It's Friday, July 18 and the Astros (56-40) are in Seattle to take on the Mariners (51-45). Brandon Walter is slated to take the mound for Houston against Luis Castillo for Seattle.
Houston is 4-3 against Seattle this season and 3-1 in the last four, but struggled entering the All-Star break. The Astros are 1-5 over the last six games after going on a 6-1 stretch prior to that. Houston is leading the AL West by 5.0 games and has the second-easiest strength of schedule remaining.
For Seattle, they are the team 5.0 games back of Houston and are coming off a three-game sweep of Detroit that should have the Mariners feeling good, not to mention Cal Raleigh's home run derby title.
Let's dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two. We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on how to catch first pitch, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
Follow Rotoworld Player News for the latest fantasy and betting player news and analysis all season long.
Game details & how to watch Astros at Mariners
Date: Friday, July 18, 2025
Time: 10:10PM EST
Site: T-Mobile Park
City: Seattle, WA
Network/Streaming: SCHN, RSNW
Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out.
Odds for the Astros at the Mariners
The latest odds as of Friday:
Moneyline: Astros (+113), Mariners (-134)
Spread: Mariners -1.5
Total: 7.0 runs
Probable starting pitchers for Astros at Mariners
Pitching matchup for July 18, 2025: Brandon Walter vs. Luis Castillo
Mariners: Luis Castillo, (6-5, 3.41 ERA) Last outing: 5.0 Innings Pitched, 3 Earned Runs Allowed, 6 Hits Allowed, 2 Walks, and 6 Strikeouts
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Expert picks & predictions for tonight’s game between the Astros and the Mariners
Rotoworld Best Bet
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Friday’s game between the Astros and the Mariners:
Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Astros Moneyline.
Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Houston Astros at +1.5.
Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the over on the Game Total of 7.0.
Want even more MLB best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert MLB Predictions page from NBC.
Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Astros at Mariners
Houston is 4-3 versus Seattle this season
Seattle is 3-0 in the last three games
Seattle is 6-0 to the Over in the last six games
Houston is 4-2 to the Over in the last six games
Seattle is 4-1 in the last five when Castillo pitches this season
Houston is 2-5 when Walter pitches this season
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff:
ARLINGTON, Texax — The Texas Rangers acquired right-hander José Ruiz and cash considerations from the Atlanta Braves on Thursday for right-hander Dane Dunning.
The 30-year-old Ruiz has split the season between Philadelphia and Atlanta and both teams' Triple-A affiliates. He will report to Triple-A Round Rock.
Ruiz made 16 relief appearances for Philadelphia before being designated for assignment June 1 and claimed off waivers by the Braves on June 7. He pitched in two games for Atlanta, and is 1-0 with an 8.82 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 16 1/3 innings in the 18 combined games.
The Venezuelan is 11-9 with a save and a 4.62 ERA in 282 career games in nine seasons with San Diego, the Chicago White Sox, Arizona, Philadelphia and Atlanta.
The 30-year-old Dunning had a 3.38 ERA in 10 2/3 innings without a decision in five games this season for Texas. After being acquired from the White Sox in December 2020, he was 26-32 with a 4.36 ERA in 122 games for Texas.
SAN FRANCISCO — Former San Francisco Giants managing general partner Bill Neukom, a bow-tie loving, longtime Microsoft attorney who was at the helm when the team won its first World Series title in 2010, has died. He was 83.
The team announced Neukom's death Thursday. No additional information was provided.
Neukom retired from his role following the 2011 season and after the Giants captured the 2010 World Series for their first of three every-other-year titles that included championships in 2012 and 2014.
The 2010 victory marked the first for the team since moving West in 1958.
“Bill will always hold a special place in our hearts and in the history of this franchise,” Giants CEO Larry Baer said in a statement. “He was instrumental in helping this organization and its players bring the first World Series Championship to San Francisco in 2010. Bill will always be remembered for not only his leadership of this storied organization but also his colorful bow ties and the fact he’d bring a glove to the ballpark to try and catch foul balls. He was a true gentleman, a dedicated fan and a friend to so many.”
An avid runner who completed more than a half-dozen marathons, Neukom first joined the ownership group in 1995 and became a general partner in 2003. When Peter Magowan retired after the 2008 season, Neukom became managing general partner.
He developed a catchphrase called “The Giants Way” of playing baseball.
“My idea is that we adhere to it at the minor-league level and all the way up," Neukom said when introduced in October 2008. "It’s how you play the game, conditioning, fundamentals, a rigorous spring training regimen, everything. We want the best talent, the best teachers, the best leaders, the best trainers, and we want to have better communication on what we want and how we want it done.”
After retiring, Neukom remained involved with the Giants as chairman emeritus.
He grew up in nearby San Mateo rooting for the Giants and with then-San Francisco Seals owner Charlie Graham as a neighbor. Neukom also loved riding horses and stayed active despite undergoing hip replacement surgery during his Giants tenure.
Serving as top counsel for Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates, Neukom was the company's lead lawyer for nearly 25 years. His Microsoft stake was worth an estimated $107 million when he left in 2001. He was a partner in the Seattle office of the law firm Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis. He also was a past president of the American Bar Association, serving in 2007-08.
Neukom also founded the World Justice Project in 2006, a multinational, multidisciplinary initiative to strengthen the rule of law worldwide.
“You know,” Jim Duquette said as we left the Baseball Night in New York set on Thursday evening, two days before David Wright’s Mets Hall of Fame induction and number retirement ceremony. “I had the chance to trade David.”
“For who?” I asked, as anyone would.
A twinkle seemed to appear in Jim’s eye before he said the name: “Beltran.”
What?
Imagine that. David Wright for Carlos Beltran. Two of the best players in Mets history, traded for one another before they even became teammates.
“Is that known?”
“Nope,” Jim said.
He was right. Not even Beltran or Wright had heard of this before Thursday. We checked.
Now rewind to the summer of 2004. Duquette was the Mets’ general manager and looking to improve a team on the fringes of contention. He would trade pitching prospect Scott Kazmir to Tampa Bay for veteran Victor Zambrano (don’t even start; Jim has answered for that), but had bigger ambitions.
“It was the ‘04 trade deadline,” Duquette said. “That was when we traded Kazmir for Zambrano, but we were looking to improve both pitching and offense. Kansas City had Carlos Beltran available. Pittsburgh had [pitcher Kris] Benson. We really felt like we needed pitching before anything else.”
Still, Duquette was seeking a hitter. Several times, he called Kansas City Royals GM Allard Baird about Beltran, a free-agent-to-be on the trading block.
“Every time I would ask about Beltran, Allard said, ‘Well, I’ll trade you Beltran, but we want David Wright in return.’”
Wright was a top prospect who made his MLB debut right around the time of that trade discussion, on July 21, 2004.
“We were not trading David Wright at all,” Duquette said. “So, we would hang up the phone. We would call back and say, ‘Hey, any other thoughts about Beltran?’ And he would say, ‘David Wright.’”
Reached via text on Friday evening, Baird -- who later became a key member of general manager Brodie Van Wagenen’s Mets front office before departing when the team was sold in 2020 -- confirmed the talks, and elaborated on his interest in Wright. It cut far deeper than even Duquette realized.
“He was a complete player!” Baird wrote. “Besides the easy offensive and defensive projection, he was team above oneself. A winning player.
“In A-ball, he came out on the field all alone an hour before anyone else was there. All for what looked like was just the joy of being on the field. On a night he didn’t perform at the plate, he was the first one out of the dugout every inning to go play defense.”
Duquette was not going to trade Wright, so Baird instead sent Beltran to Houston in a three-team deal in which the Royals landed catcher John Buck, infielder Mark Teahan and pitcher Mike Wood, and the Oakland Athletics got reliever Octavio Dotel.
After that season, Omar Minaya replaced Duquette as Mets GM and signed Beltran as a free agent.
Wright became the face of the franchise — the Mets, that is. Not the Royals.
Beltran went on to become one of the greatest players Flushing has ever seen, and was Wright’s teammate for nearly six seasons. He now works in the front office.
Storied Blair Field, home of the Long Beach State Dirtbags, could be the site where an independent league team plays if an ownership group can reach a deal with the city. (Hiro Ueno / Associated Press)
Could the fourth time be the charm for minor league baseball in Long Beach?
On Tuesday, the Long Beach City Council is scheduled to consider whether to order city staff to work toward an agreement with the ownership group for a “new professional baseball team” that would play at Blair Field, the city’s storied ballpark.
The ownership group includes Paul Freedman, one of the co-founders of the Oakland Ballers, a successful independent league team launched last year amid the departure of the Oakland Athletics.
The new team would open play next season and participate as an expansion team in the Pioneer League, the same league in which the Ballers play. The league includes teams in California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah and Wyoming.
“I got into this industry because of love for baseball and the community, and love for Oakland,” Freedman said. “I see a tremendous amount of parallels between the city of Oakland and the city of Long Beach, and I think the kind of community-oriented baseball that is working in Oakland can work in Long Beach as well.”
In minor leagues affiliated with major league organizations, those organizations sign and pay players, then assign them to a minor league team. In an independent league, the teams sign and pay players, most of whom hope to play well enough to earn a contract from a major league organization.
Independent leagues also serve as labs for the major leagues: The “swing-off” that decided this week’s All-Star Game has been a rule in the Pioneer League since 2021.
Three independent minor league teams have come and gone in Long Beach over the last 30 years: the Barracuda (renamed the Riptide) in 1995-96, the Breakers (2001-02) and the Armada (2005-09).
Freedman said he believed the struggles reflected instability in the various leagues in which the teams played more than an inability of Long Beach to support a team.
“It’s a city with a huge baseball tradition,” Freedman said. “It’s a diverse city on the rise. It’s hosting the Olympics. I think now it’s time to have a team to represent the town.
“I think baseball has worked in Long Beach, and I think Long Beach is in an even better condition now to embrace a new kind of baseball.”
The Long Beach State baseball team, proudly known as the Dirtbags, attracted more fans last season than any of the other nine Big West Conference teams based in California. The Dirtbags are the primary tenant of Blair Field, and the motion before the city council would require city staff to work with Long Beach State on a “collaborative partnership agreement.”
A city spokesman did not return a call seeking comment.
After spending the first five seasons of his career with the New York Rangers, K’Andre Miller is beginning the next chapter of his career with the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Rangers and the Hurricanes agreed to a sign-and-trade deal that sent Miller to Carolina. Miller ultimately signed an eight-year, $60 million contract with the Hurricanes.
During his introductory press conference with the Hurricanes, the 25-year-old defenseman expressed his excitement to join the Hurricanes, while also making sure to acknowledge his gratitude toward the Rangers organization.
A couple of weeks after his departure, Miller took the time to send out a formal farewell to the Rangers and their fans on his Instagram.
“To the Rangers fans — I’ll miss the roar of the crowd and the ‘Let’s Go Rangers’ chants that will forever echo in my mind. Your fandom is second to none,” Miller wrote via Instagram.
“To my teammates — Thank you for your support and lessons along the way. You made me a better player and person. Grateful.”
“To the Rangers coaches, trainers and support staff — thank you for teaching me, caring for me, and helping me. Most appreciated.”
“Thank you for giving me my start and allowing me to live out my dream in the greatest arena in the world. Thank you.”
The Rangers selected Miller in the first round of the 2018 NHL Draft. He quickly blossomed into one of the team’s most promising defensemen with expectations he could be a legitimate top-four blueliner.
However, over the past two seasons, Miller has shown signs of regression, and the Rangers were unwilling to offer him a long-term contract extension due to his inconsistent play.
This move certainly leaves a bitter taste in the mouths of Rangers fans that once believed in Miller’s potential, but that potential is still there, and it could very well be unleashed in Carolina.
He started that game as an unknown, even to himself. He departed a hero. By the end of the month, he was a World Series champion.
The momentum he gained in the playoffs carried into this season, which explains why the 26-year-old right-hander was at the All-Star Game in Atlanta earlier this week reliving what might have been the most consequential start of his career.
The Dodgers will return from the All-Star break on Friday with Yamamoto as the only dependable arm in their billion-dollar rotation, and his newfound status as one of the best pitchers in baseball makes him their likely Game 1 starter when they open the postseason.
“He’s just to the point where he knows he’s a really good pitcher, he’s an All-Star and he has high expectations for himself,” manager Dave Roberts said.
The sense of stability that Yamamoto provides was something the Dodgers couldn’t have dreamed of in his up-and-down rookie season last year. Yamamoto encountered difficulties that were unknown to him as a three-time Pacific League most valuable player with Japan’s Orix Buffaloes, missing three months with shoulder problems. Even when he pitched, he performed inconsistently, and in Game 1 of the NLDS against the Padres, he gave up five runs in only three innings.
“The more I failed, the more it felt like things were piling up,” Yamamoto said.
With a two-games-to-one deficit in the series, the Dodgers managed to win Game 4 in San Diego to set up a winner-take-all Game 5 in Los Angeles. Yamamoto was assigned to start the deciding game.
Yamamoto had difficulty sleeping the night before his start. When he tried to think of anything other than the game, he couldn’t.
Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto delivers against the Chicago White Sox on July 1. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
He felt the weight of his 10-year, $325-million contract, which was the most lucrative deal signed by any pitcher from any country. He was also pitching opposite Yu Darvish, making this the first postseason game featuring two Japanese starting pitchers.
His worst fears were never realized. He pitched five scoreless innings in a 2-0 victory, delivering a performance that changed how everyone viewed him — the fans, the team, even himself.
“Being able to contain them there,” Yamamoto said, “became a source of confidence.”
Yamamoto downplayed his psychological fortitude that was required to regroup in the wake of his Game 1 calamity, describing his turnaround as a function of his ability to identify problems and remedy them.
“I’m by no means strong mentally,” he said. “When I get hit, there are times I get really down. But as time passes, things clear up. What I have to do becomes clear.”
Between the two NLDS starts, for example, Yamamoto adjusted the positioning of his glove, which the Dodgers believed revealed in Game 1 which pitches he was about to throw.
His celebration, however, was short-lived.
“I felt like I cleared a mountain,” Yamamoto said. “But there was no time to relax before the next game started.”
Yamamoto started twice more in the playoffs, in Game 4 of the NL Championship Series against the New York Mets and Game 2 of the World Series against the New York Yankees. He gave up a combined three runs in a combined 10 ⅔ innings over the two games, both of which the Dodgers won.
“I think it was a really valuable experience,” he said. “Because of what I experienced, along with the advances I made from a technical standpoint, I think I was able to grow.”
He also drew from the unpleasant times, particularly the three months he was sidelined with a strained rotator cuff.
“I spent the time determined to grow from that,” he said. “I don’t want to forget how frustrated I was.”
The experiences gave him a baseline of knowledge he could take into his second season. As a rookie, he had reported to camp without any expectations.
“I didn’t know what my ability was relative to everyone else’s,” he said. “I lacked a basic understanding of, ‘If I do this, it will work, or if I do that, it won’t.’ So I wasn’t thinking I’d be successful and I wasn’t thinking I wouldn’t be either. I really didn’t know.”
This spring training, he knew. He knew he could succeed.
He also knew what he was up against. Standing a modest 5-foot-10, Yamamoto was struck as a rookie by the imposing physical frames of the other players.
“More than that, when you get to the ballpark, for example, Mookie [Betts] will be finishing up hitting drenched in sweat ,” he said. “ I was surprised by the amount of training, that players weren’t just relying on their talent. It was a little shocking.”
Recognizing that he lost weight over the course of last season, Yamamoto was determined to report to spring training this year with a stronger body. He also benefited from increased comfort with low-quality American baseballs and the pitch clock. He purchased a home, the off-field stability permitting him to focus more on his work.
Pitching once a week as he did in Japan, Yamamoto was 4-2 with a 0.90 earned-run average in his first seven starts of this season. He started pitching on five-days’ rest after that, and he wasn’t nearly as dominant. He initially struggled pitching on a shorter cycle, but he said the causes of that were disruptions to his between-starts routine rather than anything fatigue-related.
Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto delivers against the San Francisco Giants on June 13. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
“I think there is absolutely no problem with that,” he said. “You pitch on six days’ rest in Japan, but you throw 120, 130 pitches in seven or eight innings. That was tough. You have one less day to recover here, but you’re also throwing fewer pitches, so you don’t feel the fatigue that much.
“There are things that come up in between starts. For example, there could be two flights or you could arrive in a city in the middle of the night and have to pitch the next day. You won’t be able to spend every five-day period the same way.”
Yamamoto said he learned to better maximize his time between starts, which he pointed to as the reason he was able to regain his form leading up to the All-Star break. In his penultimate appearance before the intermission, he didn’t make it out of the first inning and was charged with five runs, three of them earned. But in two of his last four starts, he didn’t give up any runs. In another, he yielded just one.
In fact, Yamamoto said that if the team asks, he thinks he could pitch on four days’ rest.
“This year, my body has recovered really well,” he said. “I often check with the trainers after the game, and we talk about how if it’s like this, I could throw in four days, or how if I feel like that, I might be a little later. We go through different scenarios like that every week. I still haven’t started on four days’ rest, but I think my preparation to do that has gone well.”
Yamamoto enters the final 2 ½ months of the regular season not only as the Dodgers’ leader in wins (eight) but also games started (19) and innings pitched (104 ⅓).
His increased comfort has extended into the clubhouse. He forged a somewhat unlikely friendship with South Korean Hyeseong Kim, the two of them often conversing on the bench during games.
“We speak to each other in broken English,” Yamamoto said with a chuckle. “I really like Korean food, so he teaches me about that. There are differences between Korean and Japanese baseball, and the major leagues are a little different too, so stuff like that. They aren’t deep conversations, but I think it’s important to communicate, so we talk a lot.”
Yamamoto has also developed a particularly strong admiration of Clayton Kershaw.
“In him, you have a player on the team whom you can model yourself after,” Yamamoto said. “I also learn a lot watching him pitch. He’s someone you can admire in every aspect. All of my teammates think of him like that too. That’s the kind of player I would like to be.”
The kind of player who could be counted on to take his turn in the rotation. The kind of player who can deliver for his team in big moments.
With the starting rotation back at full strength and All-Star festivities now complete, the Mets announced on Thursday that they'll open the second half of their season with Sean Manaea, Clay Holmes, and David Peterson taking the mound at home against the Reds this weekend.
The first left-hander on the bump will be Manaea, who made his long-awaited 2025 debut last Sunday in a road loss to the Royals. He entered as a bulk reliever for Holmes in the sixth inning, and completed 3.1 frames before allowing the game-winning run in the ninth. Overall, Manaea gave up five hits and struck out seven across 65 pitches.
Holmes will be tasked with Saturday's middle game, and the Mets are hoping that the reliever-turned-starter can regain some sharpness. While his workload has been closely monitored of late, the veteran right-hander has logged a 5.28 ERA through three July outings. By design, he also hasn't completed six innings of work since June 7.
The series finale on Sunday will belong to Peterson, who entered the All-Star break on a positive note. The veteran southpaw registered seven innings of one-run ball with seven strikeouts in the Mets' road win over the Orioles on July 10, and produced 6.2 one-run frames one week prior at home against the Brewers.
The Mets (55-42), who trail the rival Phillies by a half-game for first place in the NL East, are scheduled to host the Angels for a three-game set (July 21-23) after the Reds leave town.
The leaders in the National League East, the Phillies (55-41) welcome the surprising Angels (47-49) to Citizens Bank Park in the City of Brotherly Love for a three-game series beginning Friday night.
Jose Soriano is slated to take the mound for Los Angeles against Jesús Luzardo for Philadelphia.
The Phillies lead the Mets by 0.5 games despite not having their leader, Bryce Harper, in their lineup for the bulk of June. Trea Turner has 112 hits in 94 games and the MVP of the All-Star Game, Kyle Schwarber, has 30 home runs to lead Philadelphia.
Only three teams have more wins on the road in the American League than the Angels. As a result, the Halos are within two games of .500 and within four of a wildcard berth. Taylor Ward is tied for eleventh in baseball with 65 RBIs to lead the Angels.
Lets dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch tipoff, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
Follow Rotoworld Player News for the latest fantasy and betting player news and analysis all season long.
Game details & how to watch Angels at Phillies
Date: Friday, July 18, 2025
Time: 6:45PM EST
Site: Citizens Bank Park
City: Philadelphia, PA
Network/Streaming: FDSNW, NBCSP
Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out.
Odds for the Angels at the Phillies
The latest odds as of Thursday:
Moneyline: Angels (+179), Phillies (-219)
Spread: Phillies -1.5
Total: 8.0 runs
Probable starting pitchers for Angels at Phillies
Pitching matchup for July 18, 2025: Jose Soriano vs. Jesús Luzardo
Angels: Jose Soriano (6-7, 3.90 ERA) Last outing: July 13 vs. Arizona - 5IP, 1ER, 5H, 3BB, 3Ks
Phillies: Jesús Luzardo (8-5, 4.14 ERA) Last outing: July 9 at San Francisco - 7IP, 0ER, 3H, 1BB, 7Ks
Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type!
Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Angels at Phillies
The Phillies have a winning record (9-6) in games against the American League this season
The Angels' last 4 road games have stayed under the Total
The Angels have covered the Run Line in 4 straight road games
Jose Soriano has struck out 14 batters in 16IP in July.
Jesus Luzardo has struck out 7 batters in 3 of his last 4 starts
Bryce Harper is riding a modest 4-game hitting streak (7-16)
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
Expert picks & predictions for Friday’s game between the Angels and the Phillies
Rotoworld Best Bet
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Friday's game between the Angels and the Phillies:
Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Philadelphia Phillies on the Moneyline.
Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Los Angeles Angels at +1.5.
Total: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Game Total of 8.0.
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The second half of the MLB season starts up on Friday, and before first pitch, I have two teams in the make-or-miss playoff market worth betting on -- the San Diego Padres and Boston Red Sox, plus a win total on the Cleveland Guardians.
Follow Rotoworld Player News for the latest fantasy and betting player news and analysis all season long.
Boston Red Sox: (-140) to make the playoffs | (+115) to miss the playoffs
The hottest team in all of baseball is the Boston Red Sox, who have won 10 straight games heading into the All-Star break!
That makes this the perfect time to break down their miss or make the playoffs market because this is the best point to sell-high on Boston if you are a non-believer or it could be one of the final times to get a decent price on the Red Sox if you like where this team is headed toward the end of July.
Where do I stand? I am fader. That's right. I enjoy watching and betting on Sox baseball. I think this team is competitive, but still a few hitters and another youthful pitcher or two away from being serious contenders.
To continue to play devil's advocate, it's the schedule in a crowded AL East that does it for me. With records based on the first half of the season, per Tankathon, Boston has the third-toughest remaining strength of schedule (.516 winning %).
Let's look at the first 15 games of the second half for Boston:
3 road games at the Cubs 3 road games at the Phillies 3 home games vs the Dodgers 3 road games at the Twins 3 home games vs the Astros
I mean, 5-7 wins sounds about right for me out of 15 games, respectively, of course. When you consider the Rays, Yankees, and Blue Jays all have similar strength of schedules (10th, 15th, 18th) that are easier than the Red Sox's.
I am going to take the plus-money here for 2 units and say Boston misses the playoffs. In a week or two, this could very well be -150 to -200 pending how the Cubs, Phillies, and Dodgers series go. I won't waste time and neither should you. Get some -105, +114 and +115 in my pocket across the three books I play.
Pick: Boston Red Sox to miss the playoffs (2 units)
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
San Diego Padres: (-115) to make the playoffs | (+105) to miss the playoffs
San Diego is currently a slight favorite to YES -- that they will make the playoffs market. The Padres are 0.5 game ahead of the Giants for the final wild card spot and within 4.0 games of the Mets and Brewers, who are in the other two spots.
Looking at the second half of the year per Tankathon, San Diego has the 4th-easiest strength of schedule remaining
The Padres open the second-half with three games at the Nationals, three more at the Marlins, then to St. Louis for three more road games as part of a nine-game East Coast road trip. However, we have to admit, those are decent matchups to have a winning record across for a 9-game road trip — in other words, it could be much worse.
After that nine-game road trip, the next 27 games will be on the West Coast for San Diego, whether they are in California, Arizona or Washington (the state). San Diego will be in a prime position to make a run at the playoffs, but I still haven't gotten to the best part.
The final month of the season is a great opportunity for the Padres to gain ground too -- in the final 28 games -- 13 of those are against the Orioles, White Sox, and Rockies!
Baltimore could be tanking and we know how atrocious Chicago and Colorado have been the past season and a half. It doesn't get better than that.
Lay 2 units on the Padres to make the playoffs at -115 or -118 odds — out to -140. I think they nab one of those three Wild Card spots.
Pick: Padres to make the playoffs (2 units)
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
Cleveland Guardians: O/U 79.5 Wins
The Cleveland Guardians are 46-49 with 67 games remaining, and of those 67 games, they have the easiest strength of schedule in all of baseball with an opponent winning percentage below 48%.
If you look at the Guardians' schedule, you'll wish it were your favorite team's schedule.
To start the second half of the year, Cleveland hosts the Athletics and Orioles (4-game series) for seven total games, then to Kansas City for a three-game set to return and host the Rockies and Twins for six more home games.
After that, a quick three games in New York with the Mets before facing the White Sox in Chicago for three, and back to hosting the Marlins for a three-game set.
I just gave you the first 24 games of the 67 and the teams were the Athletics, Orioles, Royals, Rockies, Twins, Mets, White Sox, and Marlins -- beautiful!
It could be a sweaty finish, though, I must admit. The Guardians will host the Royals and White Sox for seven games in mid-September, then a rough patch. Cleveland will play three road games in Detroit, four more in Minnesota, then back at home for six games total hosting Detroit and Texas, so four potential playoff teams over 12 games to finish the season. That's not nearly as appealing, but doable if they run through the cupcake schedule in July and August.
To reach 80 wins, Cleveland will have to finish the second half with a 34-33 record or better. If the Guardians win three of the first four series out of the break for an 8-5 record or better -- we should be feeling good about this play.
Cleveland is also working Shane Bieber back into the mix after having Tommy John surgery in 2024. He makes a rehab start this week, while hitters Lane Thomas and Gabriel Arias are expected back shortly, plus relievers Paul Sewald and Trevor Stephan from the IL -- All good news for Cleveland. I like the Guardians to go over 79.5 wins at -110 odds.
Pick: Cleveland Guardians Over 79.5 Wins (2 units)
Vaughn Dalzell’s MLB Futures Card
2 units: Boston Red Sox to miss the playoffs (+115) 2 units: San Diego Padres to make the playoffs (-115) 2 units: Cleveland Guardians Over 79.5 Wins (-110) 2 units: Aaron Judge to lead MLB in home runs (+130) 2 units: Cam Smith to win AL Rookie of the Year (+150) 2 units: Jacob Misiorowski to win NL Rookie of the Year (-110)
1 unit: Shohei Ohtani to win NL MVP (-110) 1 unit: Bobby Witt to win AL MVP (+450) 1 unit: Elly De La Cruz to win NL MVP (+2000) 1 unit: Garrett Crochet to win AL CY Young (+450) 1 unit: Paul Skenes to win NL CY Young (+115) 1 unit: Paul Skenes to win NL CY Young (+300) 1 unit: Jacob Misiorowski to win NL Rookie of the Year (+100) 1 unit: Byron Buxton to win AL Comeback Player of the Year (+430) 1 unit: New York Yankees to win AL East (-115)
0.5 unit: Dodgers to win 117-plus games (+650) 0.5 unit: Paul Skenes to lead MLB in wins (+1400) 0.5 unit: Garrett Crochet to lead MLB in wins (+2200) 0.5 unit: Juan Soto to lead the MLB in homers (+2800) 0.5 unit: Yordan Alvarez to lead the MLB in homers (+2000) 0.5 unit: Roman Anthony to win AL Rookie of the Year (+1200) 0.5 unit: Jacob Misiorowski to win NL Rookie of the Year (+1100)
0.25 unit: Aaron Judge to bat .400 by the All-Star break (+800) 0.25 unit: Aaron Judge to bat .400 for the season (+5500) 0.25 unit: Oneil Cruz to lead MLB in stolen bases (+15000)
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Have the 2025 Boston Red Sox matched our preseason expectations?
If we asked that question a month ago, the answer likely would have been a resounding “no.” After an offseason of optimism, Boston looked like the same mediocre club that hasn’t been able to get out of its own way since it last reached the playoffs in 2021.
But the Red Sox rolled into the All-Star break with 10 consecutive victories to put themselves back into the postseason conversation. Suddenly, the optimism that came with their active offseason seems justified.
Before the 2025 season began, our three-man NBC Sports Boston panel shared predictions for the campaign as part of our “Spring Storylines” series. We picked our team MVPs and Cy Youngs, breakout stars, All-Star break headlines, trade deadline predictions, and more.
Now that we’ve reached the All-Star break, we wanted to see how our preseason predictions have aged. See how our vision of the 2025 season has compared with reality below:
Duran started to heat up before the break, but he hasn’t been the team’s MVP this season. He went through some tough stretches at the plate and his defense in left field has often left plenty to be desired. While he’s still a key contributor, some might say he’s been a slight disappointment in 2025. I named Carlos Narvaez the club’s first-half MVP in my midseason superlatives, but I won’t argue with those who pick the guy I predicted to be the 2025 Red Sox “Cy Young.”
Crochet has been as advertised since joining via the blockbuster offseason trade with the Chicago White Sox. He’s the unquestioned Red Sox ace, so this very non-bold prediction has proven to be accurate.
Nick Goss: MVP – Rafael Devers, Cy Young – Brayan Bello
Oof. The Devers prediction hurts, but it’s hard to blame Nick here. No one foresaw Devers being traded to the San Francisco Giants in June.
As for the Bello pick, it wouldn’t be so bad if Crochet didn’t exist. Bello has been impressive this season, posting a 3.14 ERA over 16 outings. Can he keep it up for the rest of the year?
Darren Hartwell: MVP – Triston Casas, Cy Young – Garrett Crochet
Darren’s MVP prediction fell apart in May when Casas went down with a season-ending knee injury. Have to wonder whether he jinxed the Red Sox first baseman.
He made up for it with the Crochet pick, which was a no-brainer all along.
Anthony got the call to The Show in June. After a brief adjustment period, baseball’s No. 1 prospect caught fire and played a huge role in Boston winning 10 consecutive games. He has a chance to win the AL Rookie of the Year award despite his late start.
Nick Goss: Garrett Crochet
Crochet technically broke out last year, when he earned his first All-Star nod with the Chicago White Sox. But this season, the 26-year-old has taken his game to another level and is a legitimate AL Cy Young contender.
Darren Hartwell: Marcelo Mayer
Mayer was called up to the majors in late May. The Red Sox’ top infield prospect has been silky smooth defensively, but there’s still plenty of room for improvement at the plate, particularly against lefties. We wouldn’t say he has broken out just yet.
Justin Leger: Red Sox win the American League East
The Red Sox are only three games back in the AL East standings. If chief baseball officer Craig Breslow pushes the right buttons ahead of the trade deadline, winning the division is a real possibility.
Nick Goss: Red Sox make the playoffs
Boston currently holds the second Wild Card spot, so this remains a strong possibility. Again, whether it happens or not will depend on Breslow’s deadline moves.
Darren Hartwell: Red Sox have three-plus All-Stars for the first time since 2021, but Bregman isn’t one of them
Darren was correct, sort of. The Red Sox had three All-Stars, but Alex Bregman was one of them along with Crochet closer Aroldis Chapman.
Justin Leger: Garrett Crochet shines as AL All-Star starter
Crochet was selected to the All-Star Game, but he opted out of playing in the Midsummer Classic to manage his workload. He wouldn’t have been the AL starter anyway, as that honor belonged to Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal.
Nick Goss: Red Sox will be buyers
Thanks to the Red Sox’ 10-game win streak, Nick likely nailed this one. Boston is expected to buy at the deadline, with Breslow specifically eyeing “impact starting pitching.”
Darren Hartwell: “The Kids Are All Right”
With this one, Darren was referring to Red Sox top prospects Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, and Kristian Campbell. Each have reached the majors and impressed at different points in the campaign, but it hasn’t exactly gone as planned.
Campbell was sent back down to Triple-A Worcester after struggling mightily in May and June. Mayer has shown flashes, but he needs to improve against left-handed pitching. Anthony has looked the part as baseball’s top prospect, but he’s been in the big leagues for only a month.
Helsley tops our list of 10 relievers Boston should target ahead of the deadline after ESPN’s Jeff Passan named him as the Red Sox’ “best match.” The Red Sox could use another reliable high-leverage arm, and he’d form an elite setup-closer combination with Chapman.
Nick Goss: Red Sox acquire a veteran star
Nick specifically mentioned Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for this one, but the Blue Jays slugger signed a lucrative extension with Toronto in April. However, he isn’t technically wrong as Boston should add a veteran star this summer.
Darren Hartwell: Boston trades Wilyer Abreu for bullpen help
If the Red Sox trade Abreu, it’ll probably be for a frontline starting pitcher. Still, Darren was on to something with this one. Rumors have swirled in recent weeks about Boston potentially trading Abreu or Duran to clear its outfield logjam. It’s certainly something to monitor over the next two weeks.
Justin Leger: Red Sox win the division by a hair, then lose in the ALCS
It’s possible in a weak American League. Some prominent MLB insiders are even starting to call Boston a real World Series contender.
Nick Goss: Red Sox make the playoffs, lose in the ALDS, and prove they are a team on the rise
Not quite as ambitiious, but a solid prediction nonetheless that has a strong chance of coming to fruition.
Darren Hartwell: The Red Sox end their postseason drought, but their bullpen comes back to bite them.
Boston’s bullpen was a weakness in 2024, but it has actually been a strength this year with 37-year-old closer Chapman being virtually untouchable. Can the group keep it up over the second half, and will Breslow add an arm or two to the mix?
Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman speaks at the celebration at Dodgers Stadium commemorating the team's World Series championship last fall. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
A young Freddie Freeman slipped down a waterslide, two orange inflatable floaties hoisting his arms — and body weight — above the water.
“Here comes Freddie,” calls out Rosemary Freeman, Freddie’s mother, early in the MLB Network Presents documentary "Driven: The Freddie Freeman Story" — set to debut on MLB Network on Thursday at 5 p.m. Pacific (and rerun at 9:30 p.m.).
The moment of archival footage, coordinating producer Jed Tuminaro said, caused Freddie Freeman to choke up watching his late mother — who died when the Dodgers star first baseman was 10 years old — say his name.
“He'll cry on the field, he’ll cry away from the field,” said Paul Solga, a producer on the documentary. “Going back through the interview, that was the best stuff, and that was the stuff that really popped out from his interview. When we were putting it all together, that stuff rose to the top, and we thought it was a great way to showcase not only the player, but the person.”
Freddie Freeman, the teammate, is a through line throughout the documentary. Near the end, Freeman says, “When you talk to people about former players, it’s not usually about, 'Oh, was he a good player?'... Was he a good dude?”
The production crew interviewed a handful of former and current teammates who convey the latter.
Freeman’s best friend in baseball, Jason Heyward — who played with Freeman on both the Braves and the Dodgers — as well as Dansby Swanson, Mookie Betts and Justin Turner, all speak to Freeman’s journey across 16 years in the pros, a career that’s still ongoing.
Both managers Freeman won a World Series with, the Braves' Brian Snitker and the Dodgers' Dave Roberts, have plenty to say aboutthe ballplayer he is, but emphasized who he is as a person, and what he brings to the clubhouse.
“A lot of times, if you get teammates, they give you some nice stuff,” Tuminaro said, adding that this is just the third documentary they’ve produced on a current player (Mike Trout and Fernando Tatis Jr. being the others). “Oh, he hits to all fields and he makes a great play, and that's fine, and that's nice. We need that stuff. But what stood out to me, almost everybody in this, but especially teammates, seemed like they were speaking more to the person, quite often, than the ball player.”
If Freddie Freeman wasn't enough of a jumping-off point for the documentary, the filmmakers interviewed his father, Fred Freeman, a source that provided a "gold mine" of information. Tuminaro said that it’s hard not to be drawn to the anecdotes and personality of Fred Freeman, an energetic and soft-spoken man, much like his son.
When Solga was in Fred Freeman’s home, interviewing him, he asked if there were any home tapes — archival footage — that the documentary crew could see. Fred trekked up the stairs of his home and trotted back down with an envelope filled with flash drives and photos.
“He goes, ‘Here, take a look, take whatever you'd like,’” Solga said. “And I was like, ‘Are you serious?’”
Tuminaro said that Fred Freeman is at the center of two of his favorite moments in the documentary — some parental honesty after Freddie’s injuries throughout the 2024 postseason, and then pure glee following his son’s iconic 2024 World Series grand slam.
“He provided a raw sense of emotion that I think only someone in his position could do,” Tuminaro said.
Solga said that many of the documentaries MLB Network creates are focused on players of an older generation, and they come up in an era where there’s less of a trail of images and videos to forage through. With Freddie, whether it was Fred or Rosemary handling the camcorder, you could see Freeman grow from a toddler to a preteen practicing an early version of his signature swing.
The 90-minute documentary takes the viewer through Freeman’s full career: loss in childhood, the decision to forgo a college commitment at Cal State Fullerton for the MLB Draft, all the way to MLB.
But what fans will probably leave with after watching is another perspective on Freddie Freeman — one that pulls back the curtain on a player not often outspoken about issues beyond the ballpark.
“There are just so many ups and downs in his story, and I'm not sure if everyone's really aware of that,” Tuminaro said. "And so many of these great moments, he's had to overcome some adversity to achieve that. … what it takes to overcome that adversity and deliver in those big moments.”
On the latest episode of The Mets Pod presented by Tri-State Cadillac, Connor Rogers and Joe DeMayo look back at All-Star week and the MLB Draft, while looking ahead to the trade deadline and the second half of the season.
Leading off, Connor and Joe talk about Pete and Peterson at the All-Star Game, Jonah Tong and Carson Benge at the Futures Game, David Wright getting his number retired, and what kind of talent the Mets added during the draft.
Then the organization’s first pick, Michigan infielder Mitch Voit, joins the show to talk about his development, his emotions about getting selected by the Mets, and his career goals.
The guys also go Down on the Farm to discuss the best time to call up pitchers Brandon Sproat and Nolan McLean, and wrap the show with Mailbag questions answered about potential trade ideas as the MLB Trade Deadline approaches.
Be sure to subscribe to The Mets Pod at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
The White Sox (32-65) are in Pittsburgh to begin life after the All-Star Break with a series against the Pirates (39-58) beginning Friday, July 18.
Jonathan Cannon is slated to take the mound for Chicago against Bailey Falter for Pittsburgh.
This is a series featuring two struggling, last place clubs. The Bucs are entrenched in the cellar in the National League Central. They are 19 games under .500 and 18.5 games behind the Cubs. Nobody has scored fewer runs than Pittsburgh. The Pirates have touched home plate just 326 times (3.3 runs/game) this season.
Chicago is better than last season but still sit 33 games under .500 and 27 games behind the Tigers in the American League Central. The run differential for the White Sox is a robust -98.
Lets dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch tipoff, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
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Game details & how to watch White Sox at Pirates
Date: Friday, July 18, 2025
Time: 6:40PM EST
Site: PNC Park
City: Pittsburgh, PA
Network/Streaming: CHSN, SNP
Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out.
Odds for the White Sox at the Pirates
The latest odds as of Thursday:
Moneyline: White Sox (+144), Pirates (-173)
Spread: Pirates -1.5
Total: 8.0 runs
Probable starting pitchers for White Sox at Pirates
Pitching matchup for July 18, 2025: Jonathan Cannon vs. Bailey Falter
White Sox: Jonathan Cannon (3-7, 4.44ERA) Last outing: 7/11 vs. Cleveland - 5IP, 2ER, 3H, 3BB, 5Ks
Pirates: Bailey Falter (6-4, 3.79ERA) Last outing: 7/9 at Kansas City - 4.2IP, 3ER, 6H, 2BB, 3Ks
Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type!
Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of White Sox at Pirates
The Pirates have won their last 5 home games
The Under is 4-1 in the White Sox's last 5 road games
The Pirates are up 2.88 units on the Run Line in their last 5 at home
Oneil Cruz is riding a 5-game hitting streak (6-16)
Andrew McCutcheon has a hit in 3 of his last 4 games (3-15)
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
Expert picks & predictions for Friday’s game between the White Sox and the Pirates
Rotoworld Best Bet
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Friday's game between the White Sox and the Pirates:
Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Pittsburgh Pirates on the Moneyline.
Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Chicago White Sox at +1.5.
Total: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play on the over on the Game Total of 8.0.
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The Boston Red Sox entered the 2025 MLB season with heightened expectations. After a disappointing start to the campaign, they’ve started to live up to those expectations with their recent hot streak.
They entered the All-Star break with 10 consecutive wins, giving them a 53-45 record that puts them only three games behind the first-place Toronto Blue Jays in the American League East standings. If the season ended today, they’d clinch the second AL Wild Card spot and their first postseason berth since 2021.
But there’s still plenty of baseball left to be played, and the next two weeks could ultimately determine Boston’s fate. Before the July 31 trade deadline, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow is expected to make moves — particularly for starting pitching — that can help his team stay in postseason contention over the final two months.
Time will tell whether Breslow pushes the right buttons, but for now, MLB pundits are buying back in on this Red Sox club. Boston has skyrocketed into or near the top 10 in the latest batch of national MLB power rankings.
Here’s where the Red Sox stand as we prepare for the second half, according to experts across the league:
“The Red Sox head into the All-Star break as the hottest team in baseball. They won their 10th game in a row on Sunday, completing a huge four-game sweep over the Rays to overtake Tampa Bay in the Wild Card standings. Boston is getting healthy at just the right time too; both Alex Bregman and Masataka Yoshida were activated off the IL last week. The real star of this hot streak has been Ceddanne Rafaela, who blasted a dramatic three-run walk-off home run on Friday. He’s posted a .390/.405/.902 slash line in July.”
“While that four-game sweep of the Rays was mighty impressive and shook up the AL East standings, surging into the All-Star break is nothing new for the Red Sox. They went 8-1 in their final nine games of the first half in 2023 as well as 10-3 last year before their current 10-game winning streak. But can they maintain that momentum for a change? Boston went from a combined 101-86 in the first half of the past two seasons to a combined 58-79 after the ASB, and they have the toughest remaining schedule in the American League, including a gauntlet in the next nine games.“
“I was high on the Red Sox coming into the year, and while things haven’t exactly worked out the way I thought they would — Rafael Devers trade included — they’ve won 10 straight games to put themselves in a strong position leading into the trade deadline.”
“The Red Sox have been excited about their young hitters for many moons at this point, but they couldn’t have asked for a better time for them to break through than in the immediate weeks after trading Rafael Devers. Ceddanne Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu, Jarren Duran, Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony, all hitting like crazy, all in their 20s, all at the perfect moment.“