Another winning day in our MLB betting tips last Thursday as we hit on 2/3 bets to take our season tally to a very respectable 27-17. 14 games in the MLB this Thursday, the 16th of August and we are back with another betting preview for the key games of the day below.
MLB Betting Tips Thursday 16th August
Boston Red Sox at Philadelphia Phillies (9.05am AEST)
Just a short stop in Philly for the Red Sox this week as they face off in the second game of a two game series on Thursday. The Red Sox were victorious on Wednesday in the first game, capturing a 2-1 win as Rick Porcello dominated on the mound. Nathan Eovaldi will pitch for the Sox on Thursday, looking to bounce back from a disappointing start in his last outing.
The right hander lasted just over 2 innings as he gave up eight runs, which was a big turn around from his two prior starts in which he didn’t allow a run in 15 innings. He’ll be up against Vince Velasquez on Thursday, who also struggled in his last start. He’s been serviceable on the season so far but with a 8-9 record so far this year and a 3.98 ERA he’s probably just below average.
The Red Sox are without a doubt the best team in the league at the moment. Their bats, particularly J.D Martinez have been on fire of late and they lead the MLB in runs, hits and average. They’ve been a prime source of a large portion of our wins so far this year and we’ll stick with them here.
Colorado Rockies at Houston Astros (10.10am AEST)
After a loss to the Rockies at home on Wednesday, the Astros have now lost their last nine home games in a row and will be looking to get back on track this Thursday with Gerrit Cole on the mound. He was good in his last start, pitching over seven innings but was still awarded the loss as the batting lineup struggled to support him. Cole maintains an impressive 2.75 ERA on the season so far but the Houston batting line-up’s form is troubling.
Cole will be up against Tyler Anderson of the Rockies who has been inconsistent over his last few starts. He held the Dodgers to one run and four hits through six innings in his last start but was disappointing in his two prior. Has usually gotten decent run support from his team and maintains a 6-4 record so far this year.
The Astros still lead the AL West division but only by 1.5 games over the charging Oakland Athletics. Houston have lost six of their last 10 games and their last five in a row and nine at home. Can’t trust their batting line-up at the moment.
San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers (12.10pm AEST)
The two great rivals will go at it in the third game of a three game series on Thursday afternoon. The Giants won the first game of the series 5-2 and at time of writing the second game is still in progress. It was a 4 run ninth inning that captures the win for the Giants, after trailing 1-2 for the majority of the game. That pitching matchup featured a blockbuster in Clayton Kershaw vs Maddison Bumgarner, on the contrary, Thrusday’s could be a bit of a one sided affair.
Derek Holland has won the last two games he has started for the Giants but been pretty average in both starts. He allowed five runs and still picked up the win in his last start and maintains just a 6-8 start on the season so far.
He’ll be up against Hyun-Jin Ryu of the Dodgers, who will make his first appearance since May 2nd due to a left groin strain. He was fantastic before the injury, racking up a 3-0 record early in the season and maintaining a 2.12 ERA. We think the Dodgers win this one at home on the back of the return of Ryu.
