Michael Cannon
NY Yankees at BOSTON -130
Take the Red Sox tonight when they host their bitter rivals, the Yankees.
Josh Beckett will get the start and he's won his previous three starts against New York. The right-hander is 7-3 in 11 career games versus the Yankees.
Joba Chamberlain will start for the Pin strippers as he continues his transition from the bullpen to starter. The right-hander has done well, but has yet to pitch through the seventh inning in any of his nine starts.
This is the kind of game that the starters are going to have to log some quality innings, as both bullpens haven't been all that great, and Beckett gives the Red Sox the best chance at pitching deep into the game more than Chamberlain.
Take the Red Sox as they grab the home win.
3♦ BOSTON
Brian Marshall
St. Louis Cardinals vs. New York Mets
Play On: New York Mets -1.5 Runs +125
The St. Louis Cardinals will be lead by starting pitcher Mitchell Boggs. Mitchell Boggs has been struggling this season. In fact, Mitchell Boggs has a 6.59 ERA on the season. Mitchell Boggs also has a 7.27 ERA in his last 3 starts. We see Mitchell Boggs giving up many runs once again today.
The New York Mets will be lead by starting pitcher Mike Pelfrey. Mike Pelfrey has pitched well this season which is shown by his 3.81 ERA on the season. Mike Pelfrey also has a 2.05 ERA in his last 3 starts. We see Mike Pelfrey giving up very few hits and runs today.
The New York Mets are 10-1 in their last 11 home games, and should be able to get another blowout win tonight!
Take the New York Mets -1.5 Runs
LT Profits
Chicago White Sox +110
Gavin Floyd has quietly put together an All-Star caliber season for the Chicago White Sox, and he gives them the edge as underdogs tonight vs. the struggling Nate Robertson of the Detroit Tigers.
Floyd has gone 10-6 with a nice 3.52 ERA and 1.20 WHIP in 117.2 innings, and a case can be made that he has been the best pitcher on the Sox staff this season, or at least on par with Mark Buehrle. More importantly, Floyd has been brilliant vs. the Tigers in his brief career, tossing five consecutive Quality Starts against them since last year including allowing a total of three runs and seven hits in 13.1 innings over two starts this year! Should Floyd be in need of relief, the White Sox bullpen ranks sixth in the majors with a collective 3.29 ERA.
Meanwhile, Nate Robertson has been terrible this year and is not getting any better, and he simply cannot be trusted as a favorite. He is 608 with a 5.69 ERA and 1.54 WHIP for the whole season and he has a 6.28 ERA in his last three starts. He even failed to last three innings in his last outing vs. the Baltimore Orioles after the Tigers had staked him to a 6-0 lead.
Finally the Tigers, as a team, are just 2-6 the last eight times Robertson has started against Chicago, and given the year that Floyd is having, look for that pattern to continue.
Pick: White Sox +110
Atlanta Braves +105
The visiting Atlanta Braves appear to hold the pitching advantage here with Jair Jurrjens facing Kyle Kendrick of the Philadelphia Phillies, so the Braves get the mild upset call here.
Jurrjens is 9-5, and the Braves are 12-7 as a team in all the games that he has started. This from a squad that is five games under .500 overall at 48-53. Jurrjens has not minded pitching on the road either, as he has a 3.16 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in nine starts away from home, and he has allowed a grand total of one run and 16 hits in 21.2 innings in his last three road starts.
Kendrick may be 8-4 for the Phillies, but that is entirely due to great run support as he has a high 4.87 ERA and a terrible 1.50 WHIP in 109 innings. He is not getting any better either, with a 6.48 ERA and dreadful 1.86 WHIP in his last three starts. It does not help his cause that the Phillies are not playing good baseball right now, as they would be on a five-game losing streak if not for a ninth inning rally in the opener of the Mets series.
Finally, the road team is 7-2 in the nine meeting between these clubs this season.
Pick: Braves +105
Tom Stryker's 5* MLB Game of the Year - 36-19 L55 Releases!
ARIZONA -133
Larry Ness
Las Vegas Insider (26-16 with MLB Insiders since May 26)
Cin Reds
Ben Burns Friday CFL BLOWOUT 7-2 YTD
HAMILTON
Locksmith Sports
1 Unit on Chicago White Sox +105
We'll take the Sox showing solid value on the road. The Tigers are 1-5 in Robertson's last 6 home starts vs. the White Sox while the White Sox are 5-1 in Floyd's last 6 starts vs. the Tigers. The White Sox are 6-0 in their last 6 games following an off day and 6-1 in their last 7 games vs. a left-handed starter. The Sox are also 7-3 in Floyd's last 10 starts overall and 5-1 in Floyd's last 6 starts vs. the American League Central. The Tigers are just 6-16 in Robertson's last 22 starts vs. the American League Central. Bet the South Siders.
Kosmo
Pittsburgh -115 1 unit
Dodgers -190 1 unit
Detroit -115 1 unit
Boston -130 1 unit
Oakland -115 1 unit
Stan Sharp Double-Dime Bet
CWS (+100) vs DET
Marco D'Angelo Double-Dime Bet
NYY (+125) vs BOS
Ben Burns
Minnesota Twins @ Cleveland Indians
PICK: Cleveland Indians
This price is too steep to qualify as one of my guaranteed selections. However, if you've followed my complimentary selections in the past, you'll have noticed that we tend to fare quite well with these more expensive releases and that "value" can often be found even with larger favorites. In this case, I expect the Indians to have a significant advantage. For starters, the Indians just got swept at Minnesota earlier this month. That should ensure that they'll be "extra motivated" to serve up some payback for tonight's series opener. More importantly, the matchup of Hernandez vs. Lee is a serious mismatch. Indeed, Lee can become the first pitcher in the big leagues to win 14 games tonight and has the second best ERA, at 2.31. Meanwhile, Hernandez has allowed more hits than any other pitcher in baseball!
Lee is 13-2 on the season. That includes a perfect 5-0 record here at home. Lee has an outstanding 1.62 ERA and 0.98 WHIP in those games. In his most recent start here, Lee held the Rays to just five hits through six scoreless innings, striking out seven while walking only one. The Indians won that game by a score of 5-0. Conversely, Hernandez is 2-5 with a horrible 7.48 ERA and 1.824 WHIP on the road this season. In his most recent road start, he allowed 11 hits and six runs in just 4 2/3 innings. The Twins lost that game by a score of 18-5!
Lee has also been much better against the Twins than Hernandez has been vs. the Indians. For his career, Lee is 6-3 with a 3.89 ERA in 14 starts vs. the Twins. That includes a 1-1 mark with a stellar 2.40 ERA in two outings this season. On the other hand, Hernandez has a horrific 10.00 ERA in two starts vs. Cleveland, allowing 10 runs in just nine innings. Should he struggle again, Hernandez doesn't figure to get much help from the bullpen either. That's because the Twins' relievers have a combined 6.21 ERA and 1.635 WHIP on the road this season. Consider 'laying the price' with the Tribe, listing Lee and Hernandez.
Matty O'Shea Double Dime NL Value Play O' the Week
NYM -1.5 (+120) vs STL
The Mets have won the last eight times Mike Pelfrey has gone to the mound, with all the wins decided by at least two runs. The last time Pelfrey started at Shea Stadium, he pitched eight scoreless innings in a 7-0 victory against the Rockies right before the All-Star break. In fact, he has not allowed a run at Shea in his last two starts there totaling 15 innings. Meanwhile, Mitchell Boggs will be making his first start since July 3nd against New York, when he surrendered 11 runs and 10 hits in six innings of an 11-1 loss. Look for another rout here and take the Mets on the runline as my Double Dime NL Value Play O' the Week.
Matty O'Shea Double Dime AL Value Play O' the Week
CLE -1.5 (+110) vs MIN
There will not be a bigger pitching mismatch between two American League teams this weekend. Cleveland's Cliff Lee is a perfect 5-0 in seven home starts with a stellar 1.62 ERA. Of his last 11 wins, 10 have been decided by two runs or more. Meanwhile, Minnesota's Livan Hernandez is 2-5 in nine road starts with a 7.48 ERA. In the last three road starts for Hernandez, the Twins have been outscored by a combined margin of 41-9 (that is not a misprint). Look for the Tribe to pound the Twins in this one and bet them on the runline as my Double Dime AL Value Play O' the Week.
Steve Zukiel Guaranteed Selections
Seattle vs Toronto
Play: Toronto -120
These two teams are headed in opposite directions. The Jays finally got back to .500 after sweeping Baltimore yesterday, and in fact, they come into this one on a three game winning streak, and have scored 22 runs in the process. That certainly is great news for us because Seattle has given up a whopping 29 runs in their last five games, all of them losses. The pitching matchup also favors the Jays as John Parrish looks to remain perfect on the year, while Miquel Batista is looking to get just anything going. Parrish is 2-0 this season and the Jays have won all three. I like how he has looked at home, as the ERA has dipped to 2.77. Batista on the other hand, is just 3-9 on the season and his ERA is at 7.23. Ugly. The team has won just five of his 16 overall starts.
Seattle owns one of the worst records in baseball and the Jays are starting to turn things on. I think Toronto should be favored by much, much more. Take the Jays in this one.
STEVE ZUKIEL TAKES THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS OVER THE SEATTLE MARINERS AS MY GUARANTEED 60 UNIT MLB SHOCKER OF THE MONTH
Black Widow Sports
1* on New York Yankees +118
The Yankees are rolling right now and they finally have the kind of momentum needed to steal a road victory at nemesis Boston tonight. The Yankees have won six straight games heading into action Friday. Joba Chamberlain has been on top of his game on the road this year. Chamberlain offers a 1-1 road record with a miniscule 1.86 ERA in three starts. Josh Beckett has been just average at home this year with a 4.82 ERA and he’s been human as of late with a 5.68 ERA in his last three starts. The Yankees own a 12-9 record at Fenway Park over the last 3 seasons. Boston is 5-13 (-12.2 Units) against the money line revenging a one run loss to opponent this season. The Yankees’ time is now to show Boston they are here until the end starting with Game 1 of this series. Take the Yankees on the Money Line.
JAKE TIMLIN
Colorado Rockies
TRACE ADAMS
Yankees
DONALD TRAN
White Sox +110
Jennifer Barry
DBacks -130
Chad Jordan
Phillies -115
Insider Sports Report
Seattle/Toronto Over 9
MVP
Marlins +160
SOUTHSIDE SPORTS
White Sox
LPWSportsForecast
Texas/Oakland Under
Power Play Picks
Phillies -115
Prime Sports Picks
Cincinnati -142
Matty O'Shea
White Sox +105
CASH AND PROFIT EXPERTS
YANKEES +125
C-Stars Sports Picks
Cin/Col Over 8.5
THE PARLAY KING
NY METS -1.5 +105
Texas Sports Syndicate
Chicago Cubs
GAMETIMEDECISION
Kansas City Royals
bestnetpicksperiod
Boston Red Sox
bob
Baltimore Orioles
SportsKingz
Kansas City Royals
rub
Oakland Athletics
Tippster
Philadelphia
USA Sports Consulting
Boston Red Sox
SportsPickStore
Milwaukee Brewers
JEFF MONEY
Pittsburgh Pirates
Expat
Philadelphia
dom
Milwaukee Brewers
kingggsports
Chicago Cubs
Gamblers Ally
Padres/Pirates Under 9.5
Sebastian
Toronto
Winner Line
Texas
Northeastern
Dodgers
Computer Boys
Cincinnati
OTM
Texas
Kevin Kennedy
Oakland