Each day, one of our experts will offer up a best bet (or two or three) that mobile sportsbooks are offering. It might be a traditional spread bet, a player prop or one of the various odds boosts that books offer.
Here are our best bets for Tuesday, July 25:
TOP PLAY
The play: MLB, Pirates at Padres OVER 8.5 runs
The odds: +100
Time/TV: 9:40 p.m. (MLB Extra Innings)
The book: FanDuel Sportsbook
Our take: The Padres haven’t lived up to expectations this season, but there’s no denying that their lineup has the talent capable of scoring runs in bunches.
Luckily the Pirates have some of the worst pitching in MLB, which sets up a prime bounce-back opportunity for the Padres tonight, as they should be able to score early and often against struggling Pirates starting pitcher Rich Hill.
The Pirates might have some trouble against stud Padres starter Blake Snell, but Snell’s been walking batters at a high clip to where the Pirates should be able to chip in enough runs to push the total over eight.
MLB STRIKEOUT PROP PARLAY
The play: MLB, Michael Kopech OVER 5.5 strikeouts, Kyle Hendricks UNDER 4.5 strikeouts
The odds: +197
Time/TV: Cubs at White Sox 8:10 p.m. (MLB Extra Innings)
The book: FanDuel Sportsbook
Our take: Strikeout props can be volatile, but we see tonight’s Cubs-White Sox matchup as a prime opportunity to cash in when evaluating the history of each starting pitcher.
White Sox starter Michael Kopech has seen his elite strikeout rate drop recently, but he should get back on track tonight considering that the Cubs have one of the more strikeout-prone lineups in MLB.
Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks isn’t known for missing bats, and while he’s recorded at least five strikeouts in each of his past four starts, we’ll take the under tonight since his track record suggests he won’t keep up at that rate.
HOW WE’VE FARED
• MLB, Guardians (-1.5) over Royals (LOST)
• MLB, Rangers at Astros over nine runs, Cardinals at Diamondbacks over 9.5 runs (WON)
Monday’s record: 1-1
Total for the week: 1-1
Total for July: 19-23
Total for 2023: 169-186
NOTE: If a line or odds are minus, it considers the juice one must lay to place the bet. Ex: Team A is -160 on the money line, one would have to bet $160 to win $100 (or $16 to win $10). OR Team B is a 5-point favorite at -110, one would have to bet $110 to win $100 (or $11 to win $10.)
Conversely, on positive lines, if Team C is +140 on the money line, $100 would bring in $140 (or $10 to win $14).
