Top MLB Odds, Picks & Predictions: Sunday (4/21)
We’ve got another 16 games on the MLB board throughout the day! With so many early games, we’ve got no time to waste.
Here are a couple of best bets I’m eying with today’s slate!
Sunday’s Best MLB Bets
Odds courtesy of FanDuel | All wagers are for 1 unit
Chicago White Sox @ Philadelphia Phillies
Talk about a mismatch!
The Chicago White Sox will pitch Nick Nastrini, who has only faced 20 batters this season. Of those 20 batters, the right-hander has faced eight lefties and has allowed a .429 ISO and wOBA of .460. While he’s limited power against righties, he’s also allowed 57.1% of fly balls with only 14.3% of ground balls.
The Phillies have a lot of potential in their lineup today. Since last season, Philadelphia has had six batters hitting an ISO of .172 or better against righties and seven batters hitting a wOBA of at least .313 against righties.
Meanwhile, they’ll pitch Aaron Nola, who has looked sharp recently. Nola has a 2-1 record with a 3.47 ERA. Although he’s struggled against lefties to begin the year, the White Sox have only hit a .126 ISO and wOBA of .275 against righties with their projected lineup since last season.
Chicago was ultimately no-hit by Zack Wheeler for seven innings yesterday. Nola could be just as good against this lineup today. The White Sox are the MLB’s worst team.
Bet: Phillies -1.5 (-137)
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Arizona Diamondbacks @ San Francisco Giants
We’ve got a fun pitching matchup between the Diamondbacks and the Giants. Arizona will send out Merrill Kelly, a right-handed pitcher with a 2.19 ERA, to start the season. While he hasn’t struck out lefties all that often, he’s still managed 22.6% of strikeouts this season. That number will likely rise as the season progresses after Kelly struck out more than 26% of batters last season.
Those numbers could ultimately see a tick today. The Giants have struck out nearly 23% of the time since last year and have six batters who have struck out at least 22.6% of the time against righties in that same time frame.
The Giants have also hit a .153 ISO in that time and just a wOBA of .322. The offense isn’t surging right now.
On the other hand, Jordan Hicks will get the ball for San Francisco. He got his wish to start games, and he’s making the most of it. Hicks has earned a 1.57 ERA to begin the season and has held opponents to a .088 ISO and wOBA of .235 with 58.1% of ground balls.
While he won’t add a high strikeout rate against the Diamondbacks, he figures to limit power, walks, and fly balls to help him get through this game.
Therefore, the Under is the most appealing play for this game.
Bet: Under 7.5 (-105)
Make sure to check out our other best bets for Sunday: