It was a great day of MLB betting last Thursday as we hit on all three bets at odds of $2.15, $1.95 and $2.04! We are back again this week with a full preview and betting tips for some of our favourite matchups across the 17 game slate this Thursday, the 20th of August.
MLB Betting Tips Thursday August 20th
Philadelphia Phillies at Boston Red Sox
Fenway Park, 3.35am (AEST)
While the Celtics and 76ers do battle in the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs, the Red Sox and Phillies will face off in the second of a two game series this Thursday morning. The Red Sox have been absolutely deplorable this season with just a 6-17 record through their opening 23 games, sitting dead last in the AL East and the American League as a whole.
Starting pitching has been the main concern for the Sox and they’ll have another inexperienced starter on the mound Thursday morning in Kyle Hart. Hart made his first start last week when he faced the Rays, pitching just two innings and allowing seven hits and seven runs. Hart didn’t look ready for the step up to the major leagues but the Sox have no one else to turn to at the moment, with a very limited starting rotation.
The Phillies have Jake Arrieta on the mound Thursday morning, who has been solid this season, but it’s the Phillies batting line-up that should feast against Hart. The Phillies have the fourth best team batting average in the league and are coming off a big win over the Sox on Wednesday. Back them to win again on Thursday.
Tampa Bay Rays at New York Yankees
Yankee Stadium, 9.05am (AEST)
The Yankees have the best record in the American league at 16-6 and are a perfect 10-0 at home this season. They’ll be back at Yankee stadium this Thursday morning with their ace Gerrit Cole on the mound, who will be looking to go 5-0 on the season. Cole has started five games so far and has a 4-0 record with an impressive 2.76 ERA.
The Yankees also have one of the most dominant batting lineups in the league, ranking third in team batting average, first in slugging and second in total runs with 125. Thursday will be Game 2 of a three game series against the Rays, the first of which they lost on Wednesday 6-3.
The Yankees will be keen to bounce back here after an uncharacteristic loss and with Cole on the mound, the run line looks the play. The Rays have right hander Tyler Glasnow on the mound, who has an 0-1 record with a hefty 7.04 ERA.
Texas Rangers at San Diego Padres
Petco Park, 11.10am (AEST)
Our final game of the day sees the Rangers travelling to San Diego to take on the Padres from 11.10am. The Rangers will have ace Lance Lynn on the mound, who has been absolutely superb so far this season and has to be in contention for the Cy Young award in the American League. Lynn has made five starts this season, racking up a 3-0 record with a ridiculous 1.11 ERA through over 32 innings, the best of any pitcher in the AL.
He’ll be up against Chris Paddock of the Padres, who has a 2-2 reocrd with a 4.91 ERA this season. The Padres have been pretty lacklustre this season, currently sitting fourth in the NL West division with a 13-12 record. It’s interesting to see them as favourites here against a Rangers team that is 6-4 over their last 10 and has a great pitcher on the mound.
This will be Game 3 of a four game series between these two teams, with the Padres taking both of the first two games. This is no doubt the Rangers best opportunity to get something from this series with Lynn going up against Paddock. Back the Rangers to win this one as underdogs on the road.
