My MLB picks are 8-1 over the last three weeks, and I’ve reached a season-high in profits during the “dog days” of the Major League Baseball season.
Among today’s best bets, I make my top picks from two divisional rivalries in the American League East and National League Central, and highlight an intriguing Interleague matchup between two potential playoff squads in the Yankees-Padres tilt.
Here are the best MLB picks & predictions for Saturday, September 5th.
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Saturday’s Best MLB Picks & Predictions
Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook | This Season: 39-30 (+8.33 units)
Boston Red Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles
Prior to Thursday’s series opener, Baltimore had gone 2-8 at home versus the Red Sox since the start of 2025. Its offense was a big reason for those struggles, totaling three runs or fewer in six out of 10 games. While the Orioles scored five runs on Thursday, it still fell to Boston 6-5, which eased my concerns that the Red Sox had lost six out of eight games, were outscored 55-27 over that span and shut out twice.
Now Boston has ace Sonny Gray toeing the rubber, and the righty seems to be getting better with age. He has already set a single-season high with 16 wins, a year after leading the league in K:BB ratio.
The Red Sox seem to have a huge starting pitching advantage with Gray’s career 2.64 ERA over 44.1 innings at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, while Chris Bassitt has allowed a .314/.392/.465 slash line to current Boston hitters.
Pick: Red Sox Moneyline (-149)
Milwaukee Brewers vs. Cincinnati Reds
Milwaukee and Cincinnati meet in what is on paper a lopsided matchup between a National League Central division leader and a last-place squad. But we’re getting good value in backing MLB’s best team simply because Dustin May’s tenure in Milwaukee has been rocky. The team has lost three of his last four starts, and he has pitched to a 6.41 ERA in a Brewers uniform.
I’m fully confident in Milwaukee’s chances of picking up May in this start, especially since it is the only team at least 17 games over .500 (30-13) against left-handed starting pitchers. And even if May doesn’t turn in a long outing, the Brewers can rely on a bullpen that ranks third in ERA, second in xERA, third in FIP, fourth in opponent’s average, second in opponent’s OPS and third in fWAR.
Pick: Brewers -1.5 (-105)
New York Yankees vs. San Diego Padres
San Diego's offense entered this series in a funk, a major reason the Padres lost seven out of nine games. Over that 2-7 stretch, San Diego batted .154 with runners in scoring position while averaging 3.3 runs per game, belting five home runs and collectively logging a .610 OPS. Those offensive woes should only be exacerbated by Carlos Rodon, who has held current Padres hitters to a .221/.311/.294 slash line in 68 combined at-bats.
On the other side, Robbie Ray has a whopping 34.2% strikeout rate in 76 combined at-bats against current Yankees hitters. And while New York has treaded water without three-time MVP Aaron Judge (who appears ready to return soon), its splits with and without him are staggering.
In the 59 games he was in the lineup, the team went 36-23 while averaging 5.2 runs per game, logging a +98 run differential, batting .243 and slugging .436 with a collective .770 OPS. The Yankees went 44-37 in their first 81 games without Judge, while averaging 4.1 runs/game, logging a +17 run differential, batting .227 and slugging .389 with a collective .683 OPS.
Pick: Under 8.0 Runs (-118)
Mike Spector is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeSpector01.