The Guardians own the second-worst OPS against left-handed pitching (.631) this season. Over the past 15 days, they rank 10th in strikeout rate versus southpaws. It's a great matchup for Garrett Crochet, who has fanned at least eight batters in each of his last five home starts. Look for Crochet to pitch into the seventh inning and extend that streak.
San Francisco ranks dead last in OPS (.616) versus left-handed pitching, and collectively current Giants are 9-for-49 with a .522 OPS against Cubs lefty Matthew Boyd. Boyd owns a 2.14 ERA over his last 12 starts. I like the Cubs to get to Justin Verlander, who gave up seven earned runs in his last start. The 42-year-old has yielded the highest WHIP (1.44) since his rookie year in 2005. Back Chicago in the first five.
Rangers lefty Patrick Corbin has been shellacked in August, posting an 11.48 ERA and giving up at least three earned runs in each of his four starts. Current Angels hitters have a strong history against Corbin. He might not last long, but I bet him to give up at least three earned runs before he departs.
Diamondbacks lefty Eduardo Rodriguez (5-7, 5.40 ERA) has gone Under this prop total in nine of 12 road starts. Monday night, he faces a Milwaukee lineup that leads MLB with an .840 OPS over the past 30 days. The Brewers rank eighth against lefties for the entire season. Look for the Brewers to knock out Rodriguez before he completes six innings.
Orioles lefty Cade Povich has been a better pitcher since returning this month from a hip injury. In three outings spanning 16.2 innings, Povich has fanned 22 batters while posting a more respectable 4.32 ERA. He's facing an Astros lineup that has struck out at the sixth-highest rate vs. left-handers over the past 30 days. Last Saturday, Povich entered in a bulk relief role at Houston and struck out 10 over five innings.
Sonny Gray has fanned 22 batters in his three August starts covering 19 innings. This is a great matchup for Gray. Over the past 30 days, the Rays are striking out at the second-highest rate vs. right-handed pitching. Tampa Bay has averaged 10.3 strikeouts over its last three games. Look for Gray to fan at least six.
The Rays are 1-11 in their last 12 road games, and on Tuesday they have to face an improving Jose Soriano. He posted a 2.75 ERA over six July starts. Rays starter Ryan Pepiot has served up nine homers in his last six starts and faces an Angels team that's hit 159 homers, tied for fourth in MLB. Back the Angels to continue their unexpected push for a Wild Card spot.
After stints with the White Sox and Nationals, Michael Soroka is pitching for a contender again. I bet the Cubs in his debut Monday, as Soroka has been much better than his 4.87 ERA indicates. He has an expected ERA of 3.33 along with a career-high strikeout rate of 25.4 percent. Soroka has allowed one homer over his last seven starts. And on July 23, Soroka pitched very effectively against the Reds, holding them to one run on two hits over 5.2 innings.
The Brewers have won Quinn Priester's last 11 starts and they have a big starting pitching edge Monday. Atlanta will trot out Erick Fedde (3-11, 5.33 ERA) for the second time, despite the fact that he's been hit hard in six straight starts. Over the past 15 days, the Brewers own an MLB-best .847 OPS compared to the Braves' .708 OPS.
The red-hot Marlins are back to .500, and on Monday they have a starting pitcher edge with Sandy Alcantara facing Houston's Jason Alexander. Alcantara has not allowed an earned run over his last 14 innings and is relieved to still be with Miami. In three appearances last month, Alexander gave up 18 hits and six walks in 13.2 innings. He'll have to deal with a surging Kyle Stowers (8 RBIs in weekend sweep of Yankees) as Miami seeks its sixth straight win.
Rangers starter Jack Leiter is coming off consecutive strong outings, but those came at home. On the road, he has struggled with command (26 walks in 40 innings) while going 2-4 with a 4.65 ERA. Moreover, current Mariners are batting a collective .316 against him with a .977 OPS. Logan Gilbert owns a 1.94 home ERA. Back Seattle, bolstered by new acquisitions Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez, to lead after five.
The White Sox are 8-4 since the All-Star Break and should fare well against Angels lefty Tyler Anderson. He's given up five homers in his last four starts and his K rate declined dramatically last month. For the season, he has surrendered an expected slugging percentage of .470. With the White Sox raking against lefties lately, I bet them to at least be tied through five innings.
Nathan Eovaldi has been nearly unhittable this month, going 4-0 with a 0.38 ERA. The Angels counter with Jose Soriano, who continues to be undervalued. While the Rangers have had success against him this season, Soriano enters this matchup in elite form, having allowed five earned runs over his last three starts. This number has fallen to 4 at several books, which is a stay-away for me.
Will Warren is a much tougher pitcher at home, where he sports a 3.02 ERA and 70 strikeouts in 59.2 innings. He faced the Rays in early May at Yankee Stadium and registered eight strikeouts in 4.2 innings. The Rays fan a lot more often on the road and have been rung up 29 times over their last three games. Look for Warren to get at least five Ks on Wednesday.
Zebby Matthews has pitched better than his 4.97 ERA indicates, and his stuff is electric. He owns a 30.6 percent K rate. Matthews is coming off a dominant six-inning performance vs. Washington in which he fanned seven. Against Boston's announced lineup, I bet Matthews to record at least six strikeouts.