AL West rivals Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels start a pivotal four-game series on Thursday at Rangers Ballpark (8:05 pm ET, FOX).
Los Angeles (51-46 SU) is five games back of the first-place Rangers (55-40 SU), and is 7.5 games behind Tampa Bay Rays for the AL Wild Card spot.
MLB Odds and Baseball Picks at various sportsbooks have the Rangers as -175 moneyline favorites and the over/under total at 8.
Los Angeles will start ace righthander Jered Weaver, who is 9-5 this season with a 3.16 ERA. Texas counters with lefthander Cliff Lee, who is 8-4 with a 2.59 ERA.
The Angels got beat 10-6 by the New York Yankees when the teams finished off a three-game set Wednesday. The Angels were +180 underdogs and the score went well over the total of 9. Joel Pineiro gave up 11 hits and six runs over his six innings in the Angels loss.
The Rangers lost the finale of a three-game set against the Detroit Tigers Wednesday, dropping a 4-1 decision. The Rangers had been a -110 pick’em and the score fell below the over/under total of 8.5. Colby Lewis gave up nine hits and four runs over seven innings in suffering the Rangers loss.
The Angels are 4-2 SU in their last six games while the Rangers are 5-2 SU in their last seven games. The Angels are 2-8 SU in their last 10 games on the road and Texas is 1-4 SU in its last five games at home.
The Angels are 2-4 SU in the past six overall meetings with the Rangers, and 3-8 SU in the last 11 meetings at Texas.
Things were already bad enough for the Washington Nationals, who are 15.5 games out of first place in the NL East division. But now they are mired in yet another losing skid, and will try tonight to avoid their fifth-straight loss.
The Nationals visit the Cincinnati Reds, who will be shooting for their third-consecutive win, for the third game of a four-game series at Great American Ball Park (7:10 pm ET, ESPN).
But the Nationals are -130 moneyline favorites and the over/under total is at 7 in Sports Betting Odds and MLB Picks at sportsbooks.
Washington will start righthander Stephen Strasburg, who is 4-2 this season with a 2.03 ERA. Cincinnati will counter with ace righthander Bronson Arroyo, who is 10-4 with a 3.96 ERA.
On Tuesday, Joey Votto hit a three-run home run to lead the Reds to an 8-7 win. Cincinnati covered as a -180 home favorite and the score went over the 9-run total.
Also coming up big with his bat for Cincinnati was Corky Miller, who went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Mike Leake allowed just one run over five innings for Cincinnati. For Washington, Mike Morse had three RBIs and pitcher Luis Atilano gave up five runs over four innings.
Washington (40-54 SU) has lost four straight and Cincinnati (53-42 SU) has won two straight.
Washington is 1-4 SU in the past five meetings overall, and 3-7 SU in the last 10 meetings in Cincinnati. The total has gone under in four of Washington’s last six, both overall and on the road.
The Philadelphia Phillies are in danger of slipping out of the NL East playoff race unless they can stop a slide that has seen them lose two straight and go just 5-5 SU in their past 10.
They’ll get a chance to do just that tonight when they take on the St. Louis Cardinals in the second game of a three-game series at Busch Stadium (8:15 pm ET, FOX).
Philadelphia (48-44 SU) has struggled recently, and are now in third place in the division, six games behind the leading Atlanta Braves. The only thing that has softened the blow for the Phillies is that the play of the New York Mets, who are in second but just a half-game ahead of Philly, have been even more inept at 3-7 SU in their past 10.
The Cardinals (52-41 SU), meanwhile, are in first in the NL Central, although their lead over the second-place Cincinnati Reds is just a half-game.
The Cardinals are a -180 moneyline favorite and the over/under is 8 in MLB Picks and MLB Odds at sportsbooks.
In the opener on Monday, Albert Pujols went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer and three runs batted in to lead the Cardinals past the Phillies 8-4 on Monday night. St. Louis covered as a -125 favorite, while the score went over the 9-run total.
Shane Victorino batted in two runs for Philadelphia, while losing pitcher Kyle Kendrick was rocked for seven runs over five innings.
Philadelphia will start lefthanded pitcher Jamie Moyer, who is 9-9 with a 4.88 ERA this season. St. Louis will counter with ace righthander Chris Carpenter, who is 10-3 with a 3.16 ERA.
The St. Louis Cardinals go for their sixth-straight win when they host the Philadelphia Phillies for the opener of a four-game set Monday at Busch Stadium (7:05 pm ET, ESPN).
St. Louis is a -125 moneyline favorite and the over/under total is 9 in Sports Betting Odds at online sportsbooks.
But the Cardinals may have their hands full in this series, as the Phillies are 5-1 SU in the past six meetings overall and 4-1 SU in the past six clashes in St. Louis. As well, the total has gone under in 10 of the past 15 meetings overall.
The teams have met once this season, a four-game set May 3 to 6 won 3-1 by Philadelphia.
The Phillies will start righthander Kyle Kendrick, who is 5-3 record with a 4.57 ERA this season. The Cardinals will counter with righthander Blake Hawksworth, who is 2-2 with a 4.97 ERA.
The Phillies are coming off a 3-1 series loss against the Chicago Cubs. Philadelphia lost 11-6 as a -180 favorite on Sunday, and the score more than doubled the over/under total of 7.5.
Ryan Howard, Ben Francisco and Greg Dobbs hit solo home runs for Philadelphia, while Roy Halladay gave up six runs on seven hits in six innings.
The Cardinals, meanwhile, completed a sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers with a 5-4 win as a +145 underdog on Sunday. The score was a push on the total of 9.
Matt Holliday singled in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth for St. Louis and Allen Craig drove in three runs in the win.
The Chicago White Sox had their nine-game winning streak stopped Friday against AL Central-rival Minnesota Twins, and Saturday they’ll try to get back to their winning ways when the teams meet for the third game of a four-game set at Target Field (7:10 pm ET, FOX, WGN).
Minnesota is a -150 moneyline favorite while the over/under total is 8.5 in MLB Betting at online sportsbooks.
Starter Francisco Liriano allowed just two runs over 7 2/3 innings to lead the Twins to a 7-4 win over the White Sox on Friday night. Minnesota cashed as -135 home favorites and the score went over the 8-run total.
Joe Mauer went 2-for-5 with two RBIs for the Twins, and J.J. Hardy went 3-for-4 with an RBI for Minnesota. Alexei Ramirez and Gordon Beckham were both 2-for-4 with an RBI for Chicago, while losing pitcher Gavin Floyd gave up one earned run over five innings for the White Sox.
Chicago (50-39 SU) is first in the AL Central, 3.5 games up on third-place Minnesota (47-43 SU) and one game ahead of second-place Detroit Tigers (48-39 SU).
Tonight, the White Sox will turn to ace lefthander Mark Buehrle, who is 8-7 with a 4.24 ERA this season. The Twins will counter with righthander Carl Pavano, who is 10-6 with a 3.58 ERA.
Minnesota is 18-5 SU in the past 23 meetings at home. The total has gone under in eight of the past 10 meetings in Minnesota, and in eight of Chicago’s past 11 games on the road.
AL East rivals Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees clash in the opener of an important three-game series Friday at Yankee Stadium (7:10 pm ET, FOX).
The Yankees are a -180 moneyline favorite and the over/under total is 8.5 in MLB Odds at online sportsbooks.
This series could decide first place in the division as the Yankees (56-32) are just two games ahead of the second-place Rays (54-34).
Both teams have been red-hot, each winning eight of their past 10 overall heading into the All-Star break.
In their last game, the Rays beat the Cleveland Indians 6-5 as a -240 favorite on Sunday. The 11 runs went over the over/under total of 8.5. Tampa Bay won the four-game series 3-1.
Jason Bartlett drove in the game-winning run for Tampa Bay in the 10th inning and Carl Crawford hit a two-run homer and scored three runs.
The Yankees also completed a 3-1 series win in their last game, an 8-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners as a -270 favorite on Sunday. The score went over the total of 8.
Marcus Thames hit a two-run home run and scored a pair of runs for New York, while Mark Teixeira was 4-5 with an RBI in the win.
The Rays will start ace James Shields, who has a 6-9 record with a 4.92 ERA this season. The Yankees will counter with their own ace, C.C. Sabathia, who is 12-3 with a 3.09 ERA.
The total has gone over in all five of the past five meetings.
Two top National League teams open a four-game set Thursday when the Los Angeles Dodgers and St. Louis Cardinals meet at Busch Stadium (8:15 pm ET, FOX).
The Dodgers are 49-39 SU this season, two games back of the San Diego Padres in the NL West. The Cardinals are 47-41 SU, one game back of the division-leading Cincinnati Reds in the NL Central.
St. Louis is a -125 moneyline favorite and the over/under total is 7 in MLB Betting at online sportsbooks.
The Dodgers will start southpaw Clayton Kershaw, who is 9-4 this season and boasts a 2.96 ERA. Starting for the Cardinals will be ace righthander Chris Carpenter, who has similar numbers to Kershaw, with 9-3 record and a 3.29 ERA.
In their last game before the All-Star break, the Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs 7-0 as a -145 favorite on Sunday. The score went under the over/under total of 7.5.
Vicente Padilla pitched eight shutout innings for the Dodgers and James Loney was 2-3 with a home run and four RBI.
And the Cardinals beat the Houston Astros 4-2 as a +110 underdog on Sunday. The six runs scored fell under the over/under total of 8.5.
Matt Holliday hit a three-run home run for St. Louis and Blake Hawksworth picked up the win for St. Louis after allowing two runs on seven hits in 5 1-3 innings.
The Dodgers are 5-0 SU in the past five meetings with St. Louis, and the total has gone under in five of the last six meetings in St. Louis.
The Chicago Cubs and the Arizona Diamondbacks square off in the second game of a three-game set Tuesday at Chase Field (9:40 pm ET, FOX).
Sportsbooks have the Cubs as a -115 moneyline favorite and the over/under total at 9.5 in MLB Betting.
The Cubs will start righthander Carlos Silva, who is 8-2 this season with a 2.96 ERA. The D-Backs will counter with righthander Barry Enright, who is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA.
In the opener on Monday, Geovany Soto went 3-for-4 with two runs batted in to pace a 9-4 win for the Cubs. Chicago cashed as +105 road underdogs and the score went over the 9-run total.
Alfonso Soriano hit a pinch-hit, two-run homer for the Cubs, as Tom Gorzelanny gave up three runs over five innings to get the win for Chicago. Kelly Johnson knocked in two runs for Arizona, while Ian Kennedy was rocked for seven runs over 5 2-3 innings to take the loss for the Diamondbacks.
Chicago is 36-47 SU this season. Arizona is 32-51 SU and has lost three straight games.
There is a big over trend, as the total has gone over in all five of the past five meetings, both overall and in Arizona. The total also has gone over in seven of Arizona’s last eight games at home.
The Cubs are 4-1 SU in the past five meetings, but Arizona is 12-4 SU in the last 16 meetings at home.
