MIAMI MARLINS @ PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES – 3:40PM
The Phillies host the Marlins in the finale of their 2 game series later this afternoon in Philadelphia. The Marlins won game 1 last night in a shutout 5-0. The Phillies are now on a 4 game losing streak after losing their series to the Arizona Diamondbacks on the road over the weekend and they have entered a bit of a downward spiral as the regular season is winding down. The Phillies currently have a 6 game lead on the Atlanta Braves for the NL East Division lead so there’s still some breathing room there but if they keep losing at this rate that could change fast. The Marlins have played well in their last 3 games going back to their series against the Padres but they have the 2nd worst record in the National League and do not have any hope to make the postseason at this point. Rather than trying to bet on a win or a loss in this game there’s an interesting Marlins batter prop I want to bring some attention to that carries good value. Marlins 3rd baseman Jake Burger has been a notorious home run threat in baseball for a while but over the last week he has put up some insane numbers at the plate that we can no longer ignore. In the last 7 days Jake Burger has hit a home run in every game he has played except for one (August 8th against the Reds). He has hit 6 home runs total since August 7th. He is also on a 6 game hitting streak since then with a total of 11 hits, 10 runs, and 7 RBI’s. He is about as good of a hitter as anyone right now in baseball and at least in terms of getting a homerun there doesn’t look like there’s anyone better to back today. He will be facing Phillies starting pitcher Tyler Phillips who has had some strong outings this year with shutouts vs. Cleveland and Pittsburgh last month. Phillips’s last two starts were not so good though with a total of 11 hits and 12 runs given up in the two games combined. With how bad Phillips has pitched lately and with how well Burger is hitting right now this seems like a great time to take a swing on a Burger Bomb.
The Pick: Jake Burger to hit a Home Run
HOUSTON ASTROS @ TAMPA BAY RAYS – 3:50PM
The Astros take on the Rays in the series finale today with the Astros leading in the matchup so far with two wins. The Astros defeated the Rays again last night 3-2 as the Rays could not hold on to the lead after going up early in the 2nd inning. The Astros are now on a 7 game winning streak and hold a 1.5 game lead over the Mariners for the American League West Division lead. The Rays have Zack Littel pitching for them today which could be good news for the Astros. The Rays are 2-4 in Littel’s last 6 starts going back to July 7th and they have been outscored by their opponents over that stretch by a margin of 15 runs (31-16). Littel is giving up on average about 6 hits and 3 runs per game each time he has started since July 7th. The one caveat to this is that Littel did just recently face the Astros on August 3rd and he had a pretty solid outing with the Rays winning that game in Houston 6-1. However this was before the Astros current win streak started and I am willing to bet that the result will be much different with the momentum that Houston is currently playing with. Houston will have Ronel Blanco on the mound and they are 3-3 in his last 6 starts with 2 of those wins coming from his last 3 starts (the one loss being that same game against the Rays back on August 3rd before the win streak). Astros 3rd baseman Alex Bregman has been on a tear in this series with 3 runs, 4 hits, 2 homeruns, and 2 RBI’s in the last two games. In the game back on August 3rd he got shut out and went 0-4 at the plate. That will not happen again today. Likewise Jose Altuve went 0-5 at the plate last night look for him to rebound and rack up some hits today as well. Count on the Astros to get the sweep against the Rays and keep building their division lead in the American League West.
The Pick: Astros Moneyline
OTHER BETS TO CONSIDER
Alex Bregman 2+ Hits
Alex Bregman 1+ RBI’s
Alex Bregman 1+ Home Runs
Juan Soto 1+ RBI’s
Jake Burger 1+ RBI’s
Jake Burger to record a run
New York Yankees Moneyline
Los Angeles Dodgers Moneyline
Shohei Ohtani 1+ RBI’s
Mookie Betts to record a run
LONG SHOT PARLAY
3 Legs +2759 Odds
Jake Burger to Hit a Home Run
Alex Bregman 1+ RBI’s
Los Angeles Dodgers -1.5 Run Line
A $5 wager pays $137.96