Xam’s Daily Gems:
Yankees -1 -247 DraftKings 5 Units (Game 1)
All of a sudden, the Yankees are one of the hottest teams in the league and have won 3 straight series! Now, they face one of the WORST teams in baseball in their building! The Angels, despite winning their last series, have just been putrid this year. Superstar Mike Trout is out for the season and they sold off pieces at the Trade Deadline. They’re scoring an ANEMIC 3.92 runs per game on the road this year and are averaging the exact same amount of runs per game when Mike Trout isn’t in the lineup! Luis Gil has turned in a really impressive season for the Yankees. He has a 3.20 ERA on the year, but that has BALLOONED to 6.06 in his last 7 starts. Fortunately for him, there’s fewer matchups better than this one. Davis Daniel, meanwhile, has struggled since getting called up by the Angels. He gave up 4 earned runs in his only road start to the lowly Athletics and before his last start against the Rockies he gave up 7 earned runs to the Rangers! The Yankees are well rested and seemingly out of their midseason slumber. They have AWOKEN and have their eyes set on the AL East crown. The Angels don’t score enough and are just waiting for the season to be over at this point.
Diamondbacks/Guardians Over 7.5 Runs -110 DraftKings 5 Units (Game 2)
In Game 2 of this doubleheader between ELITE hitting teams, Eduardo Rodriguez will make his first start of the 2024 season while the Guardians go with struggling veteran Carlos Carrasco. While it’s hard to determine how Rodriguez will do, this isn’t exactly the best matchup to get thrown right into the fire. The Guardians are averaging ALMOST 5 runs per game at home this season and have been able to MAUL teams at the plate. The Diamondbacks have also been a GREAT offensive team! All they’ve done is score the MOST runs in the National League this season! That’s BAD NEWS for Carlos Carrasco and his UGLY 5.53 ERA! His ERA is over 5 even when starting at home, and this is NOT a lineup that’ll give you a reprieve. With two pitchers who could both get TAGGED, don’t be surprised to see a SLUGFEST in Game 2!
Orioles Money Line -142 FanDuel 5 Units
The Orioles lost to the Blue Jays last night and now all of a sudden find themselves looking up at the Yankees in the standings in the race for the AL East title! Southpaw Trevor Rogers, freshly acquired from the Marlins, is assigned to get the team back on track. He faces a Blue Jays team that has struggled to score runs for a MAJORITY of the season! They’re averaging just over 4 runs per game this season. Even the Rockies have scored more runs than them this season! Righty Bowden Francis takes the ball for the Blue Jays, and he’s had a REALLY tough time of it. His 5.64 ERA and 1.46 WHIP leaves A LOT to be desired. He has a 6.92 ERA in his last 7 games (only 1 start). He’s scheduled to start tonight without a workload restriction despite making a relief appearance back on August 4th. Simply put, the Orioles NEED this game, and they’re the better team. Manager Brandon Hyde SHOULD operate with a sense of URGENCY and be ready to deploy ALL of his top bullpen arms to help secure this win!
Royals First 5 Innings Money Line -156 FanDuel 5 Units
Southpaw Cole Ragans takes the ball for the Royals as they look to even up their series against the Red Sox. Ragans has been solid all season long, but in the heart of the playoff push, the Royals NEED him to be EVEN BETTER! The Red Sox counter with Kutter Crawford, who’s been absolutely BRUTAL in his last 3 starts. He’s given up 5 earned runs or more in each of those appearances, with two of them coming on the road! The Royals have been a really good home team all year, coming into play with a 36-24 record at Kauffman Stadium. They are ALSO averaging 5.18 runs per game at home this year, showing they know how to light up the scoreboard! The winner of tonight’s game between these teams will control the 3rd Wild Card spot, so it’s a HUGE GAME! If Ragans can contain a powerful Red Sox lineup, the Royals SHOULD be able to score enough runs to win the first 5 innings!
Mets Money Line -154 FanDuel -154 FanDuel 5 Units
The Mets have lost 3 of their last 4 games, all of them coming against the Angels and Rockies. That’s unacceptable for a team doing everything they can to stay in the Wild Card race. Newly acquired Paul Blackburn will take the ball to try and right the ship for the Mets. He was great in his 1st start as a Met, throwing 6 innings of 1 run ball. He faces fellow righty Ryan Feltner, who’s really had his struggles this year. While he’s been strong in his last 7 starts, he has an UGLY 6.14 ERA at Coors Field this season! That’s bad news when facing the Mets, who have been raking against subpar pitching recently. The Mets have ELITE hitters all throughout this lineup that SHOULD be able to take advantage! Manager Carlos Mendoza knows THESE are the games his team has to win. Don’t be surprised to see all of the stops pulled out to secure a victory and even up the series against one of the worst teams in baseball.
Dodgers Money Line -140 BetMGM 5 Units
Suddenly, the Dodgers can now see the Padres in the rearview mirror of the NL West division. The Dodgers ONLY have a 4-game lead on their division rival and need to start putting some more distance between them. They face youngster Tyler Phillips who’s coming off the WORST start of his career his last time out, when he gave up EIGHT earned runs in just 1.2 innings against the Mariners. The Dodgers have one of the best lineups in baseball and got superstar Freddie Freeman back in the lineup as well. Gavin Stone will have his hands full with the Phillies, but the Phillies have been struggling recently despite their win last night. The Dodgers need this game MORE and they’ve been really good at home, coming into play with a 35-21 record at Dodger Stadium.
Dodgers Team Total Over 3.5 Runs -194 FanDuel
The Dodgers are averaging just under 5 runs per game at Dodger Stadium this year. It also shouldn’t surprise ANYONE that they’ve scored the 2nd MOST runs in the National League this season! Even without Mookie Betts in the lineup, this is a DEEP hitting team that LOVES taking advantage of young starting pitchers, and especially in their own ballpark. After losing last night, they SHOULD come out ready to go and ready to score runs. They can light up the scoreboard, as their 4-run barrage in the 3rd inning against Aaron Nola showed on Monday night. If Tyler Phillips isn’t careful, this may turn into ANOTHER disaster of a start for him! The Dodgers SHOULD be able to score on Philadelphia’s bullpen as well, giving them scoring opportunities ALL NIGHT!