Expert Baseball Picks and Previews

Dodgers sluggish entering finale vs. Diamondbacks The Los Angeles Dodgers suddenly are crawling into the All-Star break, and manager Dave Roberts said he will look for a professional approach from his team in its series finale against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday afternoon. The Dodgers, who have a 12 1/2-game lead over the second-place Diamondbacks in the National League

Giants’ Trevor McDonald works to put summertime blues behind him vs. Rockies Trevor McDonald has had a rough rookie season with the San Francisco Giants, and the summer has been especially cruel. McDonald, who had four career appearances entering the 2026 season, will try to bounce back from a disastrous start in his most recent outing when the Giants host

Astros’ Yordan Alvarez aims to remain at home on road vs. Rangers LaMonte Wade Jr. struck the biggest blow among the Houston Astros’ three home runs against the Texas Rangers on Saturday, but as is usually the case in Arlington, Yordan Alvarez was involved. While Wade hit his first career grand slam, Alvarez sparked the Astros’ 9-3 victory with a

Twins turn to Taj Bradley in series finale vs. Angels A pair of eight-game winners will oppose each other on Sunday afternoon when the Minnesota Twins meet the Los Angeles Angels in the finale of a three-game series in Minneapolis. The Twins will send Taj Bradley (8-3, 3.67 ERA) to the mound against fellow right-hander Jose Soriano (8-5, 3.40). Neither

Noah Schultz on a mission to control walks, A’s in first-half finale After a frustrating sweep by the Boston Red Sox, the Chicago White Sox have a pair of home wins over the Athletics and will look to complete a sweep of their own on Sunday afternoon in the series finale. White Sox manager Will Venable said his club’s performance

Cardinals’ Dustin May strives to regain form vs. Braves The St. Louis Cardinals will search for their first series sweep in over a month when they host the Atlanta Braves on Sunday afternoon in the finale of a three-game set that will close the first half of the regular season. Sitting just a game behind the Miami Marlins in the

Mariners aren’t finding key hits on Florida road swing, to the benefit of Rays During a seven-game homestand that will end Sunday afternoon against the Seattle Mariners in St. Petersburg, Fla., the Tampa Bay Rays have been getting contributions up and down the lineup. It was former Seattle draft pick Ben Williamson’s turn on Saturday. The utility infielder, dealt in

Stars Zack Wheeler, Tarik Skubal face off in Phillies-Tigers finale The pitching matchup in Detroit on Sunday sounds like it belongs in Tuesday’s All-Star Game. The Phillies’ Zack Wheeler and the Tigers’ Tarik Skubal were not named All-Stars this season, but they’re easily among the best pitchers on the planet. The pair will start the rubber game of a three-game

Red Sox, seeking pristine 9-0 road trip, face lowly Mets The last time the Boston Red Sox won nine straight games on the road, it was 1977 and their stars were named Jim Rice, Carl Yastrzemski and Carlton Fisk. Back in the 2026 playoff hunt going into the All-Star break, Boston will try to not just sweep the weekend series