Free Pick | MLB | Tuesday | May 20

Nelly’s Baseball has a pick set for Tuesday night – pay after you win!

We also have a pick for the Western Conference Finals tonight:

#926 Milwaukee Brewers (Henderson) -130 over Baltimore Orioles (Akin/McDermott) 6:40 PM CT

If the Brewers are going to climb back into NL Central contention, Logan Henderson may need to be a big part of it. So far, the rookie that was a 4th round pick in 2021 has dazzled, winning his two starts with a 13.1 K/9 and a 2.45 ERA. Henderson had big strikeout numbers in AAA and should be a threat for another strong outing against the struggling Orioles. Baltimore is 0-3 since the surprise managerial change now sinking to 15-31 overall with a seven-game slide while outscored 47-26. The Orioles are just 2-13 in the past 15 games. Keegan Akin gets the start Tuesday after a tense 5-4 result yesterday in Milwaukee with the Brewers bullpen getting the job done. Milwaukee outhit Baltimore 11-6 last night and never trailed in the game, while having an 18-6 edge in at-bats with runners in scoring position despite the one-run final. Both teams had significant relief workloads Monday and Akin has struggled with a 4.1 BB/9 so far in 22 innings this season. This is just the second start for Akin this season as he has primarily worked out of the bullpen in recent seasons after struggling as a starter in 2021. Akin won’t be much more than an opener on Tuesday as he pitched on Sunday. Chayce McDermott will be the primary pitcher for Baltimore Tuesday and McDermott has a 9.00 ERA in seven MLB innings with walks a major concern throughout his professional career. Milwaukee has the 11th highest walk rate in baseball as a relatively patient team at the plate in great contrast to Baltimore, as the Orioles should be at risk to allow Henderson another high strikeout count performance. In a pairing of young pitchers unproven at the MLB level, Milwaukee is the much more appealing option.