Finish off your workweek the right way and kick off your weekend with five free Friday MLB moneyline picks!
Look below to find our free MLB Picks for the five best games on today’s schedule!
Philadelphia Phillies @ New York Mets – 4.10PM ET
A pair of NL East rivals will kick off their four game series in New York on Friday afternoon when the Mets and Phillies face off. This will not only be the first game of this series but also the first match of their Friday double header.
New York recently split their four game series against Atlanta at home, winning games one and four for a 2-2 split. Although they tied the series, the Mets outscored the Braves 11-9 despite being shutout twice.
As for the Phillies, they are now three games below a .500 record as a result of their active three game losing streak. After dropping the final game of their series in San Francisco, Philadelphia were swept in their two game stint at home against Washington. They were outscored 16-14 in the two losses.
Good morning, #Mets fans. ☺️ pic.twitter.com/55yZkyGWLl
— New York Mets (@Mets) June 24, 2021
The Phillies are starting Aaron Nola and Matt Moore for Friday’s double header matches, however they have not announced in which order. Nola has a 5-4 record, 4.00 ERA, 1.22 WHIP from 85.1 innings of work in an inconsistent 2021 season. Moore has struggled at the major league level, owning a 7.36 ERA and 1.91 WHIP in 18.1 innings.
The Mets will counter with Taijuan Walker for his 14th start of the season. The right hander has a 6-3 record in 2021, to go along with a 2.42 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 77 strikeouts from 74.1 innings of action. Walker was costly in his last start, allowing four runs on 10 hits in 6.1 innings. However, he has allowed two earned runs or fewer in all but three starts this year.
Due to their inefficient bullpen rotation, the Phillies have been trending downwards recently, owning just a 1-4 record from their last five games. New York are the better team in this matchup and they have dominated Philadelphia this season, with five wins from their six meetings this year. As well as that, Taijuan Walker is a key contributor to the Mets No. 2 ranked pitching staff and he owns an impressive 1.49 ERA at home this season.
MLB Pick – New York Mets (TBD)
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Colorado Rockies @ Milwaukee Brewers – 4.10PM ET
The Colorado Rockies are headed to Milwaukee to kick off their three game weekend series against the Brewers on Friday afternoon.
After defeating the Rockies in Colorado in the final two matches of their set last weekend, Milwaukee closed out their seven game road trip with a 2-1 series victory over the Diamondbacks in Arizona. The Brewers outscored the Diamondbacks 9-7 in the three game series.
As for Colorado, they began a five game road trip following their last loss to the Brewers on Sunday. The Rockies split their most recent two game series with the Mariners in Seattle, however they outscored the home team 6-4 in that time.
Jon Gray will return to the mound after a stint on the IL for his 13th start of the season. The right hander has a 4-6 record, 4.29 ERA and 1.29 WHIP from 63 innings of action this year. Gray threw 2.1 innings in his last appearance and gave up five runs in that time, and he also owns a mediocre 5.90 ERA from five career meetings against the Brewers.
Milwaukee will give Corbin Burnes the ball for his 13th start this year. The young right hander has been impressive this season, owning a 3-4 record, 2.62 ERA and 0.93 WHIP from 68.2 innings of action. Burnes pitched to the Rockies in his last start, allowing four runs in 5.1 innings of action. The performance marked just the fourth time this season that Burnes had given up more than two runs.
As competitive as the Rockies were in their recent four game series against the Brewers, they still only managed a 2-2 split series from their four games at home. Seeing as Colorado has a league low six wins on the road this season, we can’t see them upsetting the Brewers in Milwaukee on Friday. Especially when considering that Corbin Burnes (2.62 ERA in 2021) will be giving the Brewers a drastic advantage at the mound in the pitching matchup with Jon Gray (5.90 ERA vs Milwaukee).
MLB Pick – Milwaukee Brewers (-240)
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Los Angeles Angels @ Tampa Bay Rays – 7.10PM ET
The Angels and Rays will kick off their three game series in Tampa Bay on Friday night.
As a result of their 3-9 loss on Wednesday, Los Angeles brought an end to their six game home stint with a 3-3 record. The Angels won their first three games in LA against Detroit, however they will enter Friday’s series opener having lost their past three matches, including being swept by the Giants in their short two game series. San Francisco outscored Los Angeles 14-3 in their two victories.
As for the Rays, they recently kicked off their six game stretch of home games with a 2-1 series victory over the Red Sox. With the series tied at 1-1 heading into Thursday’s decider, it took until the ninth innings for Tampa Bay to secure the 1-0 victory. The Rays lost the hit count 4-2, however Boston let up a passed ball at the bottom of the ninth to bring Manuel Margot home for Tampa Bay’s game winning run.
RAYS WIN!
Manuel Margot with incredible base running helps the @RaysBaseball win the series against the Red Sox! #RaysUp pic.twitter.com/4svbGEypME
— Bally Sports Sun: Rays (@BallyRays) June 25, 2021
Tampa is expected to send Josh Fleming to the mound for his 13th start of the season. Fleming has a 6-4 record, 3.59 ERA and 1.07 WHIP from 62.2 innings of action this year. Although he owns a 5.19 ERA from his last three starts, Fleming is known for pitching well at home, where he owns a 3-3 record, 2.18 ERA and 0.91 WHIP from 33 innings this season.
Griffin Canning will make his 12th start (13th appearance) for the Angels this season on Friday. The right hander is 5-4 in 2021, to go along with a 5.07 ERA and 1.40 WHIP from 55 innings of action. Canning was solid in his last outings, allowing just two runs on three hits in five innings.
Los Angeles have been an up and down team so far this season, as reflected by their active three game losing streak. Although the Rays have dropped off from their league leading form over the past two weeks, we are still going to take Tampa Bay at home for Friday’s series opener. Josh Fleming has been a solid performer for the Rays at home this season (2.18 ERA at home), and we think he will give Tampa an advantage in the pitching matchup. Especially when considering that Los Angeles’ pitching staff owns a 4.85 team ERA (26th in the league) and three of their six starters, including Canning, have an ERA over five.
MLB Pick – Tampa Bay Rays (TBD)
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New York Yankees @ Boston Red Sox – 7.10PM ET
Two of the fiercest rivals in sports will add another chapter to their story on Friday when the Red Sox host the Yankees at Fenway Park.
With a 7-2 record from their last nine games, New York will be full of confidence coming into Friday’s series opener. The Yankees recently took a 2-1 series victory from their three game set against the Royals at home, winning the final two games on Wednesday and Thursday. New York outscored Kansas City 19-12 across the three games.
As for Boston, they recently brought an end to an eight game road trip with a 1-2 series loss to the Rays in Tampa Bay. With the series deciding game tied 0-0 at the bottom of the ninth, Boston let up a passed ball to bring Tampa’s Manuel Margot home for the game winning run.
Although they lost, the Red Sox lineup won the hit count 4-2 and Nick Pivetta threw 6.2 hitless and scoreless innings with the ball.
The Red Sox will send Martin Perez to the mound for his 15th start of the season on Friday. Perez has a 5-4 record, 4.32 ERA and 1.39 WHIP this year, however the southpaw has struggled at home in 2021. Perez is 2-3 with a 6.68 ERA and 1.79 WHIP over 32.1 innings in eight starts at Fenway this season.
Dominic German will make his 14th start of the season for the Yankees in Friday’s series opener. The right hander owns a 4-4 record, 4.17 ERA and 1.19 WHIP from 69 innings in 2021. German has leaked runs in his last three starts, owning a 0-1 record, 7.71 ERA and 1.79 WHIP across 14 innings in that time.
As much as you can’t rely on Martin Perez at Fenway Park this season, Dominic German has not shown enough in his last three starts to suggest that he is capable of leading the Yankees to a win on the road on Friday. With that in mind, we are going to take the Red Sox at home in this series opener. German has allowed 11 runs on 17 hits in his last 8.1 innings and we believe Boston’s lineup, who are scoring 4.97 run per game this season, will be able to hit a winnable score against the struggling right hander at home on Friday
MLB Pick – Boston Red Sox (+116)
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Kansas City Royals @ Texas Rangers – 8.05PM ET
The Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers will close out our Friday night MLB schedule with the first match of their three game series.
Friday will be Kansas City’s fourth match of a 10 game road trip. The Royals kicked off their stretch of away games with a 1-2 series loss against the Yankees. New York outscored Kansas City 19-12 in the three games.
As for the Rangers, they recently split their four game set against the A’s in Texas. The two victories against Oakland are Texas’ only wins from their past 10 matches. Although they split the series at 2-2, the Rangers were outscored 18-24 across the four games.
Settled for the split. pic.twitter.com/gM3sOKmhaw
— Texas Rangers (@Rangers) June 24, 2021
Dane Dunning will make his 15th start of the season for Texas on Friday. The right hander has a 2-6 record, 4.71 ERA and 1.54 WHIP from 65 innings in 2021. Dunning has thrown 13 innings in his last three starts, allowing seven runs on 20 hits in that time.
The Royals will counter by sending Mike Minor to the mound for his 16th start of the year. Minor is 6-4 this season, to go along with a 4.48 ERA and 1.18 WHIP from 86.1 innings. The southpaw has a 2-1 record from his last three starts, allowing seven earned runs on 19 hits across 19.1 innings in that time.
As Kansas City has a 3-7 record from their last 10 games and Texas has a 2-8 record in that time, neither side is entering this matchup with much form behind them. However, somebody has to win this matchup and we are going to take the Rangers at home for Friday’s series opener. Both starting pitchers own similar records, however Texas will be supporting Dunning with a more successful pitching rotation. As well as that, the Rangers’ lineup is averaging five runs per game across their last four appearances.
MLB Pick – Texas Rangers (-108)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel & Bet365
