The New York Yankees have made a bit of a charge in the American League East, and they’ve pulled within two games of the Boston Red Sox, but they gave up yet another walk-off win on Thursday night, this time to the Chicago White Sox in the Field of Dreams game in Iowa. They trail Tampa Bay by seven games in the division. The White Sox lead the AL Central by 11 ½ games over Cleveland and (surprisingly) Detroit. In the AL West, Oakland has crept within 1 ½ games of Houston with a seven-game winning streak, and the A’s next get to take on the hapless Texas Rangers over the weekend, so they could be in first by Monday. In the National League East, the Philadelphia Phillies now lead the New York Mets by a half-game and the Atlanta Braves by a game, but the Phillies and Mets have a combined -28 run differential and are a combined nine games over .500, so this is still anyone’s division. In the NL Central, Milwaukee has cruised to an eight-game lead over Cincinnati, and in the NL West, San FRancisco has reeled off a five-game winning streak, pushing their lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers to five games.
Let’s take a look at your best MLB betting opportunities in the national pastime as the weekend approaches.
MLB News: Your Best Bets This Weekend
Saturday, August 14
Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals (6:05 pm ET)
Pitchers: Max Fried (9-7, 3.91) (ATL) vs Patrick Corbin (6-11, 5.83 ERA) (WAS)
Max Fried faced the Washington Nationals in his last outing on August 8, and he spun a gem at home, threw seven innings of one-run ball, scattering seven hits and striking out five, walking just one batter. That came on the heels of six innings of shutout ball in St. Louis on August 3. Since July 23, Fried has only allowed three earned runs in 19 combined innings, striking out 21 while walking just four, so the Nationals’ offense will have to be aggressive instead of waiting for balls outside the strike zone.
Patrick Corbin has been getting lit up in recent weeks. While he’s chewing up innings, finishing at least five in five straight starts, he’s not helping his team stay in games, and he is getting hit hard. He has permitted nine home runs in his last four starts. While he has finished 23 ⅓ innings, he has permitted 17 earned runs in that stretch. He has 19 strikeouts against just four walks, but he’s finding so much of the plate that opponents are feasting on his stuff.
Final Prediction:
Atlanta 6, Washington 3
San Diego Padres at Arizona Diamondbacks (8:10 pm ET)
Pitchers: Joe Musgove (8-7, 2.81 ERA) (SD) vs Tyler Gilbert (0-0, 0.00 ERA) (ARI)
Look more closely at Musgrove’s ERA than at his win-loss record, because he has been victimized with poor run support. The Padres have won four of the last five games he has started, and the loss came in extra innings against Oakland. In his last three starts, he has gone 19 innings and struckout 23 batters combined, against just five walks, permitting two runs on eight hits. That’s the sort of performance that should set the table for the offense to deliver the win.
Tyler Gilbert looks set to take the mound as the opener on Saturday night. He faced the Padres on August 7, throwing two scoreless innings, striking out two and walking one while surrendering just a single hit. The Padres would go on to win the game, 6-2, as the long relief was not able to keep the Padre bats silent, but Gilbert got the team off on the right foot. Will it matter, though? Gilbert has a perfect ERA in three outings this season, and it will be interesting to see how he fares a second time against the San Diego lineup.
Final Prediction:
San Diego 5, Arizona 1
Sunday, August 15
Cincinnati Reds at Philadelphia Phillies (1:05 pm ET)
Pitchers: Sonny Gray (4-6, 4.40 ERA) (CIN) vs Aaron Nola (7-6, 4.35 ERA) (PHI)
It’s been feast or famine lately for Sonny Gray. In his last four starts, two of them have seen him get lit up for 12 runs on 14 hits over 8 ⅓ combined innings, as he has surrendered three home runs in those two starts. The other two, though, saw him throw 11 innings of eight-hit, three-run ball, striking out 15 and walking just four. The Reds could really use the ace stuff that Gray has against a hot Phillies team.
Aaron Nola only went four innings in a 5-0 loss to the Dodgers on Tuesday, but those four innings saw him give up one hit and fan seven with no walks, keeping the Dodgers off the scoreboard. That’s the stuff that the Phillies will need from him against the Reds, although perhaps for a longer stint this time.
Final Prediction:
Philadelphia 4, Cincinnati 2
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