We are entering the last week of the 2019 regular season in Major League Baseball. There are a record four teams with at least 100 losses, as the parity in the sport seems to be on the wane. With regard to postseason positioning, there are five teams chasing the last four playoff spots. In the American League, Oakland currently holds the first wild card, leading Tampa Bay and Cleveland by two games; they are currently tied for the second wild card and would have a one-game playoff if they finish the regular season tied. Washington and Milwaukee look like the National League wild cards, but Milwaukee could still catch St. Louis and win the National League Central. Houston, the Yankees, the Dodgers and Atlanta have all clinched their divisions, so the only other division in play is the AL Central, where the Twins lead Cleveland by four games. What can you expect in your MLB betting this week? We have two solid picks for you to consider.

Top MLB Betting Picks of the Week – September 23rd

Predictions and projections are fun in the moment…but then we must see where we went wrong. @emmabaccellieri delivers this week’s MLB Power Rankings https://t.co/Po8xZT5M9l

— SI MLB (@si_mlb) September 23, 2019

Tuesday, September 24

Cleveland at Chicago White Sox (8:00pm ET, ESPN)

• Projected Pitching Matchup: Mike Clevinger (12-3, 2.54 ERA) (CLE) vs Hector Santiago (1-1, 5.65 ERA) (CHI)

Mike Clevinger has only taken one loss since June 28, as the inconsistencies that have plagued Cleveland have certainly not been his fault. In his last three starts, Clevinger has thrown 18 ⅔ combined innings, permitting one earned run on 11 hits over that span, striking out 28 while walking just four in wins over the Yankees, Royals and Tigers. Cleveland still has plenty to play for, as they have made up ground on Minnesota and are very much alive for one of the two wild cards in the American League. Hector Santiago has served primarily as an opener since coming over from the Mets at the trade deadline. When he has gone more than an inning, though, he has not pitched well. In his last outing, on September 15 in Seattle, he pitched 3 ⅔ innings, allowing three runs on three hits, walking six. He opened for the White Sox against Cleveland on September 4, throwing a scoreless, hitless inning, but the Tribe still won, 8-6. Given that the White Sox are basically playing out the string and seeing what their young players can do now that rosters have been expanded to 40 players, while the Indians are pushing for a playoff position, I see Cleveland winning this one as well. MLB Betting Prediction: Cleveland 6, Chicago 2

Houston at Seattle (10:10pm ET)

• Projected Pitching Matchup: Gerrit Cole (18-5, 2.61 ERA) (HOU) vs Justin Dunn (0-0, 6.75 ERA) (SEA)

Gerrit Cole has had a terrific season for Houston, and his numbers have become even more dominant as of late. In his last three starts, he has thrown a combined 24 innings, permitting three earned runs on 11 hits, striking out 36. He faced the Mariners on September 8, holding them to a solo home run as the lone Seattle hit as run, fanning 15 over eight innings, as the Astros rolled to a 21-1 victory. There might be a tendency for the Astros, who have already clinched, to take the foot off the gas, but not with Cole on the hill. Justin Dunn will open for Seattle for the second time this season on Tuesday night. He looked sharp in his last opening role, back on September 18, throwing two shutout innings in Pittsburgh in a game the Mariners would go on to win, 4-1. Seattle had won five games in a row before dropping two of three in Baltimore to the hapless Orioles, so it could be that the Mariners have lost their motivation moving into the last week of the season. Houston’s mindset should be more along the lines of polishing their game moving into the postseason, while Seattle may well be looking firmly at next year. MLB Betting Prediction: Houston 5, Seattle 1