I'm out on the Giants for now. San Francisco got swept by the Phillies, including losing both of yesterday's games after blowing ninth inning leads. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay has been a pleasant surprise thus far in 2026 and rolls out Shane McClanahan on the bump with a 2.00 ERA at home this season. I'll also be playing Yandy Diaz props, considering he's hitting .330 this season and is 7 for 22 lifetime against Giants starter Robbie Ray.

I'll be in attendance for the inevitable Oklahoma City sweep, so might as well have some action on the game. I do think Phoenix will go all out tonight, which means Jalen Green should once again carry a heavy scoring load. He is averaging more than 19 shots per game in this series and his points have increased from 17 to 21 to 26 in the three games thus far. I may even attempt to ladder this play up to 30 points assuming that the Suns keep things competitive throughout.

Backing the White Sox is never a comfortable option, but tonight seems as good a time as any to try it. Chicago has won its last two series (Athletics and Diamondbacks) on the road and comes home to face the Nationals and their primary pitcher tonight, Miles Mikolas. If you aren't aware, the veteran right-hander has a 9.15 ERA this season and is among the worst pitchers in baseball. With Munetaka Murakami, Miguel Vargas, and Colston Montgomery swinging hot bats, I'm rolling with the home team for 1.5 units on Friday.

There's no way the Dodgers can actually lose three straight games to the Rockies, right? I didn't think so. Shohei Ohtani is 3-for-7 against Rockies starter Jose Quintana with all three hits having left the yard. I was looking for a way to play his props at plus-money and this is a good option. I could see L.A.'s slugger hitting his sixth homer of the season or maybe even getting his first triple of 2026. Either way, I have a hard time seeing the best player in baseball do nothing against the soft-tossing Quintana and a lousy Rockies bullpen on Monday night.

We have a real barn burner on Monday night in Kansas City, with a team that has lost seven straight games (KC) vs. a team that has lost 5 of its last 6 (Baltimore). But I'll roll with the home team in part due to the success of Seth Lugo thus far, whose 1.48 ERA has been about the only bright spot to the Royals' brutal start. Expect him to be the stopper, keep the Orioles in check, and get Kansas City back on the winning track.

Unofficially, when I've gone to Diamondbacks games in the last four years, Arizona wins at least at least 2/3 of the time. Now that's not why I'm picking them on Friday night, but yes, I'll be at the game. The DBacks had a successful 6-3 road trip back east and had a day of rest, whereas Toronto flew from Milwaukee to Phoenix on Thursday night. In terms of the starting pitchers, Michael Soroka is 3-0 this season for the home team, while Eric Lauer has a 7.82 ERA for Toronto. Arizona wins 7-4.

Who knew rain could figure prominently in a domed stadium? If you saw the Milwaukee-Toronto game on Wednesday night, you know what I'm talking about. Nonetheless, don't expect another 2-1 duel with Patrick Corbin and Brandon Sproat pitching in Thursday's matinee. Both teams have potent offenses and neither pitcher is off to a particularly good start in 2026. I think we see double digit runs in this contest.

There's a bit of risk here as the Athletics have only scored four total runs in their last three games (yet they're 2-1 record-wise). But the offense is set to break out a bit tonight against Kumar Rocker, considering current A's players are a whopping 10 for 17 against him (.588 average). Thus far in 2026, the Texas right-hander has given up five runs in 10 innings pitched but I wouldn't be surprised if he had worse fortune in a hitter-friendly park tonight in Sacramento.

He may not be the Pirates' ace (or anywhere close to it), but Mitch Keller is off to a flying start in 2026. Three starts, six innings each, and only two total runs given up. Since the beginning of last season, Keller is 13-6 to the over 16.5 outs when pitching at home. While the Nationals roster has a collective .321 average against Keller, I believe the Pirates starter continues his excellent start to 2026 and pitches at least six innings tonight.

Rice has been a star on the young season with 4 home runs, 12 RBIs and a batting average over .330. He hits in the middle of the Yankees potent lineup and is 1-for-2 lifetime with two RBIs against Rays starter Nick Martinez. With an RBI in 5 of 11 starts this season, I expect he'll do damage as the Bronx Bombers even their weekend series in Tampa Bay on Saturday.

On 4/21/25, Max Meyer faced the Reds at home, tossing six shutout innings and fanning an impressive 14 batters. Can he post a similar line at home on 4/9/26? Through two starts this season, Miami's right hander boasts a 10.24 K/9 ratio, so assuming he can go at least five innings, I feel good about his chances of reaching six strikeouts. It also doesn't hurt that Cincinnati is striking out nearly 10 times per game. I don't like the juice, but I like Meyer's chances of hitting this prop on Thursday afternoon.

I'm still stinging after watching what Michigan did to my Arizona team on Saturday night. The 2025-26 Wolverines just might be an all-timer of a team. But UConn's Dan Hurley is the best coach in college basketball and is 11-0 ATS from the Sweet Sixteen onward. I just can't be confident in a spread pick on the game. Instead, I'll be investing in the total and likely going against the public. I know that Michigan has scored 90+ points in all five tournament games, but I believe Dan Hurley finds a way to scheme a much slower pace to this contest. Also, dating back to 2017, National Championship unders are 6-2. Michigan 74, UConn 67.

I can't let my Final Four pick of Arizona be the last college basketball pick I make on the site this season. So let's look at the total in this Crown Championship Game. Oklahoma games have been over this total in 34 of 36 games in 2025-26. They have averaged nearly 83 points per game and surrendered 77. On the other side, West Virginia games are usually painful to watch but both in this tournament have ended in the upper-150s. Look for the Sooners to dictate the pace with the Mountaineers having to play catch up. I think this ends up in the 140s at minimum.

Do you really think I was going to submit a pick against my beloved Wildcats? Sadly, I won't be in Indianapolis at the Final Four but maybe that's a good thing for their chances. The last time I saw Arizona play in person was in February against Texas Tech, a 78-75 OT loss. Since then, the Wildcats are 13-0 including a win over Purdue in the Elite Eight. That's the same Boilermakers team who all-but-dominated Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament Championship Game. Ignore the Tommy Lloyd-to-UNC rumors, this Wildcats team is focused and ready for their moment. Either way, the winner of this epic matchup will go on to win the National Championship. And that will be Arizona by the thinnest of margins, 82-79.

I think the wrong team is favored here. UConn already won this matchup by 13 in November and enters off one of the most stunning victories any of us have ever seen. Tarris Reed Jr. has been an absolute beast down low and picking against Dan Hurley in the Tournament is always a losing idea. He's now 14-0 ATS from the Sweet 16 onward, which is truly incredible. With that said, the Huskies have encountered a much more difficult path than the Fighting Illini and I also believe they're the better team top to bottom. Like the last matchup, I'm not sure this game will be all that close. UConn 74, Illinois 65.