3 Best MLB Bets This Week

The first full week of the 2014 Major League Baseball season has arrived. Every team has hope this week. It won’t be the same in June or July, but right now, all teams think they have a chance to do something special and create a season their fans will remember for a very long time.

MLB Baseball: St. Louis Cardinals at Cincinnati Reds – Thursday

The Cardinals and Reds finish their first series of the season with a travel day afternoon game in Cincinnati. St. Louis won the first game of this series, 1-0, and that has to plant a seed of doubt in the minds of the Reds, whose offense withered in the final weeks of the 2013 season. Cincinnati’s offense is a big concern beyond Joey Votto. St. Louis has to feel confident about its ability to win the National League Central once again. Cincinnati needs to make a contrary statement in this game.
 

MLB Baseball: Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh Pirates – Thursday

The Pirates, like the Cardinals against the Reds on opening day, scored a 1-0 win and immediately grabbed the kind of win that makes a team and a clubhouse feel really good. The Cubs are still rebuilding, so this loss has to be a hard pill to swallow just one game into a very long season. Chicago has to be able to string together some hits against the Pirates’ tough pitching staff. If the Cubs get swept in Pittsburgh, their season could very quickly fall apart.
 

The Rockies and Marlins are trying to move upward in the National League. These teams are both expected to finish below other, more powerful contenders in their respective divisions. The Rockies will probably look upward at the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers, while the Marlins face tough sledding in a National League East that also contains the Atlanta Braves and the souped-up Washington Nationals. Being able to win against each other (and collections of different mediocre teams in the N.L.) will be very important for the likes of Colorado and Miami.