Betting the Monday baseball games often lends itself to the bizarre side, because you’ve got a hodgepodge of series ending and new series beginning. With the changes to the schedule that are coming in 2023 starting to make their way into the 2022 slate, we’ve got the potential for some even more craziness to occur. Case in point, the Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals will play one game Monday in St. Louis, then travel across the state of Missouri for two games in Kansas City to finish the series.
Meanwhile, the team that was just in St. Louis, the Arizona Diamondbacks, now has to trek to the southeastern corner of the nation and face the Miami Marlins. Whenever travel gets involved over the course of a long season, there’s always the potential to create a few surprises here and there.
With that in mind, here are the odds and lines for May 2.
MLB Odds, Schedule, and Probable Pitchers
Kansas City Royals vs. St. Louis Cardinals
Run Line: KC: +1.5 (-155) | STL: -1.5 (+125)
Moneyline: KC: +135 | STL: -160
Over/Under: 7 (-110)
Royals vs. Cardinals Starting Pitchers: Zack Greinke (KC) vs. Steven Matz (STL)
Royals vs. Cardinals Game Time: 1:15 p.m. EST
Royals vs. Cardinals Location: Busch Stadium, St. Louis
Los Angeles Angels vs. Chicago White Sox
Run Line: LAA: +1.5 (-190) | CHW: -1.5 (+155)
Moneyline: LAA: +110 | CHW: -130
Over/Under: 7.5 (-110)
Angels vs. White Sox Starting Pitchers: Patrick Sandoval (LAA) vs. Dylan Cease (CHW)
Angels vs. White Sox Game Time: 2:10 p.m. EST
Angels vs. White Sox Location: Guaranteed Rate Field, Chicago
Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Miami Marlins
Run Line: ARI: +1.5 (-165) | MIA: -1.5 (+135)
Moneyline: ARI: +135 | MIA: -160
Over/Under: 6.5 (-110)
Diamondbacks vs. Marlins Starting Pitchers: Zach Gallen (ARI) vs. Pablo Lopez (MIA)
Diamondbacks vs. Marlins Game Time: 6:40 p.m. EST
Diamondbacks vs. Marlins Location: LoanDepot Park, Miami
Minnesota Twins vs. Baltimore Orioles
Run Line: MIN: -1.5 (+120) | BAL: +1.5 (-145)
Moneyline: MIN: -145 | BAL: +120
Over/Under: 7.5 (-110)
Twins vs. Orioles Starting Pitchers: Chris Paddack (MIN) vs. Tyler Wells (BAL)
Twins vs. Orioles Game Time: 7:05 p.m. EST
Twins vs. Orioles Location: Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore
New York Yankees vs. Toronto Blue Jays
Run Line: NYY: -1.5 (+135) | TOR: +1.5 (-160)
Moneyline: NYY: -120 | TOR: +100
Over/Under: 8.5 (-110)
Yankees vs. Blue Jays Starting Pitchers: Jordan Montgomery (NYY) vs. Ross Stripling (TOR)
Yankees vs. Blue Jays Game Time: 7:07 p.m. EST
Yankees vs. Blue Jays Location: Rogers Centre, Toronto
Atlanta Braves vs. New York Mets
Run Line: ATL: -1.5 (+170) | NYM: +1.5 (-200)
Moneyline: ATL: -105 | NYM: -115
Over/Under: 6.5 (-110)
Braves vs. Mets Starting Pitchers: Max Fried (ATL) vs. Chris Bassitt (NYM)
Braves vs. Mets Game Time: 7:10 p.m. EST
Braves vs. Mets Location: Citi Field, New York
Seattle Mariners vs. Houston Astros
Run Line: SEA: +1.5 (-175) | HOU: -1.5 (+145)
Moneyline: SEA: +110 | HOU: -135
Over/Under: 8.5 (-110)
Mariners vs. Astros Starting Pitchers: Marco Gonzales (SEA) vs. Jake Odorizzi (HOU)
Mariners vs. Astros Game Time: 8:10 p.m. EST
Mariners vs. Astros Location: Minute Maid Park, Houston
Tampa Bay Rays vs. Oakland Athletics
Run Line: TB: -1.5 (+115) | OAK: +1.5 (-140)
Moneyline: TB: -155 | OAK: +125
Over/Under: 6.5 (-110)
Rays vs. Athletics Starting Pitchers: Drew Rasmussen (TB) vs. Daulton Jefferies (OAK)
Rays vs. Athletics Game Time: 9:40 p.m. EST
Rays vs. Athletics Location: Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, Calif.
There aren’t a ton of games available today, so we’ll have to get a bit more creative to find value for these plays. Here are my best bets for May 2.
MLB Best Bet May 2: Miami Marlins ML (-160) vs. Arizona Diamondbacks, 6:40 p.m. EST, available at BetMGM
Pablo Lopez’s ERA to this point in the season looks like a misprint: 0.39. The Marlins’ hurler has pitched fantastically this season and hasn’t given up a run in any of his past three appearances. And now he gets to face off with the weakest lineup in the Majors, as Arizona bats just .181 and has scored just 73 runs in 23 games.
Lopez isn’t likely to get a lot of help from his offense in this one, as the Marlins have only scored 83 runs on the season, but he’s not likely to need much help. Miami had a seven-game winning streak snapped Sunday, and the Marlins held their opponents to two runs or less in four of those seven wins. With the Diamondbacks barely hitting anything, I think that continues here.
MLB Best Bet May 2: Minnesota Twins ML (-145) vs. Baltimore Orioles, 7:05 p.m. EST, available at BetMGM
This is where the Orioles come back to earth after claiming a pair of victories over the Boston Red Sox to close out the weekend. Tyler Wells hasn’t pitched well in any of his three appearances, as he hasn’t made it past the fourth inning yet and needed to come out within three innings twice already in 2022. With a 5.54 ERA, he’s putting himself in too many bad situations and handing the game to the Orioles’ bullpen far too early.
Minnesota should take advantage of those struggles. The Twins are rolling right now and see an opportunity to take full control of the AL Central while the Chicago White Sox are struggling to get on the same page. If the Twins play their cards right, they just might be able to build their lead to the point where the White Sox don’t have enough time to catch them down the stretch. The best way to build the lead is by taking advantage of opportunities against bad teams like Baltimore.
MLB Best Bet May 2: Toronto Blue Jays ML (+100) vs. New York Yankees, 7:07 p.m. EST, available at BetMGM
The Yankees might have a gaudy record, but I think it’s a bit inflated by the weak schedule they’ve faced to this point in the season. New York has won 11 of its past 12, but the wins came against Kansas City, Baltimore, Cleveland and Detroit. With all four of those teams struggling to do much of anything and the Yankees having to cross time zones in this one, getting the Blue Jays at home for even money seems to offer incredible value.
Toronto hasn’t lit the world on fire to start the season, but that’s in part because the Jays are facing the toughest part of their schedule in the first six weeks of the year. The value is likely to drop substantially on the Blue Jays as they start to see some of the lesser teams in the American League, so now is the time to jump on them.
