Free MLB Picks Today for Saturday, August 5th, 2023

Our free MLB picks are out for Saturday, August 5th, 2023! 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!

Houston Astros @ New York Yankees – 1:05PM ET

Tony Battalio

The Houston Astros jumped all over the New York Yankees early on in their game on Friday night at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. It was a much needed victory for the Houston Astros as they dropped the first game of the series on Thursday night. Now with the series all event at one game each, they will be looking to take game number three here on Saturday afternoon and clinch at least a share of this four game weekend series. The defending world champions have been getting hot at the right time and they look prime and ready to make a run at defending their World Series trophy. A victory here in the third game of the series against the Yankees would only further establish that narrative.

After picking up a solid victory in the opening game of this series on Thursday night, the New York Yankees failed to pick up a second consecutive win here on Friday. Now they will be looking to bounce back in game number three on Saturday afternoon and clinch at least a share of the series before heading into Sunday’s finale. The Yankees have plenty of work to do if they want to get themselves back into the playoff race in the American League as they currently find themselves in last place in the American League East division. Justin Verlander will make his Houston Astros re-debut against returning Nestor. Cortés and I look for the Astros to pick up the victory here on Saturday afternoon for their second consecutive victory in this series.

Tampa Bay Rays @ Detroit Tigers – 1:10PM ET

Tony Battalio

The Tampa Bay Rays blasted the Detroit Tigers in the opening game of their three-game series on Friday night at Comerica Park. Now they will be looking to replicate that performance here in the middle game on Saturday afternoon as they look to officially clinch the series and set up Detroit for the opportunity to secure a three-game series sweep on Sunday. Tampa Bay has been one of the best teams in baseball season long but they struggled a little bit coming out of the All-Star break. Now they will be looking to take back first place in the American League East division from the Baltimore Orioles, and it starts with picking up easy victories like this against the Detroit Tigers. 

The Detroit Tigers will be looking to bounce back after they were blown out by the Tampa Bay Rays in the opening game of this series on Friday night. It has been a less than impressive season for the Detroit Tigers but at the moment they still find themselves within striking distance of the American League Central division title. As they are only a handful of games out of first place, and with all three teams at the top of the division, playing rough schedules down the stretch, if Detroit can get hot they could somehow sneak their way into the playoffs. However, I don’t see them grabbing a victory here on Saturday as I have the Tampa Bay Rays getting the win in comfortable fashion once again. 

Toronto Blue Jays @ Boston Red Sox – 4:10PM ET

Tony Battalio

The Toronto Blue Jays picked up a huge victory over the Boston Red Sox on Friday night, and they will be looking to replicate that performance on Saturday afternoon at Fenway Park. Toronto has been trying to keep pace with both Tampa Bay and Baltimore as well as keep Boston off their heels throughout the season and a victory here on Friday night goes a long way in doing that for the Blue Jays. Weirdly enough for the Toronto Blue Jays it was their first victory over the Boston Red Sox this season. Unfortunately for Toronto if it comes down to a tiebreaker situation for a wildcard spot. They have lost the tiebreaker. But they can still win a few more games over Boston to keep distance between them and the Red Sox for fourth place in the division.

The Boston Red Sox were finally defeated by the Toronto Blue Jays this season on Friday night at home at Fenway Park. Now Boston will be looking to bounce back in the second game of the series and pick up their eighth victory of the season against the Toronto Blue Jays. Austin will also be looking to keep pace in the American League wild-card race. As all three spots are still very much up for grabs with just under two months left to go on the season. However, I don’t see that happening as I look for the Toronto Blue Jays to grab their second consecutive victory of this series over the Boston Red Sox here on Saturday afternoon at Fenway Park. 

New York Mets @ Baltimore Orioles – 7:05PM ET

Tony Battalio

The New York Mets are in absolute shambles right now and somehow it just keeps getting worse for the organization. After trading away their two All-Star pitchers before the trade deadline, they were swept by the Kansas City Royals, and then they were crushed by the Baltimore Orioles in the opening game of this series on Friday night. Now they will be looking to bounce back in the second game of this three-game interleague weekend series at Camden Yards after Baltimore put up 10 runs on them in the opening game on Friday night. This has been a complete 180 from what they were expected to do this season and it could be a long time before this team competes for a National League pennant again.

The Baltimore Orioles looked incredible in the opening game of the series against the New York Mets at Camden Yards on Friday night. They scored double digit runs on a struggling Mets team, and they will be looking to replicate that performance here on Saturday afternoon as they try to increase their lead in the American League East division over the Tampa Bay Rays. Baltimore comes into this game with the best record in the American League and if they continue to play like this, they will be a serious threat to make it to the World Series this season. I expect them to grab a second consecutive comfortable victory of the New York Mets here on Saturday afternoon and officially clutch this series. 

Arizona Diamondbacks @ Minnesota Twins – 7:10PM ET

Tony Battalio

The Arizona Diamondbacks will be looking to bounce back after their close loss to the Minnesota Twins on Friday night to open up the series. Arizona has been struggling as of late and they risk watching their playoff futures fade away if they don’t put things back together really soon. They will need to bounce back here in game number two of the three game weekend series if they want to avoid losing at least two out of three to Minnesota. Arizona had a ton of potential after the first couple months of the season but they have seem to lose their magic and they need to get their heads on straight as they look to finish strong down the stretch.

Somehow the Minnesota Twins are currently sitting in first place in the American League Central division. Despite being only a small handful of games north of .500 they currently occupy a playoff spot in the American League. If they played in any of the other divisions in baseball, they would be nowhere close to first place at the moment, and most people would consider their season to be over. However, this team just keeps finding a way to win when they need to win games as they avoided dropping a game to Cleveland after the Guardians beat the White Sox on Friday night. Although, I don’t look for it to go well for Minnesota in this one as I have Arizona grabbing the victory on Saturday night.

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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.