We’re going with a similar look to yesterday, with one star player and one up-and-comer for our slate on Wednesday, May 7. For the first play, we’re targeting Pete Alonso of the New York Mets against the Arizona Diamondbacks. For the second, we’re going to the later part of the slate, where we’ll find Josh Smith of the Texas Rangers against the Boston Red Sox.
We got a sweep yesterday, but it wasn't an easy one. Kyle Schwarber gave us an early win with a solo home run in his first at-bat, but we looked like we were in trouble with Mike Yastrzemski, who started 0-for-4 against the Chicago Cubs before eventually getting a hit in the top of the ninth inning. Then, after neither team scored in the 10th, Ryan Pressly had one of the worst outings of his career and allowed Yastrzemski — and eight other runners — to cross home plate.
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- Pete Alonso O0.5 RBIs (+125) - 1 Unit FanDuel
- Josh Smith O1.5 Bases (+120) - 1 Unit Bet365
Pete Alonso O0.5 RBIs (+140) FanDuel
Alonso took his lack of a big contract offer this offseason personally, based on the play we’ve seen from him so far this year. Through 37 games, the Polar Bear is leading the league in hits, doubles and RBI. Over the last week, Alonso has knocked in six RBIs, and he’s cleared this line in four of his last five games. (The lone exception saw him go 2-for-5 with two doubles, but the players in front of him failed to get on base.)
The Diamondbacks are sending Merrill Kelly to the hill for today’s game. The veteran righty has struggled out of the gate this year, allowing five home runs and 17 earned runs through seven starts. He’s been just about even against righties and lefties, but he’s been hit well by this Mets lineup in the past. Alonso is 5-for-16 with three home runs against Kelly, while Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor, the two guys hitting in front of him, are a combined 6-for-24 in their careers. Alonso has the power to drive himself in with a home run; if he can’t get one of those, he just needs one runner to find the base paths to get the job done.
Josh Smith O1.5 Bases (+120) Bet365
We’re targeting some bases for our second play of the day. We took a look at Smith a few weeks ago, but he ended up not playing. We don’t have to worry about that today, and he’s been playing great ball as of late: Over the last week, Smith is batting .409, and he has seven hits over his last two games. The left-handed leadoff hitter has loved hitting against righties this year with a .352 average and .981 OPS, while he’s batting .261 and .631 against lefties.
The Red Sox are sending Tanner Houck to the mound for today’s game. The veteran righty has been getting knocked around to start this season: Through seven starts, he’s carrying a 6.38 ERA, which is far and away the highest mark of his career, and he’s already allowed seven home runs after allowing just 11 in 30 starts last season. Lefties have had his number for his entire career, and this year they’re batting .342 with a 1.025 OPS against him while righties have marks of .234 and .592. Smith is 2-for-6 with a double in six plate appearances against Houck. This is a matchup with a lot to like.
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