MLB picks: Twins vs. Yankees, Brewers vs. Cardinals

It’s a fairly quiet Thursday on the diamond, but we’ve managed to come up with two solid MLB wagers!

First we’ll preview the series opener between the Minnesota Twins and the New York Yankees. Then we’ll segue to the series finale between the Milwaukee Brewers and the St. Louis Cardinals.

Minnesota Twins (54-67) at New York Yankees (69-52), 7:05 p.m. ET

The Yankees have won 16 of 20 games since the trade deadline passed, and look poised to strike again as they host the Twins on Thursday night.

John Gant goes for Minnesota, making his first start in nearly two months following a series of up-and-down relief appearances. Anthony Rizzo – 6-for-12 with a home run all-time against Gant – could be in line for yet another fine game in pinstripes here.

Jameson Taillon counters for New York, looking for his first win in August after being July’s AL Pitcher of the Month with a 4-0 record and 1.16 ERA. But his 2.60 ERA for this month is not too shabby.

The Bombers should win the bullpen battle too – they’re third in baseball over the last two weeks with a 2.09 ERA, while the Twins are ninth with a 3.12 ERA.

MLB pick: Yankees -1.5 runs (-148)

Milwaukee Brewers (74-47) at St. Louis Cardinals (61-58), 7:45 p.m. ET

The Cardinals lost a heart-breaker to the Brewers on Wednesday night, as closer Alex Reyes served up a ninth-inning homer to Avisail Garcia before allowing three unearned runs to cross the plate in the 10th in an eventual 6-4 defeat. But St. Louis could return the favor at a nice price in Thursday night’s series finale.

Brandon Woodruff gets the ball for the Brewers, looking to avoid a repeat of his most recent start. He needed 74 pitches to negotiate three innings against the Chicago Cubs before getting the hook from manager Craig Counsell. In spite of Milwaukee’s winning ways, Woodruff has failed to record a victory in his last seven outings.

He’s not likely to have Josh Hader or Devin Williams to lean on for support in this one, as both of the Brewers’ top-flight relief arms were used in the first two games of this series. The Brew Crew’s bullpen has been mediocre as a whole lately, authoring a 3.99 ERA over the last two weeks (18th in the majors).

Jon Lester gets the nod for the Redbirds here, and in 140 combined at-bats against this Milwaukee lineup, he’s allowed no home runs. The St. Louis relief corps has been a Top 10 unit over the past two weeks (eighth with a 3.12 ERA), and should have Reyes (27 saves) available for at least one inning, along with Genesis Cabrera (21 holds) and Giovanny Gallegos (20 holds).

MLB pick: Cardinals +170