James Patrick Sports
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Bengals vs. Cowboys
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Despite taking on the toughest non-division slate in the NFL this season, owner Jerry Jones is overly optimistic when stating he wants his club to be the first team to play in a Super Bowl in its own stadium. The Super Bowl will be played at Cowboys Stadium in 2011. "I'm like a kid when you ask me what I want for Christmas," Jones said. "I want it so bad, I'm scared to talk about it." Thus, the onus falls on head coach Wade Phillips who is once again suddenly on the hot seat. Phillips Knows that even an exhibition game holds importance as far as his job security is concerned. Our Sunday NFL complimentary selection is Dallas Cowboys.
Nick “The BookieKiller” Parsons
Bengals @ Cowboys
PICK: Under 33
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For a number of different reasons I believe the value in this contest is on the "under":
Dallas is favored to win the NFC East; it enters its fourth year under head coach Wade Phillips who got the monkey off his back last season by actually winning a playoff contest.
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Tony Romo is the starting QB; RB's Marion Barber, Felix Jones and Tashard Choice will look to batter their opponents. Barber led the Cowboys with 932 yards in 2009; Jones had nearly 700 and had his best game with a 148-yard effort in last years wild-card playoff victory over the Eagles.
Romo has a talented group of receivers to throw to in 2010 including TE Jason Witten, Roy Williams and Miles Austin.
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I believe Dallas has a legitimate shot at matching or bettering its mark of 11 victories in 2009.
On the other side of the field: Unlike the Cowboys, Cincinnati needs to work a few things out in the pre-season.
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It's going to need to get T.O. involved in the offense; expect to see him get some touches in the first quarter.
But most of all, this team is anxious to have its backup RB position filled; expect to see a heavy dose of running as both Bernard Scott and Bryan Leonard get touches throughout this one.
Bottom line: Dallas is clearly the more talented team; but this is the pre-season and obviously we won't be seeing much, if any of the starters in this one.
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Cincinnati will look to control the tempo of this game, and with no distinct home field advantage whatsoever, I believe we're getting excellent value on the "under" in this situation.
Marc Lawrence
Cincinnati Reds at Chicago Cubs
Prediction: Cincinnati Reds
The Reds wrap up a three game visit with the Cubs in Chicago Sunday afternoon when they send young phenom Travis Wood to the hill at Wrigley Field. Wood enters today's contest in terrific KW form with two walks and 14 strikeouts in his last three starts. He's also 5-1 away with a 2.58 ERA in his career road team starts for the Reds. The bottom line is it ain't broke and we're not about to fix it. Back Wood and the Reds here today. We recommend a 1-unit play on Cincinnati.
Rocketman
Texas Rangers vs. Oakland Athletics
Play: Oakland Athletics
Oakland is 25-11 this year in day games. Oakland is 223-152 since 1997 when playing in the month of August. Oakland bullpen has a 2.85 ERA at home this year. Colby Lewis is 4-6 on the road this year and 0-3 his last 3 starts. Trevor Cahill is 11-4 with a 2.72 ERA overall this year, 6-2 with a 1.88 ERA at home and 2-1 with a 0.75 ERA his last 3 starts. Cahill is 5-1 with a 1.83 ERA overall vs Texas since 1997 and his team is 6-1 overall vs Texas in his starts. We'll recommend a small play on Oakland today!
Jim Feist
Nationals vs. Dodgers
Play Over 8
A pair of bad defensive teams meet, and one struggling starter. Jason Marquis (elbow) will make his first start since April on Sunday, when he returns from the DL to face the Dodgers. He has been awful, with an ERA over 20. These teams are not strong defensively, with Washington allowing the most errors in the NL, the Dodgers the sixth most. All of which makes this total too low. Play the Nationals/Dodgers Over the total.
Steve Merril
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Tampa Bay Rays vs. Toronto Blue Jays
Play: Toronto Blue Jays
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The Blue Jays are playing great baseball right now winning four of their last five games. They can sweep the Rays with a win on Sunday afternoon. Tampa’s Jeff Niemann was scratched from his start with shoulder soreness so Andy Sonnanstine will take the hill in this game making his first start since September 16th, 2008. The righty was activated from the DL on Saturday, and he has no hard pitch count, but only went 1.1 innings on Thursday in Class A Advanced. Out of the bullpen, Sonnanstine is 2-0 with a 4.22 ERA this season. In his career, Sonnanstine is 2-2 with a 6.08 ERA against Toronto. Vernon Wells (4-15), Aaron Hill (4-15), Jose Molina (3-9), Adam Lind (3-8), Lyle Overbay (4-7), and Yunel Escobar (1-1) all have good numbers against the Rays starter. Toronto moved to 30-24 at home and 24-17 against the division after scoring 17 runs in their win over the Rays on Saturday. Toronto’s Brandon Morrow loves pitching at home. In front of his fans, he's 6-1 with a 3.25 ERA in 10 starts this season. Morrow has won three straight starts after defeating the Orioles twice and the Yankees. The righty has faced the Rays twice giving up three runs and six hits in 13 innings pitched against them. Ben Zobrist (2-8), Evan Longoria (2-8), Carl Crawford (0-7), Reid Brignac (0-6), B.J. Upton (1-5), Jason Bartlett (0-4), and Matt Joyce (0-1) all have poor numbers against Morrow. The Rays have now lost four straight games which means there’s some tremendous value in taking the plus price with the home team this afternoon.
Cajun Sports
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Tampa Bay Rays vs. Toronto Blue Jays
Play: Tampa Bay Rays
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The Tampa Bay Rays look to rebound from a 17 to 11 defeat on Saturday in Toronto. The Rays are 67-42 on the season including 33-19 on the highway and 7-3 on the road in this price range. Tampa Bay has done a good job against division foes posting a record of 27-15 against them this season. The Blue Jays are 7-12 when installed as a home underdog in this price range. We also get a little help from behind the plate as home-plate umpire Jeff Kellogg has seen the road team go a perfect 5-0 his last five behind the mask. Lay the short price as the Rays bounce back from a tough loss on Saturday and get a much needed win on Sunday north of the border.
PROJECTED FORECAST: 2* Tampa Bay Rays 4 Toronto Blue Jays 2
Info Plays
3* on Philadelphia Phillies -1.5 +117
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Reasons the Phillies win on the Run Line:
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1.) System Play. We'll Play Against - All underdogs with a money line of +175 to +250 (NY METS) - cold hitting team - batting .250 or worse over their last 20 games against opponent with a hot starting pitcher- WHIP <= 1.000 over his last 5 starts. This is a 68-7 ML System hitting 90.7% over the last 5 seasons. The favorite is winning by an average of 3.0 RPG in this spot. Bet the Phillies on the Run Line.
Craig Trapp
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Chicago White Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles
Play: Chicago White Sox
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BALT have played well lately but still have a serious lack of talent. Showalter pulled a rabbit out of his hat winning his first 4 games but lost yesterday. Today CHW are going to roll as they turn to their leader Buehrle. He has been up and down this year but he battles and he is going for third straight win. Buehrle is 5-3 with a 2.91 ERA in 12 starts against Baltimore head to head. Guthrie goes for BALT and he is just the opposite of Buerhle. He does not battle and had never beat CHW going 0-2 with a 6 plus ERA over 6 starts. Lineup is huge favor to CHW as well and they need to continue to win as MIN is right behind them.
EZWINNERS
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Chicago White Sox -124
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I used the White Sox yesterday for a free winner and I am right back on them again today. The Sox send Mark Buehrle to the mound for this Sunday start. Buehrle had three sub par months to begin this season but is pitching much better now. Buehrle had a 3.00 ERA in July and is off to a good start here in the month of August. I expect a solid start by him in this game against the struggling Orioles. Jeremy Guthrie has been hands down the best starting pitcher for the Orioles this season, but he usually falls victim to a lack of run support which I expect to happen against today. The White Sox are 7-3 in Buehrle's last ten starts against the Orioles. Play on Chicago.
Ross Benjamin
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Texas Rangers vs. Oakland Athletics
Play: Oakland Athletics
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The Oakland starter Trevor Cahill has been light out in 9-starts at home this season posting an excellent 1.88 ERA and 0.98 WHIP. Cahill is also a stellar 5-1 in his team-starts during the day with a 1.60 ERA. Cahill enters today in terrific form off of his last 3-starts posting a 0.75 ERA and 0.75 WHIP. Oakland is a very profitable 20-7 in their last 27 with Cahill as their starter including 13-4 the last 17 versus a team with a better than .500 winning percentage. Cahill is a perfect 5-0 in his last 5 team starts versus Texas with 3 of those starts coming in 2010. The Texas starter Colby Lewis is 0-3 in his team starts versus Oakland in 2010. The A's are a solid 21-11 in Game 3 of a series this season including 11-4 following a win. Play on the Oakland A's as my free selection of the day.
Dan Bebe
BOS (+125) vs NYY
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This line is a bit of a gift, and though time is extremely short on Sundays, and we must be quite brief, Josh Beckett has returned to top form, and it's clear that he hasn't given up on this season, by any means.
A.J. Burnett has been awful against the Red Sox since his move to the Yankees, many of those starts occurring in big TV games, like this one.
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I like Boston to put up 4 runs on Burnett, and I like Boston to add a run or two against the Yankees pen.
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The Red Sox have looked pretty good in this series, and while the Yankees managed to single Boston to death in the Saturday win, the Red Sox have the big starting pitcher edge, yet are getting a nice underdog price.
Play on Boston!
Gill Alexander
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MIN (-150) vs CLE
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Duensing has a 3.18ERA since joining the rotation with his last 2 starts being quality outings. He has a 53.3% ground ball rate and 0.60 HR/9IP rate, two quality marks. Huff has a lifetime 6.06ERA v Min. In 75.1IP this season, he has a 5.79FIP and 5.72xFIP. Though that isn't enough innings to qualify for leaderboards, sufice it to say that Huff would be well on pace to be the single worst in both categories in MLB in 2010. He also has a low 34.8% ground ball rate and a high 1.55 HR/9IP rate. Each of those would also be among the Majors' top ten worst. The Twins have won 11 of 14 ballgames. The Indians have lost 6 of 8 at home. I expect those trends to continue.
MATT FARGO
Giants @ Atlanta Braves
PICK: Giants
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We have seen some great pitching matchups in this series so far and today’s matchup should not disappoint even though it is not of the same caliber of what has taken place so far. Tim Hudson tossed another gem for the Braves on Saturday to grab the second win of the first three games of this series prior to today’s finale. The win pushed Atlanta to a two-game lead over the Phillies in the National League East.
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The loss did not drop the Giants back any further as they are still a game behind San Diego in the National League West. San Francisco has leveled off a little bit after a huge run to get right back into this race but it remains one of only three teams in the entire National League that has a record above .500 on the road so that takes away from some of the Atlanta home success.
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Jonathan Sanchez gets the call for the Giants and he is coming off another successful start as he tossed a quality outing at Colorado to lower his ERA to 3.38 on the year and 3.6 on the road. Sanchez said he was more relaxed after not getting traded and it showed and he will be better off going forward. He won for the first time since July 5 and equaled his 2009 victory total.
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The Braves counter with Derek Lowe who is also coming off a quality outing but he remains a wild card in my opinion. Not long ago, he was the ace of whatever rotation he was in as he has a career 3.87 ERA but his time with the Braves has been a disappointment. He has a 4.44 ERA this season and a 4.58 ERA in his two seasons in Atlanta. Only 10 of his 23 starts this season have been quality outings.
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The Giants are 15-2 in their last 17 games against starters that have a WHIP greater than 1.30 while the Braves are 1-7 in their last eight games after allowing two runs or less in their previous game. 3* San Francisco Giants
DUNKEL INDEX
NFL
Cincinnati vs. Dallas
The preseason starts Sunday night with the Bengals taking on the Cowboys. Cincinnati is the pick (-2 1/2) according to Dunkel, which has the Bengals favored by 3 1/2. Dunkel Pick: Cincinnati (-2 1/2)
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Game 241-242: Cincinnati vs. Dallas
Dunkel Ratings: Cincinnati 121.853; Dallas 118.191
Dunkel Line: Cincinnati by 3 1/2; 30
Vegas Line: Cincinnati by 2 1/2; 32 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Cincinnati (-2 1/2); Under
MLB
Boston at NY Yankees
The Yankees look to take advantage of their 9-2 record against the Red Sox in their last 11 meetings in New York. NY is the pick (-140) according to Dunkel, which has the Yankees favored by 1/2 a run. Dunkel Pick: NY Yankees (-140)
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Game 901-902: St. Louis at Florida (1:10 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: St. Louis (Suppan) 14.516; Florida (West) 15.791
Dunkel Line: Florida by 1 1/2; 10 1/2
Vegas Line: St. Louis (-120); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Florida (+100); Over
Game 903-904: NY Mets at Philadelphia (1:35 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: NY Mets (Dickey) 14.449; Philadelphia (Halladay) 15.851
Dunkel Line: Philadelphia by 1 1/2; 6
Vegas Line: Philadelphia (-210); 7
Dunkel Pick: Philadelphia (-210); Under
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Game 905-906: Colorado at Pittsburgh (1:35 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Colorado (Rogers) 14.198; Pittsburgh (Maholm) 13.748
Dunkel Line: Colorado by 1/2; 9 1/2
Vegas Line: Pittsburgh (-110); 8 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Colorado (-110); Over
Game 907-908: San Francisco at Atlanta (1:35 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: San Francisco (Sanchez) 14.872; Atlanta (Lowe) 15.525
Dunkel Line: Atlanta by 1/2; 7
Vegas Line: Atlanta (-130); 8
Dunkel Pick: Atlanta (-130); Under
Game 909-910: Houston at Milwaukee (2:10 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Houston (Wright) 15.162; Milwaukee (Gallardo) 14.575
Dunkel Line: Houston by 1/2; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: Milwaukee (-235); 8
Dunkel Pick: Houston (+195); Over
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Game 911-912: Cincinnati at Chicago Cubs (2:20 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Cincinnati (Wood) 15.642; Cubs (Diamond) 13.639
Dunkel Line: Cincinnati by 2; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: Cincinnati (-140); 9
Dunkel Pick: Cincinnati (-140); Under
Game 913-914: Washington at LA Dodgers (4:10 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Washington (Marquis) 15.039; LA Dodgers (Lilly) 14.305
Dunkel Line: Washington by 1/2; 7
Vegas Line: LA Dodgers (-200); 8
Dunkel Pick: Washington (+170); Under
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Game 915-916: San Diego at Arizona (4:10 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: San Diego (Latos) 15.514; Arizona (Saunders) 15.771
Dunkel Line: Arizona by 1/2; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: San Diego (-145); 8
Dunkel Pick: Arizona (+125); Over
Game 917-918: LA Angles at Detroit (1:05 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: LA Angels (Bell) 14.888; Detroit (Porcello) 13.772
Dunkel Line: LA Angels by 1; 10
Vegas Line: Detroit (-135); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: LA Angels (+115); Over
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Game 919-920: Minnesota at Cleveland (1:05 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Minnesota (Duensing) 17.473; Cleveland (Huff) 15.220
Dunkel Line: Minnesota by 2; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: Minnesota (-160); 9
Dunkel Pick: Minnesota (-160); Under
Game 921-922: Tampa Bay at Toronto (1:07 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Tampa Bay (Sonnanstine) 16.082; Toronto (Morrow) 17.091
Dunkel Line: Toronto by 1; 9
Vegas Line: Tampa Bay (-130); 8 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Toronto (+110); Over
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Game 923-924: Chicago White Sox at Baltimore (1:35 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: White Sox (Buehrle) 15.967; Baltimore (Guthrie) 14.543
Dunkel Line: Chicago White Sox by 1 1/2; 8
Vegas Line: Chicago White Sox (-135); 8 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Chicago White Sox (-135); Under
Game 925-926: Texas at Oakland (4:05 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Texas (Lewis) 15.153; Oakland (Cahill) 15.520
Dunkel Line: Oakland by 1/2; 8
Vegas Line: Oakland (-115); 7
Dunkel Pick: Oakland (-115); Over
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Game 927-928: Kansas City at Seattle (4:10 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Kansas City (Davies) 14.994; Seattle (Vargas) 13.794
Dunkel Line: Kansas City by 1; 7
Vegas Line: Seattle (-150); 7 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Kansas City (+130); Under
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Game 929-930: Boston at NY Yankees (8:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Boston (Beckett) 15.314; NY Yankees (Burnett) 15.745
Dunkel Line: NY Yankees by 1/2; 9 1/2
Vegas Line: NY Yankees (-140); 9
Dunkel Pick: NY Yankees (-140); Over
WNBA
San Antonio at Los Angeles
The Sparks look to take advantage of a San Antonio team that is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games in Los Angeles. LA is the pick (-3 1/2) according to Dunkel, which has the Sparks favored by 5 1/2. Dunkel Pick: Los Angeles (-3 1/2)
Game 651-652: Washington at Connecticut (5:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Washington 109.787; Connecticut 113.679
Dunkel Line & Total: Connecticut by 4; 152
Vegas Line & Total: Connecticut by 4 1/2; 155 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Washington (+4 1/2); Under
Game 653-654: Indiana at Phoenix (6:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Indiana 112.244; Phoenix 118.269
Dunkel Line & Total: Phoenix by 6; 192
Vegas Line & Total: Phoenix by 4; 184 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Phoenix (-4); Over
Game 655-656: New York at Minnesota (7:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: New York 112.627; Minnesota 110.577
Dunkel Line & Total: New York by 2; 152
Vegas Line & Total: New York by 2 1/2; 155
Dunkel Pick: Minnesota (+2 1/2); Under
Game 657-658: San Antonio at Los Angeles (8:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: San Antonio 107.517; Los Angeles 112.908
Dunkel Line & Total: Los Angeles by 5 1/2; 160
Vegas Line & Total: Los Angeles by 3 1/2; 153
Dunkel Pick: Los Angeles (-3 1/2); Over