SI Gambling analyst Roy Larking previews Tuesday's MLB betting action and shares the two top picks on his baseball betting card.
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Baltimore Orioles at New York Yankees
Long time American League East Division rivals meet when New York hosts Baltimore for the second of a three game series. First pitch for the Yankees vs. Orioles matchup is slated for 6:35 p.m. ET at Yankee Stadium. New York won the season series 7–3 last year and the five of the wins were by two or more runs. Seven runs or fewer were scored in five games, which led to a 5–5 split on run total wagers. There was a positive for Baltimore as the Orioles snapped a 19-game losing streak against the Yankees with a 6–3 victory at home on Sept. 4, 2020. The Yankees are thick chalk tonight.
Baltimore opened their season with a 3–0 series sweep of the Red Sox on the road in Boston. After getting rained out on Opening Day, Boston managed just two hits and Baltimore won the series opener 3–0 on Friday. The Orioles won the second game 4–2, and then completed the sweep with an 11–3 blowout win on Sunday. SI MLB experts project the Orioles will finish with a 62–100 record this season. They are listed as +10000 underdogs to win the World Series at DraftKings. Baltimore will struggle against top MLB teams, and that showed during the loss to the Yankees last night.
New York struggled on offense and opened their season with a 2–1 series loss at home to Toronto. The Yankees managed just six hits, and went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position, during a 3–2 (F10) loss on Opening Day. Getting their offense back on track, the Yankees had 11 hits during a 5–3 win in the second game. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Randal Grichuk hit second-inning home runs and the Blue Jays posted a 3–1 win in the series finale. Giancarlo Stanton hit his eighth career grand slam, and Aaron Judge hit his first home run of the season, during the Yankees 7–0 win in the series opener.
Back at the top of the pitching rotation, RHP Gerrit Cole makes his second start of the season for New York. He allowed two runs, on five hits over 5.1 innings, and received a no-decision on Opening Day. Second-year RHP Dean Kremer makes his first start of the season for Baltimore. He allowed just two runs, on five hits over 11 innings during, during two starts against the Yankees in September last year. The Orioles are averaging 11.5 strikeouts per game. That’s not good when facing Cole, as he averaged 11.6 strikeouts per nine innings last season. Lay the runs and bet on New York.
Pick: New York Yankees -1.5 (-152) ATS at DraftKings
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Arizona Diamondbacks at Colorado Rockies
Struggling squads meet when Arizona visits Colorado for a National League West Division matchup. First pitch for the Diamondbacks vs. Rockies contest is slated for 8:40 p.m. ET at Coors Field in Denver, Colo. This is the first of 19 scheduled games this season. These teams split the season series 5–5 last year and seven of the 10 games resulted in 13 or more total runs. Three games were played in Denver and they were all high-scoring contests. Arizona won twice (12–8 and 13–7) and Colorado avoided the sweep with an 8–7 victory. The Rockies are slim favorites at home.
Arizona enters this contest following a travel day on Monday. The Diamondbacks opened their season with a four-game series in San Diego. The Padres jumped out to a 6–1 lead, before falling behind 7–6 after five innings, but rallied to an 8–7 win on Opening Day. Arizona managed just four hits and was shutout 7–0 in the second game. Following a 4–2 win by the Padres in the third game, Arizona avoided a sweep with a 3–1 victory in the series finale. Second baseman Ketel Marte is off to a hot start as he went 9-for-16, and posted a .536 batting average, over four games in San Diego.
Colorado opened their season with four games at home against defending World Series champion Los Angeles. The Rockies pulled off the biggest upset on Opening Day as they posted an 8–5 win as +185 underdogs in the series opener. The Dodgers bounced back with an 11–6 victory in the second game. Colorado put up a decent fight but lost 6–5 and 4–2 during the final two games of the series. The Rockies posted a weak .222 team batting average, and a 5.75 team earned run average, over the four-game series. Colorado and Arizona are both +10000 longshots to win the World Series.
The Rockies have an edge in the pitching matchup tonight. RHP Germán Márquez makes his second start of the season for Colorado. He allowed one run, on six hits and six walks over four innings, and received a no-decision on Opening Day. Colorado won both games Márquez started against Arizona last season. Ranked fifth on the depth chart, RHP Luke Weaver is making his first start of the season for Arizona. Colorado scored nine runs, on 13 hits over just 8.1 innings, during two games Weaver started for the Diamondbacks last season. Bet on the moneyline and back the Rockies.
Pick: Colorado Rockies (-117) moneyline at DraftKings
2021 MLB Regular Season Betting Record: 3–3
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