MLB Best Bets Today, April 19th: Money line, Spread, and Parlay Odds 

Today's MLB slate provides a lot of oppurtunity for both entertainment and profit. Can the Cardinals take care of business against Miami?

The MLB season is getting into high gear, as many teams are entering their fourth series of the year. Outside of a few teams, every team has shown the potential to compete with the best of the best on a nightly basis. Daily betting in the MLB can be a rollercoaster, because the season is so long that there are always going to be outliers in performances. Once there is more of a sample size for all of the teams, then the betting side of things should become slightly easier. In this article, you will find three great spots for bets on Tuesday, April 19.

Bet #1: St Louis Cardinals ML (-115)

"A double play to end it!" - @ St. Louis Cardinals

Veteran pitcher Adam Wainwright is getting the start for the St. Louis Cardinals tonight as they travel to Miami to take on the Marlins. Coming off a series split against the Brewers, the Cardinals are hoping to rebound in a matchup where they are clearly the better team. Miami has taken care of business recently, taking three out of four games against a struggling Phillies team who couldn't have a worse bullpen if they tried. This is a great spot to back the Cardinals, who have one of the most dangerous lineups in the MLB.

The Marlins will put pitcher Jesus Luzardo on the mound today, and he is coming off one of the best starts of his career that saw him strike out 12 batters in five innings of work. While very impressive, it's hard to project the same kind of success against a talented lineup consisting of mostly right-handed hitters like Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Tyler O'Neill, and Albert Pujols. The matchup this righty-heavy lineup has against the left-hander Luzardo pushed me to take the Cardinals money line at -115.

Bet #2: NRFI Parlay (+150)

Leg 1: Giants/Mets NRFI (Game 2 of the doubleheader)

Leg 2: Brewers/Pirates NRFI

A lot of MLB teams have their best pitcher pitching tonight, which is always a good sign when looking for NRFI bets. However, better pitchers always have lesser odds than others, so this is a good spot to put together a two-leg NRFI parlay. Starting with the San Francisco Giants and New York Mets matchup, we get to see an amazing pitching matchup in the second game of this doubleheader.

Max Scherzer gets the ball for the Mets, while Cy Young darkhorse Logan Webb will be on the mound for the Giants. Both of these guys have been some of the most effective pitchers in the league so far, as neither has lost a start. Webb holds one of the best qualified earned run averages so far, giving up 1.29 runs per nine innings. Max Scherzer has been one of the best pitchers in the MLB for about a decade now, and veteran pitchers are always good to trust when taking NRFIs because they have a history of facing a lot of hitters they will pitch against today. This is an advantage because they have a big sample size against many hitters in the league and know effective ways to attack them.

"7 K kinda day for @Max_Scherzer" - @ New York Mets

The second leg of this parlay brings us to American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the Brewers host the Pittsburgh Pirates. Reigning Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes will be on the mound for the Brew Crew as he looks to improve on his first two outings of the year. Command issues have suddenly become a problem, but luckily for Burnes, this isn't a lineup like the Dodgers or the Braves. This Pirates lineup offers Burnes a great opportunity to get back on track. Meanwhile, J.T. Brubaker will get the start for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Brubaker has had a rocky start to the MLB season, as he has given up four earned runs in both of his starts. The Brewers lineup does offer a bit of relief to Brubaker as well, as they haven't lived up to expectations yet this year. The Brewers are only hitting .213 as a team to start the season.

Both of these matchups should provide a great outlook on an NRFI, so let's bank on these four pitchers to each do their job and get three quick outs!