Matt Snyder
L.A. ANGELS @ SEATTLE | 07/09 | 10:10 PM EDT
SEATTLE +115
ANALYSIS: The Mariners are home underdogs. They are 27-19 at home while the Angels are 18-22 on the road. Angels' starter Alex Cobb has a 7.77 ERA in six road starts this year. He was even shelled by the lowly Diamondbacks. The reason for the odds would be Mariners' starter Marco Gonzales. He's been awful this year. Last year, though, he was 7-2 with a 3.10 ERA and led the majors in strikeout-to-walk ratio. As a bonus, he's left handed and the Angels' two best hitters right now (Shohei Ohtani and Jared Walsh) are lefties. Let's bet on a "get right" game from Gonzales.
N.Y. YANKEES @ HOUSTON | 07/09 | 8:10 PM EDT
HOUSTON -130
ANALYSIS: Yankees southpaw Nestor Cortes has been great this season, but he had a 6.72 ERA in 79 career innings heading into this season. The Astros eat lefties up, wearing them out to the tune of .284/.352/.445 this season. On the flip side, Astros starter Jake Odorizzi has a 2.16 ERA since returning from the injured list on May 29, holding opponents to a .159/.220/.265 slash. The Astros have won four of his last five starts and the Yankees only hit .228/.319/.382 against righties. Plus, the Astros are simply the better team. The odds point to good action here.
PHILADELPHIA @ BOSTON | 07/09 | 7:10 PM EDT
BOSTON -125
ANALYSIS: The Phillies just took three of four from the Cubs, but that's hardly a feat these days. The Phillies are still 18-27 on the road and now visit one of the best teams in baseball that is coming off a day of rest. The Red Sox aren't a heavy favorite, likely due to the Phillies' hot streak in addition to Garrett Richards starting for the Sox. Still, the Red Sox have won nine of Richards' 17 starts, so it's not like they are incapable of winning. Plus, the bullpens show a huge divide (the Red Sox are great and the Phillies awful). Philly starter Vince Velasquez has a 6.21 ERA in his last seven starts, too.
