MLB Best Bets for Saturday, June 18, 2022

We go a solid 2-1 on the day, winning both of our plus money plays. We lost on an under for the Yankees game, as the Bronx Bombers cashed the over by themselves. I'll take it and we are 6-1 over our last three days.

Giants vs. Pirates

Alex Wood right now seems like he could be the weakest link in a pretty steady Giants rotation. But, the good news is that he’s relatively in line with his career performance. Another good sign is that in his past two outings he’s allowed three total earned runs over 13 innings. There hasn’t been many matchups between Wood and the Pirates hitters, so it is hard to say who might have the upper hand. Jose Quintana is going for the Pirates and he’s having a good year to this point. At home, he has been very strong. I think that trend can continue against a Giants team that is winning, but not scoring a ton of runs. I’ll take a shot on the Pirates today at +154.

Marlins vs. Mets

This is just the second game the Marlins and Mets have played this season with a total of 18 between them. With Braxton Garrett going for the fish, I think it will be an uphill battle for them. Garrett is starting his third game for the Marlins and in the first one, he was hit for four earned in 3.1 innings. In the second, he rebounded well going 5.2 and allowing no earned runs. The bigger challenge here is hitting off of Taijuan Walker who has allowed just four earned runs in 25 “day” innings. That’s good for a 1.44 ERA. I like backing Walker in this situation and will play the run line at +104.

Guardians vs. Dodgers

Wins and losses as a starter mean very little as a representation of how good you’re pitching. Last year Julio Urias was 20-3. This year, he already has six losses, but he’s still pitching rather well. He’s only had two games that weren’t great. The rest have been very steady games that he has positioned the Dodgers to win. Today they take on the Guardians and Cal Quantrill. Quantrill has an impressive five straight quality starts and is quickly establishing himself as one of the better pitchers in Cleveland. I think this will be a bit of a challenge, facing the tough Dodgers roster, but I like the under 4.5 through five innings here.