MLB Best Bets and Betting Picks for September 14th
Welcome back to another round of MLB betting picks as we take a deep dive into the Major League Baseball schedule for Thursday night. While you enjoy the Thursday Night Football Vikings vs Eagles matchup, why not have some MLB bets in the mix as well?! Our top MLB picks today feature an AL East showdown between the Tampa Bay Rays and Baltimore Orioles. Plus, we look at an MLB player prop in the San Francisco Giants vs Colorado Rockies matchup tonight. Be sure to check out the latest MLB weather report and the confirmed MLB lineups when placing those MLB bets today. Plus, the MLB daily projections will help you find the best matchups for MLB betting picks and MLB DFS lineups. Let's dive into the top MLB bets and baseball props today for Thursday, September 14th.
MLB Best Bets for September 14
Tampa Bay Rays at Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles and Tampa Bay Rays start up a huge series tonight with plenty of AL East and playoff implications. The O’s hold just a two-game lead over the Rays in the division standings before this four-game series gets underway. Baltimore is coming off back-to-back losses to the Cardinals and will be looking to rebound here at home. In fact, the Orioles haven’t lost three games in a row in over two months and they’ve only lost 3+ games in a row twice this whole season. That’s a good track record for a team that’s consistently avoided losing streaks.
Kyle Bradish is on the mound for Baltimore and he’s turned it on lately. The right-hander is looking like a true ace for the American League’s best team. He has a 2.38 ERA and 2.88 FIP over his last seven starts since the start of August. The Orioles have also won all seven of those games with Bradish posting six straight quality starts. The Rays offense, on the other hand, is about league-average vs righties over the past two weeks (.319 wOBA, 107 wRC+).
Meanwhile, the Orioles offense should provide enough run support for Bradish and the bullpen to hold things down. Rays starter Aaron Civale has stumbled a bit recently with a 5.31 ERA over his last five starts and a 4.29 ERA since he joined the Tampa rotation at the trade deadline. Civale’s 3.62 xERA this season is also worrisome compared to his current 2.96 ERA, as some negative regression could still be coming. The Baltimore offense is one of the league’s best vs right-handed pitching lately with a .371 wOBA, .233 ISO, and 139 wRC+ in the past week. The pitching matchup and offensive advantages for the Orioles both point to a home win to maintain control of the AL East.
Pick: Baltimore Orioles ML (-135 on DraftKings)
San Francisco Giants at Colorado Rockies
The San Francisco Giants head over to Coors Field for tonight's matchup against the Colorado Rockies. It's always risky betting on a pitcher prop when he's in the hitter-friendly Coors, but we're doing it here with Logan Webb. The Giants right-hander gets a favorable matchup against a Rockies offense that's struggled vs righties lately. Over the past two weeks, the Colorado hitters have just a .307 wOBA and 77 wRC+ against right-handed pitching with a high 25.8% strikeout rate.
As for Webb, he has at least five K's in 22 of 30 starts this season. He also 5+ strikeouts in five of his past eight outings. This line is a tad too low based on his track record this year and the plus-matchup. Of course, pitching on the road in Colorado is the big worry. Still, Webb struck out 10 against the Rockies back in June (at home) and can get to 5-6 K's here even if he allows a few runs. It's worth noting that Webb did just face Colorado last start and struck out four over six shutout innings. Let's bank on him making some adjustments and getting at least one more K this time.
Pick: Logan Webb Over 4.5 Strikeouts (-125 on BetMGM)
Player News
Andruw Monasterio is playing shortstop and batting eighth for the Brewers on Wednesday.
The Brewers are facing right-hander Gavin Williams, and Monasterio is still getting the start over Joey Ortiz. Monasterio has started the last three games, two at shortstop and one at third base, while both Ortiz and Caleb Durbin continue to struggle. Monasterio hit .250 with four home runs and eight steals in 30 games at Triple-A this season.
Colby Thomas went 4-for-6 with three RBI and two runs scored for Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday.
Thomas and his fellow Triple-A outfielder Denzel Clarke continue to put on a show in Triple-A, with Clarke also driving in three runs in this game. Clarke is on the 40-man roster while Thomas is not, but Thomas is slashing .314/.372/.551 in 37 games this season with eight home runs and two steals. The Athletics may need to find at-bats for both of these guys at some point over the summer.
Mariners C prospect Harry Ford went 4-for-4 with a home run, three RBIs, and three runs scored for Triple-A Tacoma on Tuesday.
Ford is now hitting .292 with an .851 OPS, two home runs, and 12 RBI on the season. There is no spot for the 22-year-old in Seattle, but it’s nice to see him begin to find his power stroke a bit.
Dalton Rushing went 2-for-5 with a walk, a home run, three RBI, and two runs scored for Triple-A Oklahoma City on Tuesday.
The 24-year-old is now hitting .308 with a .938 OPS, five home runs, and 17 RBI on the season. Rushing is primarily a catcher but has also played nine games at first base and two games in left field this season as the Dodgers look to create any path for him to get at-bats with the big league club.
Matt Shaw went 1-for-5 with a solo home run for Triple-A Iowa.
Shaw is not exactly setting the world on fire at Triple-A, slashing .257/.381/.443 in 19 games with two home runs and 3 steals. He also has 13 walks to just nine strikeouts, so his plate discipline has been tremendous. The Cubs are also giving Michael Busch pre-game work at 3B as they look to see if Moises Ballesteros can remain with the team as a regular first baseman. It seems like Shaw has a little more competition for the 3B job than we expected a few weeks ago.
Astros INF/OF prospect Shay Whitcomb went 2-for-3 with two home runs, two walks, four RBI, three runs scored, and a steal for Triple-A Sugar Land on Tuesday.
Whitcomb is on fire right now and is hitting .267 with 11 home runs, 24 RBI, and four steals at Triple-A. The 26-year-old can play second base, third base, and the corner outfield spots, and push for another MLB opportunity if the Astros get to a point where they decide Cam Smith may be better off starting every day at Triple-A.