Baseball Bets We Love on January 31st

It’s never too early.

Today is somehow already the final day of January and we are only 55 days away from Opening Day! We thought it would be fun to look at some pre-Springing Training FanDuel lines that we like and hopefully get great value. Obviously, these lines could change very quickly with a few big free agent names still available.

We have 6 bets for you. Ballpark Buzz is going to give you 3 that are low risk, low reward. Tommy is going to give you some high risk, high reward bets.

Mandatory Photo Credit: Jim McIsaac / Getty Images

Tommy’s #1: Paul Skenes: NL CY Young (+260)

The man with the most glorious mustache in all of baseball. Paul Skenes managed to deliver on the hype making his debut last May and put together one of the most spectacular rookie seasons ever and won the Rookie of the Year Award in the NL. Skenes finished with a 1.96 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP. His ERA was the lowest of any rookie pitcher. Skenes packs a high velocity with his four seam fastball, averaging 98.8 MPH. He was a strikeout machine (11.5 K/9) and quickly became appointment television.

Skenes made history in his first season with the Pirates. He became the second pitcher to have consecutive outings with 6 innings pitched, 0 hits, and 11 strikeouts. He became the Pirates franchise leader for strikeouts by a rookie with 170 in 133 innings. Skenes also became the first pitcher in the modern era to have 150 strikeouts and an ERA under 2.00.

Skenes was a finalist this year for the NL CY award alongside Chris Sale and Zack Wheeler. Sale won it and deservedly so but Skenes would have had a stronger and a more compelling case if he played the entire season. With that being said, Skenes picks up where he left off and adds the CY Young award to his trophy case.

Buzz’s #1: Colorado Rockies under 59.5 wins (-118)

For a while now I have believed that the Colorado Rockies have been the worst organization in sports. They have made numerous bad decisions in recent years which has led the. To miss the playoffs in 13 of the last 15 seasons. Even though they haven’t made the playoffs in the last 6 seasons, they only have 3 players in Baseball America’s top 100 prospects after finishing either 4th or 5th in the NL West for 6 straight seasons.

The Rockies only real move of the offseason was adding Thairo Estrada, who had a 64 wRC+ last season with the San Francisco Giants. The Rockies did nothing to upgrade their pitching, which was the worst unit at giving up home runs (1.39 HR/9) and had the lowest strikeout rate in baseball (7.05 K/9). The inability to miss bats and keep the ball in the yard is a terrible recipe for playing in Colorado.

The under pick is more about what the other teams in the division have done. The Dodgers have one of the greatest rosters in the history of the sport. The Diamondbacks added Corbin Burnes to create a legit starting rotation and they traded for Josh Naylor. The Giants spent 333M on the left side of their infield. And although the Padres haven’t done anything this offseason, they have a talented roster as long as they don’t make any rash decisions and trade away Michael King or Dylan Cease. There will be zero easy games against the NL West making it challenging to avoid losing streaks. This one I am confident in.

Tommy’s #2: Kansas City Royals Win the AL Central (+300)

You wouldn’t believe it, but the Royals have the fourth best odds to win the division. So, this is a safe pick for me. Here’s why.

The Minnesota Twins are looking to shed payroll and the team could be up for sale, so they are not buying. The Cleveland Guardians managed to trade away gold glove winning second baseman Andres Gimenez (Toronto Blue Jays) and also traded Josh Naylor to the Arizona Diamondbacks. They did little to upgrade their starting pitching and are operating under the cost controlled method. The White Sox are going to be awful once again. The Tigers remain a mystery.

I like the Royals. My bold stance on them being competitive last year aged like a fine wine. They did not do a ton this winter, but they are poised to be good. The biggest move they made was trading Brady Singer for Jonathan India. India brings speed to the base paths and is good at getting on base. They desperately needed a bat.

Their rotation was the second best in the league last season and they’ve kept the team intact. I like the odds in this one.

Buzz’s #2: Kansas City Royals over 82.5 wins (-102)

The Kansas City Royals were one of baseball’s biggest surprise teams last season as they made the playoffs after an 8-year hiatus. A big reason to the Royals success last season was due to their starting rotation (3.55 ERA - 2nd best in baseball). Kansas City was able to bring back Michael Wacha to go along with Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans. They also brought in Michael Lorenzen, who is a great back of the rotation option.

The big offensive addition came via trade as the Royals acquired Jonathan India from the Cincinnati Reds for Brady Singer. India will look for a fresh start in Kansas City and look to support superstar Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinny Pasquintino.

The main reason why I love the Royals to hit the over is because of their division. The Guardians roster is not as good as last season, especially since they traded away Josh Naylor. The Minnesota Twins have not made a single move to improve the big league roster. And the Chicago White Sox are terrible. The team that could still make a jump is the Detroit Tigers if they decide to spend before the start of the season. There’s a lot of wins for the taking in the AL Central.

Tommy’s #3: Texas Rangers Win the AL West (+200)

Mandatory Photo Credit: Daniel Shirey / Stringer / Getty Images

When you look at the landscape of the AL West, it seems to be very top heavy. The Los Angeles Angels are going to finish near or at the bottom. Yes, they did add pieces to form a competitive roster, but not enough to be a threat. The Sacramento Athletics is what the kids are calling them these days are going to be fun. They brought back Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler is an electrifying piece. They’ve added (cause they had to) but will be fun.

Okay, let’s get to the big three. The Seattle Mariners did legitimately nothing this winter and will continue to ride their league best rotation. They finish third. The Astros losing Kyle Tucker, potentially Alex Bregman, and now Ryan Pressly leaves big gaps on their roster. They’ll be a very good team, but the crown goes to the Rangers.

Top to bottom, they have the best all around roster in this division and maybe even in the American League. They brought back Nathan Eovaldi, and should get a healthy season out of Jacob deGrom. Also, they should be getting a bounce back year from some of their bats.

Corey Seager was far and away their best hitter in 2024. But they need guys like Marcus Semien and Adolis Garcia to bounce back. Garcia slashed .224/.284/.400/.684 and had 92 wRC+. Semien slashed .237/.308/.391/.699 with 99 wRC+. These two were instrumental to the Rangers winning the World Series and they need to bounce back big time. A sophomore season of Wyatt Langford plus a healthy Josh Jung will help. Plus, they’ve added Joc Pederson and Jake Burger. How does this team not win the division?

Buzz’s #3: Gunnar Henderson over 30.5 Home Runs (-113)

To me, this is the one I am most confident about. Gunnar Henderson is one of the best hitters in the sport and he’s just 23 years-old. Last season, Henderson hit 37 home runs in 159 games. The power is legit and there’s no reason to believe the power won’t be the same or improve next season, especially with Henderson playing half of his games in Camden Yards, which ranks 8th in park factors for left handed home runs. Unless Henderson has a significant injury, this seems like a definite over.

Let’s Make Some Money

Whether you only like 1 of the bets or only Tommy’s, feel free to place some with baseball starting soon! Most of these selections cannot be parlayed together, however if you parlay the Rangers and the Royals to win their respective divisions, the odds are +1100. Good luck to anyone who trusts us enough with these picks! Only 55 days until Opening Day!

All odds presented by FanDuel