Baseball Handicapping Articles

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Tuesday, June 16, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/15/2015

I can't remember a season where so many top prospects have been called up this early. It happened Sunday with the Minnesota Twins as they promoted five-tool outfielder Byron Buxton. And all he did was score the winning run in the top of the ninth to give the Twins a 4-3 victory in Texas that ended a five-game losing streak. He started in center and batted ninth. To make room for Buxton on the roster, the Twins placed outfielder Aaron Hicks on the 15-day disabled list before Sunday's game.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Sunday, June 14, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/13/2015

White Sox ace Chris Sale was a bit inconsistent to start the season, and some wondered if perhaps it was because he was using his slider less -- presumably to relieve the strain on his valuable left arm. Well, worry no longer. Sale won a third straight start in dominant fashion on Monday vs. the Astros. Sale became the first pitcher in White Sox history to record at least 10 strikeouts in four straight starts, and he is the first pitcher in baseball's modern era (since 1900) to record at least 10 strikeouts in four straight starts and increase his strikeout total in each.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Saturday, June 13, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/12/2015

The trade market got started recently with Arizona's trade of Mark Trumbo to Seattle (predictably, Trumbo has done squat with the Mariners). Now there are rumors that the Mets are looking at Brewers third baseman Aramis Ramirez. That would make sense. Ramirez is 36 and hitting just .211 with seven homers and 19 RBIs, but he's going to retire after this season and generally is a better second-half hitter.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Friday, June 12, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/11/2015

Here's a statistic I thought I would never see since closers became such a vital part of baseball: the Toronto Blue Jays have won their past 18 games without a save. How is that possible? Since Toronto's last save the team is 18-16. The opposing team had 14 saves in those 16 wins and Toronto zip. That's because 14 of those Blue Jays wins have come by four or more runs and three more were of the walk-off variety.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Thursday, June 11, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/10/2015

If you had given me 150 chances -- i.e. five starting pitchers x 30 teams -- to pick who would get the first no-hitter in the 2015 season, I would not have still even considered Chris Heston. I had barely heard of the 27-year-old Giant as he entered this season with 5.1 career big-league innings and is only in rotation because of injuries. Yet it was Heston who had the first no-no on Tuesday night against the Mets.

Tracking the Nationals: MLB Picks and Handicapping for Washington Baseball
by Dave Schwab - 6/10/2015

The betting strategy of specialization when wagering on MLB games will be put to the test all season long as I continue to exclusively handicap the Washington Nationals. I will also be putting some money behind my efforts with free picks for select Washington games with the use of Doc's Sports Unit Betting System. The ultimate goal is to build a profitable MLB bankroll with these unit plays.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Wednesday, June 10, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/9/2015

I've said all year that I liked the Toronto Blue Jays to win the AL East Division assuming they added pitching and that I also recently liked third baseman Josh Donaldson as great +900 value to win the AL MVP Award. Well, the Jays are coming. They won a sixth straight game on Monday night and could get over .500 on Wednesday with a win as long as they also do Tuesday.

MLB Handicapping: Correlation between Run Differential and Betting Profit
by George Monroy - 6/9/2015

The St. Louis Cardinals controlled the first third of the season by racing out to a 38-20 record and inserting themselves as one of the favorites to win the 2015 World Series. St. Louis currently holds the best record in baseball and has the largest run differential in both leagues with a +62 mark. The 2011 World Series Champions may be on course for another deep postseason run, but the question bettors are after is whether that gaudy record and huge run differential has led to a profit.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Tuesday, June 9, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/8/2015

I think it's fair to say that Houston blew it in the 2013 draft, taking Stanford pitcher Mark Appel over University of San Diego slugger Kris Bryant. Maybe Appel becomes a good player some day, but Bryant looks like a future MVP. Houston did appear to get it right in 2012, however, in taking high school shortstop Carlos Correa. I mentioned not long ago that the Astros probably were going to call him up soon. That happened on Monday.

MLB Series Odds with Expert Picks and Predictions
by Dave Schwab - 6/8/2015

The MLB regular season heads into the second week of June with eight brand new series getting underway on Monday. Bovada has released its series price for each of these three-game sets, and after going through the key stats, facts and figures, I have uncovered a trio of solid opportunities to cash in on the games.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Sunday, June 7, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/6/2015

Around the first of each month, Bovada releases updated baseball awards odds. I don't think the favorites will surprise you. For the AL Cy Young, Seattle's Felix Hernandez was the +150 favorite, with Houston's Dallas Keuchel (+250) right behind. For AL MVP, the Angels' Mike Trout is the +200 favorite to repeat, with Detroit's Miguel Cabrera at +400. I rather like Toronto's Josh Donaldson at +900 because I think the Blue Jays are going to trade for pitching and win the AL East, and that would boost Donaldson's stock.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Saturday, June 6, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/5/2015

It's easy for me to say right now, but I projected the Detroit Tigers to take a big step back this season after winning four AL Central titles in a row. I expected Victor Martinez to come way back to earth after a monster 2014 season because of age. He has in a big way and is on the disabled list. Justin Verlander hasn't been the same guy in a couple of years and still hasn't pitched in the majors this season, although he's getting close.

Washington Nationals Handicapping: Best Spots for MLB Betting Profit
by George Monroy - 6/4/2015

Bryce Harper's confidence and swagger have reached an all-time high, and with good reason. The Washington Nationals' slugger positioned himself as a Triple Crown contender with a massive offensive burst over the last three weeks of the season and even felt comfortable enough to take "selfies" with fans in the outfield during a loss against Toronto. Harper is leading the National League in home runs while being second in RBIs and fourth in batting average.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Friday, June 5, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/4/2015

So much for waiting until July for trading season to start as on Wednesday the Arizona Diamondbacks officially punted on the season -- not that they were going anywhere -- by sending Mark Trumbo, their big acquisition before last season, and pitcher Vidal Nuno to Seattle for catcher Welington Castillo, pitcher Dominic Leone, infielder Jack Reinheimer and outfielder Gabby Guerrero. Arizona gets some prospects and a decent catcher in Castillo, opening a corner outfield spot that Trumbo played for Yasmany Tomas.

MLB Betting Advice and Handicapping: Totals Trends Report
by Aaron Smith - 6/4/2015

We're now two months into the Major League Baseball season. The St. Louis Cardinals have the best record in baseball. What has propelled them to such a fast start? The Cardinals have a team ERA of 2.65, which is easily the best of anyone in baseball. Even with Adam Wainwright's injury, this pitching staff continues to dominate.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Thursday, June 4, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/3/2015

I was waiting for a Cardinals off day to touch on an amazing streak to start the season by St. Louis outfielder Matt Holliday, but alas it ended on Tuesday. Holliday had reached base at least once in 45 straight games to start the year, a National League record. Derek Jeter held the all-time record at 53 in a row, and Ted Williams holds the mark at any point in a season at 74 straight. Holliday was 0-for-3 and was called out on strikes by umpire Joe West in the seventh inning.

Tracking the Nationals: MLB Picks and Handicapping for Washington Baseball
by Dave Schwab - 6/3/2015

Specialization when wagering on MLB games can be a viable betting strategy, and to help prove the point I am exclusively handicapping the Washington Nationals all season long. I will also be backing up my efforts with free picks for select Washington games with the use of Doc's Sports Unit Betting System. The ultimate goal is to build a profitable MLB bankroll with these unit plays.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Wednesday, June 3, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/2/2015

This may be the first time I've led back-to-back "Five to Follow" stories on the same team, but suddenly the Texas Rangers are rather interesting. You have the whole Josh Hamilton resurgence. Yesterday I mentioned that the team lost starting third baseman Adrian Beltre to an injured thumb for at least two weeks. Well, Texas got more interesting because of that as the team called up top prospect Joey Gallo, also a third baseman. This guy is the top power prospect in all of baseball -- even better than Kris Bryant.

Five To Follow MLB Betting: Tuesday, June 2, 2015 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/1/2015

It was a good news/bad news weekend for the Texas Rangers. The good was that they won the final three games of their series with visiting Boston and Josh Hamilton looks completely rejuvenated. He hit two homers on Friday and then had the pinch-hit, walk-off double on Sunday to give Texas its first series victory at home all year. The bad was that third baseman Adrian Beltre suffered a sprain and laceration of his left thumb and will miss at least two weeks.

MLB Series Odds with Expert Picks and Predictions
by Dave Schwab - 6/1/2015

The MLB regular season kicks off the month of June with a number of great matchups on Monday's slate, but I am taking things a step further with some series predictions with the help of Bovada's series prices for the games over the next three days. The following is a brief handicapping breakdown and free picks for my top three series prices for this week's action.