Five series finales, four openers, and the resumption of a suspended game make up Thursday's 10-game Major League Baseball slate. Read on for our top MLB prop picks and best bets for Thursday based on the best MLB odds from our best sports betting apps.
The New York Yankees entered Thursday's game against the Washington Nationals with their first nine-game losing streak since September 1982. But after a 9-1 triumph, they don't have to worry about playing with their first active 10-game losing streak since 1913.
As far as new series go, two division leaders face off as the Minnesota Twins host the Texas Rangers. And the Cincinnati Reds and Arizona Diamondbacks begin a four-game set, a series that will have massive implications in the NL wild-card race.
Here are our top MLB prop picks and best bets for Thursday (odds vi a our best sports betting apps; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
Check out our World Series odds.
Thursday's MLB schedule and odds
(odds via DraftKings)
- Washington Nationals (+136) vs. New York Yankees (-162)
- Los Angeles Dodgers (-125) vs. Cleveland Guardians (+105)
- Colorado Rockies (+180) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (-218)
- Boston Red Sox (+110) vs. Houston Astros (-130)
- Chicago Cubs (OFF) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates
- Toronto Blue Jays (-110) vs. Baltimore Orioles (-110)
- Texas Rangers (+100) vs. Minnesota Twins (-120)
- Oakland Athletics (+130) vs. Chicago White Sox (-155)
- Cincinnati Reds (+136) vs. Arizona Diamondbacks (-162)
Thursday's MLB best bets
- Player prop: Adley Rutschman Over 1.5 total bases (+140 via bet365) vs. Blue Jays ????
- Player prop: Carlos Correa Over 0.5 RBIs (+165 via bet365) vs. Rangers ???
- Player prop: Merrill Kelly to record a win (+130 via bet365) vs. Reds ????
- Moneyline: Astros vs. Red Sox (-124 via FanDuel) ???
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Thursday's MLB prop picks
Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman has been a thorn in the Toronto Blue Jays' side this year, slashing .296/.356/.426 in 54 at-bats. Rutschman also entered Wednesday on a tear over the previous seven-day span, batting .450 and accumulating a 1.142 OPS.
Rutschman has exceeded this total in four of the last six games and should do so again when facing Jose Berrios, against whom he is 8-for-13 with four extra-base hits and a 1.667 OPS. This is a four-star play, as Berrios' .254 OBA and 1.28 WHIP are on pace to be his worst of the previous three months.
With Caesars and DraftKings at +120 and +130 odds for this wager, bet365 is our go-to shop with the biggest return.
Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa has just two RBIs in his previous eight games, though he snapped a five-game RBI-less streak with a sacrifice fly last night. But while Correa is struggling with a .233 batting average in August, his .764 OPS is on pace to be the highest of any month.
Correa has seen Texas Rangers southpaw Andrew Heaney plenty from his time with the Houston Astros and has slashed .381/.435/.524 in 21 at-bats. Heaney has not lost a decision in his last seven starts but has recorded fewer than 12 outs in his previous two appearances. Eighteen of his 19 home runs allowed have been to right-handed batters, as righties tend to elevate his pitches often, with a 0.69 GO/AO ratio compared to a 1.75 rate against left-handed hitters.
Correa's recent RBI drought is the only thing keeping this a three-star play, but Heaney's ranking in the 16th percentile in barrels and average exit velocity has us confident in the slugger plating a run.
bet365 offers by far the best value for this play, as Caesars and DraftKings both have lower +145 odds.
The Cincinnati Reds and Arizona Diamondbacks are both under .500 in August. Still, Arizona's 9-11 record this month looks much better than Cincinnati's 8-12 mark (the second-worst in the NL this month), as the Diamondbacks have won four straight and seven of eight.
Arizona may have this year's Cy Young Award winner in Zac Gallen, but the No. 2 starter, Merrill Kelly, is not too shabby either. Kelly's 3.13 ERA ranks seventh in the majors, and his .221 OBA ranks ninth. Kelly snapped a six-start winless streak in his last appearance against the San Diego Padres, in which he overcame four walks. The Diamondbacks could use a big outing from Kelly in this opener, as their next three starters in the series (Brandon Pfaadt, Zach Davies, and Slade Cecconi) are a combined 1-11 on the season.
This is a four-star play, as Arizona benefits from being one of two MLB teams that were off Wednesday, while Cincinnati had to grind through a doubleheader, and the Diamondbacks are 3-1 with a rest advantage. The +130 odds at bet365 seem like a steal considering Kelly is as low as +117 at Caesars to earn the victory.
Thursday's MLB game picks
The Houston Astros won the first two games of this series against the Boston Red Sox by a combined score of 16-7 before falling in extra innings Wednesday. But they now have arguably their most reliable starting pitcher on the mound, J.P. France, to earn the series victory.
Of the four Astros starters that have thrown at least 100 innings this year, France has the second-best HR/9 rate (1.03) and BABIP (.273) but has by far the lowest ERA (2.84). France is above average at missing barrels (56th percentile) and generates whiffs of 23% or better on four of his five pitches.
This is only a three-star play, as the Red Sox are 7-2 in righty Brayan Bello's nine road starts this season. However, Bello has made just three quality starts in his last six appearances and pitched to a 5.03 ERA in his previous seven. Boston has been successful because the team has scored five-plus runs six times in Bello's previous seven outings, but we expect France to limit the offense.
FanDuel is one of two shops where bettors can back the favorites at lower than -130 odds (BetMGM is the other at -125).
MLB best bets made 8/24/2023 at 6:48 a.m. ET.
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