The Seattle Mariners will be looking to continue their hot streak when they take on the Kansas City Royals in a three-match mini-series starting on Friday night. The Mariners will be looking to sweep the Royals and keep the pressure on the teams ahead of them in the AL West. Here we tell you what their chances are in our latest MLB betting picks.
Yes, at the moment, the Mariners are playing their part in one of the most exciting scraps to win the AL West for some years. Along with the Texas Rangers and the Houston Astros, the fight to win the division is a three-way battle. And with the regular season now in the home straight, any mistakes will be punished.
Fans of all three franchises are being treated to a right battle royale for the division, and the best MLB betting sites must be loving it too.
At this stage of the season, division betting can be a one-horse race, or like in the case of the NL West (with the Dodgers), there is no market at all. So to have a three-way betting market this active at this stage of the season is great news for all.
In the latest betting to win the AL West, it’s the Houston Astros leading the way at +120. The Texas Rangers are now +175 second favorites, and this is after having led the betting for so long. As for the Mariners, they are third in the betting. But they are now +290, having been +350 at the start of the week.
So how does this equate to the betting to win the 2023 World Series? Well, the Astros are the shortest-price out of the AL West franchises. The best MLB World Series betting sites have the 2022 World Series winners at +750 to win their second title in two seasons.
The Texas Rangers follow closely behind on +800, with the Mariners looking a real good value bet at +1400 to win the 2023 World Series.
For the record, the Atlanta Braves lead the betting at +310, with the LA Dodgers next at +450.
Moving onto this match, and with the Royals having such a poor season, it’s no shock to see the Mariners are heavy favorites to win the match. On the money line for the opening match, the Mariners are -173, with the Royals at +158.
Moving onto the spread, and the Mariners are +118, starting from a 1.5-point deficit. The Royals are -138 with the 1.5-point start. Finally, on the over and under line, over 8 is -115, and under 8 is -105.
More information about the sites listed on our MLB odds table can be found on our best online sportsbook reviews page.
In their last match, the Mariners came unstuck 5-4 away at the White Sox on Wednesday. It did need to go to an extra innings, and the Mariners will feel this is one they should have won.
Either way, the loss was a shock. The Marines had won their previous eight matches, including a sweep of the Astros in Houston. Ironically, who was the last team to beat the Mariners before Wednesday’s loss? Yes, the Royals. That was in match one of their four-match series in Kansas.
In their last ten matches, the Mariners are 8-2, and they have an impressive win percentage of .559 this season.
But more impressively, Julio Rodríguez is on fire at the moment. The current AL Rookie of the Year has been the main reason for the Mariners’ successful August run. And after returning from illness against the White Sox on Wednesday, is he set to make the Royals pay?
The Royals are having a season to forget. In their last ten outings, their record reads 3-7, and they sit bottom of the AL Central with a .318 win percentage. The last thing that Matt Quatraro needs is a mini-series against the most in-form team in MLB.
But there is some light at the end of the tunnel. The Royals won the last match of their series away at the Athletics 4-0 on Wednesday. This put an end to a four-match losing streak. But even that win was only a consolation.
We all know in sports, anything can happen. And yes, maybe the Royals could beat the Mariners and shock everybody on Friday night.
Yes, the Mariners lost their last match, and the Royals won theirs. But apart from that, there is nothing to suggest that Seattle won’t win this match comfortably tonight. So, we’re backing the Mariners to win and cover the spread.
If you feel that the odds of +118 on the handicap are too short on a Mariners win, then the over/under market could be the best bet. In recent days, the Mariners have racked up scores of 6-3, 14-2, and 10-3. And in the recent mini-series between these two franchises, the scores were 7-6, 10-8, 6-5, and 6-4. We’re going for over 8 at -115.
Check below for our list of the top sportsbooks where you can wager online:
About the Author
Dean is primarily a fan of English football who regularly attends games, and combining his hobby with his job, he is now a full-time sports betting writer. Rather than going down the educational route into sports journalism, Dean learned his trade by writing for his English football betting website since 2009, where he now boasts nearly 15 years of experience. After writing about football daily for years, Dean has taken the skills he learned and now uses them to great effect writing for numerous affiliate sites across the internet. A general all-around sports enthusiast with a passion for English football and cricket, Dean is also well able to turn his hand to writing about golf, tennis, F1, boxing, snooker, darts, and North American sports. Combining his extensive knowledge and experience with British humor and wit, Dean has developed into a trusted voice within the sports betting industry.
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