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The Braves And Astros Look To Finish The First Half Strong, And Nolan Arenado Crushes Lucas Giolito

RECORD

11-14-2 (-1.7 units)

Reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated. We had ourselves a three-for-three day yesterday. Aledmys Diaz reached base twice. The Guardians scored first and won against the Royals, teeing off against Brady Singer. The Astros got into a dogfight with the Mariners. I wasn't feeling good about it when Hector Neris loaded the bases with nobody out in the 8th inning, but he found a way to pitch out of it, paving the way for known power hitter Martin Maldanado's heroics. I'll take my victories wherever I can find them. I'll take a 3-0 record and a combined Tigers no-hitter any day of the week. But that was yesterday. Let's take a look at today's picks.

Braves ML (+107) against the Rays

This one is trendy, but you will get few chances to get the Braves as underdogs. You have to take advantage of opportunities. The Rays are reeling right now. They've lost seven games in a row, and their divisional lead is slipping away. Atlanta is trending in the other direction. They don't lose. Like...they literally do not lose. And while Eflin has had a resurgent year on the mound for the Rays, Atlanta is maybe the only team in baseball where the opposing pitcher almost doesn't matter. This team hits EVERYONE right now. Bryce Elder is also pitching for Atlanta. He's been fantastic this year, and the Braves are 13-4 in games he's started. I think Atlanta stays hot going into the break.

Astros ML (+115) against the Mariners

Much like Atlanta, I'm taking advantage any time the Astros are underdogs, especially at home. Logan Gilbert is pitching for the Mariners. He's coming off of the best outing of his career last time out against the Giants, where he threw a complete game shutout. He is 18-4 in his career on the road, but his numbers at Minute Maid Park are brutal. He has a 6.86 ERA in four outings at Houston's home field. The Astros have gotten hot again. They're only two games back in the AL West right now. They might be closer to the top after today's game.

Nolan Arendao to homer (+380) against the White Sox

The Cardinals are having their worst season in a long time, and yet Nolan Arenado keeps getting it done. As a team? I'm not touching them. I swear, it seems like they lose every game at this point, and they have Matz on the mound today. He's been a disaster. At the same time, the Cardinals have one major advantage coming into this game, Nolan Arenado owns Lucas Giolito. It's a small sample size, but he's five for six against Giolito in his career, with three extra-base hits—the ball flys out at Guaranteed Rate Field. Giolito has looked more like himself this year, and he might pitch just fine today, but not against Nolan.

All odds come from the Barstool Sportsbook. Follow Barstool Baseball on all platforms, including our YouTube page.