Check out all of our starting pitcher rankings and other lineup selection tools here to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions. MLB betting tips for each day’s slate of games will also be added in the morning. MLB game odds are provided by ESPN BET
, and all fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.
Note: All information is accurate as of the time of publication. For updates, including what you might have missed from last night, as well as any breaking news that might impact today’s MLB slate, be sure to check out the latest fantasy baseball news.
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Pitchers to stream on Thursday
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The perception is that Luis Severino struggles in Sacramento and is exhibiting extreme home and away stats. The truth is that his xFIP is better at home; he has just been snakebit in Sutter Health Park. The reason Severino makes the streamer list isn’t because the Athletics have a road date with the Houston Astros, but rather because the Astros lineup is still missing two top bats (Yordan Alvarez and Jeremy Pena) and the team is below average facing right-handers.
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The break was ill-timed for Charlie Morton. In his five outings heading into the respite, Morton posted a 2.30 ERA and 1.17 WHIP with 31 strikeouts in 27 1/3 innings. He sputtered in his first start back, yielding seven runs in 5 1/3 innings to the Tampa Bay Rays. With the Baltimore Orioles appearing to be trade deadline sellers, and pitching at a premium, expect Morton to rebound and improve the chances he’s dealt to a contender. He’ll face a Cleveland Guardians lineup with the fifth-lowest wOBA facing righties.
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Reese Olson is slated to take the hill in a battle of first-place teams when the Detroit Tigers entertain the Toronto Blue Jays. Both clubs are vying with the Astros for best record in the American League. Don’t expect Olson to rack up a slew of punchouts, but the Blue Jays sport a below average walk and home run rate, so the righty should keep his club in the game while the offense takes aim at Eric Lauer.
Hitters to stream on Thursday
Betting tips
Best/worst pitcher/hitter matchups and betting projections are generated by THE BAT X, a system created by Derek Carty using advanced methods like those used in MLB front offices, accounting for a variety of factors including player talent, ballparks, bullpens, weather, umpires, defense, catcher pitch-framing, and lots more. Betting projections for every player, team, and game can be found at EV Analytics.
Note: Expected Value is a measure of how good a bet is, factoring the probability that it will win versus the odds the book is providing. If you were to wager $1.00 100 times on a bet with an Expected Value of $25, you would win some and you would lose some, but in the end you would expect to come away with $25 in profit on your $100 investment.
Because odds typically do not get set until the previous day’s games are completed, betting tips will be added in the morning.