks & Predictions
Last Time: 1-2 | This Season: 18-18
Cincinnati Reds vs. New York Yankees
We open up in New York, where the Yankees are heavy favorites.
Usually, I don't like backing the big teams like the Yankees, Lakers or Cowboys because usually there's some juice there anyway. This is a different story. Cam Schlittler starts for the pinstripes, and he's been deadly. The righty has recorded a 1.82 ERA and hasn't allowed more than one earned run in eight of his last 10 starts.
Meanwhile, Rhett Lowder's splits are not as favorable. The Reds starter owns a 5.84 road ERA with batters hitting .273 off him the first time through the lineup. Sure, the Yankees are still without Judge, but they still have a lot of firepower, and Lowder allows a lot more power to lefties historically. To add a bit of juice, I'm going to take the first fiviings spread just to get plus-odds.
Pick: Yankees First Five Innings -1.5 (+102 at FanDuel Sportsbook)
Cleveland Guardians vs. Houston Astros
Heading to the Lone Star State, the Houston Astros host the Cleveland Guardians, and I'm expecting some fireworks in this one. Tanner Bibee gets the nod for Cleveland, and he's been solid of late but surprisingly bad against the Astros. Houston’s starting lineup has an .821 OPS off him lifetime.
The Cleveland righty also takes a step back on the road and is due for some regression following two solid starts after posting a 5.08 ERA in May.
I'm tagging Yordan Alvarez in this one.
The Houston slugger has been en fuego in June, slashing .414/.477/.672/1.149 in 65 plate appearances. He's better at home and against righties, and is 4-for-6 lifetime against Bibee. If this isn't lining up for a monster game, I don't know what is. I'm sticking with a simple total bases bet, but he's game for anything if you want to bet on some alts.
Pick: Yordan Alvarez 2+ Total Bases (-103 at DraftKings Sportsbook)
Los Angeles Angels vs. Athletics
Finally, we head out West as the Angels take on the A's. Jose Soriano starts for L.A., and he's been awesome with a 2.79 ERA that drops to 2.32 in seven road starts. Earlier this season, he faced the A's and allowed two runs in 6.2 innings.
Jeffrey Springs counters for the Athletics, and he's going to be facing nothing but Angels righties. As a southpaw, this hurts him a bit, and he's really struggled recently with opponents tallying a 1.230 OPS against him in his last three starts.
The Angels’ bullpen isn't great, but the Athletics’ bullpen is worse, so that's a bit of a toss-up when we get late in the game. Either way, this feels like too much value to leave on the table for the underdog.
Pick: Angels Moneyline (+150 at Kalshi)