Xam’s Daily Gems:
Phillies -1 -159 DraftKings
Phillies ace Zack Wheeler takes the ball as the Phillies go for the sweep of the Giants. The Phillies are quite possibly the hottest team in baseball right now, having won 5 straight games and 9 of their last 10. They’ve also shown to have one of the biggest homefield advantages in baseball, coming into this game with a 13-6 record at Citizens Bank Park. Wheeler has been awesome this year, coming into this start with a sparkling 1.91 ERA. He’s given up 1 earned run in his last 3 starts combined! Mason Black is making his first career start today for the Giants. He’s been pitching well in the minor leagues, but this is an ENTIRELY different battle. Hard to imagine a tougher matchup in your big league debut. The Phillies SHOULD be able to pound out some runs today. If Wheeler can put up some zeroes, the Phillies SHOULD be able to complete the sweep and win their 6th straight game!
Royals Money Line -142 DraftKings
The Royals send their ace Cole Ragans to the mound to open this series. He’s been great since the Royals acquired him last year. The Royals will be facing Bryse Wilson, who has a 4.50 ERA on the road this year and overall for his career has a 4.71 ERA. The Royals are scoring over 5 runs per game at home this year. The Royals are coming off two straight losses and really NEED their ace to step up in this game. The Royals KNOW how to hit and should be able to score some runs in this game. Ragans has given up 3 earned runs or less in 6 of his 7 starts this year, and 2 earned runs or less in 5 of them! The Royals SHOULD have their premium bullpen arms available for this game as well. They’ll do WHATEVER it takes to end this losing streak!
Panthers Money Line -170 FanDuel
The Panthers have been resting since beating the Lightning in 5 games. The Bruins just got through a SLUGFEST of a 7-game series against the Maple Leafs. The Panthers have some demons to exorcise against the Bruins, as they didn’t beat them this year. The Bruins offense struggled for most of the series against the Maple Leafs, and that’s just not going to work in this game. Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky is the key to this game. If he can keep Boston’s offense off the board, the Panthers SHOULD be able to get it going! Sam Reinhart, Carter Verhaeghe, and Matthew Tkachuk are ready to go. The Panthers are the more rested team, have their home fans behind them, AND have the better goalie in this game. They SHOULD be ready to go and get it done!
Rangers/Athletics Over 8 Runs -108 DraftKings
Both of these teams have been scoring AT WILL recently. Both teams are going with struggling southpaws in this game. The Rangers are going with Andrew Heaney. He has a 5.10 ERA on the year. He has a career 4.81 ERA on the road. The Athletics have been scoring A TON of runs recently, including a 20 burger over the weekend against the Marlins. They SHOULD be able to continue hitting in this game. The Athletics turn to Alex Wood, who has an unsightly 6.32 ERA. That goes up to a gross 8.10 ERA at home! Both teams have a solid offense that’s capable of doing damage, and both of these starters have struggled this year. The Rangers are averaging 4.68 runs per game and have the ability to score in waves, as their 15-run outburst in Kansas City over the weekend shows! As long as Oakland can contribute ANYTHING offensively, the Rangers SHOULD care for the rest!
Timberwolves/Nuggets Over 205.5 Points -110 FanDuel
These teams combined for 121 2nd half points in Game 1 after a very slow 1st half. The Nuggets came out a little rusty, but they did whatever they wanted offensively in the 2nd half, and the Timberwolves were equal to the task! Look for Denver to come out fired up and ready to go. Already down 1-0 in the series, it’s as close to a must win game as Game 2 can possibly be. Going down 0-2 and then having to go on the road will be a very tough situation for the Nuggets to overcome. They know how to score at home, as evidenced by their 118 PPG at home this season would suggest! They’ll surely be ready for Anthony Edwards, who strafed them for 43 points in Game 1. The Timberwolves will NEED role players like Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert, and Mike Conley to step up. If they do, and can contribute anything offensively, the Nuggets should take care of the rest! Their offense is just too good to be that bad again, and especially so at home!
Dodgers -1 -220 DraftKings
Walker Buehler makes his long awaited return from Tommy John surgery. Buehler will probably be rusty but he has a GREAT matchup today. He’s pitching at home and facing one of the worst lineups in baseball. They are in the bottom 3rd of the league in runs scored per game and are averaging just 3.63 runs per game this year on the road. The Dodgers couldn’t be much hotter right now. They’ve scored the most runs in the league, have won 4 straight games, 8 of their last 10, and are coming off a 3 game sweep of the Braves where they destroyed them all weekend long! Roddery Munoz makes his 3rd career start for the Marlins. This will be the toughest test he’s had in his young career. The Dodgers SHOULD be able to score plenty of runs tonight like they usually do. If Buehler can keep his nerves in check and keep the Marlins off the board, the Dodgers shouldn’t have ANY ISSUES winning the first game of this series and running their winning streak to 5 straight games!