MLB Season Online Betting – A Rivalry And A Great North Battle

The online betting world pertaining to American League baseball offers distinctly different kinds of clashes this weekend. The spotlight shines on Yankee Stadium and Target Field.

American League Weekend Betting Picks:

Boston Red Sox @ New York Yankees – Saturday, May 14 – 7:10 PM ET

The community of sports betting gurus might be interested in the beginning of the conference finals in both hockey and basketball, but in the realm of baseball, there’s no bigger game on Saturday than the evening encounter between two classic rivals, the Red Sox and the Yankees. Boston has manifestly struggled through a month and a half of competition, while the Yankees have steadily set the pace in the American League East. This game is not for the faint of heart; sure, it’s never a tame little stroll through the tulips when these bitter foes meet on the diamond, but it’s especially electric and heated when prime pitchers take the hill for the Sox and the Yanks.

Saturday under the lights at the new Yankee Stadium, Boston manager Terry Francona will send Josh Beckett to the bump. Beckett has a 1.99 earned-run average and has clearly done his part for a team that has stumbled and fumbled for the first several weeks of the season. The powerful righty has been nagged and limited by injuries over the past few seasons, but he’s delivered the goods so far. The problem is that the Red Sox haven’t brought the lumber at the plate. Boston has plated just 146 runs through Tuesday, placing 16th in the majors. Since Boston plays in one of the most hitter-friendly ballparks in the big leagues and competes in the American League, that level of run production rates as a mammoth disappointment. The Red Sox are able to gain better players than anyone other than the Yankees. Their payroll is enormous. Yet, the 146-run tally has left Beantowners at their wits’ end. Yes, Beckett has an earned-run average that’s almost a full run lower than Yankee starter C.C. Sabathia (2.89), but will that guarantee success? It’s hard to trust Boston on the road against its nemesis. Expect the Yankees’ bats to scratch out a few more runs and win by a 4-2 score.

Boston New York Yankees Betting Pick: New York Yankees

Game Number Two:

Toronto Blue Jays @ Minnesota Twins – Sunday, May 15 – 2:10 PM ET

If there’s a team that MLB baseball betting experts have had a hard time figuring out this season, the Boston Red Sox would be one example, the Pittsburgh Pirates another. However, the single most mystifying ballclub would have to be the Minnesota Twins. The defending American League Central Division champions have stumbled to a 12-22 start through Tuesday’s play, languishing at the bottom of their division and failing to find any kind of spark whatsoever. Is this just a “first 40 games” slump that will melt away in June and July, or is it an indication that the Twins are going to be stuck in first gear for the duration of the 2011 campaign? The guess here is that the Twins won’t stay down for much longer. There’s too much quality on manager Ron Gardenhire’s squad. Pick Minnesota, because the Twins have to even things out before too long.

Toronto Minnesota Betting Pick: Minnesota