Baseball Handicapping Articles

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/25/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/24/2017

Apparently the uncertainty over when the Marlins will be sold and to whom will stop the team from conducting a fire sale ahead of the July 31 trade deadline. Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill told the media Sunday that he has no intention of dealing Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich, Justin Bour, J.T. Realmuto, Marcell Ozuna or Dan Straily at the deadline. Now, obviously the guy isn't going to come out and say he's shopping some of his best players, but Hill added that any major deals be better left in the hands of the Marlins' new ownership. That makes sense.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/22/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/22/2017

There has been a change on the BetOnline prop for which player leads the majors in homers in 2017. Yankees rookie Aaron Judge has been the favorite for months, but he's ice cold since the All-Star break. Judge has been caught at 30 homers (as of this writing) by Miami's red-hot Marlin Giancarlo Stanton (who was surprisingly knocked out in the first round of the All-Star Home Run Derby won by Judge).

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/21/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/20/2017

The next week or so is likely to determine the future of the Pittsburgh Pirates not just this year but also for 2018. The Bucs got back arguably their best all-around position player Tuesday in outfielder Starling Marte. He leads all Pirates offensive players in WAR, batting average and stolen bases the past two seasons. Marte had tested positive for PEDs early in the season - of course he has no idea how that happened -- and was suspended 80 games.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/20/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/19/2017

It's a good thing that the Houston Astros have the largest division lead in baseball because they have lost their best player, All-Star shortstop Carlos Correa, for 6-8 weeks, to a torn ligament in his left thumb. That ends his chances at winning the AL MVP. Correa exited in the middle of his at-bat in the fourth inning Monday vs. Seattle after feeling pain on a swing. The former AL Rookie of the Year injured the same thumb on July 4 during a game in Atlanta.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/19/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/18/2017

There is no such thing as the Home Run Derby curse! That's what paranoid New Yorkers are claiming has bitten now-struggling rookie superstar outfielder Aaron Judge since his stellar performance in winning the Derby last Monday in Miami. Sure, you can bring up how Philadelphia's Bobby Abreu hit 18 dingers in 323 pre-Derby at-bats in 2005, won the Derby and then hit just six more homers all season.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/18/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/17/2017

It was common knowledge that the Washington Nationals were going to make a trade to boost the majors' worst bullpen - the Nats had a whopping 14 blown saves this year. On Sunday, they addressed the issue by acquiring Ryan Madson and lefty Sean Doolittle from the A's for former closer Blake Treinen and two prospects. Treinen had a 7.11 ERA in his first eight appearances this year before his demotion from the closer role, and he has a 5.46 ERA since losing the job on April 19. Madson was 2-4 with a 2.06 ERA and a save this year in Oakland.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/15/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/15/2017

Trade season is upon us! The Chicago Cubs decided not to wait until the July 31 non-waiver deadline by acquiring White Sox ace lefty Jose Quintana on Thursday for a quartet of prospects. This truly looks like a win-win deal for both Chicago franchises, which rarely deal with one another. It's their first trade since 2006 and first major one since March 1992 when the White Sox acquired George Bell from the Cubs in exchange for a young unknown outfielder named Sammy Sosa (and pitcher Ken Patterson). The Cubs' rotation led the majors in ERA last year but everyone has regressed.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/14/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/13/2017

Really no surprises on BetOnline's updated player props for the season. Yankees rookie Aaron Judge remains the -300 favorite to win the AL MVP and +130 leader to top the majors in homers as he currently has a threeHR lead over No. 2 George Springer of Houston. You can also get Judge at +650 to win the Triple Crown. That's not happening (no is -1200). For the AL Cy Young, Red Sox lefty Chris Sale is the heavy -250 favorite. Houston's Dallas Keuchel (+650) was pitching perhaps even better than Sale but injuries derailed his first half.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/8/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/8/2017

It's my final Five to Follow story of the first half of the 2017 season, with games to resume after the All-Star break on Friday. Monday-Thursday is arguably the longest four-day stretch of the year for sports bettors because there's just nothing going live those nights to bet on other than the occasional MLS game. It's also why ESPN shows the god-awful ESPYs during the break. I might actually watch Monday's Home Run Derby from Marlins Park in Miami.

MLB Betting Trends: Totals Report for Hot Over and Under Baseball Teams
by Aaron Smith - 7/7/2017

How about the Houston Astros? Everyone keeps waiting for them to hit a tough patch, and it isn't happening. Houston is a ridiculous 31-9 on the road this year. They are scoring 6.91 runs per game away from home on the season. They are 16 games ahead of second place in the AL West, and it isn't quite the break yet!

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/7/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/7/2017

I love the NBA, and the Association has been hogging the sports spotlight ever since the draft when Chicago traded Jimmy Butler to Minnesota. On Tuesday, Gordon Hayward, a very good player but hardly a superstar, got a four-year, $128 million free-agent deal to leave Utah for Golden State. The problem for the NBA is that there's really only two teams as things stand right now who can win it all next year and they are Golden State and Cleveland. Superstars are going to play with their friends for less money (Chris Paul to Houston, for example) to form superteams.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/6/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/6/2017

In my opinion, the most fascinating team ahead of the July 31 trade deadline could be the Atlanta Braves. They have overachieved a bit this season and surprisingly got back star first baseman Freddie Freeman from a broken wrist on Tuesday - a good couple of weeks before original projections. Freeman also has moved to third base because Matt Adams has hit so well playing first. What does the Atlanta front office do here?

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/5/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/4/2017

If you still care about which players will round out the American and National League All-Star rosters, the five Final Vote candidates are Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus, Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts, Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius, Rays first baseman Logan Morrison and Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas in the Junior Circuit.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/4/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/3/2017

The Houston Astros were actively shopping for starting pitching as it was, but they might have a bit more urgency now in the wake of rookie right-hander David Paulino being suspended 80 after he tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance. His penalty officially began on Saturday. Astros GM Jeff Luhnow said Paulino "feels bad about it." Well, why did he do it then? It certainly wasn't an accident as the 23-year-old Dominican tested positive for Boldenone, a derivative of testosterone used on horses.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 7/1/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 7/1/2017

With July 1 upon us, it's officially trading season around baseball. One team widely reported to be a seller is the Detroit Tigers. Let's say you are the GM of the New York Yankees, Houston Astros or Chicago Cubs, three teams with starting pitching needs and money to spend. Do you go after Detroit's Justin Verlander? He's a borderline future Hall of Famer but is showing signs of regression with a 5-4 record, 4.47 ERA and 1.45 WHIP this year at age 34 (35 next February). His walks are up and his strikeouts down.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 6/30/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/29/2017

This is the series of the weekend and a potential ALDS or ALCS preview - I don't say wild-card preview because Houston is already nearly a lock to win the AL West. As expected, the Yankees have put both second baseman Starlin Castro and DH Matt Holliday on the DL. Both are expected to miss the minimum 10 days.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 6/29/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/28/2017

Here we have a 12:10 p.m. EST first pitch. With such an early start in a getaway game and a nasty pitcher on the mound, the Rangers might seriously just punt on this game and rest as many regulars as their bench allows. Sometimes it's OK to presume a loss in the 162-game MLB grind and get guys some rest.

Five to Follow Expert MLB Betting Picks: 6/28/2017, Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 6/27/2017

I guess the Washington Nationals have nothing to lose in signing Francisco Rodriguez, who was released over the weekend by the Detroit Tigers after starting the season as the club's closer but instead turning into a gas can with a whopping 7.82 ERA and six blown saves. The Nationals are absolutely loaded everywhere this season but the bullpen as they have cycled through closers. Not sure K-Rod will solve their problems as his ratio of home runs to flyballs is nearly double his career average.

MLB Betting Advice: Milwaukee Brewers Challenging for Division
by Trevor Whenham - 6/27/2017

Eleven. That is, I would wager, the number of people who actually thought that the Milwaukee Brewers would be in first place in the AL Central on June 27. All 11 of those people were probably from Milwaukee, and, as is often the case there, they were probably well into the beer when they made the prediction. It just didn't make sense at all that the Brewers would be contenders. Frankly, the only thing that made sense in the division was that the Cubs would all but have it clinched by now. But the Cubs have struggled, and the Brewers have shocked, and so here we are.

MLB Trade Deadline Approaching: Five Interesting Players that Could Move
by Trevor Whenham - 6/27/2017

The non-waiver trade deadline for baseball falls this year on July 31, and as always it promises to be a busy time as teams that are close gamble to make a difference and pretenders look to turn assets into a brighter future. As always, there is no shortage of potential guys on the move. Teams like the Mets, Athletics, White Sox and Marlins could be in fire sale mode. There are all sorts of players who could be on the move and make a real impact. For various reasons, though, there are five guys who stand out for me above the crowd. They aren't necessarily the best or most important players available, but they are the most interesting: