After a tough start to last week, we went 2-1 with our MLB picks over the weekend to extend our run to 17-6-1 over the last month. Here are a few of our favorite bets this week:
White Sox (+125) @ Indians (-145)
June 1, 6:10 p.m. ET
Starting pitchers: Dylan Cease (3-1, 2.98 ERA) vs. Shane Bieber (5-3, 3.13)
Few pitchers are as reliable of an under bet as Bieber, who has gone 24-12 to the under in his last 36 starts and is fresh off one of his best starts of the season, in which he threw seven innings of one-hit ball with 12 strikeouts.
Bieber will go toe-to-toe with Cease, who has emerged as one of baseball's rising stars over the last month. Cease's 26 swinging strikes in his last start tied Jacob deGrom for the most by any pitcher this year, and it marked the fifth time in the 25-year-old's last six starts that he's coaxed at least 15 whiffs.
Neither of these two lineups should scare you enough to avoid the under with these two on the mound, even at this number. The White Sox are dangerous when healthy but have scored three or fewer runs in seven of their last 14 games, including three runs in their last four. The Indians have been no-hit twice this year - and that was before Franmil Reyes' injury.
Pick: Under 7
Marlins @ Blue Jays (N/A)
June 2, 7:07 p.m.
Starting pitchers: Pablo Lopez (1-3, 2.71) vs. Alek Manoah (1-0, 0.00)
How's that for a debut? In Manoah's first start on Thursday, the Blue Jays' highly touted prospect delivered with six shutout innings and seven punch-outs behind an impressive four-pitch mix and mid-90s velocity.
Can he carry that momentum into Tuesday's start against the Marlins, which haven't played since Saturday? Miami has lost four of its last five games as its bats went cold, which has tended to happen for this rudderless lineup throughout the year.
Lopez has been sharp this year, but his ERA is a bit inflated relative to his so-so swinging strike rate and pedestrian fastball. Toronto's lineup is talented enough to make him pay, which should give Manoah enough of a cushion to trust his stuff in his second start.
Pick: Blue Jays (TBD)
Nationals @ Braves (N/A)
June 3, 12:20 p.m.
Starting pitchers: Patrick Corbin (3-4, 6.23) vs. Ian Anderson (4-2, 3.27)
Anderson is better than this. The Braves' former No. 3 pick allowed four runs on seven hits - including a pair of home runs - and lasted just four innings in his last start, which came after back-to-back quality starts allowing a combined one run. Anderson's lack of performance also follows a season in which he ranked in the 96th percentile in xERA (2.46) and xwOBA (.242).
The 23-year-old will get a chance to prove himself against the Nationals, which have hit the ball hard but don't have much to show for it. Washington has scored a combined six runs during a five-game losing streak entering this week, and the club will need all the run support it can get with a struggling Corbin on the mound.
Pick: Braves (TBD)
C Jackson Cowart is a betting writer for theScore. He's an award-winning journalist with stops at The Charlotte Observer, The San Diego Union-Tribune, The Times Herald-Record, and BetChicago. He's also a proud graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, and his love of sweet tea is rivaled only by that of a juicy prop bet. Find him on Twitter @CJacksonCowart.
