Best MLB Bets Today: Can the Padres Stay Hot in Pittsburgh?

We have a pair of bets involving some of the league's worst lineups today. The first comes from a matchup between the San Diego Padres and Pittsburgh Pirates. The is from an interleague battle between the Tampa Bay Rays and St. Louis Cardinals. 

We will share everything you need to bet on both games below. We are using odds taken from Caesars Sportsbook, which currently offers new players a $1,000 First Bet Offer when they sign up using promo code WSN1000.

Best MLB Bets Today: Padres vs. Pirates (12:35 PM EST)

Padres -1.5 (+160 at Caesars Sportsbook)

The Padres have been red-hot since the All-Star break, winning nine games by more than one run. That momentum will carry into today's game against a Pirates team on a cold streak, especially considering that the Padres are covering 55% of run lines as a road favorite.

The Padres will have Randy Vasquez (3-6, 4.62 ERA, 1.53 WHIP) on the mound in Pittsburgh tonight. The 25-year-old’s numbers aren’t great, but they are inflated by a few very ugly outings. He has been finding more consistency lately, allowing two or fewer runs in six of his last seven starts. 

Vasquez will have a great chance to stay hot tonight as he faces a Pirates team that has struggled to generate offense. They rank twenty-second in runs scored and twenty-fifth in batting average. While they have some talented bats, their lineup doesn’t have the depth to challenge opposing pitching. 

The Pirates will have Luis Ortiz (5-2, 3.21 ERA, 1.18 WHIP) starting opposite Vasquez this afternoon. The reliever-turned-starter has been fantastic for the Pirates, but he is coming off one of his worst starts. Last week, Ortiz allowed six runs on six hits and three walks over 5 1/3 innings. 

Ortiz will have his hands full tonight against a very talented Padres offense. San Diego leads baseball in batting average and has scored 5.36 runs per game since the All-Star break. Combine that with their .368 average against Ortiz, and you have a recipe for a cover of the run line.

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Best MLB Bets Today: Rays vs. Cardinals (7:15 PM EST)

Over 7.5 (+105 at Caesars Sportsbook)

This matchup features two underwhelming offenses, but the pitching matchups set the stage for a high-scoring battle.

On one side will be Rays' starter Shane Baz (0-1, 3.60 ERA, 1.40 WHIP), who will be on the mound tonight. The 25-year-old was called back up in July and has been a solid rotation piece for Tampa. The young starter has yet to allow more than two runs in a start, but three of his five have lasted less than six innings.

While the Cardinals aren’t the offensive powerhouse they have been in the past, this is still a dangerous lineup. They rank in the league's top half in batting average, and the lineup got a boost at the trade deadline when they re-acquired Tommy Pham. The center fielder has been swinging a hot bat since the trade, and we see that continuing against Baz tonight.

The Cardinals will have Kyle Gibson (7-4, 4.04 ERA, 1.31 WHIP) on the bump tonight. The veteran is on a rough run, posting just one quality start over his last seven games. He owns a 5.47 ERA during that span, leading to many high-scoring games.

The Rays lineup has been bad this season and got worse after the trade deadline. However, the team has been finding a way to score runs and win games since then, including series wins against the Jays, Reds, and Astros and a split with the Yankees.

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