Thursday brings a packed betting board, with Major League Baseball, WNBA action, two NFL preseason games, CFL football, European soccer, the Cincinnati Open and the opening round of the BMW Championship all offering opportunities for bettors.
As always, shop around for the best number before placing a wager. Lines and prices can move significantly throughout the day.
ProCappers Best Bets Today
Best MLB Bet: Kansas City Royals Moneyline
Best WNBA Bet: Indiana Fever -1.5
Best NFL Bet: San Francisco 49ers Moneyline
Best CFL Bet: Montreal Alouettes -12.5
Best Soccer Bet: Rayo Vallecano Moneyline
Best Tennis Bet: Flavio Cobolli Moneyline
Best Golf Bet: Xander Schauffele Top 10
MLB Free Picks
Thursday's MLB schedule features a smaller slate, which makes starting pitching and price especially important.
Kansas City Royals Moneyline
Pick: Royals ML
Kansas City hosts Oakland with Randy Dobnak scheduled for the Royals and Gage Jump going for the Athletics. The market has Kansas City around -143, with the total sitting around 8.
Dobnak's 1.73 ERA gives Kansas City an interesting pitching advantage, and the Royals are 32-30 at home. Oakland enters at 49-78 overall.
ProCappers Pick: Kansas City Royals ML
Milwaukee Brewers Moneyline
Pick: Brewers ML
Milwaukee continues to be one of the better teams on the board and returns home against Seattle. The Brewers were around -131 on the early market, with Seattle at approximately +125.
Milwaukee is 78-49 overall and an impressive 42-23 at home.
ProCappers Pick: Milwaukee Brewers ML
Atlanta Braves Moneyline
Pick: Braves ML
Atlanta travels to Chicago with Grant Holmes on the mound against Anthony Kay. The Braves were approximately -125 in the early market.
Atlanta's 74-53 record and 42-23 road mark make this a matchup where the Braves deserve consideration despite playing away from home.
ProCappers Pick: Atlanta Braves ML
MLB Prop Angle
NRFI: Giants vs. Guardians
The NRFI market is offering another interesting angle today, with Giants-Guardians among the games receiving NRFI attention.
For bettors who prefer first-inning markets instead of full-game sides, NRFI is worth considering.
WNBA Free Picks
There are three WNBA games on Thursday's schedule.
Indiana Fever -1.5
Pick: Fever -1.5
Indiana enters at 24-12 and hosts Dallas, which comes in at 20-16. The early DraftKings number had Indiana around -1.5, with the moneyline near -162.
This is one of the more attractive short spreads on the board.
The Fever have the stronger overall record and home-court advantage, while the market is asking bettors to lay only a couple of points.
ProCappers Pick: Indiana Fever -1.5
Atlanta Dream -7.5
Pick: Dream -7.5
Atlanta enters at 22-13 against a Los Angeles Sparks team sitting at 12-23. The early number had Atlanta around -7.5, with the moneyline near -380.
The talent and record gap make Atlanta the clear favorite, and the spread remains playable as long as it stays below the key double-digit range.
ProCappers Pick: Atlanta Dream -7.5
Connecticut Sun vs. Las Vegas Aces
Pick: Aces -13.5
This is the most extreme spread of the WNBA slate, with Las Vegas around -13.5 and a moneyline near -1200.
The Aces are 24-13 while Connecticut is 9-25.
The moneyline offers almost no value, so if you're backing Las Vegas, the spread is the logical option.
ProCappers Pick: Las Vegas Aces -13.5
NFL Preseason Free Picks
Week 2 of the NFL preseason kicks off with two games Thursday night: Raiders-Texans at 8:00 PM ET and 49ers-Chargers at 10:00 PM ET.
Preseason betting requires a different approach than regular-season football. Quarterback rotations, expected playing time and second- and third-string depth are often more important than overall team talent.
San Francisco 49ers Moneyline
Pick: 49ers ML
San Francisco visits the Chargers in the second game of the night.
The 49ers are expected to give Brock Purdy some preseason work before turning the game over to the backups.
The current market has San Francisco favored in the neighborhood of -1.5, with the moneyline roughly in the -120 range.
The biggest factor is expected quarterback usage.
ProCappers Pick: San Francisco 49ers ML
Raiders vs. Texans
Pick: Raiders ML
This is a matchup where the market is split.
Houston has defensive depth and is expected to give some of its starters limited action. However, Las Vegas rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza impressed in his preseason debut, completing 10 of 16 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown.
The Raiders are also expected to give Mendoza significant playing time.
That makes the Raiders attractive if the moneyline is available around the current price range.
ProCappers Pick: Las Vegas Raiders ML
NFL Best Prop
Fernando Mendoza — First Drive Passing Yards Over 20
Mendoza showed good efficiency in his preseason debut and is expected to receive substantial playing time again. One current prop angle has been his first-drive passing yardage.
ProCappers Prop Pick: Mendoza 20+ passing yards on first drive
CFL Free Pick
Montreal Alouettes -12.5
Pick: Alouettes -12.5
Ottawa travels to Montreal Thursday night, and the market has Montreal as a substantial favorite.
Current CFL lines have Montreal around -12.5 to -13.5, with Ottawa a sizable underdog.
Montreal is the better side on paper, and the home-field advantage adds another reason to lean toward the Alouettes.
This is a larger spread, so price matters.
ProCappers Pick: Montreal Alouettes -12.5
Alternative: Montreal moneyline for parlay construction.
Soccer Free Picks
The soccer board includes LaLiga and several European competitions Thursday.
Rayo Vallecano vs. Alavés
Pick: Rayo Vallecano Moneyline
Rayo Vallecano hosts Alavés in Thursday's LaLiga matchup. The market has Rayo as a modest favorite, with prices around 1.95 available in the early market.
Prediction-market pricing has also shown Rayo as the most likely winner, although the draw remains a significant possibility.
This is not a matchup where we want to overpay for the favorite, but at a reasonable moneyline price, Rayo is the preferred side.
ProCappers Pick: Rayo Vallecano ML
Soccer Total
Pick: Under 2.5 Goals
The market is expecting a relatively tight match, and early prediction-market pricing has leaned toward a low-scoring game.
ProCappers Pick: Under 2.5 Goals
Cincinnati Open Tennis Picks
The Cincinnati Open is deep into its tournament stages, creating several quality ATP and WTA betting opportunities.
ATP: Flavio Cobolli vs. Tommy Paul
Pick: Flavio Cobolli ML
Cobolli faces Tommy Paul Thursday afternoon/evening in Cincinnati.
Cobolli has been generating plenty of betting attention in this matchup, and his current hard-court form makes the underdog side attractive if the price remains reasonable.
ProCappers Pick: Flavio Cobolli ML
WTA: Amanda Anisimova vs. Jessica Pegula
Pick: Amanda Anisimova ML
Anisimova meets Pegula in Cincinnati Thursday.
This is a matchup where power and aggressive baseline tennis can be decisive. Anisimova is the preferred side in what should be a competitive contest.
ProCappers Pick: Amanda Anisimova ML
Tennis Long Shot
Flavio Cobolli to Win
For bettors looking for a plus-money opportunity, Cobolli is one of today's more interesting underdog options.
PGA Golf Free Picks
The BMW Championship begins Thursday at Bellerive as the FedExCup Playoffs continue. The event runs August 20-23 and features a 50-player field.
Xander Schauffele — Top 10
Pick: Xander Schauffele Top 10
Schauffele is one of the players attracting significant attention heading into the BMW Championship, and his all-around game makes him an excellent placement-bet candidate.
Rather than taking a player outright in a 50-man elite field, the Top 10 market gives us considerably more room for error.
ProCappers Pick: Xander Schauffele Top 10
Golf Outright Long Shot
Long Shot: Branden Grace
Grace is among the players generating betting interest this week, particularly based on his recent form and previous performance at the event venue.
ProCappers Long Shot: Branden Grace
Today's ProCappers Parlay
For bettors looking for a moderate-risk multi-sport ticket:
Thursday ProCappers Parlay
- Kansas City Royals ML
- Milwaukee Brewers ML
- Indiana Fever -1.5
- San Francisco 49ers ML
- Rayo Vallecano ML
This is intentionally built around favorites and short spreads rather than chasing huge plus-money payouts.
Parlay strategy: If the combined price becomes too expensive, remove the Royals or Brewers and play the remaining legs as a smaller four-team parlay.
Higher-Risk ProCappers Parlay
For bettors willing to take on more variance:
- Las Vegas Raiders ML
- Atlanta Dream -7.5
- Montreal Alouettes -12.5
- Flavio Cobolli ML
- Rayo Vallecano ML
This ticket has significantly more volatility, particularly because of the NFL preseason and tennis legs.
Best Bets Card
Strongest Plays
1. Kansas City Royals ML
2. Indiana Fever -1.5
3. Milwaukee Brewers ML
4. San Francisco 49ers ML
5. Rayo Vallecano ML
Value Plays
6. Atlanta Dream -7.5
7. Montreal Alouettes -12.5
8. Flavio Cobolli ML
9. Amanda Anisimova ML
10. Under 2.5 — Rayo Vallecano vs. Alavés
Long Shots
11. Las Vegas Raiders ML
12. Xander Schauffele Top 10
13. Branden Grace outright
Final Thoughts
Thursday's betting card offers a little bit of everything.
MLB gives us the most traditional handicapping opportunities, while the WNBA provides several sizable favorites. NFL preseason betting is all about identifying which teams will actually use their key players and which coaching staffs are focused on evaluation rather than winning.
The CFL offers a strong home favorite in Montreal, soccer gives us a potentially tight Rayo-Alavés matchup, and the Cincinnati Open supplies several intriguing tennis underdogs.
Finally, the BMW Championship begins the next stage of the FedExCup Playoffs, giving golf bettors four days of elite competition and placement-bet opportunities.
The ProCappers Free Pick of the Day is the Indiana Fever -1.5. Indiana's 24-12 record, combined with the short spread against Dallas, gives us a better risk/reward profile than laying a massive number with one of Thursday's heavy WNBA favorites.
Good luck, play responsibly, and always shop for the best available line.