Matt Fargo’s NBA Handicapping Picks & ATS Predictions

This is a play on the CHICAGO WHITE SOX for our Saturday Free Play. Chicago picked up a 6-2 win on Friday as the offense was able to get to one of the top Marlins starters in Max Meyer and has a chance to better that as takes a step down. The White Sox have been miserable on the road at 3-17 but are now a respectable 8-11 at home and they send their top arm out on Saturday. Shane Smith has been a bright spot for the White Sox where not much has gone right. He opened the season with consecutive starts of allowing two or fewer hits, two or fewer runs, and at least 17 outs, only the fifth time that has happened for a starter in White Sox franchise history. He is off another great outing and his ERA is down to 2.41 while pitching to a 3.88 xERA and that slight jump is not a concern considering the offense he is facing. The Marlins have similar home/road splits although they have not played as many games on the road where they are 8-11. Edward Cabrera is coming off a decent start where he allowed two runs in 5.2 innings which was at home where four of his five starts have been and still has a 6.29 ERA. Play (926) Chicago White Sox

MLB is on a +$5,890 run after a 1-2 Friday with the win on the +127 Pirates. THREE Saturday Winners in a Triple Play Underdog SWEEP. NBA won with the Cavaliers and another winner today to extend our 15-12 NBA Run.

This is a play on the BOSTON CELTICS for our NBA Signature Enforcer (15-12 Run). Cleveland came through on Friday on the road after dropping its first two games at home and we are banking on Boston doing the same. The Celtics became the first team ever to lose two playoff games after leading by at least 20 points and making it even more unheard of is that both were at home. It was a simple failure in that Boston could not hit its shots late and the NBA playoff record of 45 missed three-pointers from Game One was backed up with 30 misses in Game Two. They are bound to shoot better and have already had the edges in possessions and rebounding. The Knicks have now played seven straight games that were within three points in the final minute and have come away with five wins so there has definitely been some luck involved. Throughout NBA history, 34 teams have faced a 0-2 deficit and came back to win the series including five that lost the first two games at home and all it takes is two wins to regain homecourt. Following the Cavaliers win last night, higher-seeded favorites that are coming off a two-game losing streak are 33-19-3 ATS on the road. 10* (567) Boston Celtics

This is a play on the CINCINNATI REDS as part of our MLB Saturday Triple Play Sweeper. The Astros are coming off a 3-0 win on Friday to make it two straight wins following a three-game losing streak and a 1-5 run. Houston is back to just one game over .500 and while it had its ace on the hill last night, it is a wildcard tonight and even though the price is lower, it is still overvalued. Lance McCullers, Jr. made his first start since 2022 last Sunday which was certainly a milestone and it was a decent outing as he went 3.2 innings, allowing no runs on three hits but he needed 87 pitches in doing so and that was against the White Sox. The Reds were shutout for the sixth time this season as it has been hit or miss as they are still ranked No. 12 in on base percentage and No. 14 in OPS. Cincinnati is now two games under .500 and at 10-11 on the road, it is respectable. Brady Singer is coming off his worst outing of the season and it was not even horrible as he allowed four runs in six innings in Atlanta. He had allowed three runs or less in his first six starts and now has a 3.66 ERA and 3.62 xERA. 10* (927) Cincinnati Reds

This is a play on the ATHLETICS as part of our MLB Saturday Triple Play Sweeper. The Yankees are coming off a 10-2 series opening win on Friday, seven of those RBIs coming from Jason Dominguez, and are heavy favorites again today, laying a bigger number yet in a tougher spot. New York is still a disappointing 22-16 overall after a 6-2 start and it is 9-8 on the road which is a record that should not have this price behind it in this matchup. Carlos Rodon has allowed no runs in three of his last four starts but those were against three teams ranked in the bottom half of the league in slugging percentage against lefties. The Athletics are No. 5 in slugging percentage against left-handed pitching. They have lost three straight games following a 5-1 run and they remain one game over .500 while sitting three games behind the Mariners in the American League West. JP Sears does not get the credit he deserves as he now has a 2.93 ERA and 1.00 WHIP while pitching to a 3.21 xERA. He has allowed two runs or less in his last four outings which all resulted in victories. 10* (912) Athletics

This is a play on the PITTSBURGH PIRATES as part of our MLB Saturday Triple Play Sweeper. Pittsburgh came through for us last night in a 3-2 win and we are backing the Pirates again for a lot of the same reasons. They snapped a seven-game losing streak with the win, the first for new manager Don Kelly in his first game since taking over and while they managed just the three runs, we are optimistic that big day will come. Andrew Heaney is coming off a pair of poor starts but those were against the Cubs and Padres, two teams in slugging percentage against left-handed pitching. Atlanta is No. 21 while its .205 batting average is No. 26. Part of the reason we went against the Braves was because they were coming off that walk off win over Cincinnati bur another reason was due to them again being overpriced on the road. They are now just 6-14 away from home and overall are two games under .500. AJ Smith-Shawver is coming off his best start of the season as he allowed one hit over eight innings against the Reds at home. He has a 3.00 ERA but has a 1.37 WHIP and is pitching to a 5.31 xERA. 10* (902) Pittsburgh Pirates