SPORTS ADVISORS
St. Louis (46-39) at Milwaukee (43-40)
Two teams battling for N.L. Central bragging rights resume their three-game series at Miller Park, with the Cardinals sending out right-hander Todd Wellemeyer (7-7, 5.44 ERA) to face the Brewers and fellow righty Jeff Suppan (5-6, 4.60).
In Tuesday night’s opener, St. Louis rolled to a 5-0 victory, getting a three-run Ryan Ludwick homer in the first inning and 8 1/3 shutout innings from starter Adam Wainwright. The Cardinals have won five of their last six and are on further upswings of 10-4 in division play, 13-5 against right-handed starters and 5-0 against winning teams.
The Brewers have lost five of six and are on a 6-12 skid against right-handed starters, but they’re still on positive runs of 21-10 inside the N.L. Central and 20-8 against winning teams. Also, despite last night’s loss, Milwaukee has gone 11-4 in the last 15 clashes in this rivalry, including 4-2 this year, but the visitor has taken 11 of the last 13 meetings, going 6-1 this season.
St. Louis has won four of its last five behind Wellemeyer, including a 5-2 home victory over San Francisco last Thursday, in which the 30-year-old yielded two runs on seven hits and a walk in 7 1/3 innings while striking out six. Wellemeyer is 3-2 with a 5.60 ERA in six road starts this year, and he’s 1-3 with a 5.59 ERA in 12 career appearances (five starts) against Milwaukee. He’s 1-1 in two starts against the Brewers this year, notching a 3-2 road win on May 27, when he allowed both runs on six hits and a walk in 5 1/3 innings.
Milwaukee has lost three in a row backing Suppan, after a three-game win streak behind the 34-year-old. On Friday at Wrigley Field, he allowed just one run on four hits and two walks but got a no-decision in his team’s 2-1 loss to the Cubs. That followed two losing decisions for Suppan in which he allowed a combined nine runs in 10 2/3 innings (7.59 ERA). Suppan is 1-5 with a 6.08 ERA in seven home starts this season.
Suppan is 7-3 with a solid 3.31 ERA in 13 career starts against St. Louis, including 1-1 this season. He earned a 1-0 road win May 16 before getting tagged for five runs on seven hits and a walk in just 3 1/3 innings of an 8-1 home loss on May 26.
St. Louis is on “under” runs of 10-4 in division contests and 9-4 in Wellemeyer’s last 13 starts, and the under has hit in three of the last four meetings in this rivalry.
ATS ADVANTAGE: ST. LOUIS and UNDER
Texas (46-36) at L.A. Angels (46-36)
The quest for first place in the A.L. West continues at Angels Stadium, where the hosts send right-hander Ervin Santana (1-4, 7.43) to the mound opposite Rangers right-hander Vicente Padilla (6-4, 4.75) in the final game of a three-game series.
Los Angeles blew a 3-0 lead by giving up six runs in the fifth inning, including an Andruw Jones’ three-run bomb, on the way to an 8-5 loss to Texas Tuesday night. The Angels have still won three of their last four and are on further streaks of 10-4 overall, 6-2 at home and 13-6 against righties.
The Rangers have won six of their last seven overall and are on a 20-8 surge against the A.L. West. Additionally, they have a 6-2 edge over the Angels in the season series, though the first six contests were played in Texas.
Santana has had two stints on the disabled list this year, not pitching his first game until May 14, then going without a start for three weeks before coming back Friday against Baltimore. In that contest, he suffered a 6-4 loss, allowing all six runs (four earned) on eight hits and three walks in five innings. The 26-year-old has allowed four or more earned runs in four of his last five starts.
Santana is 0-2 with a whopping 12.12 ERA in four home starts this year. He’s also 7-5 with a 6.46 ERA in 14 career starts against Texas, though he hasn’t faced the Rangers this season.
Padilla’s last start was June 29 at home against the Angels, and he got lit up for five runs on 10 hits and two walks in five innings of a 5-2 loss. The Rangers had gone 6-2 in Padilla’s previous eight starts, with the 31-year-old going 5-1 with a 2.96 ERA. Padilla is 3-1 with a 3.43 ERA in six road starts this season, and he’s 6-4 with a 4.98 ERA in 14 career appearances (13 starts) against the Halos, including 1-1 this year.
For Texas, the “under” is on runs of 37-16-1 overall, 15-8 on the road, 23-10-1 against righty starters and 21-9-1 versus winning teams, and the under has hit in Padilla’s last five starts overall and nine of his last 11 outings. On the flip side, Los Angeles carries “over” trends of 6-1-1 overall, 11-4-1 at home and 11-3-1 against right-handed starters, and the first two games in this series have topped the posted total.
ATS ADVANTAGE: NONE
DUNKEL
Cleveland at Chicago White Sox
The Tribe look to bounce back from last night's 10-6 loss and take advantage of Chicago's 1-9 record in Jose Contreras' last 10 starts after scoring 5 or more runs in the previous game. Cleveland is the pick (+135) according to Dunkel, which has the Indians favored by 1/2 a run. Dunkel Pick: Cleveland (+135).
Game 951-952: Pittsburgh at Houston
Dunkel Ratings: Pittsburgh (Morton) 15.100; Houston (Rodriguez) 16.242
Dunkel Line: Houston by 1; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: Houston (-160); 8
Dunkel Pick: Houston (-160); Over
Game 953-954: Atlanta at Chicago Cubs
Dunkel Ratings: Atlanta (Kawakami) 15.091; Cubs (Hart) 16.305
Dunkel Line: Chicago Cubs by 1; 8
Vegas Line: Chicago Cubs (-115); No Run Line
Dunkel Pick: Chicago Cubs (-115); N/A
Game 955-956: Washington at Colorado
Dunkel Ratings: Washington (Detwiler) 16.042; Colorado (De La Rosa) 14.445
Dunkel Line: Washington by 1 1/2; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: Colorado (-170); 10 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Washington (+160); Under
Game 957-958: San Diego at Arizona
Dunkel Ratings: San Diego (Gaudin) 14.356; Arizona (Scherzer) 16.330
Dunkel Line: Arizona by 2; 10
Vegas Line: Arizona (-170); 9
Dunkel Pick: Arizona (-170); Over
Game 959-960: Florida at San Francisco
Dunkel Ratings: Florida (Volstad) 15.396; San Francisco (Sadowski) 17.048
Dunkel Line: San Francisco by 1 1/2; 9
Vegas Line: San Francisco (-135); 8 1/2
Dunkel Pick: San Francisco (-135); Over
Game 961-962: Cincinnati at Philadelphia
Dunkel Ratings: Cincinnati (Bailey) 14.088; Philadelphia (Lopez) 15.979
Dunkel Line: Philadelphia by 2; 9 1/2
Vegas Line: Philadelphia (-160); 10
Dunkel Pick: Philadelphia (-160); Under
Game 963-964: LA Dodgers at NY Mets
Dunkel Ratings: LA Dodgers (Kuroda) 13.995; NY Mets (Perez) 14.110
Dunkel Line: NY Mets by 1/2; 8
Vegas Line: LA Dodgers (-145); 9
Dunkel Pick: LA Dodgers (-145); Under
Game 965-966: St. Louis at Milwaukee
Dunkel Ratings: St. Louis (Wellemeyer) 16.089; Milwaukee (Suppan) 14.105
Dunkel Line: St. Louis by 2; 9
Vegas Line: Milwaukee (-120); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: St. Louis (+110); Under
Game 967-968: Baltimore at Seattle
Dunkel Ratings: Baltimore (Hernandez) 15.054; Seattle (Vargas) 16.467
Dunkel Line: Seattle by 1 1/2; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: Seattle (-135); 9
Dunkel Pick: Seattle (-135); Under
Game 969-970: Toronto at Tampa Bay
Dunkel Ratings: Toronto (Tallet) 16.362; Tampa Bay (Kazmir) 15.352
Dunkel Line: Toronto by 1; 7 1/2
Vegas Line: Tampa Bay (-150); 9
Dunkel Pick: Toronto (+140); Under
Game 971-972: Kansas City at Detroit
Dunkel Ratings: Kansas City (Greinke) 14.543; Detroit (French) 15.725
Dunkel Line: Detroit by 1; 9
Vegas Line: Kansas City (-135); 8
Dunkel Pick: Detroit (+125); Over
Game 973-974: Oakland at Boston
Dunkel Ratings: Oakland (Cahill) 16.099; Boston (Wakefield) 14.790
Dunkel Line: Oakland by 1 1/2; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: Boston (-180); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Oakland (+170); Under
Game 975-976: Cleveland at Chicago White Sox
Dunkel Ratings: Cleveland (Laffey) 14.478; White Sox (Contreras) 14.211
Dunkel Line: Cleveland by 1/2; 9
Vegas Line: Chicago White Sox (-145); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Cleveland (+135); Under
Game 977-978: NY Yankees at Minnesota
Dunkel Ratings: NY Yankees (Burnett) 16.524; Minnesota (Perkins) 15.040
Dunkel Line: NY Yankees by 1 1/2; 10 1/2
Vegas Line: NY Yankees (-135); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: NY Yankees (-135); Over
Game 979-980: Texas at LA Angels
Dunkel Ratings: Texas (Padilla) 15.497; LA Angels (Santana) 17.109
Dunkel Line: LA Angels by 1 1/2; 9
Vegas Line: LA Angels (-130); 10
Dunkel Pick: LA Angels (-130); Under
WNBA
Chicago at Phoenix
The Sky look to bounce back from last night's loss in Sacramento and build on their 7-1 ATS record in their last 8 games when playing with 0 days of rest. Chicago is the pick (+10 1/2) according to Dunkel, which has the Mercury favored by just 7. Dunkel Pick: Chicago (+10 1/2).
Game 601-602: Chicago at Phoenix
Dunkel Ratings: Chicago 106.258; Phoenix 113.072
Dunkel Line & Total: Phoenix by 7; 180 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Phoenix by 10 1/2; 179 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Chicago (+10 1/2); Over
Vernon Croy
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Toronto Blue Jays vs. Tampa Bay Rays
Play: Tampa Bay Rays
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We are getting solid value with the Rays here Wednesday night who have Scott Kazmir (4-5, 6.79 ERA) on the mound. Kazmir looked good in his last start which was his first start in over a month as he allowed 5 hits over 5 innings and just 1 earned run and I look for him to have another solid start Wednesday night. The Rays are 20-8 in Kazmir's last 28 home games when he has pitched as a favorite and I look for Kazmir to pitch even better than he did in his last start which was his first off of the disabled list. The Jays are just 1-7 in Brian Tallet's (5-6, 4.38 ERA) last 8 starts as an underdog and they are also just 2-8 in their last 10 games overall. The Toronto Blue Jays are just 4-15 in their last 19 games against an AL East opponent and the Rays are 6-1 in their last 7 home games when facing a left hand starter. Take the Tampa Bay Rays as my MLB Free Play for Wednesday night.
Cajun Sports
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Texas Rangers vs. LAA Angels
Play: Texas Rangers
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The Texas Rangers and LA Angels square off for the final game of their three-game set on Wednesday night at Angels Stadium. The Rangers will send Vicente Padilla to the bump with his 6-4 W/L record and ERA of 4.75. Padilla has been solid when starting on the highway this season posting a record of 3-1 W/L with an ERA of 3.43. Padilla is 6-0 W/L (+7.4) in road games versus teams who strand 6.9 or less runners on base per game over the last 2 seasons, 6-1 W/L (+7.0) as an underdog of +100 or higher this season and 18-5 W/L (+18.9) in road games over the last 2 seasons. The Angels will counter with Ervin Santana who has a record of 1-4 W/L on the year with an ERA of 7.43. Santana is winless at home this season posting a record of 0-2 W/L with an ERA of 12.12. Santana is 9-17 W/L (-12.8) versus an AL team with a team batting average of .260 or worse the last 3 seasons and 5-13 W/L (-11.7) versus teams whose batters strike out 7 or more times per game the last 3 seasons. Our TPR (Team Performance Ratings) Index projects a Rangers win by 1.4 runs. The combination of all these factors translates in a Rangers win so we will play the underdog here as Texas grabs a get-away win tonight over the host Angels.
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Graded Selection: 2* Texas Rangers 5 Los Angeles Angels 4
Craig Trapp
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Los Angeles Dodgers vs. New York Mets
Play: Los Angeles Dodgers
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Neither one of these teams are short of big stories but the NYM are short of key players. The Mets are staggering into the all star break and trying to hang on until they get there injured players back. Love playing the favorite teams going into the all star break. LAD have been great all year and now with Manny back they have won in 3 of his 4 starts!!
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The Mets have only won 2 our of last 10 and with O. Perez going today they can't be expecting to win. Perez is coming off the DL but has been horrible in recent starts giving up 15 runs in less than 11 innings in last three starts. Not good for a team that can't score more than three runs consistently.
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For the LAD Kuroda goes today and even though he has not been great this year think today he will get the job done. Injuries have set him back this year but he has won 2 of last 3 and his fastball command has looked much better. Today he will go 7 innings and only allow 3 runs. The LAD lineup will be hot tonight and will be salivating to face Perez. Scoring will not be a problem for LAD as they get a minimum of 7 runs today. SCORE LAD 7 - NYM 4
Bob Harvey
Los Angeles Dodgers -144
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This series has sweep written all over it.
The Dodgers took care of business in Game 1 shutting out the Mets 8-0. Tonight Hiroki Kuroda goes to the mound as LA looks to take advantage again of a beat up New York squad.
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The Mets have lost four straight and nine of 11 and have gone scoreless in 22 consecutive innings. Over that span theyve gotten just 10 hits all singles and theyve been outscored 21-3. The New York offense has for the most part been MIA since Carlos Beltran went out. Theyve gone 5-10 with a .229 average and scored one run or fewer seven times, including four shutouts. With no Beltran or Jose Reyes in the line-up David Wright is the only real threat remaining and hes struggling big-time. Wright is 0-16 after drawing the collar Tuesday night against the Dodgers.
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Tonight the Mets pin their hopes on lefty Oliver Perez who was just called up from Triple A. Perez has been a disaster going 1-2 with a 9.97 ERA. Hes given up 24 runs in 21 innings and has walked 21.
The Dodgers, who lead the majors with a 53-30 record, will counter with the steady Hiroki Kuroda who is 3-4 with a 3.98 ERA. Kuroda has won two of his last three starts striking out 16 while walking two.
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Hopefully the umpires will let Manny play a little bit longer tonight. But even if he makes another early exit the Dodgers still have too much for a Mets team that cant wait for the All-Star break to get here
Red Dog Sports
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Pittsburgh at Houston
Play: Under 8
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Morton has an ERA of 2.65 in his last 3 while Wandy Rodriguez's ERA is 3.21. Pittsburgh has 10 unders and 2 overs in their last 12 games while Houston has played unders 13-5-2 in their last 20 overall. Look for an under on Wednesday afternoon!
Marc Lawrence
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Play On: Milwaukee w/Suppan vs. Wellemeyer
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The Brewers host the Cardinals in Game Two of this three game series when Jeff Suppan matches serves with Todd Wellemeyer in Milwaukee tonight. Suppan toes the rubber knowing he is 9-3 in his career team starts against the Redbirds, including 8-1 his last nine efforts. On the flip side, Wellemeyer is 1-4 in his career team starts against the Brew Crew. Look for St. Louis to slip to 5-14 the last nineteen games against Milwaukee here this evening.
Brad Diamond Sports
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Play on: Seattle over Baltimore
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Lefty Vargas has thrown into some real tough luck this season. In fact, the last outing against the Orioles he came down with the flu. However, this time around the hurler should be in outstanding form at home, while catching the Orioles on an extended road trip. Seattle is 8-1 last nine at home. Plus, the Mariners have won the last 5 of 6 in the series.
Jimmy The Moose
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Toronto Blue Jays at Tampa Bay Rays
Prediction: Under
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The under is 7-3-1 in the Jays last 11 games overall. In their last 6 games vs. a left-handed starter the under is 4-1-1. The under is 6-2-1 in their last 9 games as a dog. The under is 8-3 in Tallet's last 11 starts overall. His last 5 road starts have played under the total. Tampa has played under the total in 8 of their last 9 games. The under is 20-8-1 in their last 29 as a favorite. In their last 5 following a win the under is 5-0. The under is 7-1 in Kazmir's last 8 starts vs. the Jays. The under is 12-4 in Toronto's last 16 trips to Tampa. All 4 meetings this season have played the under. Play the under.
Matt Fargo
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St Louis Cardinals at Milwaukee Brewers
Prediction: St Louis Cardinals
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St. Louis picked up a big win last night in the first game in this series behind a solid pitching effort from Adam Wainwright. The Cardinals have now own five of their last six games to build a two-game lead in the National League Central and they have improved to three games over .500 on the road this season. Milwaukee has been playing the exact opposite as it has dropped five of its last six games and it is just 6-11 over its last 17 games. The offense has been held in check with the exception of a couple games and the pitching has been having some rough games, allowing six runs or more in nine of those 17 contests. Looking at Todd Wellemeyers numbers and it shows that his season has been anything but good. However, he is coming off a quality start in his last game and that is important for a couple reasons. First, it brings a much needed boost of confidence that he has not seen much this season. The big factor however is what led to that quality start. He had a flawed delivery that was just discovered prior to that start. It was corrected and it resulted in one of his best outings this season. He allowed two runs on seven hits and one walk and that control correction will be vital moving forward. Even though his ERA is at 5.44 on the season, St. Louis has won 10 of his 17 starts including four of six on the road. In two previous start in Milwaukee Wellemeyer has posted a solid 1.59 ERA covering 11.1 innings. Jeff Suppan takes the ball for the Brewers and his season has been very inconsistent. Hew is also coming off a quality outing in his last start but there is no rationale for it other than he was able to finally get a good stretch going. That came on the road where he has done his best work. At home, it has been a different story as he is 1-5 with a 6.08 ERA and 1.73 WHIP in seven starts. The Brewers have given him only 3.1 rpg in those seven games at Miller Park. The Cardinals are 6-0 in Wellemeyers last six starts as a road underdog while the Brewers are 0-5 in Suppans last five home starts against a team with a winning record.
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3* St. Louis Cardinals
Jr Tips
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INDIANS vs. WHITE-SOX
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Since being recalled from the minors last month, Chicago White Sox right-hander Jose Contreras has been outstanding and looks to lead the hot Chicago White Sox to a fifth straight victory over the last-place Indians tonight. Contreras (3-7, 4.84 ERA) is 3-2 with a 2.17 ERA in five starts since being called up from Triple-A on June 8th. He is pitching well right now and defeated Cleveland last Wednesday 6-2 striking out eight and walked one while allowing two runs and five hits over eight innings. Opponents are hitting .178 against him since he returned to the rotation. Contreras is 5-2 with a 3.23 ERA in 13 starts against the Indians, including 3-0 with a 2.03 ERA in his last four. Cleveland (33-51) has lost six of seven on the road and will start left-hander Aaron Laffey. Laffey (3-1, 3.93) makes his first start since May 22nd when he left in the eighth inning of a 3-1 loss at Cincinnati with a right oblique strain. His return has been delayed due to control issues in the minors and it"s gonna take a while for him to get comfortable against MLb hitters and this hot Chicago White Sox team who pounded the Indians last night will take advantage of his rust.
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TAKE CHI-SOX-125
JIM FEIST
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BALTIMORE ORIOLES / SEATTLE MARINERS
Take BALTIMORE ORIOLES
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Baltimore has a good young arm here in David Hernandez. He has good control and the offense has played well of late, scoring 34 runs over 7 games. Seattle is home this week after a long road trip to tbe East Coast. Starter Jason Vargas has been weak, with a 5.74 ERA his last three starts. The Orioles have smacked him around for 15 hits in 11 innings this season. Play the Orioles.
DAVE COKIN
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LOS ANGELES DODGERS / NEW YORK METS
Take LOS ANGELES DODGERS
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The Mets continue to get destroyed, and I'm not buying Oliver Perez as their savior. Hiroki Kuroda is the more reliable pitcher, the Dodgers are obviously in way better form and the Mets fans have completely turned on their team. The home team is a fade till they figure a way out of their funk, so I'll back the Dodgers tonight.
Sports Gambling Hotline
Cincinnati at PHILADELPHIA
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Last night the Reds and Phils combined for just 7 runs, but 18 hits. That included 4 combined homers, and while the game stayed UNDER the total, you can see the ball is definitely starting to carry at the Bank of late.
Homer Bailey, and Rodrigo Lopez will toe the rubber, and while Lopez is coming off his first win since the 2007 season, we have to expect Lopez will give up a few runs in this start.
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Bailey's season ERA stands at 5.94 in limited duty, and he has made a pair of starts against the Phillies in his tenure, allowing 8 runs in 8 innings of work.
We like the bats to be bopping at the Bank this Wednesday night.
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Play on the OVER in the Reds-Phillies game.
2♦ OVER