Today’s MLB Betting Lines for 2024 ALDS Game 2

MLB betting offers a variety of options for fans to get involved in the action. Here are some of the most common types of MLB bets:

Straight Bets

• Moneyline:
  Bet on which team will win the match outright.
• Run Line:
  Bet on whether a team will cover the run line, which is a handicap set by the oddsmaker.
• Over/Under:
  Bet on whether the combined score of both teams will be over or under the total runs set by the oddsmaker.

Parlays

• Parlay:
  A bet that combines multiple wagers into a single bet. If all wagers win, the payout is significantly higher than if you bet on each wager individually.

Teasers

• Teaser:
  A bet that adjusts the run line or total runs in your favor, but at the cost of reduced odds.

Props

• Player Props:
  Bet on individual player performances, such as home runs, RBIs, or stolen bases.
• Game Props:
  Bet on specific events within a game, such as the first home run scorer or the total number of strikeouts.

Futures

• Futures:
  Bet on future events, such as which team will win the World Series or the MVP award.

For more information and the latest odds, visit our MyBookie’s MLB News section.

Previous Betting News

The 2004 ALCS was one of the most memorable playoff series ever as the Boston Red Sox rallied from a 3-0 series deficit to beat the New York Yankees. The Red Sox went on to win the World Series and end their 86-year title curse. On Friday in Game 1 of the ALDS, the Yankees and Red Sox play postseason baseball against one another for the first time since then. Boston is an MLB odds favorite at Fenway Park.

Yankees vs Red Sox ALDS Game 1 Odds & Prediction

When: Friday, 7:32 PM ET
Where: Fenway Park, Boston
Probable pitchers (away/home): JA Happ/Chris Sale
TV: TBS

Season Series

The Red Sox went 10-9 against the Yankees during the regular season and outscored them 116-102. These rivals played some lopsided games this season. Of their 19 games, seven of them were decided by at least seven runs. Only four were decided by no more than two runs.

Why Bet on NY Yankees?

Tuesday’s wild-card game vs. Oakland wasn’t much ever in doubt for the Bombers, who won 7-2, after Aaron Judge hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the first. The ball had an exit velocity of 116.1 mph, which stood as the hardest-hit postseason home run ever tracked by Statcast until Giancarlo Stanton belted a mammoth solo homer with a 117.4 mph exit velocity in the bottom of the eighth. Judge also doubled and scored in the Yankees’ four-run sixth inning and drew a walk in the bottom of the seventh, finishing 2-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored. He’s the only player to homer in multiple Wild Card Games. Stanton also drew a walk in the victory and scored two runs.

Luke Voit roped a two-run triple in the game. What’s going on with that dude? In a minor trade in July, the Yankees got him from St. Louis and Voit have become a fan-favorite and masher. The former 22nd-round pick batted .351/.426/.763 with 14 home runs and 31 RBI over his final 32 regular-season games.

The Yankees were the first team in Major League history to have 12 players hit at least 10 HR in the same season. Five teams have had 11 players reach double-digit home runs: Detroit in 2004, Houston in 2015 and 2017, Minnesota in 2016 and Toronto in 2018.

Aroldis Chapman recorded the final three outs of Wednesday’s win. The lefty hit triple-digits with his fastball multiple times, which is a great sign after Chapman missed much of August and September with tendinitis in his left knee.

J.A. Happ has been named the Yankees’ starter for Game 1 of the ALDS. The left-hander has been one of the Yankees’ best pitchers of late, going 7-0 in the 11 starts he made after being traded from Toronto on July 26. Happ won the first five games he appeared in with the Yankees after the trade. Happ finished the regular season with a 17-6 overall record and a 3.65 ERA. He went 1-1 with a 1.99 ERA in four starts against the Red Sox this season. He will be making his 11th playoff appearance, and first since 2016 when he was with the Blue Jays.

Why Bet on Boston?

The Red Sox had a historic season, going 108-54 and winning the most games in franchise history. They won the AL East and finished with the best record in baseball, so they will have home-field advantage in the ALDS as well as throughout the postseason. The Red Sox won seven of 10 games at Fenway vs. the Yankees this year and outscored them 76-48.

The 2018 Sox are 1 of 12 teams since 1900 to win 108+ games in a season (last: 2001 Mariners). Each of the previous 3 teams to win exactly 108 games won the World Series (1970 BAL, 1975 CIN, 1986 NYM). The Red Sox are 91-83-1 all-time in postseason play. They are 19-15 in 34 postseason series, having gone 6-6 in 12 trips to the ALDS (20-24 in DS play), 5-5 in the ALCS (26-31), and 8-4 in the World Series (45-28-1).

The Red Sox led MLB in runs scored (876), runs per game (5.4), AVG (.268), OBP (.339), SLG (.453), OPS (.792), doubles (355), and XBH (594). They also owned MLB’s 3rd-lowest strikeout rate (19.9%).

Ace lefty Chris Sale (12-4, 2.11) gets the start in Game 1. Sale threw his second bullpen session in as many days Wednesday. Sale was limited to an abbreviated side session in an indoor batting cage on Tuesday due to nasty weather in Boston, and when he arrived back at Fenway Park for Wednesday’s team workout, he told manager Alex Cora that he wanted to throw again. Sale is trying to correct some mechanical flaws that came about upon his return from a late-season shoulder injury.

Sale fell only 4.0 innings shy of qualifying for the 2018 ERA title (158.0 IP). Among pitchers with 150.0+ IP, he led MLB in SO/9.0 IP (13.50) and WHIP (0.86), ranked 2nd in opponent AVG & OPS (.181/.532), and was 3rd in ERA (2.11). In 2 starts vs. NYY this season, Sale went 2-0 with a 0.69 ERA (1 ER/13.0 IP), 19 SO, and 1 BB. He owns a 1.61 career ERA (18 ER/100.2 IP) against the Yankees, the lowest mark in the Live Ball Era (min. 10 starts).

Rockies at Brewers NLDS Game 2 Odds & Preview

Expert MLB Betting Prediction for Yankees vs Red Sox

Yankees for a Game 1 upset.

Previous Betting News

The past two American League pennant winners face off in Houston on Friday afternoon as the AL Central champion Cleveland Guardians visit the defending World Series champion Houston Astros in Game 1 of the ALDS. Looks to be a great pitching matchup, with Houston as home MLB odds favorite.

How to Bet Indians vs Astros ALDS Game 1 Odds & Game Info

When: Friday, 2:05 PM ET
Where: Minute Maid Park, Houston
Probable pitchers (away/home): Corey Kluber/Justin Verlander
ALDS Game 1 Odds: Houston Astros -140 / Cleveland Indians +130 (Total 6.5)

Why Bet on Cleveland?

Cleveland is heading to its fourth postseason in the past six campaigns. The club’s 545-425 record since the start of 2013 is the best in the A.L. and second-best overall behind the Dodgers. The Indians clinched their third consecutive A.L. Central division title on September 15, their earliest clinch date since doing so on September 8, 1999.

Will the Tribe have catcher Yan Gomes for Game 1? He didn’t participate in Tuesday’s intrasquad game. Gomes required stitches for his right thumb after suffering a laceration during Saturday’s game against the Royals. While he’s getting some extra time to heal, the expectation is that he’ll be ready to go for Game 1 of the ALDS on Friday. The Tribe boosted their playoff chances by trading for ex-AL MVP Josh Donaldson at the end of August. He’ll be the every-day third baseman in the playoffs.

It’s two-time Cy Young winner Corey Kluber (20-7, 2.89) on the mound, and he might win a third Cy this year. Kluber didn’t factor into the decision in Saturday’s 9-4 loss to the Royals, allowing three runs on seven hits and two walks over five innings while striking out six. The right-hander got pulled after 80 pitches (59 strikes) in a meaningless game for Cleveland, and he will be well-rested Friday. Kluber’s 20 wins were a career high and he finished with 222 strikeouts — his fifth straight campaign with at least 200 K’s.

Kluber faced Houston twice this year and struck out 17 in 13 ⅓ innings. The Astros managed three extra-base hits against him and scored two earned runs.

Tribe starters recorded 98 quality starts this season, tops in MLB and Cleveland’s most in a single campaign since notching 108 in 1968. Overall this year, Indians starters rank 2nd in the A.L. and 3rd in MLB with a 3.40 ERA (HOU – 3.17, LAD – 3.24). Cleveland starting pitchers rank 2nd in MLB with 1,060 strikeouts, while they have allowed just 242 walks (5th-fewest in MLB). Indians pitchers have recorded 30 starts with at least 10 strikeouts, 2nd-most in MLB behind Houston (31). The Tribe’s 30 starts are tied with the 2002 D-backs for 4th-most in MLB history, behind Houston, the 2001 D-backs (35) and the 1973 Angels (32).

Why Bet on Houston?

The Astros would have home-field advantage against every team in the 2018 playoffs other than if they face the Boston Red Sox in the ALCS. Including this season, the Astros have made the postseason 12 times, including seven division titles, as they won the NL West in 1980 and 1986, the NL Central in 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2001, and the AL West last season and this.

Houston is the only team in Major League history to win three different divisions and the only team in MLB history to win the AL (2017) and NL (2005) pennant. The Astros reached the century mark in victories for just the third time in franchise history and are the first team to post consecutive 100 win seasons since the 2002-04 Yankees. They are just the fifth defending WS champion to win 100 games in a season since 1970.

Second baseman Jose Altuve was last year’s AL MVP but won’t be repeating. He missed some time this year injured and finished with a slash of .315/.384/.449 with 13 homers, 61 RBI and 17 steals in 21 attempts over 137 games. Very good numbers but not quite his amazing 2017 ones.

Houston starts Justin Verlander (16-9, 2.52) in Game 1. In his final regular-season start, Verlander struck out 10 and allowed three hits and a walk across six scoreless innings during Game 1 of Saturday’s doubleheader against the Orioles. He did not factor in the decision. Verlander exited after six innings with a 3-0 lead, but the bullpen promptly allowed three runs during the seventh to cost him a shot at the win.

Verlander had one the finest, most dominant seasons of his lengthy and likely Hall of Fame career. He led all AL pitchers in WHIP (0.90), WAR (6.8), strikeouts (290) and quality starts (26), ranked second in innings (214) and third in ERA (2.52) and in opponent batting average (.200). Verlander shined down the stretch for the ‘Stros, posting a 3-0 mark in five September starts with a 1.09 ERA and a .143 opponent average.

The 35-year-old right-hander was acquired last August to pitch in games of significance, and he posted a 2.21 ERA over six postseason outings (five starts) in 2017, including a memorable, seven-shutout-inning masterpiece in Game 6 of the AL Championship Series that helped him earn ALCS MVP Award honors. In his postseason career, he’s 11-6 with a 3.07 ERA in 22 games (21 starts).

Expert MLB Playoffs Prediction for Indians vs Astros

Love the under! Go Houston for a 1-0 series lead.

Previous Betting News

Forget about the Yankees who played like a bunch of sissies in their loss to the Astros on Monday; here is a team you can trust to give a respectable performance in the MLB Playoffs–the Texas Rangers. Though they come into their ALDS game against the Toronto Blue Jays as MLB betting underdogs, the Rangers have a lot going on in their favor to warrant trust from their supporters in the MLB odds and lines. But before we delve into all that, kindly take note of the following game details so that you can plan on how to place your wagers accordingly and in a timely manner.

In Depth Analysis on the Texas Rangers vs Toronto Blue Jays ALDS Game 1 Betting Pick

Starter Pitchers: Yovani Gallardo vs. David Price
Venue: Rogers Centre, Toronto, Ontario
Date: Thursday, October 8m 2015
Time: 3:37 PM ET
TV: FS1

Rangers vs. Blue Jays Historic Betting Trends

The Rangers have arguably been the hottest team in the MLB over the last couple of months, bragging of the best record in the league since August 15th (at 31-17), the second-best record since September 1st (at 20-12) and the third-best record since September 16th (at 11-7). It is essentially because of that strong finish to the regular season, and the faltering of the Houston Astros in the past two months, that the Rangers finished as AL West Champions. Considering they were the worst team in the division just a season ago, it is certainly commendable that Rangers (88-74) finished as the best team in the AL West this season.

The Rangers have, however, not been alone in their hot run, as the Blue Jays (93-69) have been right there with them. The Jays are 29-16 since August 15th, 19-14 since September 1st, and 11-7 since September 16th. Their splendid romp in the season, which was greatly boosted by a number of key signings in the MLB Trade Deadline, resulted in an AL East title, their first divisional title since 1993.

After such impressive regular season performances, you can be sure that the both teams will be looking to make most of this opportunity to advance further in the playoffs and hopefully stake a claim on the 2015 World Series odds.

In the regular season, the Jays won 4 of the 6 games played against the Rangers, claiming 2 of 3 games at home back in June, and then 2 of 3 in Arlington in August. That fine run against Texas, along with the home advantage in this Game 1 clash, is the key reason why the Blue Jays are considered as hot baseball betting favorites over their visitors.

Remarkably, Toronto’s strength has been in their offense, ranked best in the MLB  in runs (891), slugging percentage (.457) and base percentage (.340), plus second-best in second in batting average (.269). Josh Donaldson has been the most lethal piece in this offense, leading Toronto in homers (41), RBI (123) and batting average (.297). The Rangers will thus need their defense to be very disciplined to stop Donaldson and his very solid unit.

Moreover, the trading deadline gamble on acquiring ace David Price from the Rays has paid off greatly, as the pitching guru has gone 9-1 with a 2.30 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 87 strikeouts in 74.1 innings against just 18 walks since joining the Blue Jays in the midseason. With Price set to start this series, the Rangers will also have to find ways of containing the ace lefty starter.

For Texas, their mixture of decent performances from both ends of the field is what has been responsible for their good run. The fact that the Rangers were shaky in their pitching staff this season, ranking 23rd and 24th in team ERA (4.24) and opponents’ batting average (.266), respectively, has been vastly discussed as a concern for the team in the playoffs.

Even so, Texas fans can take comfort in the fact that right-hander Yovani Gallardo, who will be starting in this game, did not allow a run in his two starts against the Jays this season. Though he is not known for strike out many batters or throwing the ball hard, Gallardo (3.42 ERA this season) is a finesse thrower who specializes in pitching to contact and keeping hitters off balance with a variety of throws, which could help in keeping Toronto’s scores relatively regulated.In addition, the Jays will be using 20-year-old Roberto Osuna as their closer, which is good news for the Rangers since the rookie has been a bit shaky on the mound this season. This could give the Rangers a chance to close the game strongly.

My Betting Prediction

Even without solid play on the mound, the havoc-wrecking trio of Donaldson, Jorge Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion (who combined for 120 home runs and 348 runs batted in this season) would have been sufficient to lead Toronto to a win in this game. The fact that Price is available in the hill is therefore a huge added advantage, and when you combine that with the home advantage, the Jays are undeniably the best option for the victory in the free MLB picks. In the run-total, this series has been producing big-scoring margins, so we believe another high-scoring clash is in the books. The game should thus be able to pay bettors with OVER eight runs.

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MyBookie Odds for the Games

Previous Betting News

The Houston Astros are a young and developing team, but none of that mattered when they played the veteran-laden New York Yankees on Monday Night in a National League Wild Card game, a showdown they handily won as Dallas Keuchel shined to give the Astros an all-important 3-0. Up next for Houston is the Royals team from Kansas City, the team that shocked last year’s MLB odds to become the reigning AL Champs.

The Astros-Royals best-of-five American League Divisional Series will be starting on Thursday night at Kauffman Stadium, as Houston looks to ride on the Wild Card victory, pretty much like last year’s Kansas City team did to go all the way to the Playoff Finals. There is, however, just one problem with that plan—the Astros will be going against Ned Yost’s squad that is coming off a 95-win season, and their first division title in 30 years, something that is bound to a big motivation for them to do even better than in last year’s campaign.

With young and energetic talents on both teams, and a great sense of belief from both teams, who will be drawing first blood in their Game 1 clash this Thursday? Follow us, as we take you through a preview of this enticing MLB betting clash, complete with free baseball picks.

Here’s Our Take on the MLB Odds for Game 1 on Astros at Royals & TV Info

Starting Pitchers: Collin McHugh vs. Yordano Ventura
Venue: Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri
Date: Thursday, October 8m 2015
Time: 7:37 PM ET
TV: FS1

As you’d probably expect, Kansas City (95-67) enters this game as the favorite in the MLB betting lines as favorite to win this matchup. The Royals will however need to be wary of the fact that the Astros (87-76) have been a good team throughout the season, and after beating the Yankees in New York earlier in the week, they won’t hesitate to take exploit any loopholes against Kansas City this Thursday.

Outside the young nature of both squads and their similar zest for success, the two teams are also more-or-less comparable in pitching, as both squads finished in the top seven in runs scored across the majors, riding hard on their pitchers to dominate opponents. The Astros team led the AL with a 3.57 ERA and finished second with 13 shutouts, while the Royals were third in the AL with a team ERA of 3.73.

Also, each side has a top notch bullpen, so although the Royals lost star reliever Greg Holland to a season-ending injury, Wade Davis and Co. should be good to go against Houston’s closers, spearheaded by Luke Gregerson, who led Houston’s pen with 31 saves, and grabbed the first postseason save of his career against the Yankees on Monday.

In addition, just five runs separated Houston’s 6th-ranked offense from Kansas City’s 7th-ranked offense, meaning both teams will be bringing a lot of attacking quality this Thursday.

However, whereas Kansas City tends to play to contact and grind out runs, the Astros tend to pounds home runs at the expense of strikeouts. Also, whereas Houston often accepts walks, Kansas City is known to prefer swinging away, regardless of the count. Another difference is that, while Kansas City’s offense heavily relies on making timely hits and smart base-running, Houston tends to go for a combination of speed and power to wear down opponents. It will therefore be interesting to see how the similarities and differences affect their meeting on Thursday.

To lead their charge, the Royals will give the ball to Yordano Ventura, who along with probable Game 3 starter Edinson Volquez tied for a team-best 13 wins apiece this season. Deadline day acquisition Johnny Cueto, who hasn’t impressed much in Kansas City colors will be the starter in Game 2, as he hopes to find his form in the playoffs.

On the opposite end, star pitcher Collin McHugh will be taking to the hill for the Astros. McHugh is coming off a wildly successful season, with his 19-7 record over 32 starts this season coming just one-win shy of Cy Young favorite Dallas Kuechel. Given that the Royals didn’t get to face McHugh in the regular season, it’s going to be a tough ask for Kansas City to prepare adequately on how to handle him.

In addition to the McHugh x-factor, the Astros have a far-much better offense than the Royals (at least on paper). Using the regular season as an example, the Astros led the AL in homers whole the Royals were last in that department. Also, the Astros had better numbers in steal bases (121 compared to Kansas City’s 104.).

But as key factor favoring the home team, recently tabulated reports indicate that the Royals lead MLB in highest local TV ratings, meaning the Astros will be facing a very loud and unfriendly crowd, probably worse than what they faced in New York. This could be intimidating to the very young Houston team and affect how they play. In addition, the Royals have considerably better playoff experience after going all the way to Game 7 of the World Series. Of course, this was after a 29-year playoff drought, but it should count for something against the Astros, who are in the playoffs for the first time since reaching the World Series in 2005.

My MLB Betting Prediction

Going by the explosiveness of both teams, this  will be a high-energy game, as the Royals seek to fend off an Astros team riding the same kind of high they felt after winning last season’s wild-card game. Still, when all is said and done, we believe Houston will come out on top, mainly because they have a better offense and McHugh has been considerably better on the hill than Ventura. For total bettors, a high-scoring game looks to be in the offing, so lean on an OVER.