It’s a slow summer Sunday, with baseball dominating most of the action. The Mets and Cubs have the marquee TV slot, and there will be a Mad Max sighting in the afternoon.
Game 2 of the Men’s College World Series pits Texas A&M vying for the national title against Tennessee. There are USA men’s soccer, WNBA games, and golf. You might have seen Cameron Young shoot a 59 over the entire 18 holes, not nine like a weekend hacker would chase.
OK, on to the top picks of this sizzling Sunday.
KANSAS CITY ROYALS VS. TEXAS RANGERS
Three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer will make his 2024 debut for the Rangers, and he appears ready after he struck out eight in 4 2/3 innings for Triple-A Round Rock in his final rehab outing. Scherzer had offseason back surgery and then encountered nerve issues in his right thumb, which delayed his availability.
You kind of need a thumb operating properly to pitch in the majors, so you can see why the Rangers were cautious in their approach with Scherzer. They also aren’t saying what Scherzer’s pitch count is for Sunday, but the 39-year-old said, “I’ll just navigate it how it needs to be navigated.”
The Rangers have been underachievers this season after winning the 2023 World Series, so they surely can use a healthy Scherzer. But he’s not going to be available for 120 pitches or toss a complete game, so that unsteady bullpen will come into play.
Bobby Witt Jr. and the Royals are making noise, but they have lost five of their past six games, including two to the Rangers by a combined 12-2 score. Runs will be scored in this game, and a Kansas City breakout is what we’re counting on.
Over 8.5 runs total, -105 (DraftKings)
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NEW YORK METS AT CHICAGO CUBS
These two teams traded blowout wins in the first two games of the series. New York won 11-1 on Friday, and Chicago rolled to an 8-1 victory on Saturday.
The odds certainly don’t favor the Cubs to win again, as the victory was just their 10th in the past 28 games. The scoring output was Chicago’s best since falling 10-9 to the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 11.
The Mets have been hot, with the setback being just their fourth in the past 16 games. New York scored 10 or more runs in four of nine games prior to Saturday’s bad day at Wrigley Field.
Cubs right-hander Javier Assad has been winless in his last six starts, but he did limit the Mets to one run and five hits over five innings on April 30. New York’s Luis Severino is unbeaten in his past nine outings and had a no-decision against the Cubs when he held them to one run and one hit over eight innings on April 29.
Mets moneyline: -102 (DraftKings)
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TENNESSEE vs. TEXAS A&M
The Aggies are one victory away from their first national title after beating the Volunteers 9-5 in the opener of the best-of-three finals. Tennessee is the top seed, and that’s not a good thing because the last time a No. 1 seed won it all was last century (Miami in 1999).
Texas A&Ms Kaeden Kent had a huge game Saturday by going 3-for-5 with a homer and four RBIs. You’d think that would be the type of performance that impresses a former major leaguer. But noooooooo, his father, the 2000 National League MVP, couldn’t have looked more detached and ambivalent when his son was batting if he tried.
Jeff Kent was the grumpy type as a player—having Barry Bonds in your dugout can make you that way—but this was kind of weird. While everyone else rooting for the Aggies is going nuts over Kaeden’s two-run single, Jeff just sits there and finally, begrudgingly, lightly claps his hands four times.
Oh, I get it; Kaeden got out twice! What a bum! But seriously, these teams can both put up runs, so the total seems low.
Over 10.5 runs total, -130 (DraftKings)
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