Is there anything better than a 4-game sweep of the Giants if you’re a Dodger fan? The answer is yes when you realize they’ve beat their National League West rivals 8 games in a row.
There are 12 games to round out the end of your work week. There’s the NL East matchup between the Braves and Mets that could be a postseason preview. The Yanks play in St. Louis, the best team in the AL versus an NL Central contender. Then the new-and-improved Padres face off against their Dodger foes. Will the addition of Juan Soto be enough? Probably not, at least not this year.
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Wicked Wager is a term coined by our experts that refers to our best betting recommendation(s) for a specific game.
7:10PM EST Atlanta Braves (+122) @ New York Mets (-145)
Starting Pitchers: Ian Anderson (ATL) vs Taijuan Walker (NYM)
Two contenders from the NL East have their second game of a weekend series against each other. This is primed to be a good one. The Mets faltered a little over the last couple of weeks, looking like the Braves could take the division lead. However, the Mets have taken care of business and they find themselves with a 4.5 game lead. The door for the Braves might have closed. Jacob deGrom finally made his season debut and he impressed. It remains to be seen if he can stay healthy for the rest of the season.
Ian Anderson has been just okay for the Braves and Taijuan Walker has the advantage in pitching statistics this season. Anderson is 9-6 with an earned run average of 4.99 while Walker is 9-2 with a 2.79 ERA. If the Braves had a better pitcher going, I might feel a little better about the money or run line, but all aboard the Met train because of their starting pitching advantage.
Wicked Wagers – Mets Money Line (-145) / -1.5 Run Line (-143)
8:15PM EST New York Yankees (-145) @ St. Louis Cardinals (+122)
Starting Pitchers: Nestor Cortes (NYY) vs Dakota Hudson (STL)
The Yankees have looked good, but not great recently, while the Cardinals are streaking. Is this enough to bet against the Bronx Bombers? If we’ve learned anything this year, it’s to not bet against the Yanks. The Yankees are only 5-5 over their last 10 games but it seemingly doesn’t matter. It feels like they’re always due for a big game, even if their opponent is hot and has won 7 out of their last 10 games. Let’s just accepted that we aren’t supposed to bet against them.
Nestor Cortes gets the ball for the Yankees, and he’s been an absolute stud so far this season. He’s 9-3 with a 2.53 ERA and even though he hasn’t been sharp recently, you just can’t bet against him. He faces off against Hudson who hasn’t been good over the course of the year. To add insult to injury, he has an ERA of 5.60 in his last 7 starts. This doesn’t bode well against an offense who will go off at any given time.
Wicked Wager – Yankees Line (-145) / Total Runs o8.5 Runs (-105)
10:10PM EST Los Angeles Dodgers (-160) @ San Diego Padres (+135)
Starting Pitchers: Tony Gonsolin (LAD) vs Sean Manaea (SD)
The baseball world believes the Dodgers were content at the trade deadline and it truly looks that way. Who else was there to acquire other than Juan Soto? Shoei Ohtani? According to rumors, LA made a move for him, but the Angels weren’t willing to deal the two-way player. Guess we’ll have to wait until late 2023 or the beginning of 2024 to see Ohtani in a Dodger uniform. Who doesn’t look good in a Dodgers uniform?
The Blue Crew are coming fresh off a sweep of the Giants and have solidified themselves as the best team in the NL. The Padres on the other hand are playing second fiddle for a wild card spot at 12.5 games back.
Lefty Sean Manaea is starting on the bump for San Diego. While the Dodgers have had some trouble with left-handed pitching, I’m not too worried considering the stats he’s put up throughout the year with a 6-5 record and 4.25 ERA. He faces Tony Gonsolin who has been one of the best pitchers in the NL. He’s been a surprise-factor for the Dodgers, who have dealt with a myriad of injuries at the starting position. Gonslin has lost only 1 game to pair with his 12 wins.
Expect LA to assert their dominance, even without the acquisition of Juan Soto.
Wicked Wager – Dodgers Money Line (-160)
How to Bet Baseball
Unlike other popular sports, most wagers placed on MLB games do not involve a point spread. Instead, bettors typically wager on the moneyline, looking to predict the winner of the game straight-up.
The less-popular cousin of the moneyline bet in baseball is the runline wager. The betting favorite will be assigned a -1.5-run handicap, but oddsmakers will offer an appropriate amount of “juice” to make laying the 1.5 runs with the favorite more appealing.
Totals wagers in baseball work very much like totals wagers in other sports. Oddsmakers will assign an Over/Under figure to every game, leaving bettors to determine whether the game in question will be a home run derby or a pitcher’s duel. Totals of 8.5 runs are typical of MLB games, though totals as low as seven runs and as high as 10 runs will pop up throughout the season.