Jake Ernst goes through Friday’s Major League Baseball schedule and picks out the best bets from the 15 game slate.
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While there is a plethora of entertaining games on Friday’s 15-game slate, there is one particular game that I urge gamblers to stray away from.
Mike Foltynewicz will be taking the mound for the Atlanta Braves on Friday night and he has allowed four-plus runs in four of his five starts and will carry a 6.91 ERA into the game against the Cardinals. For St. Louis, Mike Mikolas will be on the bump and he is coming off his worst start of the season, allowing seven runs in just 1.1 innings of work. The starting pitching struggles make this one hard to predict and if you plan on betting on Friday, I would suggest straying away from this matchup as a whole.
Boston Red Sox vs. Houston Astros Betting Tips
The Boston Red Sox (26-23) will be heading down to Minute Maid Park on Friday night to take on the red-hot Houston Astros (33-17) in what is essentially a rematch as the two starting pitchers (Chris Sale and Wade Miley) faced each other just five days ago in Boston.
Sale’s ERA of 4.31 and 1-5 record don’t suggest it but he has been quite strong as of late, recording a total of 51 strikeouts and allowing just six runs over the course of his last four starts.
For Houston, it will be Wade Miley getting the start and yes, it’s still early in the season but his 1.17 current WHIP would be a new career-best for him and his 3.51 ERA is fairly impressive as well. The 32-year-old has seemed to resurrect his career in the past two seasons but will be faced with a tough matchup that is the Boston Red Sox.
It’s hard to bet against either of these teams (especially when they are the best team in the league) but I believe Miley will have somewhat of a poor outing and the Astros will take a small step back against the Sox and drop the first of a three-game set.
Minnesota Twins vs. Chicago White Sox
Prior to May 13th, Minnesota Twins pitcher Jose Berios had just one game (April 20th against Baltimore) in which he allowed three-or-more runs but since then, the 24-year-old has allowed five runs against the Angels and four runs against Seattle. You have to think that the Twins’ ace is due for a bounce-back sooner rather than late and even after this poor two-game stretch, Berios is 6-2 on the year with a 3.39 ERA and an impressive 1.13 WHIP.
For Chicago, it will be 25-year-old Reynaldo Lopez on the hill. The number-one pitcher for the White Sox had a rough start to the season and has pretty much been the definition of inconsistent. Lopez has made 10 appearances on the year and if you total up his five-best starts, he has allowed a total of just six runs but on the flip side, if you add up his five-worst starts, he has allowed a total of 27.
For a team’s ace, Lopez’s numbers are somewhat alarming and with an inevitable rebound game in Berios’ near future, I just can’t justify betting on the White Sox here. The Twins have the best win percentage in the MLB and I expect them to improve it here.
PICK: Minnesota Twins Money Line
Detroit Tigers vs. New York Mets
Starting pitching is so crucial in baseball and sometimes the more lopsided pitching matchups are the most appealing. Unbalanced pitching matchups often create one-sided gambling lines and for those who favor underdogs or heavy favorites, this may be a game you want to take a look at.
Gregory Soto will get the start for the Tigers and in his three starts this season, he has yet to go deeper than four innings into a game and with his ERA sitting at 10.80, the Mets should automatically have a leg up on Detroit.
Noah Syndergaard is starting for the Mets and while his ERA sits at a subpar 4.50, he is coming off two games in which he went seven-plus innings while allowing two or less runs. The 26-year-old will look to keep it up against the second-worst offense in the MLB (Miami Marlins being the worst).
A poor starting pitcher and a weak offense will usually result in a loss and that is exactly what I expect out of Detroit tonight.
