MLB Playoff Tipping Sheet: The best value bets from the first night of wildcard action

Can Kyle Lohse carry St Louis to an against the odds win in Atlanta?
St Louis go to Atlanta while Texas host Baltimore as the MLB playoffs get under way. Richard Fletcher previews both games and picks the best bets as the baseball season reaches fever pitch
St Louis Cardinals @ Atlanta Braves 22:07 BST
The teams in this one-off National League wild card game faced each other six times during the regular season, with the Braves winning five. All the games took place in May, however, when the Cardinals' pitching rotation was going through a barren spell and the Braves thus outscored the Cardinals 23-13 to take the first series 3-0. But later that month, the second series was much closer, with the Cardinals outscoring their rivals 19-17, but the Braves still took the return series 2-1.
On the mound for the Cardinals tonight is the super-consistent Cy Young candidate Kyle Lohse (16-3, 2.86 ERA). While this has been the best season of Lohse's career, he tied his season-short in innings pitched (five) and a season-high five earned runs allowed in his only start against the Braves in 2012.
It was no surprise when the Braves announced that Kris Medlen (10-1, 1.57 ERA) would be their go-to-guy on Friday, mainly because they never seem to lose with him on the mound. Atlanta has won the last 23 games which Medlen has started, with that streak going back to May 2010. Medlen didn't start once against the Cardinals this season, but he had three outings of relief pitching against them, going for three earned runs in 5.2 innings.
St Louis swept Atlanta in the NLCS in 1982 and the NLDS in 2000 and the dominant Lohse can lead his post-season battle-hardened Cardinals to another victory. Granted, the Braves are a strong all-round team, excellent defensively with some powerful hitters like Martin Prado on their roster, but the 2.546/4 currently on offer for the big-hitting Cardinals is just too good to turn down.
Baltimore Orioles @ Texas Rangers 01:30 BST
Whilst the Rangers are in the American League playoffs for the third consecutive year, they haven't got there in quite the same style as before. After losing nine of their last 13 regular season games, they limped into the playoffs without their usual swagger, and the odds are against them making their third-straight World Series from a wild-card slot.
The Rangers do, however, boast bragging rights over the Orioles in the regular season, sweeping a series at Camden Yards 3-0 in May, and then taking the home series 2-1 in August, all this despite a season beset by injury and inconsistency.
The Orioles go with lefty Joe Saunders (9-13, 4.07 ERA), for tonight's first ever match-up between these two teams in the playoffs. Saunders has a poor record against the Rangers, however, and has gone 0-6 with an eye-watering ERA of 9.38 in career games in Texas.
Texas start rookie right-hander and Japanese star Yu Darvish, who was 16-9 with a 3.90 ERA in his first year in the MLB. Darvish was superbly efficient in late-season, going 5-1 with a 2.35 ERA in his last eight starts and he ended up fifth in the league with an amazing 221 strikeouts, whilst opponents hit just .220 off him, the third lowest in the league.
Home-field advantage, a potential superstar pitcher in the making, backed up by a much-superior batting line-up and defence ensure that the warrior-like Rangers have to be the selection tonight. And the Rangers covering the -1.5 Runs spread isn't too much to ask here.
Recommended Bets
Back St Louis at 2.546/4
Back Texas Rangers -1.5 Runs at 2.111/10