We've got a massive Friday night baseball slate ahead of us, starting with a classic Cubs afternoon game and ending with Royals-Mariners on Apple TV.
Our MLB betting experts have 4 MLB picks and predictions for today's games on Friday, May 1.
Check 'em out below.
MLB Picks, Predictions Today
The team logos in the table below represent the matchups our MLB betting staff is targeting from today's slate of games. Click on the team logos for any of the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 2:20 PM | |
  | 6:40 PM | |
  | 7:10 PM | |
  | 9:38 PM | |
 | All Day | |
Specific betting 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. | ||
Diamondbacks vs Cubs Player Prop Picks
By Ryan Minion
I definitely have some concerns in regard to Collin Rea’s form thus far, as the Cubs’ right-hander is currently running an abysmal 4.61 ERA. The 35-year-old is struggling with his command in an already dwindling pitching arsenal, resulting from a significant drop in velocity.
Now, Rea is set to face an Arizona lineup that has been scorching as of late — and I worry about his ability to keep hitters off of the basepaths.
While Ketel Marte has gotten off to a relatively slow start to the season thus far, I am not worried in the slightest about him, as he's proven himself as one of the league's best hitters.
Marte is a high-contact switch-hitter with tremendous bat speed and power on both sides of the plate, averaging over 30 homers over the last three years.
Though Ketel was initially touted as more of a speedster when he was a young prospect, the Diamondbacks' three-time All-Star put on a ton of muscle that resulted in a complete transformation of his hitters’ profile as his slugging metrics soared over the next few seasons.
In addition to his much-improved slugging metrics, Ketel has absolutely dominated Rea — in six career head-to-head at-bats, the Arizona slugger has recorded four hits, a double, and two homers.
Given Marte's dominance over Rea and Rea’s mediocre form, I feel great backing the Snakes' slugger.
Check out some of Minion's other total base props here:
Pick: Ketel Marte Over 1.5 Total Bases (+150 or Better)
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Rangers vs Tigers F5 Moneyline Picks
Our own Sean Zerillo projects an edge on the F5 ML for this matchup.
While the consensus line sits at Texas -124, Zerillo projects the Rangers ML over -140, representing a 3% edge against the market.
As a reminder, you can see all of Zerillo's MLB game projections with an Action PRO Subscription. Find his projected lines every day on the PRO Projections tab.
While he's off to a slow start, I still view MacKenzie Gore as a well-above-average starting pitcher. If he could cut down on the walks, he could improve on his already-stellar 20.3% strikeout minus walk rate.
Hopefully, he dominates on the road this Friday, while the Rangers bash around the regressing Jack Flaherty.
Flaherty is running earned run indicators near six (5.46 xERA, 6.05 FIP, 5.92 xFIP), mainly because he can't locate anything (18% walk rate, 82 Location+).
Pick: Rangers F5 ML (-130 or Better)
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Phillies vs Marlins Strikeout Prop Pick
By Derek Carty
Editor's Note: This written best bet is a transcription from the latest episode of the Payoff Pitch podcast.
I don’t project a huge edge on this prop, but I think the projection misses the fact that Zach Wheeler is not the same Zach Wheeler he has been.
He had thoracic outlet syndrome surgery over the off-season, which is often a career-ending injury. While Wheeler is back on the mound, his stuff is simply not as effective.
While his expected strikeout rate was around 28% last season, it was 23% in his first start. His expected ERA was 3.66 last year, but it came in at 4.40 in his first start.
Plus, Miami strikes out at a below-average rate, which definitely does not help Wheeler.
Pick: Zack Wheeler Under 6.5 Strikeouts (-115 or Better)
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Mets vs Angels Prop Picks
By Chris Prince
This is a great price for Mike Trout against right-hander Christian Scott and the Mets.
Trout has been incredible against RHP over his career, and he's taken it to another level this season. He's delivered a .423 wOBA, a big .310 ISO, a 57.4% hard-contact rate, and a wild 26.2% barrel rate, all of which have come with a low .226 BABIP.
Scott likely doesn't last long in this game, and while this Mets bullpen has been surging of late, Trout has also hit LHP well this season, so he should see advantageous matchups throughout the game.
Pick: Mike Trout Over 1.5 Total Bases (-130 or Better)
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Sean Zerillo's Full Action App Card for Friday
Need more picks for Friday's action? It's always wise to see what our guy Zerillo is betting on!
Additionally, if you haven't already, download the Action App to track your bets and follow our MLB experts.
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