Author: MLB Baseball News, Scores, Standings, Rumors, Fantasy Games

Cleveland Guardians @ Texas Rangers

Friday, June 5, 2026, 7:15 PM CDT (105.3 The Fan / Apple TV)

The Shed

LHP Parker Messick vs. RHP Kumar Rocker

Go Rangers!

Last night, the Athletics were three outs away from completing their first sweep of the Chicago Cubs since interleague play began in 2004. Instead, the team’s bullpen melted down yet again. The Cubs scored four runs in the ninth inning, rallying for a walk-off victory to salvage the series finale.

If the A’s had held on, they would have returned to .500 and gained ground in the division, as both the Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers were off. After the game, the A’s traveled to Houston, where they will begin a three-game series against the Astros tonight.

However, right-handed reliever Joel Kuhnel will not be part of the roster. In the wake of yesterday’s poor performance, the A’s designated him for assignment and recalled right-hander Elvis Alvarado from Triple-A Las Vegas. Alvarado had been pitching well in the minors, though command remains the key question as he returns to the majors.

Right-hander Jack Perkins will make his first start of the season to kickstart the series. Since his promotion from Triple-A, the 26-year-old has pitched out of the bullpen, accumulating a 2-2 record with a 5.46 ERA, three saves and 33 strikeouts over 17 relief appearances. A’s manager Mark Kotsay moved Perkins, who started four MLB games last year, into the rotation following a series of injuries and ineffective performances among the club’s other starting pitchers. His performance will determine whether this is a one-time spot start or the beginning of a permanent role in the rotation.

Perkins has not pitched more than 4 2/3 innings this season, with his longest outing coming against the Mariners on May 25. Because he is not fully stretched out, the right-hander is unlikely to work much deeper than five innings, even if he pitches effectively.

On Monday, the A’s promoted right-handers Kade Morris and Mason Barnett from Triple-A Las Vegas, providing additional pitching depth for this road trip. With Morris slated to start tomorrow, Barnett could see action tonight in relief of Perkins.

The Athletics’ lineup for this evening’s matchup shakes out like this:

The A’s lineup remains relatively unchanged, led by leadoff hitter right fielder Carlos Cortes. With left fielder Tyler Soderstrom’s bat showing signs of life, the team needs more production from designated hitter Brent Rooker and second baseman Jeff McNeil.

Lawrence Butler continues to struggle offensively, and if his slump continues, the A’s may eventually have to consider a trip to Triple-A. With his current usage largely limited to pinch-hitting and defensive replacement duties, regular at-bats could be the best path to getting him back on track. For now, Cortes offers more consistency at the plate despite being a weaker defender, while Henry Bolte provides a stronger defensive option in center field.

As for the Astros, right-hander Peter Lambert will get the ball in the series opener. The 29-year-old has capitalized on an opportunity created by injuries throughout Houston’s rotation. Entering his ninth start of the season, Lambert is 4-4 with a 3.77 ERA, a 1.21 WHIP, and 43 strikeouts in 45 1/3 innings.

Lambert enters on a two-game winning streak and is coming off a strong outing against the Brewers, allowing two runs on five hits over five innings. He is relatively unfamiliar to A’s hitters, with Zack Gelof the only current Athletic to have recorded a hit against him in his career.

As a result, the A’s lineup will need to stay patient and capitalize on mistakes. The more they can get to Lambert, the sooner they can reach the Astros’ bullpen, which has been nearly as inconsistent as the A’s relief corps this season.

And Houston’s starting nine:

The Astros have been playing better baseball lately and will welcome back second baseman Jose Altuve from the injured list, further strengthening their lineup. A’s pitchers must also be careful with left fielder Yordan Alvarez, who has hit the second-most home runs in the league.

Time to shake off last night’s collapse and get this series off to a winning start. Let’s go A’s!

Follow the Game:
Watch:
Athletics – NBCSCA

Listen:
Athletics – Talk 650 KSTE, A’s Cast

There might be more clarity on how Aaron Judge landed himself on the injured list with a stress fracture in his first rib.

On Friday, Judge shared that he believes he suffered the injury diving for a ball in Houston during an April 26 game.

The dive happened on a ball that Jazz Chisholm Jr. ended up catching. The following inning? Judge homered.

Judge continued to play through discomfort for over a month before the pain became overwhelming last weekend in Sacramento.

The last game Judge played was the series finale against the Athletics on Sunday. Judge didn’t notify manager Aaron Boone of his discomfort until this past weekend.

The Yankees placed Judge on the 10-day IL on Friday, and he will be shut down for the next four-to-six weeks and then be reevaluated, per the team.

The Yankees said they expect Judge to be back this season, but the best-case scenario is likely a late July return, with mid-August more feasible.

“It’s definitely not what you want to hear,” Judge said of the injury on Friday. “We’ll take a little time to get healthy and get back at it.”

With Judge out for the foreseeable future, No. 6-ranked prospect Spencer Jones was called back up. Jose Caballero and Max Schuemann filled in at right field in the series against Cleveland this week.

Despite the impact that Judge’s absence will surely bring, the team avoided the worst-case scenario. His injury does not appear season-ending, as was initially feared.

Judge was productive to start the season despite not being himself of late. He’s slashing .248/.375/.533 in his first 59 games. But since May 11, his production dipped, going 14-for-68 (.206) with just one home run, eight RBIs and 19 strikeouts.

Another Trey Day. It seems like a good day to get a win streak going. I’m hopeful.

And it is Pride Day. And the roof is open. Aall is good in the world. Or will be if the Jays win.

Apparently the Jays are moving Sean Keys up to Buffalo. He was doing great in New Hampshire, with a .285/.411/.581 with 14 home runs, 28 walks and 51 strikeouts in 49 games.

Lineups:

Go Jays Go

The Atlanta Braves are starting their weekend series against the Pittsburgh Pirates where it looks like they may have lucked out and not have to face Paul Skenes who pitched on Wednesday.

Martín Pérez is easily having his best season since 2022 and will be facing Mitch Keller who is having his standard low fours ERA season that he seems to have every single season without fail. Both offenses have been good this season. The Braves have scored the third most runs in MLB and the Pirates have scored only four less to place them fourth.

The key for the Braves today will be to get to the bullpen as fast as they can where the Pirates clearly are weak placing eighteenth in MLB in reliever ERA.

First pitch is at 7:15 EDT

Lineup

Preview

Do you like barrels? Hard hit balls? Dingers and gap-to-gap doubles? Too bad! We’ve got Bryan Woo facing off against Framber Valdez today. 174 pitchers have faced at least 500 batters since the start of 2024, and of them, Woo has the 6th lowest wOBAcon (damage on contact), and Valdez, the 23rd lowest.

On the other hand, each of them will be pitching in front of one of the three worst defenses in MLB, so maybe some balls will get through.

Lineups

Rob Refsnyder gets the nod over the hot-lately Patrick Wisdom, but nothing too fancy from Dan Wilson today as the Mariners face the lefty Valdez.

The Tigers, who also run a pretty platoon-heavy team, will go with their standard lineup against righties except for starting Zack Short over Wencel Perez. As a group, this collection of hitters has slashed .208/.240/.292 against Bryan Woo.

Game Info

First Pitch: 3:40 PDT
TV: Mariners TV
Radio: Old reliable
Game Thread Comment of the Day: To be determined!

Say what you will about the series finale on Thursday against the Philadelphia Phillies, but the San Diego Padres showed some offensive fight. Despite not getting a hit until the sixth inning off of Phillies ace Zack Wheeler, the Padres managed to put up two runs in the seventh on a Manny Machado homer to make it a one-run game.

Unfortunately the bullpen (combined with Freddy Fermin’s poor defense) resulted in a three-run seventh inning for Philadelphia that pushed the score to 6-2. The Padres were close to a comeback in the ninth, with a Jackson Merrill homer making the score 6-4, Philly. But Phillies reliever José Alvarado recorded the final three outs.

It’s been a majorly disappointing stretch for the Friars the last few weeks. That being said, this series against Philadelphia was better than it seems. The Padres showed they could score runs, but the bullpen picked the wrong time to get shaky, giving up all three games to the Phils. As San Diego returns home to Petco Park, the Friars will need to rebound while facing the New York Mets this weekend.

Taking the mound

Christian Scott (NYM) v. Michael King (SD)

Scott has had a solid sophomore campaign with the Mets, posting a 2.97 ERA through 30 1/3 innings pitched. He hasn’t worked very deep into games. That’s likely due to New York giving Scott a rather short leash after he had a 4.56 ERA in his 2025 rookie year (47.1 IP).

After struggling at the beginning of May, Scott has turned things around. He’s surrendered just one run across his last 10 2/3 innings. He’s kept balls in the yard well, giving up just one home run this year. The Padres will need to get to Scott early.

King has been an ace for the Friars, though his stat line might not fully suggest it. He’s been saddled with a 3.18 ERA thanks to a few tough outings. For the most part, King has been a stalwart in the Padres’ rotation.

After one of the best starts of his career (7.0 IP, 0 ER), King has since given up nine runs across 9 2/3 innings of work. It’s been a rough go of it lately. King will be looking to rebound against a talented (but thus far unimpressive) Mets lineup.

Batter up!

Machado and Merrill both went yard in San Diego’s series finale on Thursday. Their breakouts (along with Tatis’ recent hot streak) would be incredible for the Friars’ offensive production.

1. Fernando Tatis Jr., 2B
2. Gavin Sheets, LF
3. Jackson Merrill, CF
4. Manny Machado, 3B
5. Ty France, 1B
6. Xander Bogaerts, SS
7. Miguel Andujar, DH
8. Jase Bowen, RF
9. Rodolfo Durán, C

None of the Padres have had an opportunity to face Scott in the past, so they’ll have to figure him out on the fly. France has continued to prove his worth offensively, going 6-for-17 with three walks during this road trip.

Durán has turned into King’s personal catcher with Luis Campusano stuck on the injured list. After a short hot streak at the plate, Durán has cooled down lately. He’s been much better than his counterpart backstop, Freddy Fermin.

Relief corps

The bullpen was forced to pick up after Lucas Giolito’s shaky start. After giving up just one run across four innings, Giolito came back out for the fifth and surrendered a leadoff home run to Adolis García and a double to Justin Crawford. That forced manager Craig Stammen to turn to Yuki Matsui.

Matsui didn’t do much to limit the damage, walking Kyle Schwarber before getting two outs. With runners on first and third, Matsui made a crucial throwing error attempting to pickoff Trea Turner at first base. The error allowed Crawford to score from third.

In the seventh, Ron Marinaccio worked around a leadoff single to Alec Bohm for a scoreless frame. He was replaced by Adrian Morejon in the eighth and couldn’t get out of the inning. Wandy Peralta emerged from the ‘pen and finished out the inning.

That leaves some options for today, though the Friars certainly will be banking on King to return to form. Jason Adam, Jeremiah Estrada, Mason Miller and Bradgley Rodriguez are all available. They’ve all been high-leverage options for San Diego in the past.

The Dodgers and Angels continue their weekend series with the middle game on Saturday night at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto starts for the Dodgers, and Jack Kochanowitz is on the mound for the Angels.

Saturday game info

• Teams: Dodgers vs. Angels
• Ballpark: Dodger Stadium
• Time: 7:10 p.m.
• TV: SportsNet LA, MLB Network (out of market), KCOP channel 13 (Angels broadcast)
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

Beucase this is a day ending in Y the Jay have made a roster move. Simeon Woods Richardson is active for tonight’s game. Chad Dallas is on his way to Buffalo.

3.2 good innings from Dallas, thank you very much, 2 hits, 1 earned, 2 walks, 2 strikeouts.

SWR wasn’t good for the Twins, this season, but he’s been a good pitcher in the past and can likely give us 5-6 innings at a go.

And the team says that Dylan Cease is ‘very likely’ to make his next start with the Blue Jays. They say he feels good after his start for the Bisons yesterday. He was hit pretty hard in that game but that’s really not what’s important.

We should hear that Kirk is coming back pretty soon. Max Scherzer will be ready soon. Yimi Garcia will only need a couple more rehab appearances. And Shane Bieber will start tomorrow for Buffalo. He’ll need a couple more rehab appearances before they talk about him coming back. Tommy Nance isn’t all that far from coming back as well. Addison Barger will likely be a week or so before he’s ready to come back.

Tonight’s lineups for Pride Day at the ballpartk. No Lips tonight.

Paul Toboni.

On July 6, 2025 the Washington Nationals sacked President of Baseball Operations and former Diamondbacks head of scouting, Mike Rizzo, and their manager Dave Martinez. It was the duo that surprisingly won the 2019 World Series. But, after winning that World Series, there was a quick downfall from which the Nationals were never able to recuperate.

Though in 2025 the Nationals were probably never expected to be fierce competitors, the onfield performance was not according to the owner’s expectations, where the young core wasn’t as exciting as hoped for.

The Nationals finished the disappointing 2025 with some interim management and announced as soon as the season was over that Paul Toboni would be the new leader in the front office.

With his signing as new President of Baseball Operations, Paul Toboni is currently the youngest baseball executive in the MLB with his 35 years. A Berkeley graduate, and a 2011 team mate of Marcus Semien’s college world series Golden Bears, Toboni started his career in the MLB in 2013 as an intern. In 2015 he joined the Red Sox (so he must have met Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen) and since 2019 he oversaw the Red Sox farm system. On his arrival in Washington Toboni overhauled the front office, with his most notable signing being Blake Butera as the on field manager.

Toboni’s immediate focus was the starting rotation. He made 3 notable free agent pitching signings: Foster Griffin came over from the NPB, while Miles Mikolas and Zack Littell joined as free agents from the Cardinals and Reds. All three were signed to a 1-year contract. Max Kranick and Cionel Pérez are two relievers who also joined the Nationals on a 1-year contract.

Toboni also made a bunch of waiver claims and DFAd a lot.

However, the biggest headlines were taken when he moved MacKenzie Gore to the Rangers for 5 prospects. Gore struggled out of the gate in Texas, but has found his groove of late. The 5 prospects that Washington got in return have all easily slipped into the Washington Nationals farm system ranking. Though none is seen as a top talent, the expectations is that the first two got join the big league team this season.

There was some speculation that CJ Abrams could be the next player out of Washington, but the Nationals either couldn’t find a willing trade partner or decided to stick with the infielder, who hasn’t been completely free of some controversy.

Many runs guaranteed in this series.

The early results say that when the Nationals play, you get to see a lot of runs.

The Nationals is the team that scores most runs per game: their 331 runs is one run more than the almighty Dodgers and two more than the Atlanta Braves, the two teams that are currently battling for the power ranking throne in the MLB.

The downside is that the Nationals is also one of the teams that gives up most runs: their 341 runs allowed is second behind the Rockies (355). Their 298 earned runs allowed show that defence has a lot of improvement left. Their 90 homeruns allowed is top in the league and shows that their pitching allows too much hard contact. Their FIP, according to baseball reference, is still third worst in the league.

So, while Toboni hasn’t had a lucky hand in his free agent signings on the pitching front, luckily for him Washington’s bats are about as hot as you can get them. That success is pretty much carried by two players: CJ Abrams and his 155 OPS+ and James Wood’s 160 OPS+. Abrams is the team’s RBI leader, while Wood’s has hit most home runs (16), though what stands out is his huge 17% walk percentage. That makes both players a top 10 position in the entire MLB in those categories.

Woods sports a huge BABIP of .400 over the past two weeks, which is enormous, but until now he has always had higher BABIP in the past two seasons than you’d normally see. The Nationals were a bit down in their latest series against the Marlins, scoring “only” 7 runs and getting swept by Miami, dropping from 31-29 to 31-32.

Matchups.

Game #1 Fri 06/05 6:40 PM MST, Merrill Kelly (ARI) vs Foster Griffin (WSN).

• Merrill Kelly. 9 GS, 53.1 IP, 5 W-3 L, 5.06 ERA, 5.60 FIP, 1.46 WHIP, 33/22 K/BB. $18,000,000.
• Foster Griffin. 12 GS, 67.0 IP, 6 W-2 L, 3.76 ERA, 4.90 FIP, 1.15 WHIP, 65/21 K/BB. $5,500,000.

After pitching twice against the Giants and one each against Rockies and Mets, Merrill found himself a tougher opponent in his latest performance in Seattle. The mainstay allowed only 2 runs, but you could say that it could have been much worse. Though Kelly could easily line up for another win in this matchup, it could be more because our bats back him up than him being able to quiet Washington’s. That is a similar view of his performance last time against Washington, last year in May, when he gave up 6 runs in 5 innings, but got a no-decision.

That isn’t such a strange prediction, if you look at it, because Merrill gives up a ton of homeruns, but I give you my Merrill and you show me your Foster Griffin: he has the same HR/9 rate as Merrill Kelly (1.7). Before this season, Griffin had 14.1 innings under his belt in the major leagues, debuting with the Royals in 2020. He played in the NPB the past 3 seasons, where he had an especially strong season for the Yomiuri Giants last season, pitching to a 1.62 ERA in 78 innings.

Griffin has a huge 7-pitch arsenal. Cutter, four-seamer, sweeper, sinker, change-up, curve and split finger. His fastball is weak, reaching an average a bit above 91 mph. The change-up is his best pitch, but he only shows it against right-handed pitching. His barrel percentage is in the 8th percentile, i.e. one of the worst in the league.

With Corbin being a lefty, Ketel a switch hitter and CJ Abrams and James Woods on fire, I foresee a slugfest in this first matchup, with the decision coming late in the game.

Game #2 Sat 06/06 1:10 PM MST, Eduardo Rodriguez (ARI) vs Zack Littell (WSN).

• Eduardo Rodriguez. 12 GS, 72.1 IP, 5 W-1 L, 2.24 ERA, 3.64 FIP, 1.19 WHIP, 52/26 K/BB. $21,000,000.
• Zack Littell. 12 G, 8 GS, 59.1 IP, 5 W-4 L, 5.01 ERA, 6.22 FIP, 1.37 WHIP, 35/19 K/BB. $3,000,000.

After a great 2024 season for the Rays, Littell was okay-ish in 2025, though probably worse than hoped for, for both the Rays and, after a trade, for the Reds. That is how Littell got to see the Diamondbacks twice last season, in April in a Rays shirt, in August in a Reds shirt. Both times he could not get a win. This year Littell hasn’t been great for the Nationals, though his numbers are very much skewed by three terrible performances at the end of May against Giants (!), Braves and Mets, when he gave up 18 runs in 13.2 innings. Lately, Littell has navigated into quieter waters, a couple of times behind an opener, and over the past 6 innings he sports a 2.53 ERA and 3.49 FIP, pretty similar to Eduardo Rodriguez’s season numbers. His command and his breaking balls (split finger, sweeper) are Littell’s strengths. Littell is a lefty and has a slightly better split against lefties because of that.

So, this matchup could be way more different than the previous one and instead of a slugfest, it could be a tight game with both starting pitchers leaving the game with less than 5 runs scored.

Game #3 Sun 06/07 12:15 PM MST, Michael Soroka (ARI) vs Cade Cavalli (WSN).

• Michael Soroka. 12 GS, 67.0 IP, 7 W-3 L, 3.49 ERA, 2.95 FIP, 1.19 WHIP, 66/15 K/BB. $7,000,000.
• Cade Cavalli. 13 GS, 64.2 IP, 3 W-3 L, 3.62 ERA, 3.00 FIP, 1.42 WHIP, 74/24 K/BB. $862,500.

Despite making his debut in 2022, we have never seen Cade Cavalli starting against the Diamondbacks and that is because the former star prospect struggled with injuries and setbacks until returning to the MLB in August 2025, when he made his first start in 3 years. Now, Cavalli is finally ready for his first full major league season in his career, at 27 years of age. His four-seamer/sinker combo is a strong 96+ mph fastball combo, but his strength is in his off-speed changeup and sweeper. Cavalli also shows a knuckle curve. The Oklahoma native is a ground ball pitcher, so a bit of a different profile than Michael Soroka. Cavalli has some strong splits, with lefties getting the upper hand over him.

Soroka will be eager to show the Nationals that his 2026 version is a lot better than the 2025 version who was in Washington. Michael survived the Dodgers’ batting lineup, but will have to be wary of allowing too much hard contact.

Texas Rangers outfielder Wyatt Langford has been activated from the 10 day injured list, the team announced today. Because there was an open spot on the active roster after yesterday’s transactions, no additional move was necessary to clear a spot for him. In addition, the Rangers activated Sam Haggerty from the bereavement list and have designated him for assignment.

Langford has been out since mid-April due to a forearm strain. He had gotten off to a slow start prior to his landing on the injured list, but hopefully he will be able to hit the ground running and, along with Corey Seager, who was activated yesterday, will be able to provide a boost to the Ranger offense.

Haggerty had a solid 2025 campaign, and started the 2026 season as Evan Carter’s platoon partner. He has just a 395 OPS this year, however, and it appears Michael Helman has displaced him in that role.

It has been nearly a calendar year since Atlanta Braves pitcher Spencer Schwellenbach fired a pitch in a baseball game. On Friday, Braves manager Walt Weiss confirmed that Schwellenbach continues to throw from flat ground but is still nowhere near close to beginning a rehab assignment for the team.

It’s not exactly surprising news as the Braves have preached caution and a long timetable for Schwellenbach’s potential return since he underwent elbow surgery in February. Schwellenbach also, of course, broke his elbow last June.

It’s good news that Schwellenbach continues to throw, although it would seem based on the timeline that even if everything goes perfectly from here, we’re likely looking at August or September before Schwellenbach could find himself in the mix to make starts for the big league club.

It’s also worth considering that even if Schwellenbach is physically up for pitching in a game, would he be effective enough to make crucial starts for the Braves in September and October? That would mean 14 or 15 months since the young righty appeared in a big league game. That certainly feels like a cart-before-the-horse situation at the moment, but it’s something that may present itself at some point.

The Milwaukee Brewers are back on the road for the beginning of a six-game road trip out west. After failing to complete comebacks in the final two games against the National League West’s San Francisco Giants, the Brewers look to set the record straight against the NL West’s worst, the Colorado Rockies.

Yesterday afternoon, we watched the ball fly at American Family Field as we saw a combined five home runs and seven doubles in the series finale. Thankfully for Brewers fans, the Brewers had their hat mixed in consistently throughout the day, with Jackson Chourio going deep twice and David Hamilton hitting his second long ball on the season, not to mention the numerous flyouts to the warning track. Expect similar action tonight at Coors Field, another ballpark that’s notorious for deep flies.

The Brewers will try to avoid losing three in a row for the first time since late April, and getting the ball in tonight’s series opener will be Brandon Sproat. There’s no doubt that Sproat has struggled this season in terms of giving up runs, but home runs have been a backbreaker so far this season, as he has allowed 10 on the season. In his last outing against the Houston Astros, he made it just 4 1/3 innings while allowing five runs on six hits and gave up one home run.

Though the Rockies are at the bottom of their division, they’re still pesky and have been playing better ball over the last week, as they have won back-to-back series, winning four out of their last six. The big question surrounding tonight’s game is how short Sproat’s leash will be after some comments made by manager Pat Murphy following his previous start: “We’re not going to tolerate too many duds like this, that’s for sure.”

Getting the ball to open up the six-game home stand for the Rockies is the right-hander, Ryan Feltner. The month of April wasn’t too kind to Feltner, posting a 7.41 ERA while allowing five home runs. After being placed on the 15-day IL and having most of May off, he came back and dominated against the San Francisco Giants, throwing six scoreless innings while allowing just four hits on the day.

After the bullpen had a rough day at the office yesterday, we saw a couple of changes. DL Hall is officially on the 15-day IL with a left pectoral strain, with Jake Woodford being designated for assignment after another rough outing in yesterday’s game. Replacing the two arms will be Craig Yoho and Brian Fitzpatrick.

Yoho is back on the big league club for the first time since last season and is looking to have a better trip around. Last season he posted a 7.27 ERA through eight appearances. This season down in Nashville, he has had a great start to the 2026 season as he has posted a 1.00 ERA in 18 innings, recording three saves and 24 strikeouts.

Backup with the club is the southpaw Fitzpatrick, who has shined in his first four outings with the Brewers. Through 5 2/3 innings, he has four strikeouts and has allowed just one earned run.

Though Murphy has yet to announce tonight’s starting lineup, most of the everyday starters have seen Feltner a fair amount throughout his first six years in the big leagues. William Contreras has seen the most of him, as he has 16 at-bats, though he hasn’t fared well against him, batting just .188. Christian Yelich has hit the best against Feltner — through 12 at-bats, he’s hitting .417 with a 1.084 OPS.

Like most nights, you’ll be able to catch the game on Brewers.TV, WTMJ 620, and the Brewers Radio Network. First pitch is set for 7:40 p.m.

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The Freeway Series gets renewed as the Los Angeles Angels make the short trip to Chavez Ravine to face the Los Angeles Dodgers tonight, with the home side favored.

Reid Detmers and Roki Sasaki toe the rubber in the series opener, potentially creating some value on the underdog.

See why my Angels vs. Dodgers predictions and MLB picks for Friday, June 5, are enamored with Reid Detmers. 

Who will win Angels vs Dodgers tonight: Angels (+175)

Plug your nose if you have to, but the Los Angeles Angels are undervalued in this series opener. 

Reid Detmers gives them a starting pitching advantage. His 2.92 xERA, 20.8% K-BB%, and 104 Stuff+ are clear indicators of an effective arm. 

Roki Sasaki’s hittable heater (.328 xBA) and penchant for allowing loud contact (11th percentile barrel rate) are major concerns. 

The Angels’ bullpen will be fully rested after Thursday’s day off, whereas the Los Angeles Dodgers are playing their eighth game in as many days and have a 6.08 ERA in the last 10 days. 

I'd play this to +165.

COVERS INTEL: Detmers is bound for positive regression given his 60.8% left-on-base rate. That’s the worst luck among all qualified starters, so no wonder his actual ERA is nearly two runs higher than his xERA.  

Angels vs Dodgers Over/Under pick: Under 8.5 (-125)

There’s value betting on Detmers’ positive regression, combined with a bruised-up Dodgers lineup. Let's break it down...

• Shohei Ohtani sat yesterday with a blister
• Max Muncy may be absent after a hard collision on Thursday
• Mookie Betts (.183/.246/.365) has temporarily lost the ability to hit baseballs
• Teoscar Hernandez is still on the IL

Not great.

The Dodgers were already an Under team (12-19 O/U at home) and are looking even more so like one, given the circumstances. 

Both starters have an above-average Stuff+ (104) and are in fine form, so it’ll be another low-scoring Dodgers game.

Angels vs Dodgers odds

• Moneyline: Angels +178 | Dodgers -185
• Run line: Angels +1.5 (-125) | Dodgers -1.5 (+105)
• Over/Under: Over 8 (-110) | Under 8 (-110)

Angels vs Dodgers trend

The Dodgers have cashed the Under in 15 of their last 22 games. Find more MLB betting trends for Angels vs. Dodgers.

How to watch Angels vs Dodgers and game info

Angels vs Dodgers latest injuries

Angels vs Dodgers weather

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A busy evening in the big leagues offers intriguing value in the home run market, with several stars on my radar. 

My MLB player props will focus on Jackson Chourio, Oneil Cruz, and Tyler Soderstrom.

Read more in my MLB picks for Friday, June 5. 

Best MLB home run props today

Player to hit a HR	Odds
Jackson Chourio	+292
Oneil Cruz	+388
Tyler Soderstrom	+496
💲Today's HR parlay	+11625

Home run pick: Jackson Chourio (+292)

Jackson Chourio is one of the hottest hitters in baseball at the moment. He owns a .765 xSLG over the last week, including three home runs during that span, while possessing a 44.4% hard-hit rate. If we take a deeper dive, the power is very evident. Chourio also has a .524 ISO across his previous six games.

He'll face Colorado Rockies right-hander Ryan Feltner tonight. The starter recently returned from the IL and has made just one start since late April, so we'll look at his season as a whole.

Feltner owns a 6.35 xERA and has allowed a 46.9% hard-hit rate. He's also surrendered 38.3% of his contact through the air, while carrying a concerning 16.1% HR/FB rate.

That's an appealing matchup for Chourio, who owns a 33.3% HR/FB rate over the last week and continues to generate loud contact consistently.

With this game taking place at Coors Field — one of the most favorable home-run environments in baseball — the conditions only strengthen the case.

I'll take this pick up to +200.

• Time: 8:40 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: Brewers.TV, Rockies.TV

Home run pick: Oneil Cruz (+388)

Oneil Cruz is consistently making loud contact at the moment. Aside from his three bombs in the last six games, he owns an astounding 23.1% barrel rate during that span while carrying a ridiculous .912 xSLG.

Cruz has also slugged above .500 against left-handed pitching this season, and he'll face Atlanta Braves southpaw Martin Perez this evening.

Perez has been getting hit, with 34.1% of the contact he's allowed against left-handed batters coming in the air, and 14.3% of those fly balls leaving the yard. That's a recipe for disaster against a hitter like Cruz, who has seen 36.4% of his fly balls against lefties land in the bleachers.

I'll play this pick up to +350.

• Time: 7:15 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: SportsNet Pittsburgh, BravesVision

Home run pick: Tyler Soderstrom (+496)

Tyler Soderstrom is making plenty of loud contact right now, carrying a 52.6% hard-hit rate and an expected slugging percentage north of .500 over the last week. The Athletics slugger has also gone deep twice in his last six games, and the matchup is what stands out most here.

The Houston Astros hand Peter Lambert the ball, and while he hasn't allowed a home run across his last two starts, the underlying metrics suggest he's been fortunate. The right-hander has surrendered a 46.7% fly-ball rate, 46.7% hard-hit rate, and a 22.7 average launch angle during that span. Those indicators suggest opposing hitters are generating the type of contact that often turns into home runs.

Add in the short porch in left field at Daikin Park, and this matchup becomes even more appealing.

I'll take this pick up to +400.

• Time: 8:10 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: NBC Sports California, Space City Home Network

Today’s HR parlay

Jackson Chourio	Bet Now +11625
Oneil Cruz
Tyler Soderstrom

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