Check out my Best MLB Picks for today

We were treated to the long-awaited return of baseball on Friday, and now with some series heating up we'll dive back into the slate on Saturday to hand out some more best bets.

(Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

The St. Louis Cardinals look to be in a great spot in Atlanta after having their game on Friday pushed back due to rain, while the Cleveland Guardians should present us with a great chance to once again fade one of my least favorite pitchers.

I'm also eyeing the late game in Seattle, only this time we'll focus on the moneyline and ignore the popular trend of taking the total.

Let's get right into things and hand out our MLB Best Bets for Saturday, July 20.

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MLB BEST BET FOR SAN DIEGO PADRES VS CLEVELAND GUARDIANS

If you know me at all, you'll know I'm not one of Dylan Cease's biggest fans. The former Cy Young hopeful has obvious talent, pitching very effectively to strikeouts, but that's not generally an approach that delivers consistent results and as a result makes him an incredibly hard to bet on.

So, while Cease is one of the league's top strikeout arms with a 93rd-percentile strikeout rate, I think this stylistic matchup will be something of a nightmare.

• The Guardians have been one of the very best in the league this year at limiting strikeouts at under 20%, and they've only grown stronger in the month of July with a 17.9% strikeout rate.

Cleveland may be in a bit of a rut offensively, but it can still put the ball in play which should make this lineup a boar to navigate.

• Cease may not be pitching to a poor Expected Batting Average, but his Expected Slugging Percentage is just a couple of points shy of .400 to paint a very pedestrian picture.

The Guardians have a talented group at the plate which has hit for more power this year, and in their home park which has produced more home runs this year I like their chances to land a couple of big blows against Cease.

I also think the Padres, in a similar slump, will have a tough time against young Gavin Williams due to his ability to keep the ball on the ground. This is something a ground ball-oriented team like San Diego generally enjoys, but San Diego has found little success over the last few weeks and has found very little power.

Williams' xBA has begun to creep back down to normal in his last two starts after a bit of a rough go in his return from injury, and I think he should limit the damage far better than his counterpart.

Best Bet: Guardians ML (-115 at BetMGM)

Looking to bet this one as the action unfolds? Check out our MLB Live Betting Guide.

MLB BEST BET FOR ST. LOUIS CARDINALS VS ATLANTA BRAVES (GAME 2)

On Friday, we broke down why Sonny Gray matches up quite well against the Braves. Well, we didn't get to see it come to fruition after rain pushed the game to Saturday, but we should be able to bet on him again here in what's an even-betters spot.

The two things that Gray has been known for this season are strikeouts and ground balls. This puts the Braves in a precarious position, given they're a team that sells out for home runs and have really struggled to make consistent contact in the month of July.

• Atlanta's strikeout rate stands at a concerning 26.2% this month and should be minced meat against Gray, who's pushing for the best strikeout rate of his career at 30.3%.
• The Braves are 40 points worse in the slugging department against ground-ball pitchers as well, ranking 19th in OPS in the split compared to 13th against fly-ballers.

Gray should be the kryptonite needed to keep a cold Braves lineup down, and at the plate the red-hot Cardinals, sitting inside the top 10 in wRC+ this month, should be more than capable of keeping things up against Bryce Elder.

The righty carries an incredibly poor .283 xBA into this start, and the Cardinals have excelled all year at converting contact on the ground into hits. A pitcher like Elder who pitches to a ton of contact, which is hit particularly hard, should firmly tilt the scales in the visitor's favor.

Best Bet: Cardinals ML (-115 at BetMGM)

Not sure where to place your bet? Be sure to check out our ballislifebets section.?

MLB BEST BET FOR HOUSTON ASTROS VS SEATTLE MARINERS

Yes, the Under has now hit in over 70% of Mariners home games, and we once again went back to the well on Friday to great success.

With that said, this is a spot to pick a side -- not to bet on the conditions for offense. That's because both of these offenses continue to struggle, and while Houston managed to rise above Seattle on Friday it mustered up just three runs on six hits as it continues to favor the fly ball to a fault.

George Kirby isn't the man to face if you're looking to turn your luck around at the plate. The young righty has emerged as the best pitcher on a loaded staff, possessing an even-better fastball than Luis Castillo which is a pitch the Astros have fallen into a massive rut against this month.

He's also produced excellent expected numbers and good deal of strikeouts, which should hold the Astros at bay long enough for this Mariners team to do some rare damage with the bat.

Yes, Seattle may be the most abysmal offense in the game from my view given its heavy fly-ball approach and league-worst strikeout rate, because that's simply not a good idea in a stadium as unfriendly as T-Mobile Park.

When the Mariners face a ground-ball pitcher, however, they're forced to take a different approach and welcome the massive down-turn in strikeouts that come along with these types.

• Seattle is a very acceptable .244 against ground-ballers this year, 18 points better than the reverse split with a 25-point boost in on-base percentage.
• Framber Valdez, on the hill for Houston here, has not only served up a ton of ground balls and a struck out hitters at a significantly slower pace, but his near-50% hard-hit rate has made for a very hittable arm.

The lefty's xBA has come up in each of the last three seasons as his ability to pitch to contact continues to worsen, and that's more than enough to take the Mariners at this price given the starter they'll have on the hill.

Best Bet: Mariners ML (-124 at FanDuel)