Sports Handicapper William Burns's Picks & Predictions

(#973) Kansas City Royals @ (#974) Seattle Mariners | UNDER | . 

Seth Lugo (1-1, 2.63 ERA) vs. Emerson Hancock (2-1, 2.86 ERA) . 

Both starting pitchers in this contest bring in an ERA below the 3.00 mark, which is one my thresholds of being labelled as "elite" at the season's end (at the moment.) Lugo has these numbers still even despite having given up seven earned runs over his last start. I expect him to bounce back and get back to what he does best here today. 

Emerson Hancock has delivered time & time again when called upon and has become a huge piece to this nasty Mariners rotation. No, Seattle hasn't hit the ball all that well yet. But, once this season gets in full swing, Seattle's going to be dangerous once again. In this game, expect a pitchers duel given the offensive struggles so far on the year. 

Burns' Prediction: 4-1 Mariners.

(#24957) Jaime Munguia | ML | . 

Coming into this weekend, Jaime Munguia is the favorite and for good reasoning. He's two years older, but has a 45-2 record in pro boxing. Those two losses did come in two of his past four fights. However, one of them was against Canelo Alvarez & the other one was against Bruno Surace which he went onto beat in the rematch in May of last year. Now, he gets to fight someone with much less experience. 

Jose Armando Resendiz is supposed to be a solid fighter. He did just beat Caleb Plant, which is his best win in his career. But, he is just 16-2 & got knocked out by a 20 year old, Elijah Garcia, back in 2023. I expect Munguia to have full control of this fight, leading to a decision win. But, I also wouldn't be surprised if Munguia knocks him out. 

Burns' Prediction: Munguia via. U-DEC.

(#210025) Seattle Sounders FC | ML | . 

I'm shocked that this line isn't even juicier. Seattle enters this game w/ a 6-1-1 record which is among the best records in the entire MLS. The Sounders have conceded only four goals in these eight games and although I could see them conceding one here on the counter attack, they should be excellent going forward in a matchup like this. 

Sporting Kansas City might just be the worst team in the MLS. With a 1-1-7 record on the season, and a ranking of dead last in the East, there isn't much to say other than how bad it's been. SKC has conceded 27 goals in those nine games, which is an average of three per match. Hammer the Sounders at this price. 

Burns' Prediction: 4-1 Seattle.

(#961) Atlanta Braves | ATS | . 

Chris Sale (5-1, 2.31 ERA) vs. *Chase Dollander (3-2, 2.25 ERA). 

There's not many teams that you see Chris Sale going up against a pitcher with a better ERA than him these days. But, that's the case here this evening when he'll take on the Colorado Rockies in Colorado. Chase Dollander might just be the new thing in Colorado, pitching his "ass" off so far this season. I do have a ton of respect for what he's been able to do. However, I simply just don't believe that this is sustainable. Nobody has ever had an ERA below 2.00 at Coors field over the course of a season. Dollander is on pace to do so. But, I don't see it happening. Chris Sale is epic as well and I still trust him a lot more with this team behind him hitting. Given the Braves comeback yesterday to get me the win, I'm riding them again against the points on Saturday. 

Burns' Prediction: 9-3 Braves. 

*Dollander hasn't yet been announced as starter - This is my expectation considering current rotation.

(#979) New York Mets | ML | . 

Nolan McLean (1-2, 2.55 ERA) vs. Reid Detmers (1-2, 4.28 ERA). 

Although the Mets haven't been too good this season, they have started to play much better since Juan Soto returned to the lineup. I get that ruts like this at the beginning of the season sting. But, there's still plenty of games to recover from this and own a much better record when it's all said and done. 

Looking at this pitching matchup, I am a huge fan of Nolan McLean & I expect damage to be done today. Nolan owns a losing record (expected) but has a 2.55 ERA & A 0.85 WHIP so far this season. On the other hand, Reid Detmers is 1-2 w/ a 4.28 ERA. While that's not terrible, it's not elite by any means either. NYM's the better overall team. Expect it to win again here. 

Burns' Prediction: 5-2 Mets.

(#207809) Galatasaray S.K. | 3-WAY ML | . 

On the road, this could be a bit of a dangerous matchup for Galatasaray. However, I don't believe that it will be. It's leading the Süper Lig at the moment w/ 74 points this season, seven points ahead of its competition. With three games remaining, a win would claim the title here this afternoon/evening. That would be excellent for this club. 

Looking at Samsunspor, it's down in seventh with a negative goal differential on the year. I do believe that it's one of the average teams in the Turkish Süper Lig. But, definitely not a contender w/ the rest of the top teams. Give me Galatasaray to claim all three points & the title here on Saturday. 

Burns' Prediction: 2-0 Galatasaray.

(#200101) Sunderland A.F.C. | 3-WAY ML | . 

I know that both teams are struggling at the moment. However, I just don't think that Wolverhampton is a good enough team to be competitive against the top teams at the moment. I mean, Wolves just got handed a loss against Tottenham, who hadn't won a game in 2026 before that match. 

Looking at Sunderland, it's still got a chance to qualify for Europe, as they sit only three points behind Bournemouth (who's in seventh) with four games remaining. Wolverhampton has zero to play for other than pride, as it will be sent down to the Championship for next season. Give me Sunderland, even on the road. 

Burns' Prediction: 3-1 Sunderland.

(#24413) Brando Pericic | ML | . 

According to the oddsmakers, this is expected to be a very evenly matched fight. That being said, I don't think so. Shamil Gaziev currently has a 14-2 record which is impressive. However, he's lost two of his past three fights and hasn't been the same against the legitimate fighters inside the Heavyweight Division of the UFC. 

On the other hand, Brando Pericic is five years younger and has a 6-1 record. "The Balkan Bear" doesn't really have a signature win quite yet. But, he's knocked out each of his last four opponents, all within the opening round. I don't see this one going too far either and I expect another finish from Brando. 

Burns' Prediction: Pericic via. 2nd Round TKO.

(#8954) Marta Kostyuk | ML | . 

These two players met up earlier this season for the first time in their careers. Kostyuk won that match 7-6, 6-3 on the hard courts of Brisbane. I know that this will be a clay matchup now & that Mirra Andreeva definitely has the stronger record on clay in their careers. But, the way Kostyuk is striking the ball at the moment has been phenomenal & I would not be shocked to see her have very similar success against the 19 year old. 

Marta Kostyuk kind of flies under the radar with the great success of fellow Ukrainian Elina Svitolina over the past couple of seasons. However, the 23yr old has also done a really good job at playing her own game/style of tennis and I think that it's help her have an incredible start to this clay season. She's won 56.1% of her Return Games on clay so far in 2026. That's insane! Give me the Ukranian. 

Burns' Prediction: 7-6, 6-3 Kostyuk.

(#200277) Middlesbrough F.C. @ (#200278) Wrexham A.F.C. | OVER | . 

This should be a high scoring encounter on Saturday morning (afternoon in the UK.) This total has gone back and forth between 2.5 favoring the "over" & 3.0 favoring the "under.' Fortunately, I'm jumping in at 2.75 before it goes back to 3.0. Yes, this is a very high leverage contest, with both teams currently sitting in a spot to play in the #3-6 playoff at the end of the season to determine the final team moving up. However, I still think both teams are going to play freely, just like they have all season long. 

On the season, Middlesbrough has scored 70 goals in 45 games. Wrexham has scored 67 goals in the same amount of games. Not only that, both teams allowed at least a goal per game (Middlesbrough - 45 & Wrexham - 63.) Middlesbrough has also scored eight goals over its past three games. Wrexham hasn't been in as strong form, scoring five in its past five games, but allowed 10. Tied w/ Hull & one point ahead of Derby County, Wrexham, at home, need points in this game more than anything,. Expect it to throw everything it can at Middlesbrough in this one, leading to plenty of opportunities & goals. 

Burns' Prediction: 3-2 Wrexham.