After a smaller 10-game slate on Monday, MLB is back with a full 15-game schedule on this beautiful June Tuesday.
Our staff was ready for the uptick in matchups and came through with three best bets for the day, including picks for Cubs vs. Pirates, Mariners vs. Yankees and Red Sox vs. Twins.
Read on for all three best bets and picks below — and be sure to check back tomorrow for even more MLB betting coverage.
Tuesday's MLB Best Bets
The team logos in the table below represent each of the matchups that our MLB betting staff is targeting from Tuesday night's slate of games. Click the team logos for one of the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.
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| Specific bet recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our MLB Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Cubs vs. Pirates
Tuesday, June 20 7:05 p.m. ET MLB.TV |
Under 8 (-104)  |
By D.J. James
Marcus Stroman continues his Cy Young campaign against Johan Oviedo and the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday.
Stroman has defied his peripherals. He owns a 2.45 ERA against a 3.73 xERA. The wild thing is this has been a trend for four straight seasons, and he never eclipsed an ERA above 3.50 in that time span.
The Pirates also have not hit lately. They own an 86 wRC+ with a .672 OPS against righties in the month of June, so Stroman will likely carve them up.
On the other side, Oviedo boasts a 4.40 ERA against a 4.05 xERA, so he should have improved results soon.
He ranks in the 68th percentile in average exit velocity, and luckily for him, the Cubs have not been hitting righties either. In fact, Chicago owns a 78 wRC+ with a .632 OPS in June, so this is obviously even worse than the Pirates have fared. Look for Oviedo to mow down Cub hitters and earn some positive regression as well.
In relief, the Pirates own the worst xFIP, while the Cubs have been above average. They do have a couple of options to turn to when Oviedo exits. So as long as he can work around the walk issues he's accustomed to encountering at times, they should be in fine shape.
Given that both starters have upside and that Stroman has shown zero signs of slowing down, the under should be in play here. These offenses are both subpar and should give the starters longevity. Take the under to 7.5 (-125).
Pick: Under 8 (Play to 7.5 at -125) |
Mariners vs. Yankees
Tuesday, June 20 7:05 p.m. ET MLB.TV |
George Kirby Under 1.5 Walks (-200)  |
By Jim Turvey
This line makes no sense.
George Kirby is working on a historic season. His current walk rate of 0.67 batters per nine is the lowest walk rate for a qualified pitcher since Carlos Silva (throwback name alert) in 2005. Kirby has walked only six batters all season, and he hasn't walked more than one in a single start.
This line is quite juicy because of that fact, but it's not nearly juicy enough. bet365 has this prop at -200, which is an implied probability of 66.7%. I like this beyond even -300, with DraftKings (-245) and Caesars (-268) both having playable versions of this bet as well.
The Yankees have drawn the fourth-fewest walks against righties this season and are still without their biggest walk threat in Aaron Judge.
I was originally looking for a 0.5 version of this bet to make, but with the line set at 1.5 (-200), it carries a ton of value for Tuesday.
Pick: George Kirby Under 1.5 Walks (-200)
Red Sox vs. Twins
Tuesday, June 20 7:40 p.m. ET MLB.TV |
Kutter Crawford Over 4.5 Strikeouts (-145)  |
By Nick Shlain
One of my favorite bets on the slate for Tuesday is Boston Red Sox pitcher Kutter Crawford to go over 4.5 strikeouts at -145 at BetMGM.
Crawford has made only three starts this year for the Red Sox, but he looks promising so far. He faced only 11 and 13 batters in his first two starts but faced 20 in his last outing, showing that Boston is stretching him out.
He struck out five hitters in his last start to go over this number. Crawford should face at least 20 batters here and could face more depending on how efficient he is.
He has a 24% strikeout percentage this year but is even more effective against left-handed hitters. Crawford’s strikeout percentage against left-handed hitters this year comes in at 31%.
The Twins have struck out a ton this year, making this a great matchup for Crawford. Their projected lineup has a combined strikeout percentage of 29%. There are five left-handed hitters in Minnesota’s projected lineup as well, which plays into Crawford’s hand.
This is a great spot for an underrated and emerging strikeout pitcher.
Pick: Kutter Crawford Over 4.5 Strikeouts (-145) |
