Top MLB Betting Picks & Predictions of the Week – April 2nd Edition

The 2018 regular season in Major League Baseball is (at most) four games old, which means that most teams have 158 games left on their schedule. Some trends we expected, such as Texas losing three of four to Houston, Detroit opening 0-3, and the Phillies dropping two of three. Others we didn’t, such as San Francisco posting a pair of 1-0 shutout wins at Dodger Stadium to open the season, or Cleveland trailing in the AL Central by 1 ½ games. As we start out second run through the teams’ starting rotations, here are some MLB betting picks for you to consider.

Top MLB Betting Picks & Predictions of the Week – April 2nd Edition

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— Boston Informer (@boston_informer) April 2, 2018

Tuesday, April 3

Cleveland at Los Angeles Angels (10:00pm ET, ESPN)

Pitching Matchup: Josh Tomlin (0-0, no ERA) (CLE) vs Garrett Richards (0-0, 7.20 ERA) (LAA) The Los Angeles Angels are rolling out of the gate so far, winning three out of four. They welcome the Cleveland Indians on Monday night for a four-game set, with the second game slated for Tuesday night. Josh Tomlin makes his pitching debut for the Tribe this season, although this will be his seventh start of his career against the Angels. Mike Trout loes to face Tomlin, as he has gone 5 for 8 lifetime, with a home run and three RBI. Garrett Richards makes his second start of the season. This is his third career start against the Indians, and he has posted a 4.40 ERA in his two previous starts. Edwin Encarnacion has done the most damage for the Tribe against Richards, going 5 for 12 lifetime with a pair of home runs and four RBI. Richards’ first outing of the season was a rough one, as he lasted just five innings against Oakland and surrendered a pair of home runs and four earned runs overall, walking three men. Those two home runs came back to back in the fifth inning and helped make his start a short one. MLB Betting Prediction: Los Angeles Angels 6, Cleveland 4

Los Angeles Dodgers at Arizona (9:40pm ET, FSAZ / SNLA)

Pitching Matchup: Clayton Kershaw (0-1, 1.50 ERA) (LAD) vs Zack Godley (0-0, no ERA) (ARI) Clayton Kershaw pitched just about as well as you can in the team’s season opener against San Francisco, fanning seven men in six innings, and scattering eight hits and a pair of walks. It was just one fat pitch to Joe Panik (who would homer to score the only runs in each of the first two games of the season) that cost him the game. Paul Goldschmidt has hit very well against Kershaw in his career — as well as the rest of the Dodgers’ starters. He has a career OPS of .948 against the three starters the Dodgers bring this week. The Diamondbacks send Zack Godley to the mound. He has not pitched for Arizona yet this season, but he put up a respectable season last year, posting a 3.37 ERA and striking out 165 batters in 155 innings. After May 10 last year, he had the 13th-best ERA in the major leagues at 3.36 and the 17th best strikeout rate at 26.3%. The problem is that he is pitching against one of the most automatic starters in the National League. MLB Betting Prediction: Los Angeles Dodgers 3, Arizona 1

Wednesday, April 4

Tampa Bay at New York Yankees (1:05pm ET, YES / SUN)

Pitching Matchup: TBA (TB) vs Luis Severino (1-0, 0.00 ERA) (NYY) Despite the fact that the calendar tells us that spring has arrived, the home opener for the New York Yankees, slated for Monday, was postponed due to snow in the area, and has been rescheduled for Tuesday afternoon. On Wednesday, the Rays will still be in town to take on the Yankees. The Rays have yet to select a starter, while the Yankees currently have young hurler Luis Severino set to take the hill. Severino looked terrific in his first start of the season, permitting just one hit and three walks, striking out seven, in 5 ⅔ scoreless innings in Toronto. He threw  60 of his 91 pitches for strikes. He faces a Tampa Bay team that is 1-2 on the young season and went through a fire sale in the off-season, dumping longtime franchise icon Evan Longoria as well as some other key contributors in an effort to reduce salary. If the game Wednesday takes place (and forecasts suggest that it will), expect the hometown team to take advantage of their familiarity with colder climes and use their big bats to beat a Rays team that will be cold and overmatched. MLB Betting Prediction: New York Yankees 4, Tampa Bay 1