We have a full 15-game slate today, starting with Padres vs Phillies at Citizens Bank Park at 6:40 PM ET on MLB.TV, and closing with Dodgers vs Diamondbacks at 9:40 PM ET at Chase Field on MLB.TV.
Our experts have analyzed the matchups and found great options for Tuesday, June 2.
Below are 4 expert MLB best bets today.
MLB Best Bets Today
The team logos in the table below represent each matchup our MLB betting staff is targeting from today's slate of games. Click on the team logos for any of the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 6:40 PM | |
  | 7:05 PM | |
  | 8:10 PM | |
  | 9:40 PM | |
Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our MLB Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Sean Zerillo's Padres vs Phillies Prediction
By Sean Zerillo
Editor's Note: This written pick is a transcription from today's edition of the Payoff Pitch Podcast.
I project the Phillies ML closer to -160.
The ERAs of these two starting pitchers (Randy Vasquez and Aaron Nola) don’t reflect their underlying quality.
Randy Vasquez has a 3.28 ERA, but expected indicators closer to 4.40. The strikeout rate has tumbled over the past month, as he’s posted a 6.3% strikeout minus walk rate since May 4. He’s due for some major negative regression.
Meanwhile, Aaron Nola has posted a strikeout minus walk rate closer to 15% over the past month. His ERA is sitting at 5.72, but he’s running expected run indicators closer to 3.60, and I think he’s due for some major positive regression.
I rate these two offenses about the same, and although I give the Padres a slight bullpen advantage, I still show value on the Phillies.
Pick: Phillies ML (-145 or Better)
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Ryan Minion's Guardians vs Yankees Best Bet
By Ryan Minion
When it comes to retiring Aaron Judge, the best means to do so over the last several years has been to either attack him with high-velocity pitches up-and-away, or breaking pitches off the corner of the strike zone.
That said, I worry about Joey Cantillo’s lack of strikeout prowess matched up with a power-hitter of Judge’s caliber, especially in the Bronx, where the Yanks’ three-time AL MVP winner launches most of his homers.
Though the Guardians’ left-hander does have some effective pitches in his off-speed arsenal that break low-and-away, it more frequently results in high ground-ball rates than punch-outs, which may not be as effective at a hitter-friendly ballpark like Yankee Stadium.
The Yanks’ 34-year-old slugger is having another exceptional year at the plate, having smashed 17 homers thus far, which ranks fourth in all of baseball. Judge has also driven in 38 runners (RBIs) and boasts a rather impressive .915 OPS in 2026.
While I expect Cantillo to find some success versus a number of Yankees’ hitters, I favor Judge to have another huge game at the plate and thus will be backing him to exceed his 1.5 total bases mark.
Pick: Aaron Judge Over 1.5 Total Bases (+100 or Better)
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Grant Neiffer's Pirates vs Astros Best Bet
This spot is great, and these odds are far too high.
Mike Burrows is a big plus matchup for lefty power (career 1.63 HR/9), and this ballpark is an upgrade for Oneil Cruz.
Cruz hammers the ball, and I have the true odds here around +400, making this a great bet.
Pick: Oneil Cruz Home Run (+425 or Better)
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Matt Trollo's Dodgers vs Diamondbacks Prediction
By Matt Trollo
The Diamondbacks have already noted a roof closure for Tuesday, which makes Arizona the third most positive run environment in the league with a 108 Park Run Factor (Statcast). It’s a very tough park for left-handed power (78 HR Factor), but neutral for RHBs (100).
Stu Scheurwater is in line to call balls and strikes. Some sites have him as a slightly hitter-friendly umpire (EV Analytics), though our own Sean Zerillo rates him as slightly pitcher-friendly.
I’m much more confident in my evaluation of Soroka around three and a half than I am with Lauer.
Although anyone good enough to pitch in this league will probably surprise you a few times if they get 30 tries, I can’t see the Dodgers getting Lauer within a run of Soroka. At least not yet.
Elsewhere, the Dodgers have small to moderate edges everywhere else (offense, defense, bullpen), while the Diamondbacks grab a little bit back with base running and home-field advantage.
While I have a slight lean towards the over (either the full game or F5) and could consider a play if the market moves in the right direction, the greater value I see here is on Arizona.
I have the F5 (currently -110 at bet365) rated a bit better than the full game (+105) because the Diamondbacks lose their biggest edge once Soroka leaves the game, but would be fine with that number too. (Arizona’s value also declines when Lauer exits for an RHP.)
In fact, if you don’t have access to the bet365 number and only have something around FanDuel’s current F5 price of -120, I’d encourage pivoting to any full game price better than even.
But I'd endorse the Diamondbacks F5 ML up to -130.
Pick: Diamondbacks F5 ML (-130 or Better)
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