Hello, and welcome back to quick hits.
I will be completely honest, I do not love the board today. That obviously will not stop me from giving out some winners, but when you look at a board as much as I do, you can tell when there is no juice. It also does not help that I am ICE-COLD right now. But one of my favorite teams is back on my card tonight, so hopefully, they can dig me out of this hole.
Anyway, let's get right into the picks. We would love for you to tail our best bets, we just ask that you do so responsibly.
Here are today's winners.
*Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook
MLB:
Oakland A's vs. Cleveland Guardians
Pickwatch Experts:
Moneyline: 91% Guardians
Runline: 59% Guardians
Do not look now, but the Guardians are starting to heat up. They have won eight of their last 11, and with their 4-0 shutout of the Rangers last night, Cleveland is back to .500. We probably should have expected the Guardians' recent success based on their easy stretch of games, but it has been refreshing to see the bats wake back up after a slight cold streak last month.
Anyway, for this game, Cleveland will send out Konnor Pilkington, who made his debut earlier this season and only has three starts under his belt. However, he enters this game with a 2.65 ERA and a FIP of 2.20. Pilkington also has a 12.18 K/9 and has a hard-hit rate of only 23.9%. Even though he has not really proved anything, he has the advantage of going up against a horrid A's lineup.
Oakland is ranked 29th in runs and wRC+, and the A's are 24th in K%. I like Pilkington against a bad Oakland lineup, and I like the Guardians for the full game as well.
Pick: Guardians F5 -0.5 (-115) & Guardians ML (-168)
Boston Red Sox vs. Los Angeles Angels
Pickwatch Experts:
Moneyline: 51% Angels
Runline: 66% Red Sox
I'll tell you what, with Mike Trout day-to-day, and the Angels looking completely lost, the fact that we can get Boston at plus-money tonight is very tempting.
Los Angeles has lost 14 games in a row, they fired Joe Maddon, and they are only hitting .200 as a team during the streak. One of my philosophies is to be wary of betting on a game that involves a massive losing streak. I have been on both sides of a massive streak, and it doesn't matter which way you are heading, it always feels like the streak will never end.
I get that the Angels will have Shohei Ohtani on the mound tonight, but Boston will counter with Nick Pivetta, who has had back-to-back quality starts, including a seven-inning shutout against the A's in his last start.
The Red Sox struggled when Ohtani pitched in Fenway earlier in the season, but he has an ERA of 6.60 in his last 13.0 IP, and teams are slashing .323/.373/.629 with an OPS of 1.002 against the reigning MVP.
I will take the Sox at plus-money, sorry Angels.
Pick: Red Sox ML (+102)
NHL:
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New York Rangers
Pickwatch Experts:
Moneyline: 57% Rangers
Puckline: 84% Rangers
Again, the Tampa Bay Lightning are inevitable.
The Lightning took both games in Tampa to tie this series at 2-2, and they have recaptured all the momentum. Even with their performance in Games three and four, it feels like Tampa Bay is underachieving. Without Brayden Point, this offense has struggled, but the Lightning have the advantage as New York got pretty banged up down in Tampa.
Ryan Strome had to miss Game 4, and he is listed as questionable for tonight, but after looking at Rangers' beat writers on Twitter this morning, there is not a lot of optimism he will be able to give it a go. The Rangers also have Filip Chytil listed as questionable for tonight as he left early in Game 4 and did not return.
Both goalies have been brick walls in this series, and throughout the playoffs, so I will sprinkle the under, but I really like Tampa Bay tonight. They have the momentum, and the Rangers could be down two of their most productive players. For a team that thrives on depth, that is a massive blow.
The road team has not won a single game in this series, until tonight when Tampa Bay wins to send this series back to Tampa with a chance to clinch a trip to the Cup Finals.
Pick: Lightning ML (-128) & Under 5.5 (-142)
Photo: Getty Images