Thursday’s schedule for MLB games is limited to just a few – so we didn’t have the kind of options that we normally do for picking our best MLB bets for August 17th.
Given the lack of games, we decided to throw in a more obvious favorite play, doubled-down from a team we took on Wednesday, and generally did all we could to find something of value despite there being such slim pickings.
No excuses here – check out the best MLB bets for August 17th below.
Seattle Mariners (-240) at Kansas City Royals (+200) – 2:10 PM EST
Sometimes you look at a matchup and you struggle to find an area where one team has a noticeable advantage. That is not the case for the Mariners at Royals game.
The difference in the quality of starting pitchers – especially lately – is all the supporting evidence we need to confidently make this one of our best MLB bets for August 17th.
Mariners righty George Kirby has been outstanding in August. 1-0, 0.56 ERA, .115 OBA. OVER 16 innings pitched, hard to do much better than that. He even had a nine-inning shutout that didn’t result in a win.
Royals starting pitcher Angel Zerpa has a 1-1 record and 7.71 ERA in August, while allowing a .308 OBA. Now, Angel is not a traditional starter, but the stats are still alarming.
Plus, Kansas City is 27-54 after a loss – 2nd worst record in MLB. Kirby and the Mariners have our money as one of the best MLB bets for August 17th.
Best MLB bets for August 17th: Mariners ML (-240)
Boston Red Sox (-190) at Washington Nationals (+160) – 4:05 PM EST
The Red Sox lost to the Nationals on Wednesday and lost an opportunity to claim ground in the AL Wild Card picture.
Boston had sent James Paxton to the mound – arguably their ace since Chris Sale isn’t the team’s ace anymore. Speaking of Sale, he takes the hill on Thursday.
In his first start back from the IL, he pitched 4.2 innings allowing just one hit, two earned runs, while striking out seven and not allowing a walk. Impressive from Sale, even against the Detroit Tigers.
The Sox need a strong outing from Sale to wash out the bad taste of Wednesday’s loss.
Washington’s starter, Patrick Corbin, has a 3-7 record at home this season and opponents have a .323 batting average against him in Washington D.C. Corbin has been better in August, but his numbers against the Red Sox lineup are rough.
In 124 at-bats against Corbin, the hitters on the Red Sox roster have 41 hits (.387 batting average) with eight home runs – including two by Adam Duvall, two by Justin Turner, and three by Trevor Story.
So pitching favors Boston…offense favors Boston…desperation for a “W” favors Boston…Take the Red Sox on the run line.
Best MLB bets for August 17th: Red Sox -1.5 (-115)
Arizona Diamondbacks (-120) at San Diego Padres (+100) – 9:40 PM EST
Against NL West opponents this season, the D’backs are 22-18 while the Padres are 16-19. Want another favorable trend for Arizona? The team from the desert are 14-11 as an away favorite while San Diego are 2-4 as a home underdog.
Why are the Diamondbacks a road favorite? Zac Gallen!
2.37 ERA in August, 3.24 ERA on the season – Gallen has been an ace for Arizona throughout the year and against the Padres he’s been even better.
This season, Gallen has faced San Diego three times going 2-0 with a 1.89 ERA and .186 OBA.
Padres southpaw Rich Hill has history this season against the Diamondbacks – but unlike Gallen, Hill’s numbers are dreadful. In two previous starts against Arizona, Hill is 0-2 with a 9.82 ERA while allowing D’backs hitters to have a.389 batting average.
The trends and stats make it easy for this to be one of our best MLB bets for August 17th.
No wonder Gallen and the Diamondbacks are a road favorite. And, we can’t argue with the numbers! Take the road team in this one as one of the best MLB bets for August 17th.
Best MLB bets for August 17th: Diamondbacks ML (-120)