National League
Cardinals @ Marlins
Leake is 2-4, 5.55 in his last six starts; over is 7-3 in his last 10. Cardinals are 5-3 in his road starts.
Urena is 0-1, 1.54 in his two starts (under 2-0).
Cardinals won five of last six road games; four of their last six games went over. Miami won eight of its last 12 home games.
Rockies @ Mets
Chatwood is 1-2, 7.2 in his last five starts; under is 14-4 in his last 18 starts. Colorado is 7-1 in his road starts.
Matz is 1-3, 3.24 in his last four starts; Mets lost four of his last five home starts. Under is 7-1-1 in his last nine.
Colorado won seven of its last eight games; under is 10-2-1 in their last 13 games. Mets lost six of last seven home games; under is 8-2 in last ten games at Citi Field.
Phillies @ Braves
Velasquez is 3-0, 2.70 in his last five starts; six of his last nine went over. Phillies are 5-4 in his road starts.
Jenkins is 0-1, 6.43 in his three starts (under 2-0-1).
Phillies lost four of last six games; under is 9-5 in their last 14 games. Atlanta is 4-9 in its last 13 games; seven of last ten games at Turner Field went over.
Pirates @ Brewers
Brault allowed two runs in four IP (82 PT) in his first MLB start.
Guerra is 3-1, 1.80 in his last six starts (under 5-1). Milwaukee lost four of his last five home starts.
Pirates won three of last four games (over 4-0); they’re 10-7 in road series openers. Brewers won four of last six games; under is 8-4-1 in last 13 games at Miller Park- they’re 8-9 in home series openers.
Diamondbacks @ Dodgers
Godley is 3-1, 6.23 in his four starts (over 3-1).
Maeda is 3-2, 4.33 in his last five starts; his last five home starts stayed under. Dodgers are 4-6 in his home starts.
Arizona lost seven of last nine games; over is 3-1-1 in their last five. Diamondbacks are 9-7 in road series openers. Dodgers won three of last four games; under is 13-3 in their last 16 home games. LA won four of last five home series openers.
Nationals @ Giants
Scherzer is 2-1, 1.31 in his last five starts (under 5-0); Nationals are 7-5 in his road starts.
Samardzija is 1-2, 6.46 in his last five starts; over is 9-2 in his last 11. Giants won five of his seven home starts.
Nationals are 8-5 in last 13 games; five of last six Washington road games stayed under. San Francisco lost ten of last 12 games, five of last six Giant home games stayed under the total.
Reds @ Padres
Finnegan is 2-4, 8.69 in his last six starts; his last four went over. Cincinnati is 3-7 in his road starts.
Jackson is 1-0, 3.65 in his first two starts this year (over 1-1).
Reds won seven of last ten games; three of their last four went over. San Diego lost seven of last ten games; three of their last four went over. Padres are 10-6 in home series openers; Cincy is 9-8 in road series openers.
American League
Orioles @ Blue Jays
Gausman is 2-2, 2.60 in his last five starts (under 13-4). Orioles lost six of his last seven road starts.
Estrada is 0-2, 5.82 in his last four starts (under 12-5). Toronto is 5-4 when he starts at home.
Orioles lost last three games, scoring three runs; their last 16 games stayed under. Toronto won three of its last four games; Jays are 6-11 in home series openers; Baltimore is 10-7 in road series openers.
Bronx @ Rays
Nova is 2-0, 2.66 in his last four starts (under 3-1). New York is 3-3 in his road starts.
Odorizzi is 1-0, 1.29 in his last two starts; his last three stayed under. Tampa Bay is 2-6 in his last eight home starts.
New York won seven of last ten games (under 9-1); they’re 8-8 in road series openers. Tampa Bay lost four of last five games (under 5-0); Rays are 6-10 in home series openers.
A’s @ Indians
Graveman is 4-0, 3.10 in his last seven starts; three of his last four stayed under. A’s won his last five road starts.
Bauer is 0-2, 8.04 in his last three starts; under is 5-2-1 in his last eight. Cleveland is 5-2 in his home starts.
A’s won five of last six games; six of their last nine games stayed under. Oakland is 10-6 in road series openers. Cleveland lost four of last five games (under 4-1). Tribe is 9-5 in home series openers.
Astros @ Tigers
McHugh is 2-0, 3.00 in his last three starts (over 2-0-1); Houston is 5-4 in his road starts.
Boyd is 1-0, 2.35 in his last three starts (under 3-0).
Astros won five of last seven games; under is 5-2-1 in their last eight. Detroit won its last three games; under is 3-1-1 in their last five. Tigers are 9-6 in home series openers; Astros won four of last five road series openers.
Royals @ Rangers
Volquez is 1-1, 2.84 in his last five starts; under is 7-3 in his last ten. Royals are 3-5 in his road starts.
Griffin is 0-1, 5.40 in his last six starts; over is 4-2-1 in his last seven. Texas is 3-1 in his home starts.
Kansas City lost seven of last eight games; under is 12-3-1 in their last 16 road games. Texas won four of last six games; over 9-4 in last 13 Texas home games.
White Sox @ Twins
Quintana is 3-0, 2.02 in his last four starts; under is 16-2-1 in his last 19 starts. Pale Hose won his last three road starts.
Nolasco is 1-4, 6.96 in his last six starts; over is 16-3 in his last 19 starts. Minnesota is 3-6 when he starts at Target Field.
Chicago is 4-5 in its last nine games; they’re 1-8 in last nine road series openers– under is 6-2-1 in their last nine road games. Minnesota lost three of last four games; they’re 7-11 in home series openers. Under is 5-1-1 in Twins’ last seven home games.
Red Sox @ Angels
Porcello is 5-0, 3.09 in his last five starts; over is 7-3-1 in his last 11 starts. Boston lost five of his last seven road starts.
Lincecum is 1-4, 11.25 in his last six starts; three of his last four went over.
Red Sox lost six of last seven games; last five Boston road games stayed under total. Angels won their last seven home games; over is 13-5 in Halos’ last 18 home games.
Interleague
Mariners @ Cubs
Iwakuma is 5-0, 2.56 in his last five starts; four of his last six stayed under. Mariners are 7-4 in his road starts.
Lester is 1-1, 10.13 in his last four starts; four of his last five went over. Cubs are 7-2 in his home starts.
Seattle won four of last six games; three of their last four went over. Mariners are 9-8 in road series openers. Cubs won five of last eight games, under is 10-1-2 in Cubs’ last 13 games. Chicago is 14-3 in home series openers.
Teams won-lost records when this pitcher starts:
StL-Mia– Leake 9-11; Urena 1-1
Col-NY– Chatwood 11-7; Matz 10-8
Phil-Atl– Velasquez 10-7; Jenkins 1-2
Pitt-Mil– Brault 1-0; Guerra 10-5
Az-LA– Godley 3-1; Maeda 11-9
Wsh-SF– Scherzer 12-9; Samardzija 11-9
Cin-SD– Finnegan 6-15; Jackson 1-1
Balt-Tor– Gausman 7-10; Estrada 9-8-8
NY-TB– Nova 7-7; Odorizzi 9-12
A’s-Clev– Graveman 10-9 (8-0 last 8); Bauer 7-8
Hst-Det– McHugh 13-7; Boyd 3-5
KC-Tex– Volquez 12-9; Griffin 8-4
Chi-Min– Quintana 11-9; Nolasco 8-12
Bos-LAA– Porcello 15-5; Lincecum 3-4
Sea-Cubs– Iwakuma 12-8 (5-0 last 5); Lester 14-6
Starting pitchers allowing 1+ runs in first inning:
StL-Mia– Leake 7-20; Urena 0-2
Col-NY– Chatwood 7-18 (5 of last 8); Matz 4-18
Phil-Atl– Velasquez 3-16; Jenkins 2-3
Pitt-Mil– Brault 0-1; Guerra 3-15
Az-LA– Godley 2-4; Maeda 5-20
Wsh-SF– Scherzer 8-21; Samardzija 6-20
Cin-SD– Finnegan 7-21; Jackson 0-2
Balt-Tor– Gausman 6-17; Estrada 5-17
NY-TB– Nova 3-14; Odorizzi 4-21
A’s-Clev– Graveman 4-19; Bauer 4-15
Hst-Det– McHugh 8-20; Boyd 0-8
KC-Tex– Volquez 6-21; Griffin 2-12
Chi-Min– Quintana 4-20; Nolasco 8-20
Bos-LAA– Porcello 7-20; Lincecum 3-7
Sea-Cubs– Iwakuma 3-20; Lester 5-20
Armadillosports.com
MLB: Streak, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Baltimore Orioles at Toronto Blue Jays Series
Toronto and Baltimore play a crucial three-game series north of the border this weekend with top spot in the East at stake. The clubs have split ten games this season with Blue Jays holding a 3-1 edge meeting at Rogers Center.
A.L. East leading Orioles looking to put some distance between themselves and the rest of the division open the series with Kevin Gausman on the hill. Blue Jays two games back hoping to inch closer counter with Marco Estrada. Jays have won three straight vs Orioles in this park with Estrada, Gausman not a peg to hang your hopes on in an opposing park is saddled with an 0-13 skid in enemy territory.
Friday's Diamond Notes
By Tony Mejia
VegasInsider.com
Hottest team: Tigers (5-2 last seven)
The A’s have won a league-best five of six, but we’ve got them covered below in the hot pitcher category. That allows us to examine the suddenly resurgent Tigers, who come off a sweep at Fenway Park that put them squarely in the AL wild card chase by dragging the Red Sox back to the pack when it looked like they were ready to begin pulling away. We’ll see whether Detroit ends up making a move to fortify multiple holes, but it finds itself in position to really make inroads as it opens a 10-game homestand against the Astros, who arrive in town up 1.5 games. Lefty Matt Boyd picked up his second career win in his last start at Comerica Park, holding the Twins to three hits over six innings in a 1-0 win. He’s been excellent at home over his short career, in sharp contrast to his road numbers. Boyd has a 1.17 ERA thus far in July, but has lost his only matchup against Houston, surrendering a pair of Colby Rasmus home runs.
Coldest team: Giants (2-10 last 12)
Even Johnny Cueto pitching at home couldn't stop the bleeding for the first-place Giants, who continue to lead the NL West and rank among the best teams in baseball record-wise. San Francisco has given up three runs over the last two games and have managed over two runs or fewer in five of the last seven games. Denard Span returned to the starting lineup on Thursday, but the Giants should still struggle against Max Scherzer.
Hottest pitcher: Kendall Graveman (7-6, 4.15 ERA)
Although Oakland is looking to trade ace Sonny Gray and is willing to move anyone if it means getting back a few prospects to brighten an otherwise long season, it will be interesting to see if anyone reaches out for this guy. Graveman hasn't lost a decision since May 19, a span of 10 starts. He's won his last six decisions and is 4-0 in July, compiling a 2.35 ERA. Graveman comes off a complete game victory at home against Tampa Bay and has been a tremendous ground-ball pitcher this month.
Coldest pitcher: Tim Lincecum (2-4, 8.70 ERA)
The Angels rallied to upset the Red Sox on a disgusting error in the bottom of the ninth yesterday, but it will be interesting to see whether the Lincecum experiment yields any more success. Since surrendering one run on four hits in six innings at Oakland in his debut, Lincecum has given up at least three earned runs in every game he's pitched in, lasting more than five innings only once. He'll be facing the best lineup he's seen since returning to the big leagues.
Biggest UNDER run: Orioles (16-0 last 16)
Despite getting up early at Minnesota, the same result befell Baltimore on the road against the Twins. The Orioles haven't scored more than five runs in any game behind this stretch, which has seen 9-10 posted as their run total on their contests going forward. The Birds dropped their third straight in losing in Minneapolis on Thursday night and hasn't scored six runs since July 6.
Biggest OVER run: Pirates (4-0 last four games)
The Pirates came out of the All-Star break by scoring just three runs over the course of a three-game set against the Nationals and then opened the Phillies series by getting blanked. Since that 4-0 loss, the Bucs have averaged 6.5 runs in winning three of four, putting up a 10-spot in Wednesday's rout of Seattle. Andrew McCutchen is having a down year, but picked up his first three-hit since the All-Star break (only his sixth of 2016), driving in four runs and hitting his first homer since action resumed. If Pittsburgh can get him going, it can get back in a wild card race that is currently getting away. Rookie lefty Steven Brault, who made his debut on July 5 with a no-decision in a 5-2 win over the Cardinals, will make his first road start at Milwaukee.
Matchup to watch: Cardinals at Marlins
The Cardinals handed Jose Fernandez only his second loss in 28 decisions at home, dominating via the long ball and taking care of defense defensively. As a result, St. Louis has now caught the Marlins at 55-47 with 60 games remaining, currently two games behind the Dodgers for the top NL wild card and right there with Miami for the second, 1.5 games up on the slumping Mets and two ahead of Pittsburgh. Tonight's game pits young Miami pitcher Jose Urena against Mike Leake in a contest that the Marlins are slightly favored in.
Betcha didn’t know: Veteran Edwin Jackson (1-1, 4.30), considered a can't-miss superstar at one time, is pitching for his 11th different franchise after being cut from the Marlins earlier this season and catching on with the Padres earlier this month. He's actually faring better than anyone could have expected, putting together consecutive starts of six innings or more while allowing two earned runs or fewer for the first time since July of 2013. Jackson flirted with a no-hitter in his San Diego debut, so he'll look to impress the home crowd again as he matches up with the Reds, one of the few teams he hasn't played for. For whatever it's worth, Jackson told MLB.com he feels he's still in his "prime" with a "lot to offer."
Biggest public favorite: Phillies (-150) at Braves
Biggest public underdog: Giants (+135) at Nationals
Biggest line move: Astros (-104 to -125) at Tigers
MLB Betting Cheat Sheet
By Power Sports
Covers.com
Feeling Blue
This weekend is a very big series for the Blue Jays as they welcome in the first place Orioles for a three-game set. Key here is not only the fact that Baltimore is just 21-27 on the road (MLB-best 37-16 at home), but also the respective run differentials. Toronto (+81) has outscored its opponents this year by more than double the margin Baltimore (+32) has, which does seem to indicate the better team is the one currently facing a 1.5 game deficit in the division. It’s also worth noting that the O’s had to play a make-up game Thursday (lost 6-2 in Minnesota) while the Jays had the day off. That’s another edge Toronto’s way. As far as the individual pitching matchups are concerned, the marquee battle takes place Sunday with Chris Tillman facing off with Aaron Sanchez (more on him in a bit). These two teams have split 10 previous meetings this season. For more on how Baltimore has been trending total-wise, check the note down below!
Need to Take Advantage
Now that they’re back home for 18 of the next 23 games, I see Cleveland getting back on track following a rather pedestrian July. They’ll host the A’s this weekend, an opponent they should sweep. But one word of caution if you’re thinking about betting the Tribe in any of the next three games. While 30-13 against the rest of their division (AL Central), they are just 18-23 against the East and West. Given no one else from the Central may make the playoffs, this is something to consider come playoff time when handicapping Cleveland.
Giant Fall
In case you hadn’t noticed, San Francisco has had a terrible start to the second half. They’ve won only twice in 12 tries and now they have to deal with surging Washington coming to town. The Nats already took Thursday’s opener against Johnny Cueto and won’t have to face Madison Bumgarner in this series. What’s interesting about the Giants is that so far they’ve played the Cubs, Nats, Cardinals and Mets a total of only 10 times and are 4-6 in those games. They are 6-4 vs. the Dodgers. So, it’s been beating up on the weaklings of the National League that has kept them afloat.
Pitching Notes
In the Baltimore-Toronto paragraph, I mentioned Aaron Sanchez’s name. A 23-year old, he has pitched incredibly well for the Blue Jays thus far. In fact, he hasn’t lost since April and has allowed 2 ER or less in seven consecutive starts. He leads the AL in ERA (2.72) and that’s the lowest ERA by any American League starter, 23 years old or younger, since Felix Hernandez! But he is young and reaching a career high in innings pitched. Therefore, it appears as if the team will be moving him to the bullpen to preserve his arm here in the second half.
No, I’m not crazy. Colorado pitching has been much better than you think this season, at least on the road where the staff has posted the fourth lowest ERA (3.65) in all of baseball! Their rotation has posted 17 quality starts in July, their most in a month since August of 2010! This weekend they face the Mets, whose games – on average – are the lowest scoring in all of MLB (just 7.2 runs per game). Might this be a series where you want to look at the Under? Well, we also know that the Rockies offensive production curtails by nearly two full runs per game outside of Coors Field. Thursday’s series opener was a 2-1 game in favor of Colorado (trailed 1-0 entering the ninth).
Hitting Notes
Last year’s NL batting champion, Dee Gordon, is now back from an 80-game PED suspension. Miami has done pretty well without him, but will certainly welcome him back with “open arms” given his .333 batting average and 58 stolen bases from a year ago. Gordon was 0 for 4 at the plate Thursday vs. St. Louis in his official return to action.
This month has seen three different rookies hit at least eight home runs: San Diego’s Ryan Schimpf (9), Colorado’s Trevor Story (8 ) and Minnesota’s Max Kepler (8 ). According to the Elias Sports Bureau, there had never been a calendar month in MLB history where this had previously happened.
Totals Trend
In case you are unaware, the Under is a perfect 16-0 in Baltimore’s last 16 games!
Friday's Ump Stat of the Day
Road teams beware: The home team is 7-0 in Chris Guccione's last seven games behind home plate. He'll be calling balls and strikes for Friday night's game in New York when the Mets host the Rockies. The Mets are currently -156 favorites.
Friday's Weather Report
At Comerica Park in Detroit, there is a 43 percent chance of rain and a chance of thunderstorms in the area for tonight's game between the Tigers and Astros. There is will also be an expected 8-10 mile per hour wind gusting in from left field. The total for the game is currently 9.0.
The forecast is similar in Atlanta, where the Braves are scheduled to host the Phillies. There is a 43 percent chance of rain and a chance of thunderstorms. There is an expected seven-to-nine mile per hour wind gusting out to right field. The total is currently 8.0.