The long winter is now behind us, and it’s time for the 2026 Major League Baseball season. Things got underway with the Yankees-Giants game Wednesday night. Thursday, we’ve got 11 games going, meaning it’s the first game out of 162 for 22 ballclubs.
With a full slate of baseball back in our lives, let’s dive in with a few of our own picks for the day. Lines courtesy of DraftKings.
Jacob Misiorowski under 14.5 outs recorded (+130)
The question is whether you think Brewers starter Jacob Misiorowski will complete the fifth inning against the White Sox. He’s a pretty inefficient starter a lot of the time, due to some control issues. We also know the Brewers can be protective over his workload. He only went at least five innings in seven of his 15 starts last regular season and did so once in his three playoff outings (it was his only start of the three appearances).
This spring, Misiorowski worked his way up to 86 pitches last time out, so he’s full go for the opener. In that outing, he lasted 4 ⅓ innings.
The White Sox aren’t necessarily a formidable foe, but they are better than last year, when they ranked in the top half of baseball in pitches per plate appearance.
I don’t think Miz gets knocked around or anything, but I think he’ll have to deal with control and efficiency issues and won’t make it through five in this likely Brewers win. I like the plus money on this one, too.
Cubs -1.5 (-105)
Baseball’s different than the other sports in spotting potential “blowout” games because in our daily grind, things are just different. It isn’t altogether shocking if the Rockies win a game over the Dodgers, for example. More shocking would be taking a series. If there’s a game ripe for the “blowout” treatment on Opening Day, however, it’s the Cubs at home against possibly the worst team in baseball in the Nationals. All-Star lefty Matthew Boyd gets the ball for the Cubs while righty Cade Cavalli goes for the Nats. The Cubs will have an excited crowd behind newcomer Alex Bregman and freshly extended Pete Crow-Armstrong. The most likely outcome here is a Cubs win by multiple runs and we can bet it at nearly even money.
MLB World Series predictions: Expert picks for 2026 champion, pennant winners
Kate Feldman
Julio Rodríguez 2+ H+R+RBI (-108)
Guardians starter Tanner Bibee isn’t very intimidating and Cleveland’s bullpen isn’t quite as deep as in previous seasons. Beyond that, there’s some gut feelings going on here. I think the Mariners are riding the momentum from their best postseason ever and are hungry to take the next step. Julio is usually a slow starter, but maybe the very-real-feeling at-bats in the World Baseball Classic jump start him a little early this year. I like the Mariners to win, and I just feel like this man will be heavily involved.
BONUS: Tyler O’Neill home run (+302)
There’s really nothing behind this but coincidence, but O’Neill is going for the MLB record here. Well, he already has it. He’s looking to extend it. He’s homered on six straight Opening Days. That is the all-time record. In the grand scheme of things, it’s not a huge deal, but it’s a fun quirk and maybe there really is something deep inside him that rises to the occasion on Opening Day. We can take the +302 here to find out, especially against Joe Ryan (he’s a very good starter, but prone to the HR) and a possibly bad Twins bullpen.
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