Our free MLB picks are out for Friday, April 22nd, 2022! Make sure you check our MLB picks before the action kicks off.
Look below to find our free MLB picks for the five best games on today’s schedule!
Cleveland Guardians @ New York Yankees – 7:05PM ET
The Cleveland Guardians and New York Yankees are playing the first game of their three game weekend set in this one. As the Guardians come in off of a three game sweep of the Chicago White Sox. While the Bronx Bombers come in off of a 2-1 series win over the Detroit Tigers.
Tony Battalio
The Cleveland Guardians looked great in their three game sweep over their American League Central division rival. Now they will look to get another series win over one of the best teams in Major League Baseball against the New York Yankees. They have been up and down throughout the first two weeks of the 2022 season as the offense has been both hot and cold. Taking the ball for the Cleveland Guardians in this series opening game is unknown at the moment. But if the bats stay hot they will be a hard team to beat.
The New York Yankees are coming into this game with a record of 7-6 through their first 13 games of the season. The Bronx Bombers have gone 13 years without a World Series at this point and for a team that used to them that feels like a lifetime. This year may be their best shot in a long time but they will have to play a lot better than they have been to start the season. Taking the ball for them in this one will be Jameson Taillon who is 0-1 on the season with a 3.72 Earned Run Average. As for the result of this game I’m taking the Cleveland Guardians to get the win.
Tony’s MLB Pick: Cleveland Guardians (+168)
Jeffery Thomas
The Cleveland Guardians and New York Yankees will start up a three-game weekend series on Friday in Yankee Stadium. The Guardians are coming off a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox where they outscored the Sox 19-5. That series sweep helped catapult Cleveland to the top of the AL Central at 7-5 and they’ll take on the 7-6 New York Yankees. The Yankees won their series over the Detroit Tigers but dropped the final game on Thursday in shutout fashion 3-0.
The Yankees’ name value usually gives us good value on their opponents and that’s the case again in this one. Cleveland is coming off a great series against one of the best teams in the AL and is being undervalued in this spot. I’m rolling with the hotter team here as I don’t trust the Yankees offense enough yet.
Jeffery’s MLB Pick: Cleveland Guardians (+168)
Marko Nadin
The New York Yankees are second in the AL East with a 7-6 record. They are coming off a 3-0 loss to the Detroit Tigers in a series that the Yankees won 2 games to 1. The Yankees are playing very poor offence from the start of the season as they are ranked 27th in the league with only 2.96 runs per game hitting 0.93 home runs per game. They will start Jameson Taillon against the Guardians who is 0-1 for the season with a 3.72 ERA. The Yankees have won 6 of the last 10 games against Cleveland.
The Cleveland Guardians are on top of the AL Central with a 7-5 record. They are coming off a 3-0 series sweep against the Chicago White Sox after previously losing all three games against the San Francisco Giants. Cleveland has the best offensive line at the beginning of the season with 5.72 runs per game and ninth with 3.62 allowed runs per game. Cleveland has won 3 of the last games against the Yankees and the last 4 road games.
Marko’s MLB Pick: New York Yankees (-200)
Toronto Blue Jays @ Houston Astros – 8:10PM ET
The Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros are playing the first game of their three game weekend set in this one. As the Blue Jays come in off of a 2-1 series win over the Boston Red Sox. While the Astros come in off of a 2-1 series loss with the Los Angeles Angels.
Tony Battalio
The Toronto Blue Jays are slated to be one of the best teams in Major League Baseball this season. As they are one of the top favorites to bring home the American League pennant and a World Series championship for the first time since the mid 1990s. Toronto has one of the best young teams in the league and they have tons of potential this season. They come into this one off of a series win over the Boston Red Sox and now will look to beat the Houston Astros.
The Houston Astros are still looking to shake off the sour taste from the cheating scandal that transpired during their World Series victory. However, it seems to be impossible and it will follow the franchise for decades. They come into this game with a record of 6-6 through their first 12 games of the season. Justin Verlander will take the ball for the Astros in this one as he is 1-1 on the season with a 0.69 Earned Run Average. As for the result of this one however, I am taking the Toronto Blue Jays to get the victory.
Tony’s MLB Pick: Toronto Blue Jays (+138)
Jeffery Thomas
The Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros will start up their series on Friday in H-Town coming off two different results in their last series. The Jays took two of three from their division rival Red Sox on the back of some dominant pitching. Boston never scored more than 2 runs in a game that whole series and now Toronto has an early hold on the 1st place spot in the AL East. The Astros are 6-6 and in 4th place in the AL West after dropping two of three to the Los Angeles Angels. Houston was off on Thursday following their 6-0 shutout loss on Wednesday.
The Astros offense has struggled with Jose Altuve on the IL and that was most apparent in their last loss to the Angels where they struck out 12 times as a team. The Blue Jays on the other hand, come in with one of the most feared lineups in all of baseball and I think they’ll simply just be able to outscore the Astros in this one with their massive offense advantage.
Jeffery’s MLB Pick: Toronto Blue Jays (+138)
Marko Nadin
The Houston Astros are fourth in the AL West with a 6-6 record. They are coming off back-to-back losses to the Los Angeles Angels after winning the first game of the series. The Astros are scoring 3.50 runs per game which puts them 23rd in the league and fourth in the league allowing only 0.60 home runs per game. Houston has won 6 of the last 10 games against Toronto. The Astros will start Justin Verlander tonight who is 1-1 for the season with a 0.69 ERA.
The Toronto Blue Jays are on top of the AL East with a 8-5 record. They are coming off a 3-2 road win over the Boston Red Sox from a series the Blue Jays won 2 games to 1. Toronto is hitting the league-best 1.26 home runs per game and is ranked 15th in the league scoring 4.11 runs per game. Toronto will start Ross Stripling tonight who has a 3.00 ERA for the season. The Blue Jays have won 4 of the last 5 opening games of a series and 8 of the last 10 games against teams from the AL West.
Marko’s MLB Pick: Toronto Blue Jays (+138)
Chicago White Sox @ Minnesota Twins – 8:10PM ET
The Chicago White Sox and the Minnesota Twins are playing the first game of their three game weekend set in this one. As the White Sox come in off of being swept by the Cleveland Guardians. While the Twins come in off of a 2-1 series loss with the Kansas City Royals.
Tony Battalio
The Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins will face off in this three game series between two American League Central rivals. The White Sox will be looking to bounce back after getting swept by the Cleveland Guardians in three games. They are the clear favorites to win the American League Central but at this point the division seems like it’s completely up for grabs. Chicago comes into this one with a record of 6-6 through their first 12 games of the season.
The Minnesota Twins come into this one with a record of 5-8 through their first 13 games of the season. They are off to a bad start this season as they just dropped a three game series to the Kansas City Royals. Now they will be looking to bounce back in this one against the Chicago White Sox. Taking the ball for them in this one will be Bailey Ober who is 1-1 on the season with a 3.27 Earned Run Average. As for the result of this one I am going with the Chicago White Sox to pick up the victory.
Tony’s MLB Pick: Chicago White Sox (-108)
Jeffery Thomas
The Chicago White Sox need to get things back rolling in a positive direction following their three game sweep at the hands of the Cleveland Guardians. They will get their chance to do so against the Minnesota Twins who avoided a sweep themselves by taking Thursday’s game over the Kansas City Royals 1-0. Low scores was the theme the whole series as a total of just 10 runs combined was scored across the three games. The Twins will need to pick up their offense if they want to keep pace with this Chicago lineup that boasts a lot of firepower.
Byron Buxton is expected back for Minnesota in this game and that will provide plenty of protection to Carlos Correa, who is bound to go off any of these games. The White Sox are turning to Michael Koepech in this game and while he’s pitched relatively well this year, he hasn’t proven he can go deep in games, never going past 5 innings. The Twins will see a lot of the Sox’s bullpen in this one and I think that will prove to be the difference and get the home team the win.
Jeffery’s MLB Pick: Minnesota Twins (-108)
Marko Nadin
The Minnesota Twins are at the bottom of the AL Central with a 5-8 record. They are coming off a 1-0 win over the Kansas City Royals in a series they lost 2-1. The Twins are 12th in the league hitting 1.03 home runs per game but they score only 3.27 runs per game which puts them in 24th place in the league. Minnesota has won the last 2 games against the White Sox. They will start Bailey Ober at the mound tonight who is 1-1 for the season with a 3.27 ERA.
The Chicago White Sox are second in the AL Central with a 6-6 record. They are coming off three consecutive losses against the Cleveland Guardians. The White Sox are second in the league being strikeout 7.22 times per game and are ranked 21st in the league scoring 3.70 runs per game. Chicago will start Michael Kopech tonight who has a 1.00 ERA for the season. The White Sox have won 9 of the last 12 games played on Friday and 19 of the last 26 opening games of a series.
Marko’s MLB Pick: Chicago White Sox (-108)
Los Angeles Dodgers @ San Diego Padres – 9:40PM ET
The Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres are playing the first game of their three game weekend set in this one. As the Dodgers come in off of a 2-1 series win over the Atlanta Braves. While the Padres come in off of a 3-0 series sweep over the Cincinnati Reds.
Tony Battalio
This is going to be one of the best series of the weekend as two of the top teams in the National League West are set to face off. The Los Angeles Dodgers are coming into this matchup with a record of 9-3 through their first 12 games of the season. They have gotten off to a fast start this season and will be looking to get back to the World Series. They are fresh off of a series win against the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last season.
The San Diego Padres looked like the best team in baseball last season before a late season collapse that kept them out of the playoffs. Now they come into this one with a record of 9-5 through their first 14 games of the season. They haven’t had Tatis in the lineup yet and if they can keep up this level of play with him and avoid the collapse they may be a serious World Series contender. As for the result of this game I am taking the Los Angeles Dodgers to pick up the victory.
Tony’s MLB Pick: Los Angeles Dodgers (-178)
Jeffery Thomas
The San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers will kick off their in-state rivalry with a weekend series in San Diego that starts up on Friday. The Dodgers were able to take 12 of 19 over the Padres last season and will hope they can repeat that success in 2022. Julio Urias is getting the start for the Dodgers in this one, and has a 3-1 lifetime record with a 2.63 ERA against San Diego. The Padres are turning to Nick Martinez who has never faced the Dodgers in his career but has a 0-1 record so far this year with a 4.50 ERA.
The Dodgers have won 8 of their last 9 and come in with loads of confidence. Freddie Freeman has proved to be one of the best acquisitions of the offseason and leads the team in hits. I trust Urias a lot more than Martinez who is trying to work his way back into the MLB after a few years in Japan. Back LA to get off to a fast start and their bullpen to bring it home on the road.
Jeffery’s MLB Pick: Los Angeles Dodgers -1.5 (-108)
Marko Nadin
The San Diego Padres are third in the NL West with a 9-5 record. They have won the last 4 games including a 3-0 series sweep against the Cincinnati Reds. The Padres are 12th in the league scoring 4.46 runs per game and are ranked 5th allowing 3.15 runs per game. San Diego will start Nick Martinezz tonight who is 0-1 for the season with 4.50 ERA. The Padres have won 6 of the last 8 games following a win and 4 of the last 5 games after allowing 2 runs or less in their previous game.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are on top of the NL West with a 9-3 record. They have won 8 of the last 9 games and are coming off a 5-1 win over the defending champions Atlanta Braves from a series the Dodgers won 2 games to 1. LA is ranked second in the league scoring 5.43 runs per game and allowing 2.72 runs per game. The Dodgers have won the last 9 games against San Diego. They will start Julio Urias tonight who is 0-1 for the season with a 3.86 ERA.
Marko’s MLB Pick: Los Angeles Dodgers (-178)
Kansas City Royals @ Seattle Mariners – 9:40PM ET
The Kansas City Royals and Seattle Mariners are playing the first game of their three game weekend set in this one. As the Royals come in off of a 2-1 series win over the Minnesota Twins. While the Mariners come in off of a series win over the Texas Rangers.
Tony Battalio
The Kansas City Royals are already having an up and down season as they started hot then got cold and now seem to be winning again. As they come into this game with a record of 5-6 through their first 11 games of the season. Kansas City is coming off of a strong series win against the Minnesota Twins. They are currently on a one game losing streak and have a -14 run differential. Taking the ball for them in this one will be Brad Keller who is 0-1 on the season with a 1.38 Earned Run Average.
The Seattle Mariners are off to a decent start to the 2022 Major League Baseball season. They look like they are going to break their lengthy playoff drought streak as long as they can stay healthy and consistent. They come into this game with a record of 7-5 through their first 12 games of the season as they are currently in second place in the American League West as they are a half a game behind the Los Angeles Angels. As for the result of this game I am taking the Seattle Mariners to get the win.
Tony’s MLB Pick: Seattle Mariners (-142)
Jeffery Thomas
The Kansas City Royals will pack up and head west for the weekend to take on the Seattle Mariners in a three-game series. The Royals are coming of a 1-0 shutout loss to Minnesota on Thursday but did win the previous two games against the division rival Twins. They now sit with a 5-6 record to start the new year and will get a Mariners team that
I like this Mariners team and I think they will continue to surprise people this year with their impressive play. They aren’t in a big market so they’re not getting a lot of press but if the wins keep coming they’ll start to get the attention they deserve. Friday will be another one of those wins for the Mariners who will ride the arm of Chris Flexen to this home win.
Jeffery’s MLB Pick: Seattle Mariners (-142)
Marko Nadin
The Seattle Mariners are second in the AL West with a 7-6 record. They are coming off a 8-6 loss to the Texas Rangers. The Mariners are 14th in the league scoring 4.30 runs per game 7th with 1.18 home runs per game. Seattle will start Chris Flexen tonight who is 0-2 for the season with a 5.23 ERA. The Mariners have won 6 of the last 7 Friday games, 9 of the last 11 opening games of a series and 5 of the last 8 games as home favorites.
The Kansas City Royals are third in the AL Central with a 5-6 record. They are coming off a 1-0 loss to the Minnesota Twins in a series the Royals won 2 games to 1. Kansas City is ranked 29th in the league scoring only 2.82 runs per game and sixth allowing only 0.64 home runs per game. Kansas City has won 7 of the last 10 games against Seattle. They will start Brad Keller who is 0-1 for the season with a 1.38 ERA. They Royals have won 6 of the last 8 Friday games and 13 of the last 18 opening games of a series.
Marko’s MLB Pick: Seattle Mariners (-142)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
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