MLB Best Bets for Today: Astros & Giants | Sunday, May 15th

MLB Best Bets for Today: Astros stay hot in our Nation's Capitol

MLB bettors have been struggling over the last week or so. There have been a lot of confusing occurances going on in terms of offensive production. Many hitters have struggled this year, most likely due to the shortened spring training. However, we expect that to turn around as the season continues. Today, there are a few offenses that are due for an explosion.

Below, you will find two of the best value bets for tonight's slate of MLB games.

Bet #1: Houston Astros -1.5 (-120) vs. the Washington Nationals

"Wouston Wstros"- @astros

The Houston Astros have been one of the hottest teams in the MLB over the last two weeks. Winners of 11 out of their last 12 games, the Astros have seen incredible starting pitching performances as of late. Tonight, the Astros will send Justin Verlander to the mound in an attempt to get back into the win column. Last outing, Verlander carried a no-hitter into the ninth inning against the Twins. Through six starts, Verlander has a 4-1 record with a 1.55 ERA. He has been one of the most effective starting pitchers in the MLB, thus far, and will look to continue that tonight against a struggling Nationals lineup. The Astros bullpen has also been great, as they rank in the top three of the MLB in many major categories. Houston will look to Jose Altuve, Michael Brantley, Alex Bregman, and Yordan Alvarez to contribute to the team's offensive efforts today. The Washington Nationals will start left-hander Patrick Corbin in this contest. Corbin has had a forgetful start to his season, holding an 0-5 record with a 6.06 ERA in six starts. The key to victory for the Astros tonight is to produce early runs off of Patrick Corbin and get another quality start out of Justin Verlander. We're going with Houston to ride their great pitching to another victory of 2+ runs!

Bet #2: San Francisco Giants F5 -0.5 (+100) vs. the St. Louis Cardinals

"You can find me, in St. Louis rollin' on dubs"- @SFGiants

The San Francisco Giants and the St. Louis Cardinals will take the field in a series rubbermatch tonight on ESPN. The Giants have won six out of their last seven games, and have seen both their offensive and pitching numbers increase during this stretch of games. Carlos Rodon will get the start for San Francisco tonight, and he has been spectacular thus far. Rodon has been one of the best pitchers in the MLB this season, with a 4-1 record, a 1.80 ERA, and a 0.91 WHIP (walks/hits per inning pitched). The Cardinals will start veteran Adam Wainwright tonight. Although Wainwright has been solid, this Giants lineup provides a matchup nightmare for him. The Giants have a lot of very good left-handed hitters, and they are handling right-handed pitching very well this year. The Giants are hitting .251 as a team against southpaws; as opposed to their .224 mark against righties. We're going with the Giants and Carlos Rodon to lead after five innings!