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 Monday, Aug. 28:
TOP PLAY
The play: MLB, Rangers (money line over Mets
The odds/bet: -140 ($42 to win $30)
The book: Caesars Sportsbook
Time/TV: 7:10 p.m. (MLB Extra Innings)
Our take: The Rangers have been in a slump as of late, but they’ve got a prime opportunity to snap out of out beginning this week against the struggling Mets.
The Rangers will see veteran starting pitcher Jon Gray take the mound, and he should be able to bounce back today since he normally pitches well on the road and gets to face a lineup that’s been spinning its wheels.
While the Rangers lineup hasn’t been up to its usual standard, Mets starting pitcher Tylor Megill is prone to giving up runs in bunches, so the Rangers shouldn’t have much trouble scoring in this matchup.
PADRES RUN LINE
The play: Padres (-1.5 run line) over Cardinals
The odds/bet: -130 ($13 to win $10)
The book: Caesars Sportsbook
Time/TV: 7:45 p.m. (MLB Extra Innings)
Our take: There aren’t many starting pitchers who have struggled more than Adam Wainwright, which is why we’re backing the Padres to win big today against the Cardinals.
Wainwright has a hideous 8.61 ERA on the season, with his home ERA not far off at 8.56, so we feel like there’s value on the Padres run line since their lineup should continue the trend of teams beating up on Cardinals pitching.
The Padres will have their ace on the mound in Blake Snell, and they should be able to score enough to win by multiple runs even if Snell isn’t as sharp as he usually is.
HOW WE’VE FARED
Sunday’s best bets
- NFL preseason, Texans at Saints UNDER 38 points (WON $30)
- FIBA World Cup, Lebanon +38.5 vs. Canada (LOST $11)
- Tour Championship, Viktor Hovland to win without Scottie Scheffler (WON $64)
- Jon Rahm to finish in the top 5 (LOST $10.50)
Sunday’s profit/loss: +$72.50 (2-2)
Final total for the week: +$42.30 (7-7)
Total for August: -$126.20 (22-34)
Total for 2023: -$643.70 (196-228)
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).
