With plenty of baseball betting options out on the table today, find out where capper John Ryan has decided to focus. With two MLB picks in mind, find out why he has decided to parlay his selections to increase the payout.

Parlay the Chicago Cubs and the Baltimore Orioles

I have 5* graded plays for the Cubs and the the Orioles individually, but I have decided to add my MLB picks to a parlay to increase our payout. The Orioles alone are listed at +250 Thursday night and will more than likely rise as the public bets that Justin Verlander will not lose again for the remainder of the season. This may sound sarcastic, but the money flows already show an severe betting excesses and irrational exuberance on the Tigers. This contrarian approach works to our favor.

I recommend that you do not exceed a 3* amount for the parlay of the Cubs and Orioles. Should this parlay hit, the payoff will be about 8.6:1 using the Orioles at +250 and the Cubs at +175. So, for a $300 parlay, for example, the return will be $2,587.50.

The Chicago Cubs Research

Chicago Cubs5* graded play on the Chicago Cubs as they take to the road to face the Cincinnati Reds set to start 7:10 PM ET. The Reds have been screaming hot and the public is pushing the line higher and higher. Bronson Arroyo will get the start for the Reds and will be going up against Travis Wood of the Cubs.

Three starts ago, Arroyo started pitching backward and it worked very well against the Padres in his 6-4 win August 1. Pitching backwards means that a starter will use his out pitch, normally a breaking ball type, as his first pitch offering. Arroyo did this with great success posting a career low of only 70% of his pitches making contact with hitter’s swinging attempts.

He threw 40 curveballs in that game, which was the most he had thorwn since 2009 and was double his season average. he used it as a setup pitch Padres were just 1-for-10 when an at-bat ended with a fastball with Arroyo ahead in the count.

This pitch sequence is not that uncommon at this point of the marathon season in an effort to cross up the scouting reports and get teams off balance and caught by surprise. However, now that he has done this for three starts, the Cubs will be well aware of this pitching sequence and be able to sit on fastball when Arroyo is ahead in the count. 

Arroyo, even with this sequence, has posted a 5.12 ERA with a 1.293 WHIP and allowed four home runs in his last three starts spanning 19 ? innings of work. He has not dominated the Cubs allowing a .273 batting average with five home runs to the respective careers of the current Cubs roster spanning 143 at-bats.

MLB Picks: Take the Cubs.

Baltimore Orioles5* graded play on the Baltimore Orioles as they take on the Detroit Tigers set to start at 7:05 PM ET. Tommy Hunter had started off the season pitching very well and has the ‘stuff’ to contain the Tigers offensive lineup.

Supporting System

Supporting this graded play is a system that has produced a record of 30-21 for 59% winners and has made 28 units per one unit wagered since 2006. Play against home favorites with a money line of -110 or higher that is a solid hitting team batting between .265 and .279 and starting a pitcher who gave up one or less earned runs last outing and facing an average starting pitcher posting an ERA between 4.70 and 5.7. 

Verlander has been awesome, but as the contrarian system shown above indicates, he is vulnerable in this situation. In his last start, he allowed just one earned run, but seven hits spanning seven innings of work in his 2-1 loss at Texas.

MLB Picks: Take Baltimore.