Editor's note: the only pick below is a Vegas line, not our gut. Until the Watch picks model ships, just the marquee game carries a line. For the full slate, tip times, and live updates, go to watch.uristocrat.com.
The NBA and NHL are both dark for the summer, so Monday belongs to baseball. There are 13 MLB games on the board plus a four-game WNBA night. Only one game gets a national broadcast, and it starts late: the Braves and Padres close the night at Petco. Here's what's worth your time.
Marquee: Braves at Padres, two NL contenders on national TV (10:10 PM ET, ESPN)
Atlanta (48-28) has the second-best record in baseball and is on the road in San Diego against a Padres team (39-37) hanging around the wild card race. On paper the Braves should be favored, but the line is basically a coin flip, and the pitching is why. San Diego runs out Michael King (4-6, 3.60 ERA), the sharper arm tonight. Atlanta counters with Grant Holmes (4-3, 4.33 ERA). Petco Park suppresses runs, King has been better than his record, and that combination pulls a clearly better team down to even money. If the Braves want it, they'll have to earn it against a pitcher who can shut a lineup down.
Vegas line: Padres -110, Braves -109, total 7.5 (DraftKings, via ESPN).
Also tonight
- Yankees at Tigers (6:10 PM ET). Two teams headed opposite directions. New York (46-30) is rolling and Detroit (33-44) has fallen apart. The Yankees should handle this one, but Comerica has a way of keeping bad teams in games.
- Phillies at Nationals (6:45 PM ET). Philadelphia (42-35) is in a real NL East fight and can't afford to sleepwalk through a Washington (40-38) club that's been tougher than its name suggests this year. A division game that matters more than the matchup looks.
- Brewers at Reds (7:10 PM ET). Milwaukee (46-29) has quietly built one of the best records in the league. Cincinnati (37-39) is the kind of middling team that can steal a night at home. Good test of whether the Brewers are for real.
- Tempo at Dream (7:30 PM ET, TSN). Atlanta (11-4) is one of the best teams in the WNBA right now. Toronto's expansion side (8-8) has been more competitive than anyone expected. Worth a look to see if the Tempo can hang with a contender.
- Mercury at Fever (8:00 PM ET, USA). The only WNBA game on a national network tonight. Indiana (9-7) at home against a struggling Phoenix (5-12). The Fever are the league's biggest draw and this is the easiest one to find on your TV.
- Dodgers at Twins (7:40 PM ET). Los Angeles (49-29) owns the best record in baseball and they're doing it without much noise. Minnesota (38-41) is below .500 but plays everyone close at home. If you only watch one non-marquee game, make it this one.
The thread tonight is teams separating from the pack. The Dodgers and Braves are both running away in the NL, the Brewers keep winning without the headlines, and the Fever keep selling out buildings. Baseball carries the night until the Braves and Padres settle it after 10.
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