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Today's Premium Pick: PHI/FLA OVER 8.5
Today's Odds: -110
Play: 1 Unit(s)
Today's Premium Pick: Cincinnati Reds
Today's Odds: -125
Play: 1 Unit(s)
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CHRIS JAMES SPORTS
Tampa Bay Rays at Kansas City Royals
Selection: 4* Game of the Week Tampa Bay Rays -145
The Tampa Bay Rays visit the Kansas City Royals in the first of a three game set on Friday Night. The Tampa Bay Rays are currently 6.5 games back in the American League East as they start their second half of the season. I'm expecting the Tampa Bay Rays to put together a really strong second half of the season and make a push at winning the AL East for the second straight year. It all starts tonight.The Tampa Bay Rays send James Shields to the mound who is 6-6 with a 3.42 ERA on the year. The Rays haven't had much success with Shields on the mound away from their hometown, but it has alot to do with their lack of run support and not so much Shields performance. He is 2-4 on the road but boasts a 3.88 ERA. That's a place where most pitchers would love to be. The good thing is that Shields should be even better tonight against a team has dominated. Shields is 5-0 in his 5 career starts against KC with a 2.50 ERA and 0.833 WHIP. In 4 of his 5 starts he has allowed 2 runs or less, going 6 innings or more in all 5 starts. The Rays as a team have had plenty of success against the Royals as they are 20-8 in the last 28 meetings.
The Royals are hoping to stop the bleeding by sending Brian Bannister to the mound. Bannister has had a pretty decent year on a bad team going 6-7 with a 3.66 ERA. The problem here is that he is horrible against the Rays. He is 1-3 in his career with a 6.95 ERA. In reality, he had one excellent start against the Rays, which was the first time they ever seen him, and one average start in between two horrific starts. In his last start against the Rays on June 3rd, he went 3 2/3 innings giving up 9 hits and allowing 8 earned runs. The Royals are 1-8 in Bannister's last 9 starts against the American Leauge East. Look for the Rays to jump all over Bannister again tonight as they try to start their push towards the top of the AL East!
Play the Rays as our 4* MLB Game of the Week!
3 Big Sportsbooks have contacted me on One Game
Giants Tim Lincecum - $1.46
Over 17.000 Wagers on this Game
94.6 % on Giants Tim Lincecum - $1.46
5.35 % on Pirates Maholm's
The Line has not Changed after this
( Over 17.000 Wagers on this Game )
I Told them the Same thing
Giants Tim Lincecum - $1.46
Great Pitcher
I would Not Touch this Game
Street Rosenthal
*200 Cincinnati Reds -125
I look for the Reds to bounce back from last nights loss. Here are several reasons why. First, I have the Brewers as 6-19 SU since 2005 season after a win in which they left 18+ men on the base and it is not the first game of a series. Next, I have the Brewers as 1-13 SU since 2004 season as a road dog after allowing 6+runs and win. Finally I have trends totaling 25-10 SU in favor of the Reds.
Take the Reds for the Win.
Has Another 200 Unit Play
Added
200 Units Phillies
Seabass
Steam Play Yankees over 10
seabass
50 tex
50 phil oveer
30 angel mil col
20 pit
Al DeMarco
Friday's Play 5 Dime -
NEW YORK (Burnett) - 1 1/2 Runs over Detroit (French)
New York was on a roll, winners of 13 of 15, including eight straight on the road, prior to getting swept by the Angels in Anaheim last weekend. So, what else is new? The Angels own the Yankees in Southern California so last weekend's results weren't that surprising.
The tables have turned tonight with the Yanks back in the Bronx hosting a Detroit team they've beaten in 21 of the last 30 meetings. And the Tigers arrive in the Big Apple having dropped 10 of their last 14 on the road. Plus they're 16-35 in their last 51 games on the highway versus teams sporting winning records.New York's A.J. Burnett has recovered nicely from the struggles he encountered early in the season to go 4-1 with a 1.34 ERA in his last five starts, improving to 8-4 with a 3.77 ERA on the year. And the righthander is 3-1 lifetime versus Detroit.The Tigers send Luke French to the mound for just the fifth time in his major league career (third start). Although the lefthander was impressive in his last outings versus Kansas City, allowing one run in 6.1 innings, his task will undoubtedly be more daunting tonight against a power-packed New York lineup at Yankee Stadium, where balls have been flying out at record pace this season.Much has been made about New York's 5-15 record against division leaders this season, but consider those leaders were the Red Sox, Phillies, Angels and Tigers. And against Detroit, the Yankees took two-of-three on the road. As for the three-game difference in the win column between these two clubs (New York has 51 versus Detroit's 48), the Bombers play in a much tougher division, had a more difficult Interleague schedule, and played the first five weeks of the season without their top hitter.
Jeff Benton
Friday's MLB Winners ...
10 DIME: RED SOX (over Blue Jays)
NOTE: Stick with this play regardless of any changes to the starting pitchers
10 DIME: MARLINS (over Phillies) ... NOTE: List just Nolasco as Florida's starting pitcher. If Nolasco does NOT start, this play is VOID!
10 DIME: PIRATES (over Giants) ... NOTE: List just Maholm as Pittsburgh's starting pitcher. If Maholm does NOT start, this play is VOID!
Red Sox
I love Blue Jays rookie lefty Ricky Romero – in fact, if the season were to end today, the southpaw would definitely get my vote for A.L. Rookie of the Year. But if you’re giving me plus money with the team that has the best record in the American League and the second best in all of baseball, with a talented and extremely motivated young pitcher on the mound, I’m sorry, I’m taking it. And I’m especially taking it because Romero’s team – especially his offense – is struggling mightily. Before I get to Toronto’s woes, though, a few words about the Red Sox. They’re 20 games over .500 at 54-34; they lead the Yankees in the A.L. East by three games; and only the Dodgers (56-32) have a better record. They entered the All-Star break with three straight wins over the Royals (1-0, 15-9 and 6-0), they’ve won five of their last six overall, and going back to an 8-2 rout of the Blue Jays in Canada on May 31, Terry Francona’s club is 12-4 on the highway, including 4-0 in its last four as an underdog.Boston has won four of six from Toronto this season and eight of 11 in this rivalry going back to last year. Furthermore, the Sox are on stretches of 21-7 in divisional games, 5-1 against teams with a losing record and 19-8 against left-handed starters.As for starting pitcher Clay Buchholz, the kid has certainly earned this start. After an impressive spring training, Buchholz found himself the odd man out and was sent to the minors. Rather than sulk, the right-hander – whom, you may remember, threw a no-hitter in his second EVER major-league start – went to Triple-A Pawtucket and dominated, going 7-2 with a 2.36 ERA in 16 starts. He had 89 strikeouts in 99 innings and opponents batted just .188 against him.Tonight, Buchholz is facing a potent, yet scuffling, Toronto offense that scored 2, 2, 3 and 2 runs in its last four games before the break (losing three of them). Not only that, but the Blue Jays are 3-12 in their last 15 games (1-4 at home), scoring two runs or fewer in eight of those 15 contests and four runs or fewer in 10 of the 15. That includes a 4-3, 12-inning loss at Baltimore on Saturday as the Jays ruined another quality Romero start.Finally, the Red Sox have hit lefties well on the road all season with a .298 average … including that 8-2 win over Romero on May 31. It was the first time Boston saw the youngster, and it roughed him up for five runs, six hits and five walks in four innings. It remains Romero’s worst and shortest stint of his young big-league career. Gee, you think that might be in the back of the kid’s mind when he toes the slab tonight? Me too! Give me the better team, the hotter team, and the plus money!
Marlins
I don’t know what’s wrong with Philadelphia ace Cole Hamels, but I do know something ain’t right. The reigning NLCS and World Series MVP is just 5-5 with a 4.87 ERA this season; he’s 2-3 with a 6.34 ERA on the road; he’s given up 17 runs (all earned) in his last four outings overall totaling 21 2/3 innings (7.06 ERA), and only one of those four was a quality start; and his team is just 9-8 in his 17 trips to the mound this season, including a miracle 8-7 home win over the lowly Pirates on Saturday (a game in which Hamels gave up five runs on seven hits in six innings).Out of all those numbers, I want to concentrate on Hamels’ road woes. Along with that 6.34 ERA on the highway, Hamels has a 1.72 WHIP, as he’s given up 57 hits and nine walks in just 38 1/3 innings. Also, when on the road, Hamels is allowing opposing hitters to reach base at a .382 clip. And get this: The Phillies have lost five straight games to the Marlins with Hamels on the mound and they’ve come up empty in all four of his starts in Miami! As for Marlins right-hander Ricky Nolasco, he is coming off a stinker, I’ll give you that, as he got torched for seven runs at Arizona on Friday. However, five of those runs came in a rough fourth inning, and Nolasco did settle down to finish six frames in an 8-0 loss. More importantly, though, Nolasco deserves a mulligan because of the way he was pitching heading into Arizona. In his initial six starts after being recalled from a demotion to Triple-A, Nolasco allowed a total of seven earned runs in 41 innings (1.54 ERA), going 3-0 with a 1.20 ERA in four home starts. Also, he did strike out eight and walk none in Friday’s effort against the DBacks, meaning Nolasco now has notched 53 Ks against just seven walks in 47 innings since his recall.The general point: Friday’s ugly outing at Arizona aside, Nolasco is the hotter pitcher. Oh, and for what it’s worth, he faced the eventual World Series champs four times last year and went 3-1 with a 2.96 ERA, a 0.99 WHIP and a 21-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 27 1/3 innings.Throw in the fact that despite Philly’s 4-0 win Thursday, the Marlins have still won 10 of their last 12 at home while the Phillies have dropped six of nine on the road, and I’m all over this live ‘dog with Nolasco tonight.
Pirates
I know this seems ludicrous to go against Tim Lincecum right now, considering the reigning Cy Young winner has delivered 15 quality starts in his last 16 trips to the hill, including 10 in a row coming into tonight. But bear with me please, as it’s not as ludicrous as you might think.
First off, while I know it appears as though Lincecum is completely unbeatable, the fact of the matter is he’s not totally flawless. For instance, while he’s 10-2 with a 2.33 ERA overall, the Giants are “just” 12-6 in his 18 starts this season, including 6-3 on the road. And while Lincecum has won four consecutive starts and five of the last six, the Giants have not won five straight games behind the right-hander all season. Nor have they done so since winning his first five starts of last season.In fact, that’s the ONLY time San Francisco has won five straight Lincecum starts. Also, while it was nearly two years ago and in his rookie season, I have to mention that the only other time in his career that Lincecum faced the Pirates, he got lit up for six runs in six innings in a 13-3 home loss.On the other hand, Pirates starter Paul Maholm has a 3.00 ERA in four career starts against the Giants, with Pittsburgh winning four of those contests. And while Maholm has been very up-and-down lately after a strong start to the season, he was sharp in his last start before the All-Star break (a 6-3 win at Houston in which the lefty gave up just two runs in six innings). Also, Maholm is 3-1 with a rock-solid 2.96 ERA at home this year – and he’s facing a Giants squad that’s A) just 18-24 on the road this year, and B) batting a woeful .225 against lefties on the highway.One last thing: San Francisco has lost 16 of its last 21 games against the Pirates, including getting swept in three games in Pittsburgh last year by the aggregate score of 20-11. Yes, I know Lincecum is a stud, but he’s not God, and he’s not going to win every time out. And don’t forget that he also started the All-Star Game, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that threw off his rhythm. Simply put, this reasonably short number on Lincecum tonight smells fishy to me, so we’ll ride the Bucs, who are a very respectable 22-17 at home this year and 5-2 in Maholm’s last seven starts as a pup.
Sports Insight
Boston +107
Baltimore +153
Sorry
Street Rosenthal
added 200* Phils
Marc Lawrence
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Never Lost National League Game Of The Week!
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Play: San Francisco w/Lincecum vs Maholm
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The Giants and Pirates open a three game set in Pittsburgh tonight when Tim Lincecum matches serves with Paul Maholm. Lincecum enters tonight's contest in terrific form with 9 walks and 54 strikeouts in his last six starts. He's also 4-0 in his last four start and 4-0 away lifetime with a 1.53 ERA on Fridays. Maholm just 1-4 in his last five home team starts, look for Lincecum and the Giants to win the opener over Maholm and the Pirates here this evening.
Chip Chirimbes
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Tampa Bay Rays at KC Royals
Pick: KC Royals -113
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The Tampa Bay Rays are finding out that they are not going to be able to sneak up on the AL this year as they are struggling on the road where they are eight games under .500 with a 18-26 record. Off course the Rays are 30-15 while indoors in Tampa but otherwise they are less than average. Brian Bammister is 6-7 with this Royals team and that isn't bad at all considering what he has to work with. Look for the Royals at home to get the money. Take KANSAS CITY!
Steve Janus
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5* Blue Chip Bet on Texas Rangers -120
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The Rangers have been struggling on offense, but that's mostly because, prior to the All-Star Break, they were on a 7 game road trip. The Rangers always score more at home, where their runs per game jumps to 5.6 and their team batting average sees a rise to .273, nearly a 20 point spike from their average on the year. The Twins were hot before the break, but they are still one of the worst teams in baseball on the road. They are currently just 17-24 as the visitor this season, hitting just .258 as a team and scoring only 4.1 runs per game. If you haven't noticed, the Rangers a much better team than anyone gave them credit for. They are now 48-39 on the season, including an impressive 28-17 at home. Ride the Rangers tonight over the Twins.
Tony George
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CHICAGO CUBS
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Nick Parsons
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TEXAS RANGERS
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Bob Balfe
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TEXAS RANGERS
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Opposite Action Plays
TORONTO BLUE JAYS
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Lenny Del Genio
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TEXAS RANGER
KBHoops
5* Kansas City +1.5 -123
5* Kansas City +133