After taking a week off, we’re back with two more MLB plays on Monday, May 19. For our first play, we’re taking a look at Nico Hoerner of the Chicago Cubs in his matchup with the Miami Marlins. For our second play, we’re going a little later in the slate for the matchup between Jose Ramirez of the Cleveland Guardians and the Minnesota Twins.
We'd had a few bad days in a row, and it felt like a good time to take some time off following our losses last week. Ozzie Albies went to the plate four times with multiple chances to drive runners in, but he couldn’t get the job done. As far as Evan Carter is concerned, we kind of got put in an awkward position: I had expected him to be further down in the lineup, and he ended up leading off. He went 0-for-3 with a walk on the day, and the team as a whole scored just two runs.
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- Nico Hoerner O0.5 Stolen Bases (+230) - 0.5 Units Bet365
- Jose Ramirez O1.5 Bases (+120) - 1 Unit Fanatics
Nico Hoerner O0.5 Stolen Bases (+230) Bet365
Our first play of the day is going back to the basepaths to find Hoerner in a great matchup. Over the last week, Hoerner has been one of the best hitters in baseball; he’s batting .348, and his on-base percentage is .423 over that stretch. He’s also tied for second in the league with three stolen bases during that span. This season, he’s swiped 10 bags on 12 attempts. Throughout his career, Hoerner has preferred hitting against lefties, but he’s made some exceptions in the past for this matchup.
The Marlins are sending Edward Cabrera to the mound for today’s series opener. Through six starts, Cabrera has been struggling mightily to keep runners close. He’s allowed 13 stolen bases thus far on 13 attempts, and, over the last three seasons with the new stolen base rules, he has allowed 39 stolen bases on 44 attempts. In nine plate appearances against Cabrera, Hoerner is 5-for-8, and he’s reached base successfully six times. This Cubs team has three different players with 10 or more stolen bases, and I think Hoerner is one of the many who can run wild in this matchup.
Jose Ramirez O1.5 Total Bases (+120) Fanatics
This will be our first time targeting Ramirez this season. Despite coming out of the gates a little slow, he’s been crushing the ball as of late: In the month of May, Ramirez is batting .357 with a 1.080 OPS and four home runs in just 15 games. In 29 games across March and April, JRam had just five home runs while batting .264. This season, he has had a strong preference for hitting against lefties, but he hasn’t been slacking against righties with 12 of his 34 hits going for extra bases.
The Twins are sending Bailey Ober to the mound for today’s game. Ober has been getting peppered by righties and lefties this year, but he’s been quite well by Ramirez in the past. In 24 plate appearances against Ober, Ramirez is 7-for-22, with three of those hits going for extra bases. Ober has been just about even against righties and lefties in his career, but his weakest pitches this year have been sweepers and curveballs. JRam has feasted on those from righties. This is a great spot for this price.
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