We’re about six weeks away from the end of the regular season in Major League Baseball. The Red Sox took two of three from the Yankees this weekend to stay five games up in the American League East, while the Indians have built a similar lead in the American League Central. It finally looks like the Chicago Cubs might make the postseason, as they have edged out to a two-game lead in the National League Central, pushing past Milwaukee and St. Louis. The MLB betting lines and odds for this matches are still unavailable, but we have picked a trio of games that will definitely offer bettors the best value. For our betting preview today, we have the Dodgers visiting Pittsburgh, Boston heading to Cleveland for a possible postseason preview and the Yankees playing in Motown.
Opposite Stewart is the inconsistent Jameson Taillon. He has posted 22 strikeouts over his last three outings, but he has alternated between outings where he gets shelled (such as when he permitted four runs over five innings against St. Louis in his last start) and the ones before that, where he mowed down the opposition. As well as the Dodgers are playing right now, I’m picking them to win this one.
MLB Betting Series for Tuesday, August 22
L.A. Dodgers at Pittsburgh Pirates (7:05pm ET, ATPT, SNLA)
Pitching Matchup: Brock Stewart (0-0, 1.64 ERA) (LA) vs Jameson Taillon (7-5, 4.64 ERA) (PIT)
Remember when everyone was so excited about the Dodgers picking up Yu Darvish to bolster their starting rotation? Well, now Darvish is headed to the disabled list with a sore back, which means that the Dodgers will run this game through their bullpen. Brock Stewart, whose longest outing this season has been four innings but generally doesn’t go more than two, will start the game on the hill. This could still be enough for the Dodgers to win, but they will have a tired bullpen on Wednesday.
Opposite Stewart is the inconsistent Jameson Taillon. He has posted 22 strikeouts over his last three outings, but he has alternated between outings where he gets shelled (such as when he permitted four runs over five innings against St. Louis in his last start) and the ones before that, where he mowed down the opposition. As well as the Dodgers are playing right now, I’m picking them to win this one.
Boston Red Sox at Cleveland Indians (7:10pm ET, STOh, NESN)
Pitching Matchup: Doug Fister (2-6, 5.56 ERA) (BOS) vs Carlos Carrasco (12-5, 3.76 ERA) (CLE)
Doug Fister has pitched well historically against Cleveland, managing a 3.35 ERA over 18 outings. However, the last time he faced them, he permitted five runs on seven hits over 4 ⅓ innings. His sinkerball has not been sinking reliably this year — although over the last four starts things have improved. Jason Kipnis (.423, 2 RBI), Jose Ramirez (.571) and Bradley Zimmer (.333, 1 HR, 2 RBI) have the best numbers against Fister historically.
N.Y. Yankees at Detroit Tigers (7:10pm ET, FSDT, YES)
Pitching Matchup: Masahiro Tanaka (8-10, 4.92 ERA) (NY) vs Matthew Boyd (5-6, 5.70 ERA) (DET)
Masahiro Tanaka comes back from the disabled list to make this start for the Yankees. He had taken the rest for right shoulder inflammation after an ugly start at Toronto, in which he had to leave after four innings on August 9. I expect to see him show some rust — and he had not been all that consistent throughout the season to this point. Jose Iglesias (.400), Victor Martinez (.300, 1 HR, 5 RBI) and James McCann (.400) have fared the best for Detroit against Tanaka in the past. Opposite Tanaka is Matthew Boyd, who went 5 ⅔ innings against Minnesota on Sunday. He has only permitted three home runs in his last seven starts — but two of those came against the Twins. Only six of the Yankees have ever faced Boyd — and only two have ever hit safely off him, Todd Frazier and Chase Headley. The Yankees have the better offense — and the better bullpen — so I’m taking the Pinstripes here.