King Creole
2* Washington / Cincinnati Over 8.5
There's only FIVE Umpires in Major League Baseball that have gone 'Over the Total' in 65% or more of their games in 2010. TWO of those guys will be working on Thursday afternoon. The first guy going is SCOTT BARRY, who will be down here in South Florida for the Marlins / Rockies game. But we'll pass on that 'Over' based on the fact that an extremely sharp Josh Johnson is going for the Fish. Not to mention pre-game wind forecasts are strong (16 MPH+) and IN from Center Field.
The Man in Blue that WE will be riding is ED HICKOX, who comes in with a YTD record of 13-7 O/U (ranked #5)... and an average of 10.8 runs per game (ranked #2). As of June 9th. Hickox was 6-6 O/U on the season. But he's been on a high-scoring tear as of late. He's gone a perfect 3-0 O/U in his last 3 games (14.3 RPG)... and 7-1 O/U in his last 8 games (12.0 RPG). His results might not be much in the AL (2-4 O/U on the year)... but in NL games, he has gone 7-2 O/U (11.0 RPG). These results have been consistent throughout the last few seasons. In 2009, Hickox was 7-3 O/U in NL games... and 3-5 O/U in AL games. And in 2008, he was 17-10 O/U in NL games... and 8-12 O/U in AL games. It's an interesting and fairly consitent pattern to play on.
In Washington National games, Hickox has gone 6-2 O/U in the last 3 seasons. And in Cincinnati Red games, the results have been 5-1-1 O/U in the same time span. That's a combined 79% of 'Over' results. We also note that Hickox has gone 4-1-1 O/U in Thursday 'Getaway Day' games.
Edinson Volquez is making only his SECOND start of the season after being called up from Louisville. He's a solid 'Over' pitcher in his career, going 17-8-2 O/U in his last 27 starts. Also 11-2-1 O/U as a home favorite... 12-4 O/U on 4 days rest... and 8-2-2 O/U off a Quality Start.
Livian Hernandez is showing some chinks in the armor lately. ERA is 5.00 in his last 3 starts. His road ERA is a full run HIGHER than his YTD ERA. And he had problems 'In THIS Park'. His ERA when pitching in Cincinnati is close to 5.00 as well. Hernandez is also 8-3 O/U on Thursdays.
Platinum Plays
400,000 Top Play
Texas
Premium Play of Day
Red Sox
Regular Plays
Atl
Det
Cards
Milw
Totals 4 U
Day/Night Parlay (Top Play)
Cincy UNDER 8.5
RSox OVER 8.5
Regular Plays
Det OVER 7.5
SF UNDER 9
LAD OVER 8
Paul Leiner
100* Balt/Minn Over 9
50* Giants -135
25* Marlins -1.5 (-105)
Dave Cokin
Detroit Tigers
Solid Gold - SF Giants
Bill Marzano
Matchup: Philadelphia at St Louis
Time: 2:15 PM EDT (Thu)
Listed pitchers must go: (L) HAMELS, C vs. (R) WAINWRIGHT, A
Play: St Louis (-1.5 +145)
I really like the St.Louis Cardinals in this game vs the struggling Philadelphia Phillies...the Cardinals are the hottest team in baseball right now and have the hot hand on the mound as well...A.Wainwright has won four straight starts and hasn’t allowed a run in his past two starts...Wainwright has been unhittable @ Busch Stadium this year posting a 10-0 record with a miniscule ERA of 1.31...enough said...Cardinals run line is the play
POWER PLAY WINS
San Francisco Giants -121
Beatyourbookie
Atlanta (-160) over San Diego (POD)
Atlanta is 13-2 in day home games this season
Atlanta is 22-5 when playing as a home favorite of -125 to -175 this season
Tim Hudson is 4-0 vs. San Diego over his career
Dave Cokin
Detroit Tigers
Solid Gold - SF Giants
Dave Cokin
Matchup: Toronto at Detroit
Time: 1:05 PM EDT (Thu)
Listed pitchers must go: (L) ROMERO, R vs. (R) VERLANDER, J
Play: Detroit (ML -135)
The Tigers snapped their losing streak on Wednesday with a desperately needed win over the Rangers. That has to be a huge mental boost for this team. I know Detroit has some issues right now, particularly with underrated Brandon Inge sidelined. But this is still a team that has played great ball at home most of the campaign, and they've got their horse throwing here as Justin Verlander toes the rubber. Ricky Romero has been decidedly less than impressive lately, especially on the road and the Tigers know they need to get things back on track in the hotly contested AL Central. The scheduling dynamics are a plus with Toronto the team doing the traveling, and the price here is not bad at all. I'll opt for the Tigers to grab the series opener.
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Matchup: San Francisco at Arizona
Time: 9:40 PM EDT (Thu)
Listed pitchers must go: (R) CAIN, M vs. (R) LOPEZ, R
Play: San Francisco (ML -130) Solid Gold Play
The Giants got slowed down last night by Chad Billingsley, but this is still a hot San Francisco team rolling into the desert for a duel with the Diamondbacks. Matt Cain has had his ups and downs at this site, but I still give him an edge over Rodrigo Lopez. Add in the fact that the weak Arizona bullpen had to work overtime on Wednesday night against the Mets and the road team figures to have a distinct advantage should this game be close heading into the late innings. Offensively, there's little question that the Snakes can be dangerous, but with the Giants hitting it better lately, I see this one being decided by the arms. In that case, San Francisco stands out as the right side in tonight's contest.
Craig Davis
100 Dime Florida -1.5
Ben Burns
10* Detroit
BIG AL
Blue Jays / Tigers Over
Brewers / Pirates Under
Sports Investment Group
Washington Nationals +160
Rocketman
SF GIANTS
Marc Lawrence
Angels/Rangers under 8