Today’s Best Free Sports Betting Picks and Predictions From Our Experts

[1%] Free Play on Twins over 9 -105

Ricky's 1* play on COL.

Key Angle: It's important to remember that Ricky never makes a bet on any game based on just one angle. In order to make the grade, all his premium picks must meet several important criteria. He doesn't share all his secrets within his analysis, instead he chooses to reveal only the angle that he feels is the most significant. Here in this game the recent history of these two teams is particularly significant.

- The Rockies are 6-3 ATS in their last 9 games.

- The Dodgers are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games.

- The Rockies are are 5-3 ATS in the last 8 head to head meetings.

Verdict: The value is on the home Underdog.

This is a FREE PLAY on the Cubs.

Cross-city rivalry, and I think that the home field advantage will prove beneficial for the Cubs in the first game.

The White Sox turn to Luis Castillo (4-9, 4.96 ERA), who went seven scoreless and struck out ten in a win over the Reds on Wednesday. Much better clearly than his previous debut where he was shelled for five runs over four innings.

While Castillo continues to find his footing for his new team, I believe that Shota Imanaga (8-9, 3.74 ERA) can take advantage. He's 5-5 with a 3.83 ERA at home.

Look for Imanaga and the CUBS to find a way to get the job done in the opener.

Good luck, NP

3* on White Sox

1* Free Wiseguy Play on Cardinals/Reds under 9 -102

*All picks are based on situations, trends, statistics and injuries among many other factors*

1* FREE INFO PLAY Diamondbacks vs Red Sox over 8½ -110

Rocketman Sports FREE MLB play Monday 8-17-26

St Louis @ Cincinnati  (1:40 PM EST)
Play On:  St Louis -112  (Game 1)

The St Louis Cardinals travel to Cincinnati to take on the Reds on Monday afternoon in Game One of a doubleheader.  St Louis is 63-61 SU overall this year while Cincinnati comes in with a 59-64 SU overall record on the season.  Cincinnati is 11-24 this year against division opponents.  St Louis is 6-1 this year after scoring 10 runs or more.  I'll recommend a small play on St Louis in Game 1 today!  Thanks and good luck, Rocky

Rocketman has a TOP 8* MLB BEST BET and a BONUS 6* MLB play for Monday!  Rocketman is on a HOT 80% run currently in MLB!  Don't miss out!

1* Free Sharp Play on A's vs Royals over 9 +100

Pure Lock's FREE MLB play Monday 8-17-26

St Louis -112 (Game 1)

Pure Lock has a TOP MLB play available on Monday on the Padres/Mets. Pure Lock is mainly known for his selectivity in handicapping all sports and normally releases one pick per sport per day or passes! QUALITY over Quantity here. Currently on an impressive 25-10 (71%) run over his last 35 OVERALL picks! $1,000 per game players have CASHED $15,230 since July 27, 2026!

R&R Totals FREE MLB Over-Under Monday 8-17-26

OVER 8 Detroit/Pittsburgh

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Looking at the Week 0 board this year, one number keeps staring me right in the face. TCU laying a touchdown against North Carolina over in Dublin feels like the cleanest play on the early slate.

I have been on this one for a while now. TCU has the more settled roster, especially in the trenches, and that continuity matters more than most people want to admit in Week 0. North Carolina is still sorting through a heavy overhaul in Belichick’s second season, with a new offensive coordinator trying to install a system on the fly and a pile of new bodies who have not taken meaningful snaps together yet. In college football, that gap tends to show up early, especially when both teams have to fly across the ocean for a noon kick.

Neutral-site openers have always been kind to the more physical, more experienced side. Over the last fifteen years, favorites laying between six and eight points in true neutral-site season openers have covered right around 58 percent of the time. At standard juice you only need to hit 52.4 percent to break even, so that edge is real. When you tighten the filter to games that involved long-haul or overseas travel, the favorite’s cover rate climbs closer to 61 percent and the under hits nearly 60 percent of the time. The average total in those spots has finished almost four points under the number. Jet lag is no joke, and neither is limited practice time before a transatlantic flight.

TCU has been the more consistent outfit under Sonny Dykes. His teams usually play with a clear physical identity and they do not mind grinding it out early in the season. North Carolina, meanwhile, has spent the last couple of years looking like a roster still trying to figure out who belongs where. Historical trends for ACC teams opening against Big 12 competition on neutral fields lean toward the side with better line continuity, and TCU checks that box. Favorites in this exact range that also held a clear edge up front have covered better than 60 percent since the mid-2010s. That is the kind of number that keeps the lights on if you stay disciplined.

I will take the under as a secondary piece if the total sits near 48. Early-season scoring is often suppressed when teams are still installing, traveling, and playing a little tight. Both sides prefer a physical brand of football, and that style rarely produces fireworks in the first half of a Week 0 game on foreign soil.

Hawai’i getting points at Stanford and Memphis as a small dog against UNLV are fine secondary looks if you like chasing value on the dog side. I generally leave the massive numbers alone unless the total is screaming. This TCU spot is different. It is the kind of early-season situation where the sharper side of the board usually cashes, and the travel factor only adds another layer of protection.

I have been wrong before and I will be wrong again, but this one sits right with me. Continuity, trenches, travel, and the historical numbers all point the same direction. If the line drifts a half-point either way I am still on it. Good luck if you decide to ride along.

My selection is on the 'over' between Arizona and Boston at 7:10 pm et on Monday.

The big question here is whether they can get this game in with rain in the forecast on Monday evening in Boston. Nevertheless, I do like the 'over' in the opener between the Diamondbacks and Red Sox. Arizona has been playing some terrific baseball for an extended stretch and enters this series ranking top-10 in the majors in xwOBA over the last week. I'm confident it can get to Red Sox spot starter Alec Gamboa. Of note, the D'Backs rank third in baseball in wOBA against left-handed pitching this season. Mitch Bratt will counter for Arizona. He's more or less a 'pitch to contact' type of pitcher at this early stage of his big league career and that just doesn't tend to work all that well against the Red Sox at Fenway Park. Boston sits right behind Arizona - fourth in the majors in wOBA against southpaws this season. Look for plenty of offensive fireworks provided they can get this game in. Take the over (8*).

Tigers vs Pirates MLB Free Pick

Pick Angle(s): This is the classic pitcher's duel setup, and the situational spot writes itself. Left-hander Framber Valdez (7-8, 4.26 ERA) takes the mound for Detroit against a Pirates lineup he has dominated historically, while right-hander Carmen Mlodzinski (6-5, 3.79 ERA) counters for Pittsburgh against a Tigers order he has consistently quieted.

Valdez has faced this Pittsburgh roster 32 times in his career and held them to a .233 batting average with a 25% strikeout rate. The suppression is even more pronounced at the top of the order. Mlodzinski has held the current Tigers roster to a stingy .222 average with a 28% strikeout rate across 18 career plate appearances, small sample of course, but still a solid number.

With both starting arms matching up well against their respective opposing orders, runs will be at a premium at PNC Park tonight.

The Bet: Under (3%).

Marc David Sports' Free Pick

7-4 (64%) Free Pick Run 

101-75 (57%) +$21,420 all premium picks since June 5!

We really like the road team in this matchup. The Cardinals (61-60) are trying to make up ground in the NL Central race, winning seven of their last ten contests. That momentum aligns nicely with LHP Andre Pallante taking the mound, as Pallante (12-6, 3.46 ERA) has been highly effective for St. Louis this season lately, posting a sparkling 1.80 ERA over his last five starts, and he boasts a dominant 8-4 career record with a 2.18 ERA against Cincinnati.

Cincinnati hands the ball to RHP Rhett Lowder (4-8, 5.15 ERA), and the Reds (58-62) have struggled to find traction at home, posting a sub-.500 record at Great American Ball Park.

This is Game 2 of a double-header.

This is a FREE PLAY on the CARDINALS!

PSP Data Driven 1* Royals.

At Professionalsportspicks we see a future where those handicapping sports without advanced analytics and data-driven strategies will be left behind. Our data-driven picks use data integration, search and discovery, and knowledge management along with collaboration with our in-house handicappers. By isolating relevant trends, removing human bias, and targeting only lines with a positive expected value above a certain threshold, our data-driven picks promise to outperform any and all human competitors.

Our models suggest that the value is on the favorite. Mason Barnett have lost 4 of his last 5 starts. oakland athletics are 2-4 in their last 6 games.