Nowadays in Major League Baseball it seems there are only three outcomes of an at-bat: home run, strikeout or walk. Over the weekend, the Minnesota Twins hit their 268th homer of the season – they were one of the weakest power-hitting teams in 2017 – to break the single-season MLB record. And obviously they are going to shatter it with about a month to go. The previous mark of 267 dingers was set by last year’s Yankees, who are also going to go way past that number. Here’s a look at two early-week MLB matchups. Check back for MyBookie MLB Odds.
Top MLB Betting Picks of the Week – September 2nd Edition
NY Mets at Washington Nationals
- When: Tuesday, 7:05 PM ET
- TV: MLB Network
- Live Stream: MLB.tv
Easily the best pitching matchup of the week between the reigning NL Cy Young winner in the Mets’ Jacob deGrom and three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer of the Washington Nationals.
DeGrom (8-8) took the loss against the Cubs on Thursday, pitching seven innings and giving up four runs on five hits and no walks while striking out seven. DeGrom was victimized by a pair of Victor Caratini homers that accounted for all four runs scored against him, the second of which was a three-run shot in the seventh inning that broke open a 1-1 tie. The disappointing outing snapped a string of 17 consecutive starts in which deGrom gave up less than four runs and marked his first loss since June 28.
DeGrom leads the majors with a 2.08 ERA (27 earned runs/117.0 innings) in his last 18 starts since May 22. The Mets are 7-11 in those games and deGrom himself is 5-3…During that span has fanned 147 and walked just 25. In his last start vs. the Nats, deGrom tossed 5.0 innings and took the loss on August 11 at Citi Field. He allowed three unearned runs in the first inning but was otherwise spotless, allowing just four hits and a walk while fanning seven.
Scherzer (9-5) allowed two earned runs on six hits and one walk while striking out eight across 4.1 innings Wednesday against the Orioles. He did not factor into the decision. Scherzer turned in another short outing in his second start since returning from the injured list. On the bright side, he struck out eight batters, giving him exactly 200 whiffs for the season. He was hit relatively hard by a poor lineup, surrendering a home run and double while also allowing three baserunners in two separate frames. Scherzer has admitted he doesn’t feel 100 percent yet, though he did up his pitch count to 89 — 18 more than he managed his last time out. He now owns a 2.46 ERA and 1.02 WHIP across 142.2 innings for the season.
Patrick Corbin, Stephen Strasburg and Scherzer recently recorded their 200th strikeouts of the season to become the first rotation in franchise history to have three pitchers record at least 200 strikeouts in a season. If each pitcher reaches 222 strikeouts this season, the Nationals will have the first rotation in Major League history to have at least three pitchers record at least 222 strikeouts in a season.
Minnesota Twins at Boston Red Sox
- When: Wednesday, 7:10 PM ET
- TV: MLB Network
- Live Stream: MLB.tv
It’s the battle of Fort Myers! Ok if you don’t live in Florida you might not get that. These two teams hold spring training about six miles apart in that Florida Gulf Coast city. This was to be Kyle Gibson’s spot for Minnesota but he landed the 10-day injured list Sunday after he was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. With Gibson at least unavailable for his upcoming start Wednesday in Boston, the Twins will likely to turn to one of a pair of September callups, Devin Smeltzer or Lewis Thorpe, to take the hill or opt to fill the right-hander’s spot in the rotation with a bullpen game.
The Red Sox go with lefty Eduardo Rodriguez. Rodriguez (16-5) earned the win over the Rockies last Wednesday, allowing three runs on nine hits and three walks while striking out five over five innings. Although Rodriguez allowed nine hits, the southpaw prevented major contact and did not surrender any home runs for the third straight game, which is especially impressive at Coors Field.
After tossing 14.2 scoreless innings in his last two starts, Rodriguez blanked the Rockies until the fourth frame when he loaded the bases and allowed Garret Hampson to reach on an RBI infield single. The 26-year-old began to unravel in the fifth, but he held Colorado to a pair of runs to limit the damage. Rodriguez, whose 16 wins are third-best among all major-league pitchers, now sports a 3.97 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 160:62 K:BB.
The Red Sox feature 3 of the AL’s 6 players batting .300+ with 25+ HR: Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers, and J.D. Martinez (also Gurriel, Altuve, Cruz). The Sox have never finished a season with 3 players batting .300+ with 30+ HR, and only 9 teams have ever done that (last: 2004 Cardinals).
The Twins have recorded an extra-base hit in 91 straight games, breaking a tie for the second longest streak in franchise history. The longest streak in baseball history was set by the Boston Red Sox from May 3, 2004-May 3, 2005 (164 games).
Expert MLB Betting Picks
Back Red Sox and Nationals.
