April 15 MLB Betting Guide
MLB Betting Guide for Thursday, April 15
Thursday’s MLB slate gives a full day of action, with a classic National League East matchup kicking the day off at 12:10 p.m. Eastern and continuing with a west-coast nightcap at 10:10 p.m. Eastern.
Here are a few games to target on today’s slate. Keep an eye on the Mets matchup with the Phillies. Jacob deGrom’s start is in danger of being washed out.
Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Washington Nationals Spread, Moneyline, Total, and Odds
Moneyline: Diamondbacks +148| Nationals -176
Spread: Nationals -1.5
Total: 9
Odds to Win World Series: Diamondbacks +15000 | Nationals +3500
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook. Sign up for FanDuel Sportsbook today and get your first bet risk-free for up to $1,000.
Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Washington Nationals, Analysis, and Picks
Probables: Merrill Kelly (Diamondbacks) vs. Patrick Corbin (Nationals)
Projected Lineup
Patrick Corbin will look to find his rhythm in the series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks. After a 2-1 series win against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Nationals return home after being swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers as part of their six-game road trip.
Corbin made his season debut on Apr. 10, an 80 pitch 9-5 loss against the Los Angeles Dodgers, going 4.1 innings, allowing six runs on six hits with five strikeouts.
Last season, he made 11 starts, going 2-7 with a 4.66 ERA, 1.57 WHIP and 20% K rate. Using primarily a two-pitch mix of fastball (52%) and slider (40%), his slider was responsible for a 37.1% K rate and a 22.8% PutAway rate.
Facing his former team, he’ll likely face a lineup featuring Tim Locastro, Kole Calhoun, Asdrubal Cabrera and David Peralta at the top of the order. The current line has little experience facing Corbin, with just 42 plate appearances, batting .100 and a 35.7% K Rate. Cabrera has faced him the most, going 1-11 with four strikeouts.
Taking the mound for the Diamondbacks, Merrill Kelly looks to get his first win of the season, with two straight losses to start the season. In 2020 Kelly made five starts going 0-2, with a 2.59 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 23.2% K rate. Kelly tends to let the ball stay on the ground, with a 42.3% ground ball rate and a 43% hard-hit rate. He uses a four-pitch mix of fastball (42%), curve (22%), cutter (20%) and changeup (15%), with his curveball used as his go-to put-away pitch. Averaging 81 MPH, the pitch resulted in a 39.1% K rate and 27.3% PutAway rate.
Kelly will likely face a Nationals lineup featuring Juan Soto, Trae Turner, Josh Bell and Kyle Schwarber at the top of the lineup. Like Corbin, Kelly has not seen the current National lineup, seeing batters only eight times.
Look for the Nationals to continue their winning streak giving Corbin his first win of the season.
The Bet: Nationals (-176)
Cleveland Indians vs. Chicago White Sox Spread, Moneyline, Total, and Odds
Moneyline: Indians +118| White Sox -138
Spread: White Sox -1.5
Total: 8
Odds to Win World Series: Indians +4000 | White Sox +1100
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook. Sign up for FanDuel Sportsbook today and get your first bet risk-free for up to $1,000.
Cleveland Indians vs. Chicago White Sox News, Analysis, and Picks
Probables: Aaron Civale (Indians) vs. Lance Lynn (White Sox)
Projected Lineup
In the four-game series’s finale, the White Sox will look to cement a series win against the Indians after an 8-0 win on Wednesday night, with Carlos Rodon throwing a 114-pitch no-hitter. Throwing his four-seam fastball 50% of the time at an average velocity of 95 MPH, Rodon recorded a 33% CSW rate, with 12 Whiffs.
Taking the mound for the White Sox is Lance Lynn, who threw a complete-game shutout on Apr.8, throwing 11 pitches in a 6-0 win against the Kansas City Royals, giving up five hits and recording 11 strikeouts.
In 2020, Lynn, a member of the Texas Rangers, started 13 games, going 6-3 with a 3.32 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and a 25.6% K rate. Using a three-pitch mix of fastball (68%), cutter (22%), curve (9%), he relies on his four-seam fastball as the put-away pitch, resulting in a 27.5% K rate and a 21.6% PutAway rate.
He’ll likely face an Indians lineup of Cesar Hernandez, Jose Ramirez, Eddie Rosario and Franmil Reyes at the heart of the order. In 45 plate appearances, the Indians roster has a 22% K rate and a 0.128 batting average.
Aaron Civale will take the mound for the Indians, coming off an 11-3 win against the Detroit Tigers on Apr. 10. Civale threw 90 pitches in 7.2 innings, recording six strikeouts and giving up one run on three hits. Throwing his changeup 24%, he recorded a 23% CSW with an average velocity of 85 MPH.
In the 2020 season, Civale started 12 games, going 4-6 with a 4.74 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and a 21.9 % K rate. Using a diverse mix of fastball (35%), cutter (29%), curve (21%), changeup (9%) and slider (9%), he uses the cutter as the primary put-away pitch, resulting in a 23.1% PutAway rate in 345 pitches.
He’ll face a power-heavy White Sox lineup of Adam Eaton, Luis Robert, Jose Abreu and Yoan Moncada at the top of the order, with Moncada seeing the most success, going 5-11. Keep an eye on Yermin Mercedes. In nine games this season, he has slashing .485/.541/.758 with three home runs. Although Civale has a career 42.7% ground ball rate, he has seen his hard-hit rate increase from 35.7% to 39.4%.
With Lynn’s tendency to go deep in the game and the White Sox power bats, look for the club to seal a series victory.
The Bet: White Sox (-138)