Top Major League Baseball Betting Series of the Week

This week, as we creep closer to the MLB All-Star break, some teams are starting to pull away in their divisions, while some of the early stories have fallen back to earth. Let’s take a look at some of the biggest MLB odds series for this coming week.

Here’s a Closer Look At the Top MLB Betting Series of the Week

Two swings. Five runs. #GoodMath pic.twitter.com/dfF7DvfEgn

— #VoteGreenCollar (@Athletics) June 26, 2016

Monday – Thursday: Oakland vs San Francisco

This interleague Bay Area series is a rematch of the 1989 World Series (which was interrupted by an earthquake) and features the two MLB teams in the area in a rare regular season matchup. Monday’s game features Jeff Samardzija on the hill for the Giants, who have won 32 of 40 since getting out of the gate to a dreadful start. Oakland will have one of its best chances in this Monday game, as Samardzija is one of the more inconsistent Giant starters. He did throw a complete game two starts ago, beating Tampa Bay 5-1, but in his last start against the Pirates, he was shelled for six runs in three innings (including three home runs) and got the early hook. Tuesday’s game could see high run totals for both teams, as Kendall Graveman (Oakland) and Albert Suarez (San Francisco) take their relatively high ERAs to the hill. On Wednesday, the series shifts to Oakland, and the Giants will roll out Jake Peavy against the A’s Sean Manaea. Peavy has ace stuff and has shown it lately, permitting just three earned runs in 19 innings in his last three starts. Thursday’s finale features Madison Bumgarner against Oakland’s Dillon Overton. Bumgarner has emerged as one of the top pitchers in the National League, and the only regret here is that this game isn’t in San Francisco (so we could see whether Bumgarner will hit yet another home run). I think that Oakland’s best shots at winning are actually in the two games in the Giants’ park. On Wednesday and Thursday, the Giants’ pitching will likely be too much for the A’s, with their limited offense, to do much damage.

Tuesday – Thursday: Texas at New York

The Rangers used to hold a lot of animus toward the Yankees, who knocked them out of the playoffs in 1996, 1998 and 1999, with the Yankees winning those series by an aggregate of 9 games to 1. The Rangers turned the tables in the 2010 ALCS, when they eliminated the Yankees 4 games to 2. In Tuesday’s game, two lefties with ace stuff will be on the hill, as Texas sends Cole Hamels to the mound against the Yanks’ C.C. Sabathia. Hamels has had a tendency to give up long balls early, but he has managed that in his last four starts. Sabathia has returned from a groin injury with his old self throwing fastballs in the upper 90s and then mixing in a knee-buckling curve ball. On Wednesday, the Rangers will send Nick Martinez to pitch against the Yankees’ best starter, Masahiro Tanaka. The problem with Martinez is that he can pitch five solid innings, but once teams start to get their third turn against him, they start hitting the ball really hard (see the clips from last Friday’s loss to the Boston Red Sox. Yes, that’s Jackie Bradley Jr. hitting the ball a long, long way in the sixth inning off Martinez). Thursday afternoon will feature A.J. Griffin for the Rangers and Michael Pineda for the Yankees. Griffin was a pickup from the A’s, and he came off the disabled list on Saturday to throw another gem, as he has been a real find for Texas. Pineda is one of those pitchers with a ton of potential — but not much to show for it yet. So I like the Rangers to win the opener behind Hamels and the finale behind Griffin, but I don’t think Martinez can nail down a win in the middle game.