Best MLB Bets Today | MLB Picks, May 9

Toronto Blue Jays vs Philadelphia Phillies

• Time: 6:40 PM ET
• Starting Pitchers: Alek Manoah vs Aaron Nola
• Moneyline: Blue Jays (+118) | Phillies (-138)
• Runline: Blue Jays +1.5 (-178) | Phillies -1.5 (+146)
• Total: Over 8.5 (-120) | Under 8.5 (-102)

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

My Pick: Over 8.5 (-120)

Our first best bet of the day in Major League Baseball comes from Philadelphia, where the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies will square off. Here, we like the game to go over the total of 8.5, which may not be a popular selection given the names on the mound to start this one. But the recent performances of Alek Manoah and Aaron Nola certainly justify a play on the over in this interleague affair.

Manoah has struggled this season with a 1-2 record and a 4.71 ERA, despite being billed as an AL Cy Young candidate before the start of the 2023 season. His control has really betrayed him so far this year, as he has issued 21 walks and 39 hits in 36.1 innings of work. That will be a problem against a Phillies lineup that is starting to get healthy and could look more like the team we saw win the National League last year.

Aaron Nola of the Phillies has not been much better than Manoah this year, going 2-2 with a 4.64 ERA on the season. He has issued significantly fewer walks than his starting pitching counterpart for this game, but that has not translated to fewer runs allowed. We should see both teams start out strong offensively against struggling to start pitching in this game, which will help us get over the 8.5 run total.

Oakland Athletics vs New York Yankees

• Time: 7:05 PM ET
• Starting Pitchers: Drew Rucinski vs Clarke Schmidt 
• Moneyline: Athletics (+190) | Yankees (-250)
• Runline: Athletics +1.5 (EVEN) | Yankees -1.5 (-120)
• Total: Over 8.5 (-120) | Under 8.5 (EVEN)

Odds courtesy of BetMGM

My Pick: Yankees -1.5 (-120)

The New York Yankees have been struggling of late, sitting in last place in the AL East. But nothing cures a slump like a visit from the Oakland Athletics, who have amassed just eight wins so far this season. In this game, we like the Yankees to win and cover the runline as they look to turn things around and inch closer to getting out of the cellar in what has become the most competitive division in all of baseball.

Drew Rucinski is set to get the start in this game for the A’s, who has been a disaster in his first 9.1 innings of work in 2023. Rucinski is 0-2 with an ERA of 7.71, and he is coming off of an appearance where he allowed five runs in 3.2 innings of work to the Seattle Mariners. While the Yankees are not exactly sending an ace to the mound either in Clarke Schmidt, Schmidt is in a rare spot where he is the better of the two starters in this one.

Offensively, this game could be a slump buster of sorts for New York, as the Yankees enter Tuesday ranked 23rd in Major League Baseball in runs scored. They should be able to get after Rucinski early to put some runs on the board, following up last night’s seven-run outburst against the A’s with even more fireworks in the Bronx.

St. Louis Cardinals vs Chicago Cubs

• Time: 7:40 PM ET
• Starting Pitchers: Jack Flaherty vs Jameson Taillon
• Moneyline: Cardinals (+110) | Cubs (-130)
• Runline: Cardinals +1.5 (-190) | Cubs -1.5 (+160)
• Total: Over 8.5 (-105) | Under 8.5 (-115)

Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook

My Pick: Cubs Moneyline (-130)

Our final MLB best bet for Tuesday features the NL Central rivalry game between the St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Cubs. Here, we like the Cubs to prolong the misery of the Cardinals, who have had an astonishingly bad start to the 2023 season. Against a struggling St. Louis starting pitcher, expect the Cubs to even this three-game series at a game apiece on Tuesday night.

Jack Flaherty is on the mound for the Cardinals in this game, which has not meant good things for St. Louis in 2023. Flaherty is 2-4 with a 6.29 ERA on the season, as he has failed to live up to the expectations set for him early in his major league career. His flat first month and a half of the season is a big reason why the Cardinals are in last place in the NL Central at a dismal 12-24 going into this matchup.

On the flip side, the Cubs have been competitive throughout the early portion of the year, ranking 10th in runs scored thus far. If they can get to Flaherty early in this game, the Cubs could run away with it against a Cardinals bullpen that has not delivered either.

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