Top MLB Betting Odds & Picks for Thursday, May 26th (2022)
If you were an early afternoon bettor yesterday, hopefully you sided with the underdogs, as not many ‘dogs were barking in the night portion of games.
There are just 11 games on Thursday’s MLB slate, and most of them are the openers of four-game series, as just three games are the finales of series that started earlier in the week. And the day’s theme is division games, as eight of the 11 games are between division rivals.
Here are our best bets for Thursday's MLB action. (Odds courtesy of DraftKings)
View the best player prop bets for tonight’s slate with our MLB Prop Bet Cheat Sheet >>
Toronto Blue Jays vs. Los Angeles Angels ML
The Angels have lost consecutive games in which Shohei Ohtani has started (both in extra innings), but one could not put much blame on the starting pitcher. Ohtani (3-2, 2.82) allowed just three earned runs over 12 innings while striking out 12 in those starts. In fact, Ohtani has been brilliant in his last five starts (the team is 3-2 in that span), as he lowered his ERA from a 7.56 to a 2.82.
Not only do we have faith in Ohtani on the mound, but the Angels offense should find success against Toronto’s Hyun Jin Ryu (1-0, 6.00). Ryu has allowed just one earned run in his last 10.2 innings, but the fact that he has been able to last at least five innings just once in four starts is troubling given how poorly Toronto’s relievers have pitched of late. In the last seven days, Blue Jays relievers have pitched to a 4.26 ERA (18th in the league), and their 4.91 FIP ranks 26th. In addition, they are just one of seven bullpens with a negative WAR in that span.
The Angels rank seventh in the league with a 115 wRC+ against left-handed pitching and are third with a .317 BABIP against southpaws. So not only should Ryu be in for a rough start, but we do not expect Toronto’s bullpen to clean up well after him either.
Bet: Los Angeles Angels ML (-150 at DraftKings)
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Arizona Diamondbacks O/U
It has been nearly three months of games (dating back to last season) since the Dodgers were shut out, but the streak came to an end last night by the Nationals of all teams. Starting pitcher Erick Fedde became just the fifth pitcher this season to even hold the Dodgers scoreless through six innings.
Before yesterday, Los Angeles was last shut out on August 29th, but the Dodgers were held scoreless by a team that entered the day ranked 29th in team ERA. Either Los Angeles will be steaming mad and will go on a tear entering this series opener, or Arizona will find a way to stifle the Dodgers’ big bats again. Given the recent trends between these teams, we are siding with the latter.
The under has cashed in the last four meetings in Arizona between these teams. Two of the three games had just four total runs scored when they met in a three-game series in the desert from April 25-27.
Despite Los Angeles being shut out yesterday, it still ranks fourth over the last seven days with a 138 wRC+. Arizona is among the few teams better in that stretch, ranking third with a 145 wRC+. That is a big reason why the over has cashed in Arizona’s last five games. However, the under is 5-1 in Arizona’s last six games following an off day, and we believe this total is slightly inflated given the lack of a marquee pitching matchup between Mitch White (1-0, 6.17) and Humberto Castellanos (3-1, 4.29).
Bet: Dodgers-Diamondbacks UNDER 9 (+100 at DraftKings)
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Mike Spector is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeSpector01.