MLB Saturday best bets & top parlay picks – August 20, 2022

Saturday’s Major League Baseball (MLB) schedule features a Mets/Phillies doubleheader as well as every other team in action. Here are the best bets on MLB games scheduled for August 20th starting at 1:05 p.m. Eastern.

Washington Nationals @ San Diego Padres

All-Star Joe Musgrove is scheduled to start in San Diego against the Nationals, and while he hasn’t been great since the All-Star break, his ERA still sits at 2.98 and his WHIP is just 1.03. More importantly, he has limited the damage Washington has done against him despite allowing eight hits in 30 at-bats. That .267 batting average against has resulted in just a .633 OPS against because Musgrove has allowed just one extra-base hit to the Nats. Nelson Cruz is five-for-12, so consider betting on him to have multiple hits on Saturday.

Josiah Gray is expected to take the mound for Washington. His 137 strikeouts this season ranks 18th overall, but his 4.79 ERA and 1.29 WHIP leave plenty to be desired. The Padres are mostly unfamiliar with him, so he’ll have that going for him for the first few innings. Only Jorge Alfaro and Brandon Drury have seen him, collecting one hit in six combined at-bats. Gray has struggled in night games, and this one is scheduled for 8:40 p.m. Eastern. His 5.86 ERA in night games spanning 73.2 innings pitched is more than 2.5 runs higher than his day-game ERA spanning 44.2 innings pitched (3.02).

Take San Diego in the first five innings, on the moneyline, and on the run line. Consider parlaying those bets with…

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Kansas City Royals @ Tampa Bay Rays

Drew Rasmussen will start in Tampa Bay against the Royals. He’s 7-4 with a 2.80 ERA and 1.08 WHIP this season. Rasmussen is coming off an excellent start against the surprising Orioles in which he pitched into the ninth inning and allowed just one run. Kansas City is six-for-22 against him with one extra-base hit for a .273 batting average and .591 OPS against.

Kansas City will counter with Kris Bubic, who is 2-7 with a 5.11 ERA and 1.60 WHIP. Bubic earned the win over the Rays on July 24th, pitching seven shutout innings despite striking out just four batters. The Royals have scored just 460 runs this season, however. That’s seventh-worst in MLB. Kansas City relievers have also posted the third-worst ERA and the worst WHIP this season. Bubic has completed six innings just five times in 19 starts this season, so expect the Rays to get plenty of hacks against that bad bullpen.

Bet on Tampa Bay to get revenge on Bubic and the Royals. Take the Rays on the moneyline. Parlaying Tampa Bay with San Diego on the moneyline pays just -114, so consider making it a trifecta by including…

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Chicago White Sox @ Cleveland Guardians

The White Sox allowed 21 runs to the Astros on Thursday. As a result, Chicago’s bullpen is now in the bottom third of the league when measured by ERA (4.13) or WHIP (1.33). Luckily for the White Sox, Johnny Cueto is having his best season since 2016 with San Francisco. He’s also coming off his best performance of the year against Houston, in which he completed eight innings and allowed just one earned run despite striking out just three batters. Cleveland got the win against Chicago in Cueto’s start on July 23rd, however, and the Guardians have collected plenty of hits against him. Cleveland batters are 10-for-31 but have just one double for a .323 batting average and .699 OPS against. Steven Kwan has the double and another hit in just four at-bats, so do with that information what you will.

Shane Bieber has won his last four starts, completing seven innings in three of them and allowing just five runs over 27 innings pitched. Bieber’s been effective against the White Sox, allowing just 36 hits in 162 at-bats for a .222 batting average and .648 OPS against. Most of the damage against him has been done by Jose Abreu, who is 11-for-39 with a double and three dingers. Bet on him to have multiple total bases on Saturday. You might also consider placing the same bet on Eloy Jimenez and Yoan Moncada, who each have three extra-base hits against Bieber.

Both of these teams have middle-of-the-pack offenses, with Cleveland ranked 16th in runs scored and Chicago ranking 17th. This game will be won by Cleveland’s considerably better bullpen. Guardians relievers have posted the fourth-best WHIP in MLB this season. Take Cleveland on the moneyline. A moneyline trifecta featuring the Guardians, Rays, and Padres pays +210.

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There are the best MLB bets for Saturday, August 20th. Get your bets in before first pitch at 1:05 p.m. Eastern and please gamble responsibly.

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