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Two teams in the thick of the National League wild-card race continue their three-game series when the San Francisco Giants host the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday (9:45 p.m. ET) at Oracle Park. San Francisco (68-63) pulled within one-half game of Arizona for the third and final wild-card spot by posting a 4-1 victory in Monday's series opener. The Reds (68-65) are 1.5 games behind the Diamondbacks after having lost four of their last five contests, including three of four at Arizona.

On Tuesday, San Francisco's Alex Cobb (6-5, 3.74 ERA) takes the mound opposite Cincinnati's Brandon Williamson (4-3, 4.18). The Giants are -160 favorites (risk $160 to win $100) in the latest MLB odds, while the Reds are +136 underdogs. The over/under for total runs is 8, and the game is one of 15 on the MLB schedule for Tuesday. Elsewhere, the NL Central-leading Brewers (+112) visit the Cubs, who are second in the wild-card standings, while the NL West-best Dodgers (-184) host the Diamondbacks, who occupy the final wild-card spot. Before you lock in your MLB picks or parlays, be sure to check out the MLB predictions and betting advice from SportsLine's proven computer model.

The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every MLB game 10,000 times. It went 331-285 on top-rated MLB money-line picks (+357) over the past two seasons. It entered Week 23 of the 2023 MLB season 71-55 on all top-rated MLB picks this season and has excelled on top-rated run-line picks, going 14-4 (+640). Anyone following it has seen big returns.

For Tuesday, the model has locked in four confident MLB best bets for games that begin at 6:40 p.m. ET or later. If you successfully parlay the picks, you'd be looking at a payout of well over 14-1. You can see the model's MLB picks only at SportsLine. 

Top MLB picks today

After simulating every game on Tuesday 10,000 times, the model is picking the Houston Astros (+101) to defeat the Boston Red Sox. Houston has followed a stretch during which it lost six of eight contests with a three-game winning streak that has been fueled by its offense. After being held to one run in back-to-back losses against Boston and Detroit, the Astros have erupted, scoring at least nine times in each of their last three outings.

Houston, which occupies one of the three wild-card spots in the American League, avenged its 17-1 home loss to the Red Sox last Thursday with a 13-5 triumph in the series opener at Fenway Park. Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez recorded four hits and four RBI apiece, with the former hitting for the cycle for the first time in his career. The 33-year-old Altuve, who had only two hits in 15 at-bats during the Astros' four-game set versus Boston last week, has gone 7-for-15 over his last three contests. See the model's top MLB picks here.

How to make Tuesday MLB parlays

The model also locked in three other best bets for Tuesday. You can see the model's MLB Tuesday best bets and parlay only at SportsLine.

What MLB picks should you target for a payout of well over 14-1? Visit SportsLine now to see the MLB best bets for Tuesday from the model that's on a 14-4 run on top-rated MLB run-line picks, and find out.