We’ve handpicked and selected five FREE moneyline picks from Friday’s busy MLB schedule, ensuring that you can kick off your weekend the right way!
Look below to find our free MLB Picks for the five best games on today’s schedule!
St Louis Cardinals @ Pittsburgh Pirates – 6.35PM ET
Two NL Central rivals will face off on Friday when the Cardinals and Pirates kick off their three game weekend set in Pittsburgh.
After a nine game stint on the road, the Pirates returned home on Tuesday for a two game series against the Royals. Pittsburgh won the first encounter 2-1, however Kansas City tied the set at 1-1, following their 9-6 victory on Wednesday.
For the third time in four games, the Pirates lineup scored six runs. However the pitching staff, led Mitch Keller, wasn’t able to contain the Royals. Keller took the loss with the ball, giving up three hits, four earned runs and five walks in just 2.1 innings with the ball.
NEWS: Yadier Molina placed on IL with right foot tendon strain. Molina, 38, is batting .323 this season. @MLBNetwork
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) April 27, 2021
As for the Cardinals, they moved above a .500 record thanks to their most recent 4-3 victory over the Phillies on Thursday. The win resulted in a 2-2 series split between the two teams.
Although he allowed seven hits, Kwang-hyun Kim conceded just one earned run in his five innings at the mound on Thursday.
Having earned a win in his last outing, John Gant will be taking the ball for his fifth start of the year for the Cardinals. He comes in with a 2.25 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 13 walks and 18 strikeouts over 20 innings of work on the year.
JT Brubaker will take the ball for the Pirates, setting up a mouthwatering battle between two pitchers in great form. Brubaker comes into this match with a 2.04 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, five walks and 23 strikeouts in 22.1 innings of work on the year.
Given that Pittsburgh are at home, in solid form with the bat, and have a slight advantage in the pitching matchup, we like the Pirates to win this matchup in Pittsburgh. Especially when considering that St Louis inconsistent offense has taken a hit, with Yadier Molina was placed on the IL with a foot tendon strain.
MLB Pick – Pittsburgh Pirates (-102)
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New York Mets @ Philadelphia Phillies – 7.05PM ET
For the third time this year, the Mets and Phillies will kick off a three game series this Friday when the two NL East rivals face off in Philadelphia.
As a result of their 3-4 loss to the Cardinals on Thursday, the Phillies split their four game series in St Louis 2-2.
Philadelphia’s ace Aaron Nola was solid in his six innings with the ball, allowing just four hits and three earned runs to go along with his seven strikeouts. However, the Phillies offense has continued to struggle, only scoring more than three runs in one of their past five games.
As for the Mets, they recently lost their past two games against the Red Sox in Boston, 1-2 and 0-1. Despite the series sweep, New York’s bullpen put two strong performances together at Fenway park, allowing Boston’s loaded offense to score just three runs in two games.
New York’s recent loss came despite the Mets sending ace pitcher Jacob deGrom to the mound for six innings on Wednesday.
Marcus Stroman will look to keep New York’s strong pitching form going on Friday, currently boasting a 2.25 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in 24 innings of work this season. Stroman has dominated Philadelphia this year, limiting the Phillies to just one run in 12 innings with the ball.
Chase Anderson will take the mound for the home team, having allowed six runs in 3.2 innings in his last start, giving him a 6.48 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP in 16.2 innings this year.
Currently with a 4-2 record over the Phillies in 2021, New York has fared well against Philadelphia this year. Friday’s starter Marcus Stroman has played a key role in two of those victories, and will once again give the Mets an advantage with the ball on Friday. Neither offense has been dominant recently, however New York should get the W in this one with Stroman at the mound.
MLB Pick – New York Mets (-154)
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Houston Astros @ Tampa Bay Rays – 7.10PM ET
After an eight match stretch of games in Houston, the Astros are hitting the road to take on the Rays in Tampa Bay for the first match of their three game weekend set.
Houston recently closed out their four game series against Seattle with a 0-1 loss on Thursday. However, the Astros won the opening three games against the Mariners 5-2 on Monday, 2-0 on Tuesday and 7-5 on Wednesday, resulting in a 3-1 series victory.
Luis Garcia allowed just three hits and one earned run in five innings at the mound, however the Astros lineup couldn’t get things going, resulting in their first shutout loss of the season.
Comeback win for the series victory.#ForTheH pic.twitter.com/fXqrah7eza
— Houston Astros (@astros) April 29, 2021
The Rays are coming off a 2-2 series split from their four game set against Oakland in Tampa Bay, as the series saw every game decided by two runs or less. The A’s tied the series in the final game on Thursday, defeating the Rays 3-2.
Brandon Lowe scored both runs for Tampa Bay on Friday, however the remainder of the lineup failed to perform in the one run loss.
With the Rays sending Ryan Yarbrough to the mound with a 4.28 ERA this season and the Astros giving Lance McCullers Jr. the ball with a 4.58 ERA this season, neither side will have a drastic advantage at the mound.
As the Astros are the third highest road scoring team in the league this year, averaging 5.3 runs per game, we like them to outscore the Rays in this encounter between two evenly matched pitchers. Especially when considering Tampa Bay have scored two runs or less in four of their past five games
MLB Pick – Houston Astros (-122)
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Baltimore Orioles @ Oakland Athletics – 9.40PM ET
The A’s and the O’s will face off in Oakland on Friday for the first game of their three match series.
After a seven game road trip, the Oakland A’s will return home six games above .500 with a 16-10 record. Oakland were victorious in their most recent outing, defeating the Rays 3-2 in Tampa Bay. The win resulted in a 2-2 series split from their four games against against the Rays.
Chris Bassitt struck-out nine Rays batters on Thursday, while only allowing four hits and two earned runs in six innings at the mound.
Similarly, Baltimore split their recent series against the Yankees 2-2, after winning their final game on Thursday 4-3.
Cedric Mullins scored twice in the victory, while the Orioles bullpen didn’t concede a run after Jorge Lopez got them off to a solid start. Lopez allowed four hits and two runs in four innings with the ball.
Baltimore will welcome ace pitcher John Means to the mound on Friday. Means has a 1.50 ERA and 29 strikeouts this season. Mike Fiers will take the ball for Oakland for the first time this season. Piers is 4-1 with a 1.93 ERA and 32 strikeouts in his career against the Orioles.
Having allowed just two hits and one run through 6.1 innings against the A’s last Sunday, Means will give the Orioles a substantial advantage at the mound in this matchup. However, having won 14 of their past 17 games, Oakland are undeniably the better team in this encounter and we like them to win this one at home.
MLB Pick – Oakland Athletic (-134)
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San Francisco Giants @ San Diego Padres – 10.10PM ET
Two NL West rivals will begin a three game series on Friday night when the Giants take on the Padres in San Francisco.
Having recently sealed a 2-1 series victory over the Colorado Rockies, the Giants are sharing top spot in the NL West with the reigning World Series champion LA Dodgers. Yet nobody is talking about them.
San Francisco won their most recent games against the Rockies 7-3 on Thursday, as seven different Giants scored in the four run victory. Alex Wood got the start and the win for San Francisco, allowing four hits and just two runs in six innings with the ball to go along with nine strikeouts.
Yu Darvish, 82mph Slider (swing/miss) & 95mph Two Seamer (backward K), Individual Pitches + Overlay pic.twitter.com/eMTg41ND38
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 24, 2021
The Padres also won their most recent game, which resulted in a 1-1 split series with the Diamondbacks. After losing Tuesday’s game 1-5, San Diego responded on Wednesday with a 12-3 victory.
Jurickson Profar, Victor Caratini and Kim Ha-seong all crossed home plate twice in the nine run win, while the Padres rotation activated eight pitchers on Wednesday, combining for seven hits and just three runs.
Logan Webb will get the start for the Giants. Having thrown seven shutout innings with eight strikeouts in his last outing, Webb has a 4.03 ERA this season. Yu Darvish will get the ball for the Padres in the series opener, currently boasting a 2.27 ERA across 31.2 innings this year. Darvish has only allowed eight runs and 19 hits, with 37 strikeouts in 2021.
Having had an extra day off this week and seeing as they are playing at home, the Padres are looking like the pick for this matchup. San Diego are the only team in the league with a better team ERA than San Francisco, and given that the Padres will have the advantage at the mound as well as having the superior offense, we like the San Diego at home on Friday.
MLB Pick – San Diego Padres (-200)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
