We’ve got playoff baseball and the NHL in action today, so there’s plenty of solid plays to make this Tuesday. Hopefully, you played an over bet on the Phillies-Braves game, as Max Fried’s bad self showed up again and Philadelphia put plenty of runs on the board against Atlanta.
We’ve got three more Game 1s available before we call it a day, as well as two season openers in the NHL. Here are my best plays for October 11.
MARINERS-ASTROS U6.5, -110
This is a situation where you might want to live bet if things go sideways early, because the Mariners and Astros both employ excellent bullpens and don’t give up a lot of runs on the back end of games. But things shouldn’t go sideways because Justin Verlander is taking the ball in Game 1 for Houston and he’s about as reliable as it gets. Logan Gilbert isn’t a bad option for Seattle either, which says that a low number should be in play here.
GUARDIANS-YANKEES O6.5, -110
Taking an over on Cleveland seems foolish, until you think about the kind of pitcher that Gerrit Cole is. When Cole is missing bats, he’s dominant. When Cole doesn’t miss bats, he’s very hittable. And Cleveland simply doesn’t miss baseballs when it’s at the plate. The Guardians have the fewest strikeouts in the majors, which means they should get baserunners against the Yankees. This is the wrong matchup for New York, and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if Cleveland steals Game 1.
DODGERS TTO 4.5, -110
Mike Clevinger fell apart down the stretch, and now he’s facing a team that absolutely teed off on him this season. In three starts against Los Angeles, Clevinger posted a 9.69 ERA and averaged just over four innings per start. The Padres’ bullpen isn’t very good, so if Clevinger struggles early, the Dodgers should easily get to five runs.
LIGHTNING-RANGERS U5.5, -110
Don’t expect either Andrei Vasilevskiy or Igor Shesterkin to give up much in this game. In a six-game series last year, these teams went under 6 on five occasions, and that’s because both of these goalies are about as good as it gets. You’re not going to have an easy time beating either of them, and that’s before factoring in the defenses in front of them. This should be a grinder.
GOLDEN KNIGHTS-KINGS O6.5, +105
I don’t really believe in Logan Thompson against the Kings’ new-look offense, and Jonathan Quick is eventually going to run out of steam. Quick is now 36 and wasn’t very effective last season, and the strongest part of the Golden Knights is their attack. After the grind-it-out affair in the East, these Western teams should light the lamp a few times.
