Blue Jays vs. Orioles Best Bets: MLB Monday Betting Preview

We have just three games on the Major League Baseball (MLB) schedule on Monday, but only one game features two teams not yet eliminated from the postseason chase. The Toronto Blue Jays (77-79) and Baltimore Orioles (75-81) open a three-game set, and each team has just six total games remaining.

The Blue Jays head into the new week three games back of the Chicago White Sox for the final Wild Card spot in the American League, while the Orioles are five back. If the O’s lose on Monday, they’ll get that unfortunate ‘e’ next to their name in the standings, meaning they’ve joined the elimination club.

Blue Jays vs. Orioles Monday Best Bets

Toronto heads to Charm City with a 37-41 record on the road, while it is 18-28 inside the American League East. The Blue Jays are 6-4 against the Orioles this season, and they split 2-2 in the first four-game series at Camden Yards May 28-31.

Baltimore is just 18-28 inside the division, and 36-42 at home. It has lost three in a row, so it is sinking like a stone at the worst possible time.

The Blue Jays turn to RHP Trey Yesavage (5-5, 3.65 ERA, 1.14 WHIP) for his 19th start of the season, as he comes off the 15-day injured list after recovering from a knee injury. He has recorded 91 strikeouts across 93.2 IP this season, but he hasn’t pitched since Aug. 4, so there could be a little rust.

Yesavage has been better on the road this season, going 2-2 with a 3.14 ERA across 10 starts, while teams are hitting just .174 against him across 48.2 IP. While that all sounds good, the Toronto righty is 0-1 with a 5.91 ERA across 10.2 IP in two starts against Baltimore this season.

The Orioles will have RHP Shane Baz (6-15, 4.11 ERA, 1.35 WHIP) on the bump, and he hasn’t pitched nearly as bad as his overall record indicates. At home, he has a 3.92 ERA and 1.38 WHIP across 85 IP in 15 starts. However, he appears to have hit a wall in September, going 1-1 with a 5.06 ERA in three starts this month with a 5.06 ERA.

The best bet here is going with the OVER 7.5 (-112), and we’ll back the BLUE JAYS (-108) as slight underdogs on the road, as they look to eliminate their division rivals, while Toronto looks to keep its flickering postseason hopes alive.

Let’s also go UNDER 3.5 (-174) STRIKEOUTS – TREY YESAVAGE, as he is returning from a seven-week absence, and he’ll all but certainly be pitching with a restriction.