The Houston Astros have some good news for their beleaguered starting rotation going into the weekend, as Justin Verlander returns to the mound on Friday, making his 2024 debut on Friday in Washington against the Nationals. The three-time Cy Young Award winner had started 2024 on the injured list with right shoulder inflammation. He made two rehab starts, one on April 7 and the other on Saturday for Double-A Corpus Christi. Verlander will have a pitch count, but manager Joe Espada did not indicate what that limit would be. He allowed 11 earned runs in just under eight innings in his two rehab starts, but getting his timing back is the most important part of the process. Going into the weekend, check out our MLB Lines, including the Saturday showdown between the Astros vs Nats.
Major League Baseball Odds Today: Check out these Top Weekend SU Bets for some exciting MLB action! | 2024 MLB Week 3
Arizona Diamondbacks at San Francisco Giants
When: Friday, April 19, 10:15 pm ET, Apple TV+
Pitchers: Jordan Montgomery (0-0, 0.00 ERA) (ARI) vs Blake Snell (0-2, 12.86 ERA) (SF)
Two of the last free-agent starting pitchers who got deals for 2024 square off in San Francisco on Friday night. Jordan Montgomery posted a 10-11 record last year with a 3.20 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP but got his one-year, $25 million deal on the strength of a stellar postseason with the Texas Rangers, as he helped get the team their first title. The team the Rangers beat ended up signing Montgomery to the deal. The Diamondbacks have dropped two in a row and sit at 9-11 as they work on building chemistry between last year’s surprising pennant roster and the nice additions the front office made in the offseason.
Blake Snell came up the coast to San Francisco from the San Diego Padres. However, his Cy Young stuff seems to be caught in traffic on the Pacific Coast Highway, as his first two starts for the Giants have been difficult. He lasted three innings in his 2024 debut, permitting three runs on three hits and a pair of walks, striking out five in an 8-1 loss. His next start came in Tampa Bay on Sunday, when he got shelled for seven runs on six hits, including two home runs, and two walks, striking out four over four innings in a 9-4 tattooing. Given that Montgomery will likely be on a pitch count in his debut – and will show some rust, this looks like a bullpen game.
MLB Lines: Diamondbacks to win, take the over
Houston Astros at Washington Nationals
When: Saturday, April 20, 4:05 pm ET
Pitchers: Ronel Blanco (2-0, 0.86 ERA) (HOU) vs Trevor Williams (2-0, 3.45 ERA) (WAS)
Ronel Blanco didn’t give up any earned runs in 2024 until April 13, his third start of the year. In that game, he gave up two runs on five hits and three walks, striking out five over six innings of a 9-2 win over Texas. His first two starts of 2024 included a no-hitter in his season debut against Toronto and six innings of scoreless ball against Texas as he scattered a hit and four walks while fanning four. With this stuff, the Astros will definitely have a chance. The issues for Houston have come with some inconsistent offense and iffy bullpen performances as the preseason favorites to win the AL West have limped out to a 6-14 start to the season.
Trevor Williams has also started the year with two wins in three outings, although his performances haven’t been as dominant as Blanco’s. In three starts against PIttsburgh, San Francisco and Oakland, Williams has pitched 15 ⅔ combined innings (either 5 or 5 ⅓ innings in each start), allowing six combined runs on a dozen hits and six walks, while striking out 14. The Nationals lost his last start on Sunday in Oakland, 7-6, as the bullpen let things get away. Against a team with as much pop as the Astros, Williams will have to be careful with location.
MLB Lines: Astros to win
MLB Lines Conferences Winners
American League Odds
| New York Yankees +330 |
| Houston Astros +490 |
| Baltimore Orioles +530 |
| Texas Rangers +590 |
| Seattle Mariners +970 |
| Minnesota Twins +1100 |
| Toronto Blue Jays +1150 |
| Tampa Bay Rays +1300 |
| Cleveland Guardians +1750 |
| Detroit Tigers +2400 |
| Boston Red Sox +3400 |
| Kansas City Royals +3500 |
| Los Angeles Angels +6000 |
| Chicago White Sox +22000 |
| Oakland Athletics +22000 |
| AL Pennant Odds |
National League Odds
| Los Angeles Dodgers +173 |
| Atlanta Braves +232 |
| Philadelphia Phillies +710 |
| Chicago Cubs +1550 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks +1775 |
| St. Louis Cardinals +1800 |
| San Francisco Giants +2500 |
| Cincinnati Reds +2700 |
| Milwaukee Brewers +2900 |
| San Diego Padres +3000 |
| New York Mets +3200 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates +4200 |
| Miami Marlins +12000 |
| Washington Nationals +15000 |
| Colorado Rockies +22000 |
| NL Pennant Odds |
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MLB Winning SU Top Betting Picks, Week 2
The big names for the L.A. Dodgers coming into 2024 were Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but Tyler Glasnow was the Opening Day starter and just might be the best addition to the Dodgers’ rotation in the off-season. On Tuesday, he threw seven scoreless frames, striking out 14 batters but only needing 88 pitches. He has a 2.25 ERA over his first four starts. The Dodgers welcome their NL West rivals this weekend when the San Diego Padres head to Chavez Ravine, and that series opener is just one of our MLB Lines and betting picks from the national pastime for the weekend.
MLB Lines Today: Check out these Top Weekend SU Bets for some exciting Major League Baseball action! | 2024 MLB Week 2
San Diego Padres at L.A. Dodgers
When: Friday, April 12, 10:10 pm ET
Pitchers: Michael King (1-0, 3.14 ERA) (SD) vs Yoshinobu Yamamoto (1-1, 4.09 ERA) (LA)
King has two starts among three appearances this season; he came on for 3 ⅓ innings in the Padres’ 15-11 win over the Dodgers in the Seoul Series on March 21. He allowed three runs on four hits in that undistnguished outing. On March 31, he lasted four innings against the Giants, striking out six while allowing two hits and seven walks, giving up two earned runs. His start on Saturday in San Francisco, though, turned a corner. He threw seven scoreless innings, scattering a walk and four hits while striking out four. In his first 7 ⅓ innings, he walked 10 batters; in his last seven, he has walked just one. That kind of control will be essential against the Dodgers.
Yamamoto made his MLB debut by lasting just one inning in that March 21 runfest in Seoul, allowing five runs on four hits and a walk, striking out two. Since then, though, he has not permitted a single earned run over two starts. He has thrown five shutout innings in each of his last two starts, limiting the Cardinals and Cubs to five combined hits and a pair of walks while strikking out 13. So the nerves that took over in Seoul do not seem to have followed him back stateside, and opposing offenses are suffering.
N.Y. Yankees at Cleveland Guardians
When: Saturday, April 13, 6:10 pm ET
Pitchers: Luis Gil (0-0, 3.00 ERA) (NY) vs Triston McKenzie (1-1, 4.00 ERA) (CLE)
Right now, the only real issue dogging Luis Gil is duraility in games. He has pitched well in both of his starts, allowing a run on a hit and three walks while striking out six in his season debut in Arizona, and then permitting two runs on a pair of hits and four walks, striking out eight, against Toronto on Sunday. He came out after 4 ⅔ innings in Arizona and after 4 ⅓ innings against the Blue Jays. Once he can finish six or seven innings, he will be a scary proposition. For now, though, he’s leaving the bullpen a lot of work to do. The offense has helped him, scoring 13 runs in those two starts combined, and that offense is one reason behind that sparkling 10-3 start for the Pinstripes.
Triston McKenzie enters his third start having endured a rough 2024 debut and then having pitched a sparkling game one week later. He opened in Seattle, allowing five runs (four earned) on four hits and two walks, striking out two and getting the hook after just 3 ⅓ innings in what would become a 5-4 loss. On Monday, though, he turned things around at home against the White Sox. He threw 5 ⅔ shutout innings, scatting three hits and four walks while striking out two in what would turn into a 4-0 win. The Yankees have a more imposing offense than the White Sox do, but McKenzie’s ability to figure things out at home is a positive sign for a Cleveland team that is off to a nifty 9-3 start.
2024 Winning SU Top Betting Picks at Week 1
The first few weeks of the Major League Baseball season almost always feature hot starts from upstart teams. These clubs might soar to an early division lead that lasts all the way to Memorial Day, or even Father’s Day, but regression toward reality starts to set in around then in most cases. The Milwaukee Brewers have been a nice early surprise, starting Pat Murphy’s managerial career off with a 4-1 record. Starting pitcher Brandon Woodruff is out for the whole season, and Corbin Burnes is in Baltimore now, so the starting rotation is green but is getting more exposure with each pass through the rotation. The Boston Red Sox, tabbed in most polls to finish dead last in the AL East, have a 5-2 start. Tyler O’Neill, who came over from St. Louis in the off-season, became the first MLB player ever to hit home runs on five straight Opening Days. The next record in his sights will be the eight total Opening Day home runs that Frank Robinson slugged. Let’s look at a couple of Friday night MLB betting picks with the weekend looming ahead.
MLB Lines Today: Top SU Bets for the Weekend | 2024 MLB Week 1
San Diego Padres at San Francisco Giants
When: Friday, April 5, 4:35 pm ET
Pitchers: Dylan Cease (0-1, 3.86 ERA) (SD) vs Jordan Hicks (1-0, 0.00 ERA) (SF)
Jordan Hicks faces the Padres for the second time on the young season; down in San Diego, he held the Padres scoreless over five innings, scattering a walk and three hits while striking out six. The bullpen made things interesting, but the Giants held on for a 9-6 win. The Giants are just 2-5 so far, but Jung Hoo Lee has gotten off to a strong start, getting six base hits and three walks in his first 24 trips to the plate. He only swung and missed twice in his first 31 swings overall.
Dylan Cease started opposite Hicks on Saturday and pitched reasonably well, but he failed to make it out of the fifth inning. He gave up three runs (two earned) on a pair of hits and a pair of walks while striking out six, coming out after 4 ⅔ innings. He took the loss because the Padres never drew even after the offenses came alive during the last four innings of the game. The Padres are now 4-5, and James Cronenworth has come alive so far, hitting .286 in his first 39 trips to the plate. He’s in the second year of a seven-season, $80 million contract extension, and he needs to bounce back from a dreadful 2023 season.
Houston Astros at Texas Rangers
When: Friday, April 5, 8:05 pm ET | Apple TV+
Pitchers: Hunter Brown (0-0, 0.00 ERA) (HOU) vs Cody Bradford (1-0, 3.60 ERA) (TEX)
Hunter Brown got the start on Saturday at home against the Yankees and laste four innings. He game up two walks and four hits but only allowed one unearned run while striking out five in a game the Astros would lose, 5-3. The Astros started the season by getting swept in a four-game set at home but now have a 2-5 record, including a no-hitter by Ronel Blanco. The offense will come around, but right now the pitching still needs to improve.
The Rangers beat Houston in the ALCS last year, but they had a dreadful record at home against their AL West rivals; they needed to win all four games in Houston to win that series. They also got swept in an ugly series at Globe Life Field in the middle of the 2023 season. So far, the Rangers are off to a 4-2 start, and that includes their 11-2 drubbing of the Cubs on Saturday, Cody Bradford’s season debut. He went five innings, allowing two runs on three hits (including a home run) and a walk while striking out six. The Rangers have shown plenty of offense for the most part this season; can Bradford limit a potent Houston lineup?
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