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Welcome back, RotoBallers! We know the MLB season is officially in full swing because the Pittsburgh Pirates have already made me as optimistic as NL Central contenders and now back down to as pessimistic as "We suck again!". I thought my optimism would at least make it to May, but alas, the life of a Pirates is not for the faint of heart.
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My name is Tommy Bell, and I'm thrilled to be back for another season with the MLB Betting Crew. In this article, I'll provide my favorite betting picks for the MLB games on Monday, April 22, 2024.
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Today's MLB Betting Picks - Brewers @ Pirates
O/U: 8.5 | Moneyline: Pirates -130
MIL: Joe Ross | PIT: Jared Jones
Game Time: 6:40 pm ET
I'm ready to be hurt again. Not only emotionally, but with my DraftKings account as well.
Not much is going right for the Pittsburgh Pirates right now. They have struggled to generate any offense at all, their big ace signing has been inconsistent out of the gate, and their bullpen has been in shambles after many figured it would be the backbone of this team. One thing has been beyond fantastic: Jared Jones.
Fans were flummoxed by Jones' early exit after five shutout innings in his last outing, but the short leash was planned ahead of time based on workload and new exposure to pitching every fifth day. After all of the backlash, Jones should have plenty of leash to go at least five strong innings at PNC Park on Monday evening.
Jones will face off against Joe Ross, who has just about run his course at the major league level. Ross sports a 4.47 xFIP through three starts, and he's allowed 19 hard-hit balls while striking out 14 and walking eight through 14.2 innings thus far. There's a massive starting pitcher advantage for the Bucs here.
The question mark comes from their offense though, which has scored just nine runs during this six-game skid. The Brewers have offensive concerns of their own, however, as their lineup is a bit pedestrian while Christian Yelich is on the IL. The Pirates should have some focused at-bats early, trying to build back some momentum after being swept in two straight series, and suddenly plummeting back to a .500 record. Give me the Bucs to jump on Ross early in this one, and Jones should fire a quality start for the Black and Gold.
Pick: Pirates First 5 Innings -0.5 (+100), DraftKings Sportsbook.
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Today's MLB Betting Picks - Padres @ Rockies
O/U: 10 | Moneyline: Padres -185
SD: Dylan Cease | COL: Austin Gomber
Game Time: 8:40 pm ET
There's much less analysis for this play, so I'll get you out of here and on with your Monday in a hurry... We're in Coors Field, we have a decent offense visiting this hitter's haven, and we have two BAD bullpens.
The Padres have found very little consistency with their late-inning arms, as they find themselves in the bottom third of the league in bullpen xFIP. We typically expect the Rockies to be there too, simply because of their home venue, but this 'pen has been especially "rocky" at times (nailed it!), and they're coming off three games over two days after a doubleheader on Sunday.
Dylan Cease is the sole piece that could ruin this Over, but he's only pitched at Coors Field once in his career, and it was a seven-hit, five-run outing including a home run. I'll take the Rockies to tag him for a few runs to get to the bullpen, while the Padres jump on lefty Austin Gomber. We should have plenty of chances for RBI in this one. In the end, 10 runs feels like a generous number all things considered!
Pick: Padres/Rockies Over 10 (-125), DraftKings Sportsbook.
Good luck, RotoBallers, and find me on X for all things baseball banter!
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