Payday Plays For May 7th
It's Friday which means for a lot of you it is payday. What better way to spend your hard-earned cash by gambling on sports? Regardless of your favorite league, I'm going to have a pick for each of the major sports that are playing today. Watching sports plus having money on the line makes any sport better. There is MLB, NHL, and NBA games playing and the first league we will look at is the MLB.
Padres (-148) vs. Giants (+126) 9:46 p.m. ET
It is the battle for the top of the NL West tonight in the Padres and the Giants. These teams are neck and neck for the top of the division, with San Deigo having an 18-14 record and San Fransico an 18-13 record. For the Padres, Blake Snell is taking the mound. The ace from the Tampa Bay Rays hasn't lived up to his incredible career stats. So far in 2021, Snell is 1-0 in six games with a 3.51 ERA and 1.481 WHIP. For the Giants, Anthony DeSclafani is starting. So far, in 2021, DeSclafani is 2-1 in six games with a 2.00 ERA and 0.944 WHIP.
Sportbooks believe that these two pitchers will have a great night as the total is set at 7.5 runs. So far this season betting the under on San Diego games has been very profitable. They have gone 20-12 compared to the Giants, which have gone 15-15-1. San Fransico is 15th in runs scored, T4th in home runs, and 23rd in hits. Compared to San Diego, 25th in runs, 25th in home runs, and 9th in hits. Both the Giants and Padres have a fantastic pitching staff. San Diego is 1st in ERA, 2nd in earned runs, and 9th in home runs allowed. On the other hand, San Fransico is 7th in ERA, 7th in earned runs, and 6th for home runs allowed.
In their last six games, these teams couldn't be more opposite for tonight's total. San Diego's games have averaged 5.5 runs total, compared to San Fransico, which has averaged 10 runs total. I believe that Blake Snell will have an excellent pitching performance tonight and that betting the under for Padres games will stay true.
The pick: Under 7.5 runs
NBA: Spurs (-4) vs. Kings (+4) 10:15 p.m. ET
Technically both of these teams are still fighting for a chance to play in the play-in tournament. The Spurs are 10th in the West with a 31-34 record and only 1.5 games behind the Grizzlies. The Kings are technically still in the race, but they are the 11th seed with a 29-37 record. The Kings would need a scorching hot streak, and the Spurs to go very cold if they want a chance to play in the play-in tournament. For the Kings case, that is precisely what is happening. They have won four in a row with impressive wins over the Lakers and the Mavericks. The Spurs have lost their last four games, but two of those losses came in overtime against the Celtics and the 76ers.
When looking at how these rank against the spread, it's obvious that the Spurs are the better team. San Antonio is 9-3 as away favorites compared to Sacramento, which is 5-12 as home underdogs. Overall the Spurs are 35-29-1 ATS, and the Kings are 30-35-1.
When looking at the stats for these two teams, they couldn't be more different. They are both closely ranked overall, with San Antonio being 23rd overall and Sacramento ranked 24th overall. When looking into their offense and defense ranking is where the vast differences are. The Kings have the 12th ranked offense but the 30th ranked defense. Compared to the Spurs, who have the 21st ranked offense, but the 12th ranked defense.
When comparing these two teams' injury reports, the Spurs have the upper hand. Both Tyrese Haliburton and De'Aron Fox are out for the Kings. With Greg Popovich coaching, I have way more faith in the Spurs, not to mention the Kings injury problems and the Spurs being a much better team ATS.
The pick: Spurs -4
Coyotes(-108) vs. Sharks (-108) 10:40 p.m. ET
Both of these teams have nothing to play for as neither of these teams can make the playoffs. The Coyotes chances were gone when they lost to the Kings on Wednesday. There's a reason why neither of these teams will make the playoffs because they are both terrible. Arizona is 15th for shots on net, 26th in power-play percentage, 16th in power play killing percentage, average 2.59 goals per game 25th, and allow 3.11 goals per game 22nd. Compared to the Sharks, 7th for shots on net, 27th in power-play percentage, and 14th in power play killing percentage, they average 2.64 goals per game 23rd and allow 3.40 goals per game 29th.
Home ice has been crucial for these teams since the winner has been home in the last five matchups. The Coyotes are 0-4 in their last four games facing a team with a losing record. The last time these two teams played was on April 28th where the Sharks won 4-2. I believe that the same thing will happen again tonight.
The pick: Sharks -108