MLB picks, predictions, best bets for Saturday, July 26: Padres vs. Cardinals, Mets vs. Giants, and more

Saturday's slate features matchups between contenders like Philadelphia Phillies-New York Yankees, New York Mets-San Francisco Giants along with lesser battles like Colorado Rockies-Baltimore Orioles. There are also games like the Athletics- Houston Astros, disproportionate on paper but exciting to follow after the A's won two straight in the series.

Here are the picks, predictions and best bets from games on Saturday night with odds from Draft Kings and ESPN Sportsbook.

MLB picks, predictions, best bets for Saturday, July 26

Padres vs. Cardinals

Picks: Cardinals (-155), Under 9.5 runs

Best Bet: Manny Machado o0.5 Total RBIs (+150)

Prediction: Cardinals 5, Padres 4

Cardinals' first two wins at home are testament to their strong 31-20 home record. These two games are crucial with St. Louis 1.5 games behind San Diego currently in the third NL Wild Card spot.

Mets vs. Giants

Picks: Giants (-115), Under 7.5 runs

Best Bet: Rafael Devers o0.5 Total RBIs (+235)

Prediction: Ginats 4, Mets 3

It will be a battle of the starters with two in form arms, David Peterson (6-4, 2.90 ERA) for New York taking on San Francisco's Robbie Ray (9-4, 2.92 ERA).

Phillies vs. Yankees

Picks: Phillies (-115), Over 9.5 runs

Best Bet: Aaron Judge o0.5 Total RBIs (+115)

Prediction: Phillies 6, Yankees 5

The Phillies homered their way to a Game 1 win, scoring 10 times in the final third half of the game. The Yankees need their lineup led by Aaron Judge to back Marcus Stroman (2-1, 5.64 ERA).

Braves vs. Rangers

Picks: Rangers (-130), Under 8.5 runs

Best Bet: Ozzie Albies o0.5 Total RBIs (+230)

Prediction: Rangers 4, Braves 3

Kumar Rocker (4-4, 5.66 ERA) pitched 6.1 scoreless innings in his last outing against the Detroit Tigers. He is expected to continue that form on Saturday.

Dodgers vs. Red Sox

Picks: Red Sox (-150), Under 8.5 runs

Best Bet: Garrett Crochet u6.5 Strikeouts Thrown (+130)

Prediction: Red Sox 4, Dodgers 3

The Dodgers took Game 1 at Fenway Park but a depleted lineup due to injuries makes them the clear underdogs against the Red Sox who have their ace Garrett Crochet (11-4, 2.19 ERA) starting.

Mariners vs. Angels

Picks: Mariners (-155), Over 8.5 runs

Best Bet: Taylor Ward o0.5 Total RBIs (+200)

Prediction: Mariners 5, Angels 4

Mariners and Angels face off in the decider with a high scoring expected to play out with Tyler Anderson (2-6, 4.43 ERA) taking on Mariners' George Kirby (4-5, 4.65 ERA).

Here are the predictions for other games:

Cleveland @ Kansas City: Royals 5, Guardians 4

Toronto @ Detroit: Tigers 4, Blue Jays 3

Arizona @ Pittsburgh: Diamondbacks 5, Pirates 4

Tampa Bay @ Cincinnati: Reds 5, Rays 4

Colorado @ Baltimore: Orioles 5, Rockies 4

Chicago (C) @ Chicago (WS): Cubs 6, White Sox 5

Miami @ Milwaukee: Brewers 4, Marlins 3

Athletics @ Houston: Astros 4, A's 3

Washington @ Minnesota: Twins 4, Nationals 3

Cleveland @ Kansas City: Royals 4, Guardians 3

About the author

Nikhil Parshy is a baseball and ice hockey journalist at Sportskeeda, and after starting out as a cricket reporter, he has been an analyst with SK since November 2022. His interest in the sports were piqued a few years back after watching highlights on YouTube and he has followed the game ever since.

The Chicago Cubs breaking the 108-year curse in 2016 to lift the World Series remains Nikhil's favorite baseball moment. Two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani has been his favorite player ever since he started following the game, while the LA Dodgers are his favorite team.

As a writer, Nikhil maintains a strong attention to detail and rigorously cross-checks information. He seeks to strike a balance in his writing such that the regular reader gains an insight into player profiles, while also keeping in mind that the non-regular reader is not put off by jargon and shallow analysis.

Nikhil is an avid public speaker, and when not writing about baseball, he regularly participates in debates and quizzes.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash