In today’s MLB betting guide, the Atlanta Braves look to deliver the St. Louis Cardinals another road loss, while the Houston Astros try to extend their win streak against the Kansas City Royals.
Atlanta Braves (-175) vs St. Louis Cardinals (+145)
This should be a very good pitching duel even though a few batters from each team are hot right now. We’re at the point in the season where only the most consistent and strong pitchers have accumulated 100-plus innings, and both starting in this Braves and Cardinals game make that list. Miles Mikolas has a great 2.61 ERA (earned run average) and 0.99 WHIP (walks+hits per inning pitched), but more than half the time, his pitch count rises and he’s taken out before the seventh inning and he gives up a run or two. The Cardinals will be looking to snap a three-game road losing streak and start scoring some runs since they have just four in their past three games.
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Starting for the Braves is Max Fried who has pitched similarly to Mikolas in that he doesn’t go very deep into games and allows one to two runs a game. But Fried strikes out many more batters and is better at limiting walks and home runs. The Braves have won two in a row and both in this series against the Cardinals. They have generally done well with being able to score runs, so give them the advantage there. Take the Braves and under (U8.5, -110)
Houston Astros (-275) vs Kansas City Royals (+220)
As shown with the odds, this is a very one-sided game and should be decided that way. The Astros have won eight in a row and are 9-1 in their past 10, while the Royals have won just three of their previous 10 games and have lost two in a row, both to the Astros to begin this series. Not only are the Royals outgunned recently, but the Astros have almost every advantage, including a 34-win differential between the teams.
As for the pitching matchup, Cristian Javier is coming off consecutive incredible starts in which he’s allowed a total of one hit, one earned run, and one walk while striking out 27 batters. He’s playing lights out and padding his already strong season stats. I don’t expect the Royals who rank 26th in runs per game to damage that too much. Starting for Kansas City is Brad Keller who has a record of 3-9 and sits at a 4.24 ERA. It will be a very tough matchup for him as the Astros bats are on fire considering they’ve been a big part of why the team is on a long win streak. Take the run line (-1.5, -130) as it provides much better value. Also take the over as Houston would be able to hit it by themselves (O8, -115).
Odds via Yahoo and BetMGM.
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