Drew Gordon
St. Louis at HOUSTON +120
While its true Kyle Lohse has pitched well against the Astros this season, it looks like the wheels are finally starting to fall off, as he's pitched well, but that's hardly the norm for Lohse. Over his last 4 starts, he's 0-3 with an ugly 5.40 ERA, and despite pitching well against Atlanta in his last one, beating the Astros at Minute Maid Park, where they've won 10 of their last 13, is biting off a little more than he can chew at this point.
Opposing Lohse is the Astros southpaw Randy Wolf, who's been a pleasant surprise since coming over from San Diego. Not only have the 'Stros won 5 of his 6 starts, but as was the case in San Diego, he's pitched much better at home, going 7-4 with a 2.91 ERA overall this season, and 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA as a member of the Astros! Also of note, the Cardinals usually potent offense averages only 4.2 run per game against lefties this season.
Finally, while Houston endured a tough road trip last week, they looked much better at home against the Reds in their last series, taking 2 of 3. I already mentioned they've won 10 of their last 13 at Minute Maid Park, and having seen Lohse 3 times already this season, I say the fourth time is the charm!
Take Houston behind Wolf over St. Louis and Lohse in this MLB match up.
3♦ HOUSTON
Andre Gomes
MINNESOTA at OAKLAND
The Twins lost yesterday by 2-3 against the A's and they are 3-5 on their road trip right now. Thanks to that, the distance between them and the White Sox, who lead the division, is now 1,5 games. So it is very important for the team to come back to the winning track, knowing that the White Sox will start today a very hard series at Boston.
They will send today Kevin Slowey (10-8, 3.74 ERA), who has been very solid lately, with 2-0, 1.86 ERA and 0.879 on his last 3 outings. On his last outing against the Angels in LA, Slowey gave the chance to the Twins to get a win in another quality start. Actually he comes from 4 quality starts in a row, with just 2-2-1-1 runs allowed in those outings. Last week he faced the A's in a blowout for the Twins by 13-2, allowing just 2 runs in 7 innings and striking out 12 batters! Brutal!
On the other side, the A's will send Dan Meyer, who will make his 3rd start today. On his first two outings as a starter, he allowed 3 and 4 runs on the road against the Mariners and the Tigers, where he showed some struggles.
The Twins are desperate for a win and they will come fired up, while the A's don't use to be capable of maintaining the consistency after a win, as they are 1-10 on their last 11 games following a win. The fact yesterday's game was a ballgame and the A's having won on the 9th innings, gives us a curious trend: Minnesota is 14-5 against the run line, while revenging a one run loss to opponent this season. And with a clear pitching mismatch, I expect an easy revenge win for the Twins in here. Take them on the run line today.
PLAY 1* UNIT ON MINNESOTA TWINS RL -1.5
TORONTO at NY YANKEES
I have to admit that this play is mostly based on emotional edges that the Yankees have for this game, which make this game to be an excellent opportunity to catch a good home dog. Well, in theory the Blue Jays would have a big edge over the Yankees today, especially due to the pitcher who will start for them today: AJ Burnett, who is unbeatable against the Yankees this season. Not only he won his 3 starts against the Yankees this season, as he dominated them, by just allowing 2-1-1 runs! And on his last outing against them, 10 days ago, Burnett stroke out 13 batters of the Yankees! Amazing! But everything has an end and the Yankees will come fired up and claiming a revenge against Burnett.
The Yankees won yesterday a very important game against the Red Sox, avoiding an home sweep. And with the way they've done it, coming back from 0-2 to win by 3-2 in the 9th innings puts the momentum on their side and makes this game to be faced with a lot of motivation. Today they will send Carl Pavano, who will make his second game for the Yankees this season. On his debut, Pavano allowed 3 runs and 5 innings against the Orioles, not destroying the chances of the team in the game, while striking out 5 batters.
Burnett comes to this game from a non quality start, where he allowed 5 runs in 7 innings against the Red Sox. This game has an emotional edge in favor of the Yankees, not only for yesterday's game, but also from a feeling of revenge against Burnett and so I consider the Yankees to be a good home dog in here.
PLAY 1* UNIT ON NY YANKEES
ST LOUIS at HOUSTON
The Astros defeated yesterday the Reds by 3-2 and they won the series thanks to that. Today they will begin a new one against a much more dangerous club: the Cardinals. For this game, I think it will be close and it will be decided on details, but I have to say that the price offered by the bookies for the Astros is too appellative to say no to it. The Cardinals will send Kyle Lohse (13-6, 3.96 ERA), who has been doing a good season and he has been dominating the Astros with 3 wins on 3 games against them, while allowing 1-1-3 runs and naturally he is considered as the favorite for today. However we can't forget the recent form of Lohse, as the Cardinals have lost the last four games with him starting. And it's only necessary to look to his sequence of runs allowed on his last outings to see that he's not in a good moment: 3-3-4-4-3-7 runs.
On the other side, the Astros will send Randy Wolf, who is 5-1 since he joined Houston and he has been doing good outings lately. He struggled against the Brewers, just to bounce back on his following start on the road against the Mets. He won the game, while being a +202 underdog and besides that, Wolf is much better at home than on the road, with a 7-4 and 2.91 ERA record, allowing just 2 runs in 2 home games in Houston.
The Astros won yesterday, while the Cardinals had a day off after a big win against the Brewers by 5-3 in a great comeback. The fact they had a day off may have cut down their momentum and so, the Astros have a great shot to win today, which allied to a great price makes this bet as a valuable one.
PLAY 1* UNIT ON HOUSTON ASTROS
COLORADO at SAN DIEGO
I know putting together totals and Padres don't use to be good, however even though this fact, I'm taking the over on one of their games. The totals is at 8 runs, which makes how much the sportbooks expect a strong effort by the pitchers on this game. I think it will be hard for both pitchers to be as good as they are expected to be.
The Rockies will send Aaron Cook (15-8, 3.91 ERA), who has been doing a great season. However Cook has been plagued by fatigue and back stiffness the past few weeks and the truth is that he has 6.32 ERA on his last 3 outings! Actually he allowed 4-2-6-7-4 runs on his last 5 outings. The most worrying is that Cook faced the Padres, Nationals and Reds on his last 3 outings and these three teams aren't exactly great in the offense. That's clearly a problem for him today, as the Padres are currently on a nice offensive run, as on their last 4 games, they have a BA of .317 and they have always scored at least 4 runs.
On the other side, the Padres will send Dirk Hayhurst, who will make his second start for San Diego. On his first game, he allowed 3 runs in 4 innings and had a P/IP ratio of 19.0, which wasn't an amazing debut at all, so we have to wonder the reason why a pitcher, who will make his second start of the team is listed on a game with a total of 8 runs. That's why the over is such a strong bet in here, having in account the two pitchers who will start tonight.
PLAY 1* UNIT ON OVER 8
JEFFERSONSPORTS
MLB RELEASES FOR FRI
LA DODGERS-115
MINNESOTA-157
MILWAUKEE-159
Ben Burns
Game: Colorado Rockies at San Diego Padres
Prediction: Colorado Rockies
The Padres just did the Rockies a big favor by sweeping the Diamondbacks. That doesn't mean that all is suddenly right in San Diego now though. Indeed, the Padres are still a dismal 51-82 on the season. That's by far the worst mark in the division and ranks as the third worst mark in all of baseball. Remember last season's magical run? Don't look now but the Rockies are suddenly within six games of first place, having gone a healthy 24-15 since the All Star Break. Now they get to take on the lowly Padres while the two teams they are chasing, Arizona and LA, get to beat up on each other. In other words, this is a very important series.
Tonight offers a terrific chance for the Rockies to get things started with a victory. Despite a bit of a tough stretch recently, Cook has enjoyed an excellent season. In fact, he's 15-8 with a 3.91 ERA. He has also dominated the Padres, going 8-2 with a stellar 2.05 ERA in 12 starts against them since 2004, including a 4-1 mark with an outstanding 1.50 ERA in six starts here at Petco Park.He'll be opposed by Dirk Hayhurst, who is making just his second big league start. In fact, only two of Hayhurst's 46 appearances at Triple-A Portland were starts. Hayhurst's first start didn't go particularly well, as he gave up three runs and five hits while lasting only four innings.
The fact that Hayhurst is a left-hander should also favor the visitors. The Rockies are 22-15 (+4.6) vs. southpaws on the season. They're hitting .283 against them and averaging 5.8 runs. Conversely, the Padres are batting .252 against right-handers, averaging four runs per game. They've gone 36-50 in those games. Consider COLORADO
Denver at Arizona UNDER (play at 37 or better)
Knowing how low-scoring Week 4 was last year and again yesterday, I feel that the current number of 37 is too high. Yes, it's true that the Cardinals still have some question marks at quarterback. However, even if both Warner and Leinart see action they aren't going to have all their weapons available. Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Edgerrin James are all expected to make only brief appearances and center Al Johnson won't play at all. Looking back to last preseason and we find that these teams also met for their preseason finale. That game had the highest over/under line (40) of any Week 4 game, yet it produced only 24 combined points. Don't be surprised if this one is lower-scoring than expected once again. Consider a play on the UNDER
Wildcat
New York Mets
Executive Sports
250% INDIANS -115
Lee Kostroski
San Francisco Giants @ Cincinnati Reds
PICK: Under
Barry Zito has rightfully taken a lot of criticism for severely underperforming his monster contract. After his horrible start to the season there is little he can do to salvage the season but he has been pitching much more effectively in recent games. On the year Zito owns a respectable 3.95 ERA on the road as he has pitched much better away from the disappointed home fans. Zito has allowed three or fewer runs in six of his last nine outings and he has been able to keep his walk totals in check lately.
Rookie starter Edinson Volquez hit a few speed bumps during late July on his way to great first season for the Reds but he appears to be back on track with three straight quality outings. Opposing batters are hitting just .192 against Volquez in those three starts and his season ERA is still an incredible 2.80. Volquez dominated San Francisco in an early season start with just one run allowed over seven innings backed by ten strikeouts.
The ‘under’ is 20-7 in the last 27 San Francisco games as the Giants offense continues to post poor numbers but the pitching has been pretty good. As bad as the Giants have hit this season the Reds are actually the worse hitting team with a .244 season average and that figure dips to .165 against left-handed pitching over the past ten games. The ‘under’ has hit in six of the last eight meetings between these teams in Cincinnati and this looks like another low-scoring game.
Stevie Y
St Louis Cardinals vs. Houston Astros
Play: Over
We're fading Lohse who has been dismal on the road sports a 5-5 record with a 5.31 ERA and a very high batting average against of .332. in his last 6 starts he went 33.1 innings, allowing 41 hits and 15 walks with an ERA of 5.63 and a WHIP of 1.61. For the month of August his ERA is 5.34 and his batting average against is .289. Since the All-Star break his ERA is 5.36 and his batting average against is .299. And speaking of batting averages against, check out these career numbers (each with 8 or more at bats against Lohse): Lee .373; Tejada .381; Berkman .278; Blum .385; Pence .385; and Wigginton .375.
Meanwhile, the Astros start Randy Wolf. On the year he is 8-14 with a 4.86 ERA, a 1.47 WHIP and a .274 batting average against. In his last 3 starts he went 17 innings, allowing 18 hits and 8 walks, for an ERA of 6.35 and a WHIP of 1.52. For the month of August his ERA is 5.14, his WHIP is 1.57 and his batting average against is .284. Since the All-Star break his ERA is 5.45 and his batting average against is .303. Against the Cards this year his ERA is 6.35 and his batting average against is .333. And speaking of batting averages against, check out these career numbers against Wolf (each with 11 or more at bats against): Encarnacion .417; LaRue .273; Lopez .308; Izturis .385; and Pujols .455. Over the past 7 days the Cards are batting an NL-best .370. ..jam the OVER
SportsKingz
TEMPLE -7
RICE -3.5
FRANK ROSENTHAL
MLB
902 CUBS-240 SB
907 METS-120 SB
910 NATS+140 SB
914 DBACKS+105 SB
OVER 8.5 SB+
919 JAYS UNDER 9.5 SB+
924 BOSOX-180 SB
NFL PRESEASON - WEEK 4
140 49ERS-2.5 SB
143 BRONCOS+3 SB
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
145 TEMPLE-7 SB
148 RICE-3 SB
OVER 69 SB
Ross Benjamin
15* Toronto -120
High Profit Sports
3* Temple-7 (POD)
3* Twins -158
John Ryan
Philadelphia Phillies vs. Chicago Cubs
Play: Philadelphia Phillies
Ai Simulator 3* graded play on Philadelphia Phillies - Phils bats are coming to life and the bullpen is back to doing well - with the exception of a grand slam last night. Still, that is just 1 big hit and those types of emotional circumstances rarely effect teams as good as the Phillies. It is actually the Cubs bullpen that is showing signs of weakness sporting a 5.65 ERA over the past 7 games. Supporting this graded play is a 36-26 system that has made 30 units since 2002. Play against home favorites with a money line of -110 or higher that is a top level team outscoring opponents by 1 or more runs/game on the season and after 2 straight wins by 2 runs or less. No doubt Harden is on a one serious role allowing just 2 hits in 3 straight starts. There is just NO way this will happen against the Phillies. Let?s not forget too that Blanton is off a 6 IP start allowing just 1 ER and 4 starts ago he went 7 innings allowing just 1 hit. Phils in a strong role noting that they are 17-6 (+12.3 Units) against the money line versus an NL starting pitcher whose WHIP is 1.250 or better this season. Take the Phillies.
CASH & PROFIT EXPERTS COMP
OAKLAND RAIDERS vs SEATTLE SEAHAWKS
Play: OAKLAND RAIDERS +3.5
Bookie Pays You ???
He is likely just a guy sitting around in his underwear all day collecting welfare up here in Canada.