NBA Picks for Saturday, April 8, 2023
April 7, 2023Monday, April 10 MLB Best Bets
April 7, 2023The baseball betting week closes out on Sunday with all 30 teams lined up to be in action on “Getaway Day.” There aren’t many juicy starting pitching matchups on this day with many teams trotting their No. 4 or No. 5 starters to the bump. That being said, I’ve found what I believe to be three investments worthy of hammering as Best Bets over at PointsBet Sportsbook. Let’s see if we can’t close the week out with a trio of MLB best bets that add to the bottom line and gives us a few more units to destroy next week’s slate – SLAM YOUR MAN!!
YTD: 3-2 ($61)
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Houston Astros vs. Minnesota Twins
The finale of what I believe to be a huge series for the home based Twins closes out Sunday afternoon with Hunter Brown set to square off against Tyler Mahle. The Astros right-hander was largely forgettable in his season debut after tossing 4.2 innings of 4 ER ball with a 5:3 K/BB ratio against the weak hitting Detroit Tigers. He’ll have another thing coming in start No. 2 with Minnesota looking to make a statement and defend its home turf throughout this series.
Mahle was once considered to be an up-and-coming staff ace for the Cincinnati Reds not too long ago. Then the injury bug came out of nowhere and took a bite out of his shoulder to halt what looked to be a promising career. Now said to be fully recovered, Mahle looked fantastic in his season debut for the Twins spinning five innings of 1 ER ball with 7 K and only one walk issued against the Marlins in Miami. His 4-seamer was electric while the splitter pummeled the bottom of the zone repeatedly. If able to build on that showing, the Twinkies will own an enormous edge on the starting bump in the series finale. Look for Minny to log that early season statement win!
St. Louis Cardinals vs. Milwaukee Brewers
I already recommended backing the Brew Crew in Friday’s series opener with Brandon Woodruff leading the charge. With that, I also recommend taking a flier on the series price between these division rivals with Milwaukee holding what I deem to be an enormous advantage on the starting bump in the series finale. Jake Woodford likely won’t be long for his second start if he continues serving up long balls like he did in his season debut against Atlanta who launched three into the cheap seats and tagged him for 6 ER on seven hits. While he’s fared will against the Brewers in the past in going 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA and 0.94 WHIP – mostly in relief – his BAA is .500 after serving up 11 hits (2 HR) through 18 overall innings. Milwaukee’s bats clearly see his stuff very well!
The same can’t and won’t be said for St. Louis when staring back at Freddy Peralta who was every bit of dominant as the stat line suggests in his debut against the Mets. He would go on to toss six innings of shutout ball and rack up seven strikeouts. He’s had issues with the Redbirds throughout his career (6.59 ERA), but only allowed a .171 BAA in those eight starts. If MLB bettors are to start taking this kid as a serious NL Cy Young contender, this is a start he must flourish in – I expect him to do just that!
BET THE BREW CREW
Toronto Blue Jays vs. Los Angeles Angels
If and when the time comes that Reid Detmers finally gets it, look out! The kids got electric stuff and he showcased it in his season debut at Seattle by limiting the M’s to just four hits and 2 ER with 7 K through his 4.2 innings. He failed to churn out a quality start mostly due to being wild evidenced by the three free passes. He was ultimately able to limit the damage, but the wildness exhibited last season looks to have stuck around. That being said, I expect him to thrive in his Angels Stadium debut against an opponent many expect to qualify for the playoffs. Toronto has split its two games against starting south paws to date, and it’s yet to take a lefty out of the ball park. On top of that, it’s only tallied four walks against LHP through 71 total at-bats.
Yusei Kikuchi has proved to be an innings eater throughout his MLB career, but that’s where the fun ends. Though he only ended up walking one batter, it could’ve been so much more. On top of that, Kansas City’s offense pales in comparison to what Mike Trout and the Halos will bring to the plate and they’ve lit the southpaw up in years past to the tune of a 9.71 ERA, 2.16 WHIP, and .408 BAA over eight starts and 10 total appearances. If Kikuchi’s command escapes him like it did in his first start, Shohei Ohtani and his mates will hang a crooked number that puts Detmers in a position to log his first win should he hold up his end of the bargain.
BET THE HALOS
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