Our free MLB Picks are out for Wednesday, August 11th, 2021! 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!
Chicago White Sox @ Minnesota Twins – 1.10PM ET
The AL Central showdown between the first placed Chicago White Sox and bottom of the division Minnesota Twins concludes this afternoon. With the series tied 1-1, could Minnesota pull off a second straight upset over a division leading team?
Tim Newton
In what was somewhat of a surprising result last night, the Twins leveled the series with a come from behind 4-3 victory. After beating the Astros 3-1 in their most recent series, Minnesota must be full of confidence right now but I am thinking that will come to an end in this one. Chicago is starting Lance Lynn and that is trouble for the Twins. Lynn has the best ERA in baseball, 2.04, whilst also boasting a 10-3 record for the season. He hasn’t registered a loss since June 19th, picking up three wins from seven games and allowing more than one run just once in that time. His class will give the White Sox the edge early and I like them to take this comfortably.
Tim’s MLB Pick: Chicago White Sox -1.5 (-105)
The Chicago White Sox have the second best record in the AL.
White Sox have the best record at home in the MLB.
Tim Anderson has the most hits and doubles on the team.
Lance Lynn has the lowest ERA in the league.
Jose Abreu has the second most RBI’s in the league.
— Daniel Greenberg (@ChiSportUpdates) August 9, 2021
Katherine Mouradian
After a dominant display by the White Sox in the first game of this series, the Twins were able to fight back and get a narrow victory yesterday. The White Sox are still very clear of the competition in the AL Central, 10.5 games ahead of their closest rivals, the Indians. The White Sox have managed to win seven of their previous nine when it comes to the third game of a series, and in their previous 81 games when playing a team with a losing record, they have won 57. Looking at the Twins now, they have won only one of their previous five games on a Wednesday, and out of their previous five game three of a series, they haven’t won a single game. It was a bit of a shock that the White Sox went down on Tuesday, but I think they are the kind of team that will bounce back.
Katherine’s MLB Pick: Chicago White Sox -1.5 (-105)
Mike Su
This AL Central matchup shouldn’t be too eventful as the 67 win White Sox play the 48 win Twins. The White Sox and their 6th ranked batting lineup and 4th ranked pitchers should have an easy time exposing the Twins. Although the Twins have won 4 games this season against the White Sox, the White Sox have prevailed the remaining 14 times. I’m willing to bet that Chicago will make it 15 victories after this game. Something that does give the Twins a chance is the fact that they are 2-2 this year when Lance Lynn is pitching. However, the statistics all point toward the White Sox having an edge here. I’m going to play this one safe and go with the White Sox to win.
Mike’s MLB Pick: Chicago White Sox (-168)
Colorado Rockies @ Houston Astros – 2.10PM ET
While the Colorado Rockies came into this matchup with tonnes of momentum, winning four straight and scoring 34 runs in their last three, they couldn’t add to the Houston Astros’ woes last night. Houston broke out of a slump with a 5-0 win, but can they go again this afternoon and close out this quick, two-game series on a high note?
Tim Newton
While Houston lost three of four games to the Twins and the sky seemed to be falling in on them, they never really seemed to lose composure. Their league-leading offence, being the only team to eclipse 600 runs so far this season, was never an issue, rather that their bullpen couldn’t restrict opponents enough to keep them in it. The three losses saw Houston give up five or more runs while they kept Minnesota scoreless in their win. Fast forward to this series and they kept the Rockies, who had just scored 34 runs across three games against the Marlins’ top-10 bullpen, scoreless and they prevailed. With Framber Valdez starting, who is 7-3 with a 3.22 ERA, he should help keep the Rockies at bay and give Houston enough time to get some runs on the board and stay in front of Colorado.
Tim’s MLB Pick: Houston Astros (-260)
Katherine Mouradian
The Rockies weren’t even able to get on the board in the first game of this series on Tuesday, going down to the Astros 5-0. Despite being the second last team in the NL West, the Rockies have actually won seven of their previous 10 games, and the Astros have won just four of their previous 10! In the Rockies previous 86 games when playing a team with a winning record, they have won just 28 of them. The Rockies have also won just 13 of their previous 54 games on the road. Whereas, the Astros have won nine of their previous 12 games played on a Wednesday and have been able to keep their opponents scoreless in three of their games so far this month. It’s going to be the Astros for me again tonight.
Katherine’s MLB Pick: Houston Astros (-260)
Mike Su
Although the Astros are at the top of the AL West and are very much in playoff contention this season, they aren’t exactly on a good run as of late. On the other hand, on the surface the Rockies are playing quite well winning 7 of their last 10 and were on a four game winning streak before last night’s mishap. Purely based on form, I might lean towards the Rockies for a bit of value here but taking a deeper dive the Rockies’ good run as of late doesn’t look quite as good. Although they split their series with the Padres 2-2, most of their wins have come against the Marlins and Cubs who are both likely out of playoff contention. Therefore, I’m going with the Rockies to cover the spread.
Mike’s MLB Pick: Colorado Rockies +1.5 (+110)
Washington Nationals @ New York Mets – 7.10PM ET
**This game will be delayed due to their game earlier in the day running late**
With the series opener being suspended due to weather, this matchup becomes the second game of a double header. The two sides are set to complete the opener in the afternoon before going at it again in this one. That means that tactics will be in play and it will be interesting to see how fatigue plays a part in this NL East matchup.
Tim Newton
Before play was suspended last night, Washington managed to jump out to a 3-1 lead after just one innings. That doesn’t bode well for the Mets today, who have lost four straight and seven of their last eight overall. Given the suspension of the opener and it being moved to before this game, Washington have removed Joe Ross as starting pitcher and are yet to name who will start with ball in hand. New York on the other hand are giving the ball to Marcus Stroman and he is really tough to get a read on. While he has an ERA of just 2.83, Storman has been tagged with the loss in five of his last six starts, giving up 13 runs in those games. In the Mets’ last two double headers, they lost the first but won the second, while Washington has played in just one double header over the last eight weeks, winning the first game and then losing the second. While that may not make things any clearer, it shows New York has experience winning the second game of double headers and given they are already down 1-3 in the first game, they will need to respond in the second.
Tim’s MLB Pick: New York Mets (-215)
Juan Soto’s in the lineup.
His career numbers in 21 games at Citi Field:
.382/.460/.776
8 HRs
18 RBIs#NATITUDE pic.twitter.com/sWtNzejt44— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) August 10, 2021
Katherine Mouradian
The Met have lost four games in a row, and really need to stop the run of losses, as they are still in the fight for the NL East, and are only two games behind the leaders, the Phillies. The Nationals can still certainly mathematically get to the top spot, but they need to be much more consistent. The Nationals really seem to like playing on Wednesday, and in their previous 10 games on Wednesday, they have won eight of them. The Nationals are struggling, like many teams, when playing on the road, winning just three of their previous 14 games on the road. The Mets also like playing on Wednesday, winning eight of their previous 10 games played on Hump Day. Although they have won only two of their previous seven when it comes to the second game of a series. I’ll be going with the mets for this one, playing at home, I think they can snap the four game losing streak.
Katherine’s MLB Pick: New York Mets (-215)
Mike Su
Despite the Mets’ poor batting lineup, ranking 29th in the league in runs per game, they have somehow found themselves with a slim chance to make the playoffs. What has helped the Mets get into the position they are in is their excellent pitching.The Mets are 6th in opponent runs per game which bodes well against a middle of the pack Nationals batting lineup. When taking into account the fact that the Mets have a lot more to play for here, I’m taking the Mets to win this game.
Mike’s MLB Pick: New York Mets (-215)
Tampa Bay Rays @ Boston Red Sox – 7.10PM ET
In the opener of this first vs second AL East showdown, the Tampa Bay Rays added to the Boston Red Sox’s struggles of late, winning 8-4. The win extended Tampa’s lead in the division out to a season high five games, with Boston’s grip on a wild card slot slowly slipping away.
Tim Newton
Tampa Bay have now won five straight games and have also won six straight against the Red Sox. Boston has been completely out of form of late, winning just two of their last 12 games, and are really struggling to be competitive, especially against the good sides. With Josh Fleming starting for Tampa and Nathan Eovaldi starting for Boston, both with an ERA in the low 4s but a positive record, this match will come down to who can hit them better and on current form, that is easily the Rays. Given that Tampa are actually dogs in this one, I am happy to take them in the spread for some extra security, knowing that Boston have to bounce back eventually, right?
Tim’s MLB Pick: Tampa Bay Rays +1.5 (-188)
Katherine Mouradian
The Rays managed to get the first win of this series on the board on Tuesday, and they have now won five games in a row. The Red Sox on the other hand have lost two in a row now, and really need to snatch some wins from the Rays in order to close the gap between them on the AL East ladder, the gap between the two teams currently sits at five. The Rays have won four of their previous five games played on a Wednesday, and impressively they have won 21 of their previous 29 games overall. The Red Sox have a pretty decent long term record on a Wednesday, winning 58 of their previous 28 games played on a Wednesday, but they have won only three in their previous 10 when it comes to the second game of a series. Eovaldi needs to have a good game for the Rays, and I’ll be on the Rays for the win.
Katherine’s MLB Pick: Tampa Bay Rays (+100)
Mike Su
This is a battle of the heavyweights with the championship Rays taking on the prestigious Red Sox. With Boston just 5 games back from the Rays, this could be their chance to make a move for the number 1 seed in the AL East. However, the Rays are on a hot streak, winning 8 of their last 10 while the Red Sox are the opposite winning just 2 of their last 10. This season’s series has been a tale of 2 halves with Boston winning the first 4 games while the Rays have won the last 5 matchups. Both teams are starting pitchers with similar ERA so this matchup will be decided by hitting. Despite this, I like to bet on narrative and if the Red Sox want to turn it around, given this game is a must win for them. I’m going to take a chance with the Red Sox who are playing at home to win this game for some value.
Mike’s MLB Pick: Boston Red Sox (-120)
Toronto Blue Jays @ Los Angeles Angels – 9.38PM ET
After a thrilling double header yesterday that saw both sides come away with a win, the Los Angeles Angels and Toronto Blue Jays will go at it again in the third of a four-game series. Both American League teams sit fourth in their division, but Toronto are just 2.5 games behind a wild card slot, while LA are 7.5 games back.
Tim Newton
The Angels may have won the opener 6-3, but they were held scoreless in the second leg of the double header yesterday whilst Toronto scored four runs in their win. I am thinking that number may be a lot higher for the Blue Jays in this clash given Dylan Bundy is starting for LA. Bundy’s record is just 2-8 this season and he has a massive 6.14 ERA. While Bundy picked up the win after pitching 6.1 innings for no runs in his last start, that was against the lowly Rangers and he hadn’t registered a win for two months before that. You also can’t compare Texas, last in OPS and third last in runs, to Toronto, first in OPS and fourth in runs. Adding to that is the fact that the Blue Jays are handing the ball to former #11 pick, Alek Manoah, who is 4-1 from 10 starts, with a 2.58 ERA, in his first year in the majors.
Tim’s MLB Pick: Toronto Blue Jays -1.5 (-110)
Katherine Mouradian
The series is locked up one game apiece so far, with the Blue Jays managing to keep the Angels scoreless last time out. In the Blue Jays last 13 games as a favorite, they have won 10 of them, and have won 10 of their previous 13 games overall. On the flip side, the Angels have won all of their previous four games played on a Wednesday, and five of their previous seven games overall. The Blue Jays have won just two of their previous eight games with the Angels in Los Angeles. I’m also liking the look of the under here. The under has hit eight times out of the Blue Jays previous 10 games on the road, and has hit in the four of the Angels previous five games overall. But my best bet is for the Blue Jays to cover the spread.
Katherine’s MLB Pick: Toronto Blue Jays -1.5 (-110)
Adam Cimber was deadly for the Jays tonight. 🔥
(📽️: @BlueJays)pic.twitter.com/J0NTeYZ1NF
— theScore (@theScore) August 11, 2021
Mike Su
Even though the Blue Jays have the edge in every statistic against the Angels I have a saying, NBASO, Never bet against Shohei Ohtani. The MVP candidate has hit a staggering 37 home runs this season! On the other side you have Vladimir Guerrero Jr who is second in home runs with 35 home runs this season. So you have 2 of the best hitters in the league, on teams that both rank top 5 in hits per game, this is a recipe for a home run derby.
3 of their 4 matchups this season have resulted in totals of 9 or more runs. So with all that in mind, I’m taking the overs in this game. Look for Ohtani and Guerrero Jr to prove who is the best hitter in the league.
Mike’s MLB Pick: Over 9.5 (-102)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
