The Cincinnati Reds have been better than expected and should be that much better once former NL MVP Joey Votto is ready – that just won’t be soon. Votto, who had surgery in August to repair tears in his rotator cuff and biceps in his left shoulder, halted a rehab assignment with Triple-A Louisville on Saturday. Here are two intriguing matchups early this week around the majors.

Top MLB Betting Picks of the Week (April 17th, 2023)

The Tampa Bay Rays' rampage is over. Reality will finally settle over the American League East, and it's going to be a wild ride. https://t.co/2PMTTbgYvM

— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) April 17, 2023

New York Mets vs. Los Angeles Dodgers

• When: Monday, April 17, 2023, 10:10 PM ET
• Where: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA
• TV: SNY, SNLA, MLBN
• Radio: WCBS 880 AM (Mets) // AM 570 LA Sports (Dodgers)
• Live Stream: MLB.tv
• MLB Betting Odds: Mets (+132) / Dodgers(-152)

Possible National League Championship Series preview. The Mets will had a bat ahead of it with their No. 2 overall prospect, third baseman Brett Baty, to be called up from Triple-A. Baty, whom MLB Pipeline ranks as the No. 19 overall prospect, has been on fire at the plate for Triple-A Syracuse, hitting .400 with five homers, two doubles and a 1.386 OPS in nine games. The 23-year-old made his MLB debut in an 11-game stint with the Mets last year, though he struggled to a .184/.244/.342 slash line.

Baty had a tremendous spring with the Mets, slashing .325/.460/.425 with one homer and six RBI, seemingly making a strong push to not just make the Opening Day roster, but to be the team’s starting third baseman as well. But he began his season at Triple-A, with GM Billy Eppler saying that Baty still had some “development markers” left to reach before he could be added to the big league roster.

Baty’s callup has been the subject of much speculation, as starting Mets third baseman Eduardo Escobar has struggled at the plate to begin the season. Escobar entered Sunday 5-for-44 with one homer and a .394 OPS in 13 games. Baty also could play some outfield.

The Dodgers will be without All-Star catcher Will Smith as he has been placed on the seven-day concussion list. Manager Dave Roberts told reporters Sunday that Smith, who took two hard foul balls off his face mask in last week’s series against the San Francisco Giants, passed a concussion test Friday but the team is being cautious. Smith is the Dodgers’ leading hitter, with a .333 batting average, and is second on the team with 12 RBIs in 11 games. He also has three home runs.

The Mets will start David Peterson on the mound for this one. Peterson (0-2) took the loss last Tuesday, giving up two runs on six hits and two walks over 5.2 innings as the Mets fell 4-2 to the Padres. He struck out six. The southpaw blanked San Diego for four innings before Manny Machado brought home two in the fifth with a double, but the New York offense couldn’t get much going on the night. Peterson tossed 63 of 89 pitches for strikes before exiting, and he has a 4.91 ERA and 16:8 K:BB through three starts and 14.2 innings.

LA counters with Dustin May (1-1, 1.47 ERA). May lost after giving up two earned runs on two hits and four walks while striking out three over 5.1 innings in last Tuesday’s 5-0 loss to the Giants. A two-run double by Joc Pederson in the opening frame accounted for all of the damage against him.

MLB Betting Pick: Dodgers

Los Angeles Angels vs. New York Yankees

• When: Tuesday, April 18, 2023, 7:07 PM ET
• Where: Yankee Stadium, New York City, NY
• TV: BSW, YES, MLBN
• Radio: Angels Radio AM 830 (Angels) // WFAN 101.9 FM (Yankees)
• Live Stream: MLB.tv
• MLB Betting Odds: TBA

The Halos are looking to snap a four-game losing streak in the Bronx. Last year, the Yankees won the season series 4-2. The series will serve as a homecoming for several Angels players: Logan O’Hoppe (West Islip, NY), Mike Trout (Millville, NJ), Matt Thaiss (Jackson, NJ). Over the weekend Trout became the fourth player in MLB history with 300+ doubles, 300+ home runs and 200+ stolen bases by his age-31 season, joining Willie Mays, Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez.

Bit of a bummer for Yankees fans in that they won’t be able to see Shohei Ohtani pitch for the Angels – he was to go Monday morning in the Patriots’ Day game in Boston. The Yankees will be bidding for Ohtani this winter when he hits free agency.

The Yankees will be without one of their big bats for a while with Giancarlo Stanton placed on the injured list with a left hamstring strain. Stanton had been one of the Yanks’ most productive hitters in the early going, slashing .269/.296/.558 (14-for-52) with three doubles, four homers and 11 RBIs. He reached base in 12 of 13 games, hitting safely in 11 of them. The Yankees could use a mix of players at DH while Stanton is out, including Willie Calhoun, DJ LeMahieu, Gleyber Torres and Josh Donaldson, who is expected to come back from a hamstring strain as soon as Wednesday.

“There’s no good timing for it,” Manager Aaron Boone said. “I know he’s really frustrated. But it’s an opportunity for people we have confidence in. We can mix and match, and get some other people back here in the next few days and the next couple of weeks. We’ve got to make do.”

Lefty Jose Suarez (0-1, 10.80) is scheduled on the mound for the Angels. Suarez did not factor into the decision last Monday, allowing four runs on 10 hits and one walk over four innings during a 6-4 loss to the Nationals. He struck out two. Suarez was given early run support, but he wasn’t able to hold onto the lead and was tagged for three runs in the fourth. He has allowed 11 runs on 18 hits over his two starts (8.1 innings).

It’s converted reliever Clarke Schmidt (0-0, 8.44) for the Yankees. Schmidt allowed three earned runs on six hits over four innings in last Wednesday’s win over the Guardians while walking one batter and striking out three. He did not factor into the decision. The 27-year-old righty has now allowed 10 earned runs over 10.2 innings across three starts.

MLB Betting Pick: Yankees

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READ MORE: Top MLB Betting Picks of the Week – April 24th, 2023