Craig Trapp
Washington Nationals vs. Milwaukee Brewers
Play:Milwaukee Brewers -1.5
Take MIL and run line today. WAS has been playing much better of lately but they still are one of the bottom 3 teams in the NL. Today for MIL Sabathia is taking the mound. He has pitched well since the beginning of JUNE. He won at Atlanta on Saturday, allowing two runs and striking out nine in 8 1-3 innings of a 4-2 victory. Including his interleague starts for the Indians, Sabathia is 17-6 with a 3.37 ERA against the NL, and 8-0 with a 2.10 ERA in his last 10 starts versus NL opponents. This trend should continue today take MIL and run line.
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The Bookie Pays You said in today's email:
Sometimes it's GREAT to win one like we did yesterday. Games like
that remind you of all the ones that you've lost that way... and what goes
around comes around. Cause remember, we may have won that one in
the bottom of the ninth, but someone else lost that one in the bottom of
the ninth. That's why you're with us... Not to mention, we're 25-5 in our
last 30 releases! But, that was yesterday... And today we're gunning for
number FOUR! Get on the Rays tonight as they face the Mariners! This
is common sense people... The Rays are 10-0 in James Shields last
10 starts as a favorite, and 26-1 in their last 27 games as a favorite!
While the Mariners, to put it nicely... SUCK... and are 0-5 in Carlos Silva's
last 5 versus teams with a winning record, and they've lost 7 of Silva's last
8 home starts! There's nothing more to say about this matchup... One
team is GREAT, the other team has STUNK IT UP ALL SEASON. RAYS
ALL THE WAY! ***** Also... We'd like to know on a scale of 1-10 just how
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Nelly
St. Louis + over Chicago
The Cardinals are an effective team against left-handed pitching with a .283 batting average in the last ten games and 20 wins against left-handed starters this season. The Cardinals own a stellar 31-25 road record this season and so far this season the series stands even at 3-3 between the Cubs and the Cardinals. Braden Looper has made three consecutive effective starts and he has allowed two or fewer runs in seven of his last ten starts. Looper actually owns better numbers away from home as the Cardinals are 7-3 behind him on the road and Looper allowed just two runs over seven innings against the Cubs earlier this season. The Cubs own an exceptional home record but they are just 6-5 in the last eleven home games and Ted Lilly has struggled at Wrigley Field. Lilly has a 4.94 ERA at home and the Cubs are just 3-3 in his last six starts, including a loss to the Cardinals. Watch out for St. Louis as a dangerous underdog Friday afternoon.
Wild Bill
Pittsburgh -3 (5 units)
Eagles-Pittsburgh Under 33½ (5 units)
Seattle +2½ (5 units)
St Louis +155 (5 units)
Pirates +160 (5 units)
Astros +125 (5 units)
Mets -135 (5 units)
Rockies +110 (5 units)
Braves-Dbacks Under 9 (5 units)
Dodgers -110 (5 units)
Orioles -170 (5 units)
A's-Tigers Under 9 1/2 (5 units)
Cleveland +120 (5 units)
Twins -125 (5 units)
Boston +100 (5 units)
Angels -145 (5 units)
Seattle +150 (5 units)
Lenny Del Genio
Minnesota Twins at Kansas City Royals
Prediction: Minnesota Twins
The Royals are one of the Twins favorite opponents. Minny has beaten their division rivals 7 of 9 this year, including 5 of 6 here in Kauffman Stadium. In their last visit here to Kansas City, the Twins pulled off a sweep winning all three games as underdogs. This time around they are favored and for good reason. A rested Twins team is a dangerous one as they?ve won 9 of 11 this season after getting the previous day off. KC is 3-12 at home after a loss by 4+ runs (lost BB games 8-2 to the Red Sox), 5-14 at home after scoring 2 runs or less and 16 games under .500 vs. right-handed starters. Take Minnesota.
Ben Burns
New York Yankees at Los Angeles Angels
Prediction:Los Angeles Angels
This line has come down to the point where we are now getting solid value with the home favorite. The Angels are 6-4 in Weaver's 10 home starts and he has a 3.69 ERA and 1.131 WHIP over that stretch. On the other hand, the Yankees are 1-4 in Kennedy's five road starts, the most recent of which came way back in late May. Kennedy has a 7.48 ERA and 1.759 WHIP in those games. Consider LA
Brian Hansen
Pittsburgh Pirates at Philadelphia Phillies
Prediction: Philadelphia Phillies
This very nearly qualified as one of my patented NO BRAINER releases but I decided to share it with you for FREE instead. The Pirates are 20-36 on the road and they're 9-18 the last 27 times they played a road game with a total of 10/10.5. Want more? The Phils are 12-2 as home favorites of -150 to -175 and 13-5 at home with a total of 10/10.5. B-Han says lay the wood!
EZWINNERS
1 STAR: (951) ST. LOUIS (+$145) over Chicago
(Listing Looper only) (Risking $100 to win $145)
1 STAR: (962) COLORADO (+$116) over San Diego
(Action) (Risking $100 to win $116)
1 STAR: (977) NY YANKEES (+$123) over LA Angels
(Action) (Risking $100 to win $100)
1 STAR: (965) LA DODGERS (-$118) over San Francisco
(Action) (Risking $118 to win 4100)
CFL
1 STAR: (287) EDMONTON (+4.5) over British Columbia
(Risking $110 to win $100)
Big AL
Red Sox / White Sox Under
LAS VEGAS TECH REPORT (LVTR) COMPS
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES vs PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Play: PITTSBURGH STEELERS PK
The beauty of pre-season is we get to know ahead of time what the coaches game plans are. we have a general idea of substitutions and possible playing time by starters. We also get insight into habits and philosophies. Two opposites collide tonight. You'll find the at the more successful teams don't give much of an effort in pre-season. The Eagles have been one of the NFL's more successful regular season team to bet on over the last eight years, winning five division titles and going to the NFC Championship Game four times. Head coach Andy Reid hasn't had a single winning preseason ATS during that span. Philadelphia is 1-9 ATS Away 1st 2 weeks of preseason. Tomlinson is what you call a tone setter meaning he wants maximum effort all the time which translates into a win tonight for the Steelers against a Andy Reid led team who could care less about pre-season results.
SEATTLE SEAHAWKS vs MINNESOTA VIKINGS
Play: MINNESOTA VIKINGS -3
Wunderdog
St Louis at Chicago
Pick: Chicago -160
Like any good team the Cubs are prone to having a "hiccup" during the course of a 162-game season and they have experienced theirs. The Cubs went 15-18 for a stretch, but the before and after mark is an impressive 54-28. The home record during the little hiccup was just 7-6, and sandwiched around that is an impressive 36-10 mark. So when we see around 1.5-1 odds for them at home. The Cubbies have won nine of their last 11 and are back on track, so this game is chock full of value in our eyes. The Cubs bring Ted Lilly to the mound who got off to a horrendous start, but the Cubs have now been 13-5 in his last 18 starts including 8-1 in his last nine at home, and things look even better. Brandon Looper has made only two starts on the road against a team with a winning record and the Cards have dropped both games. We like the Cubs in this one at home.
Michael Cannon
Pittsburgh +160 at PHILADELPHIA
Take the Pirates as the big road dog tonight over the Phillies.
With Paul Maholm taking the mound, why not take a chance at this price?
Maholm has easily been the Pirates best starter this season. The left-hander is constantly giving the Bucs six or seven quality innings and his 3.95 ERA is something the Pirates only wish they could get from the rest of their staff.
Maholm is also 3-1 with a 4.67 ERA in four career games against Philadelphia.
Joe Blanton will start for the Phillies and it’s not like this guy is a Cy Young candidate. The right-hander is just 6-12 on the year, although he’s 1-0 with Philly.
Still, at this price I’ll take my chances with Maholm and a Pirates offense that is still capable of putting up some runs despite the trades of Jason Bay and Xavier Nady.
Take the Pirates as the big road dog.
2♦ PITTSBURGH
Philadelphia at PITTSBURGH -1
Let’s make it an all-Pittsburgh free play night. Make those steel-town people proud.
Take the Steelers over the Eagles tonight.
This line has dropped from -3 down to -1 or a pick, depending on your book, so all the Steelers have to do is win and we basically cover.
Coach Mike Tomlin stated that there will be a lot of Rashard Mendenhall and Limus Sweed tonight, the Steelers top-two draft picks.
I can think of worse things than showcasing young, high draft picks in the exhibition season.
The Eagles basically know what they have on offense, so don’t look for Donovan McNabb to play more than a series, and Brian Westbrook obviously won’t be in the lineup at all.
The Steelers won’t play quarterback Ben Roethlisberger much at all either, but with Charlie Batch and Dennis Dixon following him in the rotation I’m not worried about the Steelers offense.
Take the Steelers as they grab the win and cover.
2♦ PITTSBURGH
Drew Gordon
Florida +125 at NY METS
Needless to say, this is a critical series for both teams, but its the Marlins who are playing rock-solid baseball, taking 2 of 3 at the NL East-leading Phillies over the last 3 days! The Mets meanwhile, needed a walk-off homer from David Wright to beat a terrible San Diego club yesteday, and come into this game losers of 6 of their last 9 games.
The pitching match up is close, but you've got to give the edge to the Marlins surging ace Ricky Nolasco, who's coming off an excellent start against the Rockies, allowing 3 runs over 8 innings, while striking out 13 for the win. We should expect another solid start tonight for two reasons: A. Nolasco is 2-0 with a 2.43 ERA over his last 4 road starts. And B. He's won his last two games at Shea, posting a solid 3.60 ERA in the process.
Opposing Nolasco is the Mets Oliver Perez, who admittingly has pitched well of late. However, he's been up and down against the Marlins, pitching well in South Florida (2-0, allowing 1 run over 12 innings), but not so much at Shea, allowing 5 runs in 6 innings back on May 28th. Herein lies the problem for Perez, because the Marlins have hit lefties particulaly well over their last 10 games, batting .288 against them, with wins against lefties Hamels, Moyer (Marlin-Killer), De Los Santos, and De La Rosa over that span.
Bottom line, expect a close contest here, but in the end, its the Marlins who are playing better ball, have the better starter, and the better bullpen. So if it comes down to it (which I expect), you know the Mets are in trouble, with their 'pen posting a ridiculous 6.94 ERA over their last 10 games! Fish roll!
Take Florida behind Nolasco over the NY Mets and Perez in this MLB match up.
2♦ FLORIDA
Seattle at MINNESOTA -3
Several reasons to like the Vikings here, but let's start with a much improved Minnesota team all around, playing in their home opener. Guys, we all know the expectations surrounding this Vikings team are sky high, and players and coaches alike will be fighting hard to get off on the right foot. While Seattle could really care less about this contest (as well they shouldn't), when all is said and done.
As with all preseason games, one has to consider the QB rotation, and the fact of the matter is that its the back end of the Vikings rotation what makes the difference. Both Hasselback and Wallace are well versed in their system and should be able to move the ball, and you can say the same about Jackson and Frerrote. However, its the Vikes Bollinger and rookie John David Booty who will shine against mostly 3rd stringers late in this contest.
Also, although this is an exhibition game, let's not forget the last time these two teams played, when the 'Hawks crushed the Vikings in Seattle 30-13. Of course, beating them in August means nothing, but after looking terrible top-to-bottom against this Seattle team in their last meeting, I expect a much more focused effort this time around.
Bottom line, motivation is a key factor in exhibition, because in a meaningless game, played by mostly no-names, the team who plays harder usually wins. In this case, the Vikings are in their home opener, with a big ol' spotlight on their starting QB Jackson and the rest of this Minnesota squad. While I expect the game will be close, in the end, the Vikings protect their house and grab the cash.
Take Minnesota over Seattle in this NFL Preseason match up.
2♦ MINNESOTA
Alex Smart
Detroit Tigers -150
The Oakland As enter into this game against their hosts Detroit in a big time funk having lost 10 straight games. They are struggling so badly, that I doubt they can take advantage of the aging hurler Kenny Rogers (8-8, 4.98 ERA). The veteran of 19 years , has always pitched well against the As and in 36 starts in this series is 21-7, along with a 4.28 ERA, including a current 7-0 run in his L/9 starts again them. I expect more success is on the agenda for the southpaw against a Oakland team that has has lost seven consecutive series , and 17 of their L/19 tilts since the All-Star break.
Meanwhile, Dallas Braden (2-2, 5.10) fires back for the A's. Since being called up from the minors in July, Braden is 1-2 with a 5.29 ERA 5 outings including 3 starts. The lefty thrower has been bombed by the Tigers in the past , recording a 0-1 mark along with a 12.34 ERA in three starts . I expect the men from Motown to hammer him again in a contest that will be a one sided affair favoring the host team.
Final notes & Key Trends: Rogers team is 32-12 L/44 when he starts in night games.
Play on Detroit
Locksmith Sports
1 Unit on Philadelphia Phillies -170
The juice is worth the squeeze in this case as the Phillies are deserving of big chalk against their inferior in-state rivals. Right away we see a big system in our favor: Plays against all underdogs with a money line of +100 or higher (PITTSBURGH) - after 4 straight games where they stranded 7 or less runners on base, with a struggling bullpen whose ERA is over 8.00 the last 5 games are 98-33 the last 5 seasons. I expect a potent Phillies lineup to murder the Pittsburgh pen in this one. Pittsburgh is also just 12-45 against the money line in road games vs. teams outscoring opponents by 0.5 or more runs/game on the season over the last 3 seasons. We'll take Philly here.