MLB Playoff Picks: Padres vs. Brewers and Braves vs. Dodgers

Is there better baseball than postseason baseball? I think not! The ALDS and NLDS got underway yesterday and will continue today with a pair of exciting games for fans to watch and bet on. But how should you bet? Well, I’ve got a few ideas along those lines. I call them by MLB Best Bets of the Day list.

Here are my top picks for today’s MLB games:

San Diego Padres vs. Milwaukee Brewers

Game 1 of this series proves that sometimes it is better to be lucky. It looked like Ty France had hit a go-ahead home run off Trevor Megill in the ninth inning. That is, until it hit an overhead cable hanging from the roof, changing the ball’s trajectory and resulting in an out instead.

The Padres have been baseball’s best postseason offense, but aside from that near-homer, their only runs came off Jacob Misiorowski in the third. They now face Logan Henderson (11-3, 2.47 ERA, 0.84 WHIP), who went 6-0 in eight home starts and held opponents to a .169 average.

My Pick: UNDER 7 at -105 (DraftKings)

Padres starter Michael King (12-10, 3.21 ERA, 1.18 WHIP) doesn’t have regular season numbers as impressive as Henderson’s. But he did throw an absolute gem in the Wild Card round against the Cubs (seven innings, one hit, no runs).

So, we know he can step up on this stage. In 63 at-bats against him, the Brewers lineup has hit .190. It is hard to say who will win this game, but one thing is clear. Whoever wins will do so in a low-scoring game against these pitchers.

Atlanta Braves vs. Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers took Game 1 of the series behind a masterful performance by Tarik Skubal (six innings, two hits, one earned run). Atlanta’s bullpen day didn’t work out well as the Dodgers pulled out a 5-1 lead after the sixth inning and went on to win 5-3.

At the time of writing, the Braves had not named a starter for today’s game. But we do know the Dodgers are sending Blake Snell to the mound. Snell went 4-1 in nine regular-season starts, posting a 1.90 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. Teams hit .203 off him, but the Braves have a career batting average of .198 vs. Snell.

My Pick: Dodgers -1.5 at +150 (DraftKings)

It would be nice to know who was starting for the Braves, but I don’t think that will matter. Atlanta has been struggling at the plate in the postseason (.206 BA, 17 runs scored across four games). This Braves lineup hasn’t had much success against Snell in the past and likely won’t today.

No matter who starts for the Braves, the postseason is the “home away from home” for the Dodgers. There isn’t a team in baseball that can be counted on to elevate its game in the playoffs quite like them.