What’s going on gambling aficionados, it’s Chris Bengel back with you. Can you smell that? It’s the most glorious time of the year to return.
We’ll have college football games on Thursday night, including two ranked teams in action in No. 17 Pittsburgh and No. 22 Wake Forest. That also means that your weekends will soon be filled with nothing but football for double-digit hours on both Saturday and Sunday. There’s truly nothing better. I for one, can’t wait to concoct some crazy college football parlays.
Anyway, enough dreaming about college football. Let’s jump into Wednesday’s baseball picks.
All times Eastern, and all odds via Caesars Sportsbook
🔥 The Hot Ticket
Red Sox at Twins, 7:40 pm | TV: MLB.TV
- Key Trend: The Red Sox are 5-2 in their last seven games when their opponent scored five runs or more in their previous game
- The Pick: Red Sox (+105)
Listen, the Twins have won the first two games of this series by multiple runs, so this may be a bit of a surprising pick. However, Red Sox starter Michael Wacha has been very strong in his three starts since returning from a shoulder injury.
Jonathan Coachman is joined by Calvin Wetzel, PropStarz and Buckets to bring you the best bets for Wednesday. Download and follow The Early Edge on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
In those three starts, Wacha has surrendered just four runs across 18 2/3 innings. In two starts against the Orioles and Yankees, the veteran right-hander yielded zero runs and just six hits over 12 2/3 innings. Wacha did give up four runs to the Rays in his last start, but he also gave up two home runs in that outing.
Prior to that, he had only given up two home runs in one other start throughout the entire 2022 season. Boston has also won six of Wacha’s last eight starts, so the Red Sox should have every chance to be in this game.
💰 The Picks
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⚾ MLB
Mariners at Tigers, 7:10 pm | TV: MLB.TV
The Pick: Mariners (-160): — This one definitely speaks for itself. The Tigers have been one of the worst teams in baseball all season and even had an eight-game losing streak earlier this month. If you’ve bet against the Tigers this season, the chances are that you’ve won a decent amount of money and I expect that to continue to be the case.
Tigers starter Tyler Alexander has had his fair share of struggles this season. Alexander has posted a 4.83 ERA while only striking out 33 batters splitting time between relief duties and being a starter. The left-hander got shelled in his most recent start against the Rangers as he conceded seven earned runs on eight hits in just three innings of work. It also marked the third consecutive start in which he gave up three or more runs.
Meanwhile, the Mariners have been very productive offensively this season as they rank 12th in home runs (148). That should be a solid advantage since Alexander pitches to contact a large majority of the time. The Mariners are winners of four of their last five games and I expect their winning ways to continue in this spot.
Key Trend: The Mariners are 7-2 in their last nine road games against a left-handed starter
Yankees at Angels, 9:38 pm | TV: MLB.TV
The Pick: Gerrit Cole over 8.5 strikeouts (-108) — The Yankees’ moneyline is a little too large in this spot. However, with the Angels continuing to struggle and Gerrit Cole pitching well as of late, Cole’s strikeout prop is definitely worth a wager.
First of all, the Angels strike out more than any other team in baseball and struck out 18 times over the first two games of this series against the Yankees. Cole is coming off of an 11-strikeout performance against the Athletics in his most recent start. Cole has also registered at least nine strikeouts in four of his last nine starts. On top of that, the veteran right-hander has 200 strikeouts on the season, which leads Major League Baseball. Now nine strikeouts is certainly not a small number, but, considering that he’s facing a team that strikes out at an absurd rate, it’s definitely a favorable spot for the Yankees ace.
Key Trend: Cole has recorded at least nine strikeouts in four of his last nine starts