Top 5 MLB Betting Picks for Friday, September 18th
Day two got us back on track, and had Shane Bieber been able to get one more out in the eighth inning, we would have walked away with an easy 3-0 record. Instead, the Indians’ ace fell apart in the eighth, and immediately after being pulled, the Indians gave up a three-run home run. However, the Yankees were absolutely dominant yet again, and the Mariners/Giants over hit early. We’re back to .500. Now, let’s get another positive day. Odds courtesy DraftKings Sportsbook.
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Yankees to score first and win (-103)
It’s hard to believe that just over a week ago, the New York Yankees were 21-21 and people were starting to wonder if they were going to make the playoffs at all. Since then, they’ve rattled off eight straight wins and have scored 43 runs in their last three games. They also hit five home runs in one inning for the first time in franchise history and have hit six home runs in three straight games; a feat that has never been accomplished in league history. Now, they travel to Boston to take on the Red Sox, and while the Yankees have clearly turned a corner, Boston has clearly moved on to next season. The Rays are now within reach, and that means the Yankees are not going to let up. With the Yankees being the road team, I like them to score first, and I love them to win this game. The rest of the prices are a bit too expensive, so I’ll take this prop and root for the Yankees to score early and often.
Kansas City Royals ML (+130)
Danny Duffy starts for the Royals today and has been very good this season as long as he isn’t facing the White Sox. Lucky for him, he gets to start against the Milwaukee Brewers, and he should get plenty of run support as the Royals go up against Adrian Houser. I don’t really understand why Milwaukee is favored in this game. Despite their flaws, the Royals can be dangerous offensively when hitting against a bad pitcher, and Houser has been bad this season. Taking the Royals as an underdog hasn’t been a great move this season, but taking them when they’re playing a team that isn’t much better than them, especially at a price like this, seems right.
Houston Astros -1.5 (+125)
The Astros have been struggling offensively, but they will get a chance to break out of their funk today when they take on Zac Gallen, who has given up 11 earned runs in his last two starts. Normally, I would stay away from the Astros beating anyone by two, but with Gallen on the mound and the Diamondbacks as one of the worst offenses in baseball, I like Houston to find a way to win this one by a couple runs.
Cleveland Indians-Detroit Tigers under 9 runs (-109)
The Cleveland offense just teed off on the Tigers and scored 10 runs in their victory last night. But the Indians don’t score 10 runs often, and right now the Tigers aren’t scoring at all. Cleveland was up so much that they tried to let Shane Bieber finish the eighth inning. It didn’t work and resulted in a three-run home run, but the Tigers’ offense looked lost all game. That was against Bieber, but the Tigers looking lost offensively is not something that was unique to this game. When two offenses that don’t score very much hit an over, it’s not a bad idea to take the under the next day.
Tampa Bay Rays-Baltimore Orioles F5 over 4.5 runs (-118)
After sweeping a doubleheader yesterday, the Rays have locked up a playoff spot and will now look to clinch the AL East. The Orioles are finally drawing dead and with Alex Cobb on the mound, I expect the Rays to have no trouble scoring at all in this one. Tyler Glasnow has struggled in his last two starts and has faced the Orioles twice this season, giving up two earned runs in each start. If the Orioles are able to have similar success in this game, the first five total will have no trouble going over as the Rays take care of Alex Cobb early.
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Phil Wood is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Phil, check out his archive and follow him @Phil_Wood_Jr.