It’s another sunny summer MLB Saturday and DraftKings Sportsbook offers plenty of ways to play. There are Money Lines, Run Lines and Player Props. Check out the best bets for the Saturday, August 24 MLB betting card.
Here are my favorite DraftKings Sportsbook picks for Saturday’s slate of MLB games.
Follow along on Twitter (@Race4thePrize) for updates.
Cleveland Guardians vs. Texas Rangers
The Pick: Jose Ramirez 3+ Hits (+800)
Jose Ramirez is slumping. The Guardians hit the road and toured two hitter’s parks (Milwaukee and New York). Ramirez managed two hits in six games (.095 AVG). It’s baseball. It happens. His slump is statistical. Ramirez is not striking out at an alarming rate and all of his batted ball events in the final game at New York on Aug. 22 were hard contact. A return to “home, sweet home” should produce positive results.
Ramirez is hitting .290 at home and .259 on the road. The majority of his home runs have been at home against right-handed pitching. As documented in previous DK Network MLB Best Bets articles, Progressive Field in Cleveland has morphed into a launch pad this season. Jon Gray has been a quality pitcher (4.14 xFIP) but not a great pitcher. His struggles with left-handed hitters are the main cause. Gray is shutting down right-handed batters (.244 wOBA, 0.3 HR/9 and 3.35 xFIP), but lefties are getting to him — .351 wOBA, 1.2 HR/9, 5.08 xFIP and 39% Hard Contact Rate. The Rangers’ bullpen ranks in the bottom third of MLB (4.24 xFIP) and has struggled over the last 30 games (4.60 xFIP — 25th).
Minnesota Twins vs. St. Louis Cardinals
The Pick: Twins Run Line -1.5 (+150)
It all comes down to the fastball. Statcast ranks Lopez’s fastball as the best in MLB. The Cardinals are nearly the worst fastball-hitting team in MLB (29th). Lopez increased his fastball usage in his last start. He held the Rangers scoreless for six innings. He only struck out three hitters but his swinging strike rate was a healthy 12.1%
Sonny Gray has been phenomenal this season. His advanced stats look great. The stat that matters is not great. Gray has won twice since the beginning of July. The Cardinals’ offense has improved and they are hitting well over the last week. Their stats look good. The stat that matters does not. St. Louis has won four of their last 12 games. The truth is that their recent statistical surge is inflated by three big games. They have scored three runs or fewer in nine of the last 12 games. It’s hard to imagine that this offense will manufacture runs against Lopez. The Twins’ offense has their work cut out for them against Gray, but it’s easier to imagine they plate more runs than the Cardinals on Saturday.
San Francisco Giants at Chicago White Sox
The Pick: Giants Moneyline (-112)
As the season winds down, Snell winds up. The Snellivator is on its way to the penthouse. Snell struck out 10 batters in his last start. He benefited from facing the strikeout prone Athletics. The White Sox are even more friendly to pitchers. Their 27% K-Rate against left-handed pitching is the worst in MLB. Regardless of the matchup, Snell is striking everyone out. Over his last five starts, Snell has struck out 55 batters. That’s almost half the hitters he’s faced (44% K-Rate). He’s allowed four runs in those 34.1 innings (1.05 ERA). This remarkable run is highlighted by Snell’s no-hitter at Cincinnati of all places. The Giants have an outside shot of stealing the last Wild Card spot and Snell is the ace that could lead them to the postseason.
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All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is greenflagradio2) and I may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
