STEVE JANUS
REDSOX
The Red Sox are really pushing to make a run at the Rays for the AL East Pennant. They've won 5 of their last 6 on the road for starters. Boston has really rallied behind John Lester this year and just some of that proof can be see in their numbers when Lester starts against any team with a winning record where the Red Sox have won his last 6 starts in a row. Chicago, on the other hand, has lost 4 of their last 5 against teams with a winning record and they've lost 5 in a row as the underdog in their matchup.
SAPKOWSKI
Best Bet
Det vs. Oak over 4.5 in 1st 5IN
Premium
Tampa Bay Rays vs. Seattle Mariners over 4 in 1st 5IN
San Francisco Giants vs. Los Angeles Dodgers over 3.5 in 1st 5IN
K & B SPORTS
The Raiders were subpar for the 2007 regular season posting a record of 4-12 SU and 6-10 ATS overall. However, for the 2007 preseason the Raiders posted a home record of 2-0 SU and ATS. Also, the Raiders are 5-0 SU and ATS in their last five home preseason games. The average score in those five games was Raiders 20.8 and opponents 9.8 Play:OAKLAND RAIDERS
The Redskins showed some offense scoring 30 points in the Hall of Fame game and most of the in the second-half. With one game played and a solid offensive game at that I give the edge to the Redskins. Dating back to last year’s regular season and the one playoff game the Redskins have won five of their last six games. Play:WASHINGTON REDSKINS
Gold Medal Club
Atlanta @ Arizona
PLAY UNDER
Two solid pitchers square off on the mound tonight. Campillo goes for the Braves is taking an era of 1.15 in his last 3 starts! Lefty Doug Davis who goes for Arizona has also been solid. The Braves have struggled all year when facing lefties, going 15-22, averaging 4 runs per game. We will also take note of a road batting average of .249, and the key stat of them being 5-20 to the UNDER on the road with a Total 9-9.5. The Braves will struggle to score in this one, and Campillo is good enough to keep the D-Backs under 5 runs.
PlusLineSports
Washington vs Milwaukee
Milwaukee -1.5
DUNKEL
Texas at Baltimore
After losing two straight against the Yankees, Texas looks to bounce back on the road where they have a winning record (12-10) when listed as an underdog between +125 and +150 and have won four of the last five matchups at Camden Yards. The Rangers are the underdog pick (+150) according to Dunkel, which has Texas favored straight up by 1. Dunkel Pick: Texas (+150). Here are all of today's games.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 8
Game 951-952: St. Louis at Chicago Cubs
Dunkel Ratings: St. Louis (Looper) 16.295; Cubs (Lilly) 15.548
Dunkel Line: St. Louis by 1/2; 11
Vegas Line: Chicago Cubs (-155); No Run Line
Dunkel Pick: St. Louis (+145); N/A
Game 953-954: Pittsburgh at Philadelphia
Dunkel Ratings: Pittsburgh (Maholm) 14.842; Philadelphia (Blanton) 16.010
Dunkel Line: Philadelphia by 1; 9 1/2
Vegas Line: Philadelphia (-170); 10
Dunkel Pick: Philadelphia (-170); Under
Game 955-956: Houston at Cincinnati
Dunkel Ratings: Houston (Wolf) 14.049; Cincinnati (Cueto) 14.368
Dunkel Line: Cincinnati by 1/2; 10 1/2
Vegas Line: Cincinnati (-125); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Cincinnati (-125); Over
Game 957-958: Florida at NY Mets
Dunkel Ratings: Florida (Nolasco) 14.713; NY Mets (Perez) 15.424
Dunkel Line: NY Mets by 1/2; 9
Vegas Line: NY Mets (-140); 8 1/2
Dunkel Pick: NY Mets (-140); Over
Game 959-960: Washington at Milwaukee
Dunkel Ratings: Washington (Balester) 14.789; Milwaukee (Sabathia) 15.424
Dunkel Line: Milwaukee by 1/2; 7 1/2
Vegas Line: Milwaukee (-285); 8
Dunkel Pick: Milwaukee (-285); Under
Game 961-962: San Diego at Colorado
Dunkel Ratings: San Diego (Peavy) 15.320; Colorado (Rusch) 13.614
Dunkel Line: San Diego by 1 1/2; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: San Diego (-125); 9
Dunkel Pick: San Diego (-125); Under
Game 963-964: Atlanta at Arizona
Dunkel Ratings: Atlanta (Campillo) 15.908; Arizona (Davis) 14.764
Dunkel Line: Atlanta by 1; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: Arizona (-130); 9
Dunkel Pick: Atlanta (+120); Under
Game 965-966: LA Dodgers at San Francisco
Dunkel Ratings: LA Dodgers (Penny) 15.210; San Francisco (Zito) 15.662
Dunkel Line: San Francisco by 1/2; 9
Vegas Line: LA Dodgers (-115); 8
Dunkel Pick: San Francisco (+105); Over
Game 967-968: Texas at Baltimore
Dunkel Ratings: Texas (Mendoza) 16.509; Baltimore (Guthrie) 15.284
Dunkel Line: Texas by 1; 9
Vegas Line: Baltimore (-160); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Texas (+150); Under
Game 969-970: Oakland at Detroit
Dunkel Ratings: Oakland (Braden) 12.698; Detroit (Rogers) 15.192
Dunkel Line: Detroit by 2 1/2; 8 1/2
Vegas Line: Detroit (-150); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Detroit (-150); Under
Game 971-972: Cleveland at Toronto
Dunkel Ratings: Cleveland (Reyes) 16.354; Toronto (Purcey) 14.807
Dunkel Line: Cleveland by 1 1/2; 9
Vegas Line: Toronto (-125); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Cleveland (+115); Under
Game 973-974: Minnesota at Kansas City
Dunkel Ratings: Minnesota (Slowey) 15.165; Kansas City (Davies) 15.685
Dunkel Line: Kansas City by 1/2; 10 1/2
Vegas Line: Minnesota (-130); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Kansas City (+120); Over
Game 975-976: Boston at Chicago White Sox
Dunkel Ratings: Boston (Lester) 15.745; White Sox (Buehrle) 15.297
Dunkel Line: Boston by 1/2; 10
Vegas Line: Boston (-105); 9
Dunkel Pick: Boston (-105); Over
Game 977-978: NY Yankees at LA Angels
Dunkel Ratings: NY Yankees (Kennedy) 15.597; LA Angels (Weaver) 17.058
Dunkel Line: LA Angels by 1 1/2; 10 1/2
Vegas Line: LA Angels (-160); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: LA Angels (-160); Over
Game 979-980: Tampa Bay at Seattle
Dunkel Ratings: Tampa Bay (Shields) 17.079; Seattle (Silva) 15.764
Dunkel Line: Tampa Bay by 1 1/2; 7 1/2
Vegas Line: Tampa Bay (-165); 8 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Tampa Bay (-165); Under
Best Bets
Baltimore (-170) over Texas -> Guthrie 3-1 in his last 4 home starts and has allowed only 4 runs (22 innings) in his last 3 games. Beat Texas on 7/4 10-4. Luis Mendoza has allowed 16 runs in 16.1 innings pitched.
Detroit (-160) over Okland A's -> Detroit better lineup and can score runs. Oakland well...not to good.
LA Dodgers (-125) over SF Giants -> Brad Penny coming back from the DL will be very interesting to see how he pitches in the first 3 innings. Zito is playing good lately has allowed 9 runs in 19 innings. He is 2-1 in his last 3 games. Don't worry the Giants can score any runs. Manny will score more runs than the Giants.
Touthouse
Seattle Seahawks +3.0
The Seattle Seahawks fits nicely into what we like to call a GAP system on Friday night, and they get the call as road underdogs when they visit the Minnesota Vikings. The first step in this system to group each team into either the Good, Average or Poor category (ergo, GAP) based solely on their win totals of last season. Well, the Seahawks grade out as Good while the Vikings grade out as Average, This is significant because higher classed road underdogs are 77-51, 60.2 percent against the spread the last seven preseasons. Looking at the specific teams, the Seahawks are a nice 6-2 straight up and ATS on the road during the preseason over the last four years. They also like to get off on the right foot in these exhibition games, going 4-1 both SU and ATS in the last five openers. Conversely, the Vikings have lost their last two August openers and since they are a popular pick to win the NFC Central, they will in all likelihood be more concerned with staying healthy than posting wins during this preseason. Finally, the Vikings have been distracted lately by all of the talk concerning the acquisition of Brett Favre, which may result in their corps of young quarterbacks pressing a bit in an attempt to impress. Pick: Seahawks +3
San Francisco 49ers +3.0
The San Francisco 49ers and the Oakland Raiders have had a couple of joint practices this summer, so they are both somewhat familiar with what to expect this week, which automatically gives value to the underdog. Besides the 49ers are a very young team that may seemingly get as many wins this preseason as they do the entire regular season, so they probably have the greater motivation to win early between these two teams. Then again, that would be nothing new considering that the Niners are 3-2 straight up and 3-1-1 against the spread vs. their Bay Area rivals the last five years in preseason. Now the Raiders are expected to improve this season, thanks to their first round draft pick Darren McFadden, but you just know that they will handle Run DMC with kid gloves during the exhibition season, not wanting to risk a serious injury. Thus, we will see the same last place team as last year for the most part, at least in the early weeks. Look for the underdog Niners to pull a confidence-building upset here. Pick: 49ers +3
John Ryan
Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Philadelphia Phillies
Play: Philadelphia Phillies
Ai Simulator 3* graded play on Philadelphia ? Phillies are making things difficult for themselves losing 2 of 3 to the Fish and lost yesterday with their ace Hamels on the hill. Phillies play their best on the road sporting the 2nd best record in all of baseball; second to only Anaheim. There are only 5 other teams with worse home records than the Phillies and that that must change now. Enter the Pirates, for 3 games, and this is exactly what the doctor has ordered. Phils know they must take at a minimum 2 of these 3 games before they embark on a huge West Coast trip Monday. Winning game 1 will make it a near lock they will win this series. Pirates batting 260 and scoring only 3.3 RPG over the past week. Their bullpen has been terrible sporting a 6.97 ERA and a 1.935 WHIP over the past 7 games. Supporting this graded play is a system that has gone 98-33 making 48.3 units since 2002 for 75%. Play against all dogs with a money line of +100 or higher after 4 straight games where they stranded 7 or less runners on base and with a struggling bullpen whose ERA is over 8.00 the last 5 games. Pirates in a very weak role noting that they are just 12-45 (-26.5 Units) against the money line in road games versus teams outscored by opponents by 0.5 or more runs/game on the season over the last 3 seasons. Phils starter Blanton in a great winning role as he is 12-3 (+9.1 Units) against the money line versus poor base running teams averaging 0.5 or less SB's/game in the second half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
Priceless Picks
1 Unit on Detroit Tigers -156
The struggling A's will have their work cut out for themselves against one of the most effective home pitchers in baseball. The Athletics are just 6-22 in their last 28 overall, 0-5 in their last 5 against the AL Central, and 0-6 in their last 6 series openers. The Tigers are an impressive 22-7 in Rogers ' last 29 home starts and 31-12 in Rogers ' last 43 starts as a favorite. The Tigers are 24-9 in their last 33 games as a favorite. Take the Tigers tonight.
Brian Marshall
Washington Nationals vs. Milwaukee Brewers
Play On: Milwaukee Brewers -1.5 Runs
The Washington Nationals will be lead by starting pitcher Colin Balester. Colin Balester has been having pitching problems this season. In fact, Colin Balester has a 4.55 ERA on the season. We see Colin Balester pitching another bad game today.
The Milwaukee Brewers will be lead by starting pitcher CC Sabathia. CC Sabathia has been pitching very well since joining the Milwaukee Brewers. In fact, CC Sabathia is a Perfect 5-0 with a 1.88 ERA. We see CC Sabathia pitching another great game today.
The Washington Nationals are 19-38 in their last 57 road games, while the Milwaukee Brewers are 20-7 in their last 27 home games.
The Milwaukee Brewers are 9-4 in their last 13 meetings against the Washington Nationals (when playing in Milwaukee), and should be able to get another blowout win tonight!
Take the Milwaukee Brewers -1.5 Runs
Karl Garrett
NY Yankees +150 at LA ANGELS
Tonight I will give the underdog Yankees a shot against the Angels.
Los Angeles has pretty much sewn up the AL West division, so you can't fault them if they rest on their laurels just a little during the dog days of August.
The same cannot be said for the Yankees, as New York has played themselves into must win situations on a nightly basis with both the Red Sox, and Rays in front of them in the AL East.
Ian Kennedy rejoins the big club, and is in search of his first win this season. While the G-Man doesn't hold any illusions that Kennedy is going to throw a no-hitter, the Yanks should be able to get him some run support, as they just shelled Angels starter Jared Weaver the last time Weaver took the hill.
New York scored 6 runs on Weaver in 5 innings as the Yankees were able to salvage a 4-game split with the Halos after losing the first two games.
This time the Yanks strike first.
2♦ YANKEES
Jeff Benton
Take the Marlins as a road underdog against the Mets at Shea Stadium.
Florida continues to show it's in the National League East race and the Wild Card battle, for that matter or the long haul, as it just took two of three at first-place Philadelphia. Tonight, the Fish hand the ball to Ricky Nolasco, who just continues to pitch well and give the Marlins a chance to win something Florida has now done nine times in Nolasco's last 11 starts, with the right-hander tossing a quality start in all nine victories. Not only that, but Florida is 4-0 in Nolasco's last four starts on the road, 6-0 in his last six as an underdog and 3-0 in his last three against the Mets, including 2-0 this season (both 7-3 victories).
So why are Nolasco and the Marlins catching this kind of plus price? Because the Mets have been solid at home recently (12-3 last 15), and because starter Oliver Perez, prior to Sunday's 4-0 loss at Houston, had been dealing for New York. Also, The Mets are 3-0 against the Marlins with Perez on the hill this year. However, in the one start at Shea, the Marlins got to Perez for five runs in six innings, only to lose 7-6. Also, Perez's numbers at home (3-2, 3.99 ERA) are actually worse than Nolasco's on the road (6-2, 3.91 ERA).
In the end, I look at what Nolasco has done in just his last two outings 14 innings pitched, five runs and 11 hits allowed, no walks and 21 strikeouts in wins over the Rockies (5-3) and Mets (7-3) and I gotta take a shot with the road dog here.
4♦ FLORIDA MARLINS
Mr A
Boston Red Sox at Chicago White Sox
The Red Sox have won the last seven meetings against the White Sox, and six of the last seven played in the Windy City.
Boston's Jon Lester (10-3, 3.14), is 3-0 with a 1.69 ERA in his last three starts. The Red Sox are 4-1 in the lefty's last 5 road starts. The White Sox are 1-5 in Buehrle's last 6 starts versus the Red Sox at home.
Chicago's Mark Buehrle (8-10, 4.07 ERA) is 1-2 with a 7.02 ERA in his last three starts, but is 5-1 with a 2.16 ERA in his last seven starts at U.S. Cellular Field. The White Sox have lost four of Mark Buehrle last six starts.
Take the Red Sox to grab their fifth straight win in Chicago. Boston has crushed the White Sox in the last seven contests, outscoring them 75-17.
Boston Red Sox -110
Tony Stoffo
Philadelphia Eagles vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Play: Philadelphia Eagles
First Sharp money play of the preseason goes tonight as the Eagles have received all the early action here. Makes a ton of sense as the Eagles are really deep on the offensive line and head coach Andy Reid has reported that the first and second team will play the first 3 quarters against Pittsburgh here. While Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin is saying the first team will get only a series or two with Roethlisberger limited to the first series only. I'll take my chances fading a Steelers team here that will be led by two inexperienced quarterbacks in Potts and Dixon in the second half.