Chowder and Champions’ Best Boston Bets for 8/3 (Fade Red Sox After Rough Road Trip)
By Tyler Maher
The Red Sox are off today as they prepare for a critical 10-game homestand that could decide their season. Fortunately, there are other betting opportunities with some of our division rivals in action as well as the NFL Hall of Fame Game.
With plenty to choose from, here are our editors’ top betting picks for Thursday.
Best Boston Betting Picks: August 3
Tyler Maher: Red Sox to Miss Playoffs
The Red Sox appeared to be trending toward a playoff spot with their strong July, but that momentum has disintegrated over the last week. A 2-4 road trip and a disappointing trade deadline will do that.
Boston is currently 2.5 games out of the final Wild Card spot in the American League, which obviously isn’t insurmountable. The Blue Jays are coming to town this weekend, though, and they’ve had our number in recent years, so I wouldn’t be surprised if that deficit grows.
Starting in mid-August, our schedule gets absolutely brutal. Beginning on Aug. 18, all but six of our remaining 41 games are against teams that currently have winning records. That’s quite a gauntlet.
If Chaim Bloom had gotten some real help at the deadline, I’d still think we have a chance. But without the necessary reinforcements, this team just doesn’t have the depth to survive, especially with so few off days coming up. The bullpen’s been overtaxed and is already starting to wear down, which isn’t a good sign when we haven’t even reached the dog days of August yet.
After missing the playoffs in three of the past four years, Boston will fall short of the postseason once again.
Isaiah De Los Santos: Browns Win Margin vs. Jets
Though the Patriots aren’t taking part in the first game of the NFL preseason, there’s still money to be made here – and off of a division rival, too. The Jets are set to take on the Browns tonight, and I like Cleveland’s chances of winning in this one.
New York’s offense is incredibly suspect outside of its starters, who likely won’t play much (if at all) on Thursday. Robert Saleh will also be trotting out the likes of Zach Wilson, Tim Boyle and Chris Streveler at quarterback, which is a disaster waiting to happen.
Cleveland’s quarterback group projects to be better with dual threats in Kellen Mond and Dorian Finney-Smith set to take the snaps. Both players will be hungry to gain the edge over Joshua Dobbs in the backup QB battle, so I can see that motivating them to execute at a higher-than-usual level.
If you believe in a Browns upset like me, getting them at +350 to win by 1-6 points on DraftKings is an incredible value, especially with their current signup promotion. If you sign up for DraftKings Sportsbook through Chowder and Champions, you’ll be awarded a $150 GUARANTEED bonus after placing your first $5 wager – and it doesn’t matter whether that $5 bet wins or loses.
Jason Schandl: Astros Moneyline @ Yankees
Congrats to the Yankees, who proved they can do just enough to avoid total embarrassment by again suffering a 2-1 series defeat instead of getting swept.
Of course, now they’re about to get swept. And that starts with taking a big loss on Thursday against the Astros.
Cristian Javier has taken a big step back this season for Houston, but we’ve seen Clarke Schmidt post similarly poor numbers for New York, so it’s pretty much a wash on the mound. Both bullpens have a similar xFIP on the year, too, so we’re pretty even in pitching.
That leaves us with the Yankees’ offense — which has just a 91 wRC+ against right-handed pitching — taking on an Astros’ offense that boasts a 101 wRC+ in the same split.
The choice of winner is easy here.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.