Battle of the Birds: Expert Picks in the MLB for 8/26
Written by: PJ Glasser
Published: Wed Aug 26, 2026, 9:54 am ET
Read Time: 5 minutes
mlb
Spread
Total
Moneyline
+1.5
-220
8
-105o
-102
Spread
Total
Moneyline
+1.5
-180
8.0
+105u
-103
All 30 teams are in action today in the MLB and we have plays in two of them. One of my plays will be in the Astros-Yankees game and the other will be between the Orioles and Cardinals in the "battle of the birds" in St. Louis. Let's dive into my MLB best bets for Wednesday, August 26th.
MLB Best Bets for Wednesday, August 26
Houston Astros vs New York Yankees
These last two months for the Yankees offense has been a rough one. Struck by injuries, especially to key pieces like Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Cody Bellinger it's been a disaster at times. Bellinger has returned for the Yanks and had a 3-run homer last night, but I still have my questions.
This team has truly been the perfect under team. Their pitching is as good as anyone especially the starters, but the question just about every night is how much run support will they get? Last night we got a high scoring affair between the Yankees and Astros. Houston came out a winner 9-7. On Sunday, the Yankees beat the Jays 8-3 so two games in a row the Yankees have cashed an over. That hasn't happened in a month when they lost to the Phillies 11-4 on July 26 and then defeated the White Sox 9-5. It's been an entire month since the Yankees have played two games back-to-back that have gone over the total. Think about that?
Elmer Rodriguez is expected to pitch tonight for the Yankees. It's not official as of this writing, but that's what it's looking like. He has made 4 starts this season throwing 17 innings and has a 4.76 ERA. On the other side, will be Peter Lambert for the Astros who has been pretty good for Houston this season. The right hander is 8-7 with a 3.68 ERA and 120 strikeouts. He is coming off his worst start of the year vs the Angels going 3.2 innings giving up 8 hits and 9 earned runs.
The total in the game tonight is 9 and I just feel like that is to high. I think this is a nice situational spot for the under. As I mentioned, the Yankees have gone over the total in back-to-back games for the first time in a month. On top of that, Lambert is coming off his worst start of the season. It feels like this line might be inflated just a touch and it should be closer to 8 then it should be to 9. When I was surveying the board today and saw a total of 9 in this game I knew I had to pounce. If the Yankee bats come alive yet again today then so be it, but I'll play to see it.
Bet: Astros-Yankees Under 9 (-120)
Baltimore Orioles vs St. Louis Cardinals
Jordan Walker and the St. Louis Cardinals look to bounce back tonight
Last night, Baltimore absolutely smoked the Cardinals 13-1. The Orioles tied their season high for runs this season and it was only the 7th time they have scored 10 or more runs this year. I have this theory in baseball that when teams get demolished like St. Louis did last night and the next day the game is a close spread I love backing that team. Isn't that the beauty of baseball? You lose by 12 runs, but at the end of the day it's only one game and one loss, you flush it and get right back at it the next day.
In those 7 games this year where the O's scored 7 runs they have a few instances where the next day they only scored 1 run. They played the Red Sox back in late April and defeated Boston 10-3. The very next day the Red Sox beat them 17-1. I'm not saying the Cardinals are going to win 17-1 tonight, but it just shows that sometimes momentum doesn't carry over to the next game.
Kyle Bradish is on the bump tonight for Baltimore and he has been a little worse on the road then he has been at home. The ERA is comprable (3.46 at home, 3.91 on the road). The big difference though is the batting average. Opponents are only hitting .203 at home vs Bradish, while in road games they are batting .293. That bodes well for an offense that could only muster one run last night.
On the other side pitching tonight for the Cardinals is Michael McGreevy. The win loss record isn't great this year at 5-9, but the ERA is solid at 3.54 in 137.1 innings pitched. I would give the slight edge on the pitching to the Orioles, but I think the line being a pick'em here is telling you a lot. Since, the Cardinals were down 12-1 in the 5th inning they saved a lot of their good relievers tonight should it be a close game. I'll take St. Louis in a bounce back.
Bet: Cardinals ML (-110)
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