Monday's National League Betting Notes and Tips
By Covers.com
Washington Nationals at Philadelphia Phillies (106, 9)
Hot pitcher: Nationals reliever Tyler Clippard has only allowed one earned run in his past 14 appearances (13 2/3 innings).
Cold pitcher: Nationals starter Dan Haren has allowed five earned runs or more in each of his last four starts.
Weather: Temperatures in the low-80s and partly cloudy skies. Winds will blow out to right field at 8 mph.
Key betting note: The over is 5-1 in the last six meetings.
Atlanta Braves at Miami Marlins (150, 8)
Hot pitcher: The Braves are 5-1 in Minor's last six starts as a road favorite.
Cold pitcher: The over is 6-1 in Marlins' starter Kevin Slowey's last seven starts.
Weather: Temperatures in the mid-80s and clear skies. Winds will blow in from left field at 11 mph.
Key betting note: The Marlins are 6-1 in their last seven home games.
Cincinnati Reds at Milwaukee Brewers (126, 8)
Hot pitcher: Reds starter Homer Bailey tossed a no-hitter last time out. Can you be hotter than that?
Cold pitcher: Brewers reliever Burke Badenhop has been touched up for five earned runs over his past 1+ innings pitched.
Weather: Temperatures in the low-80s and partly cloudy conditions. Winds will blow in from right field at 6 mph.
Key betting note: The Reds are 10-1 in their last 11 Monday games.
Los Angeles Dodgers at Arizona Diamondbacks (-108, 9)
Hot pitcher: Arizona’s starting pitchers have worked eight innings in three consecutive games.
Cold pitcher: Dodgers reliever Brandon League had a 7.00 ERA in June and has allowed three earned runs in just 1 1/3 innings of work in July.
Weather: Roof likely closed due to extreme heat.
Key betting note: The Diamondbacks have won five straight games.
Colorado Rockies at San Diego Padres (-127, 7.5)
Hot pitcher: Padres reliever Dale Thayer has been one of the only reliable arms out of the pen lately, blanking the opposition in his last six appearances (six innings pitched).
Cold pitcher: Padres starter Edinson Volquez is 0-2 with a 14.66 ERA in three starts against Colorado this season.
Weather: Temperatures in the high-60s and partly cloudy skies. Winds will blow in from left field at 5 mph.
Key betting note: The Rockies are 8-2 in the last 10 meetings.
New York Mets at San Francisco Giants (114, 6.5)
Hot pitcher: Giants lefty specialist Javier Lopez has only yielded one earned run since May 4 (24 appearances).
Cold pitcher: The Giants are 0-5 in Tim Lincecum's last five starts.
Weather: Temperatures in the high-50s and clear skies. Winds will blow out to right field at 8 mph.
Key betting note: The over is 7-1 in the Mets' last eight games overall.
INTERLEAGUE
Oakland Athletics at Pittsburgh Pirates (-115, 7.5)
Hot pitcher: Oakland starter Bartolo Colon has allowed three earned runs or less in each of his last 10 starts.
Cold pitcher: Pirates closer Jason Grilli has given up five runs in his last four innings pitched.
Weather: Temperatures in the low-80s and a 40 percent chance of thunderstorms. Winds will blow out to left field at 7 mph.
Key betting note: The Pirates are 4-17 in their last 21 Monday games.
Monday's American League Betting Notes and Tips
By Covers.com
Check out our quick-hitting betting notes on Monday's American League games:
Texas Rangers at Baltimore Orioles (-115, 9)
Hot pitcher: Rangers starter Derek Holland has allowed four earned runs or less in 13 consecutive starts.
Cold pitcher: None.
Weather: Temperatures in the high-80s and partly cloudy skies. Winds will blow out to right field at 7 mph.
Key betting stat: The Rangers are 5-0 in their last five games as a road underdog.
Detroit Tigers at Cleveland Indians (146, 8.5)
Hot pitcher: Tigers starter Max Scherzer has won 19 of his last 20 decision and will try to become the first pitcher in 27 years to start 14-0.
Cold pitcher: Tigers lefty specialist Phil Coke has a 6.00 ERA and has surrendered three earned runs in his last four innings pitched.
Weather: Temperatures in the high-70s and a 40 percent of thunderstorms. Winds will blow out to right field at 7 mph.
Key betting stat: The Tigers are 7-1 in the last eight meetings.
Kansas City Royals at New York Yankees (-144, 9)
Hot pitcher:Yankees closer Mariano Rivera blew his first save since May 28 Sunday against the Orioles after surrendering a two-run homer to Adam Jones.
Cold pitcher: Royals starter Jeremy Guthrie will be trying to end a dry spell that has seen him go 0-3 in his last four starts and surrender 19 runs over 22 innings in that span.
Weather: Temperatures in the high-70s and a 40 percent chance of thunderstorms. Winds will blow out to right field at 10 mph.
Key betting stat: The Royals are 6-0 in their last six games following a loss.
Minnesota Twins at Tampa Bay Rays (-148, 8.5)
Hot pitcher: Twins LHP Caleb Thielbar has not allowed a run through his first 17 major-league appearances, a club record to start a career.
Cold pitcher: Minnesota has lost seven of its last eight and its pitchers have allowed 53 runs combined during that span.
Weather: Dome.
Key betting stat: The Rays have won eight of their last nine games and have won five straight over the Twins.
Boston Red Sox at Seattle Mariners (-109, 7)
Hot pitcher: Mariners lefty Oliver Perez has only allowed two earned runs in his past 19 appearances (15 2/3 innings pitched).
Cold pitcher: Red Sox starter Jon Lester has yielded 22 runs over his past five starts and his ERA has ballooned to 4.41 from 3.60 during that span.
Weather: Temperatures in the mid-70s and clear skies. Winds will blow in from left field at 7 mph.
Key betting stat: The Red Sox are 7-1 in their last eight Monday games.
INTERLEAGUE
Chicago Cubs at Chicago White Sox (-102, 8)
Hot pitcher: Cubs starter Matt Garza has been superb over his past four starts, going 3-0 while allowing just four earned runs.
Cold pitcher: White Sox reliever Matt Lindstrom has been touched up for three earned runs over his past three appearances (1 2/3 innings pitched).
Weather: Temperatures in the low-80s and a 30 percent chance of thunderstorms. Winds will blow out from right to left at 9 mph.
Key betting stat: The over is 7-0 in the Cubs' last seven games vs. a team with a losing record.
MLB: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Oakland Athletics at Pittsburgh Pirates
A superb pitching duel is on tap at PNC Park Monday when Pirates left-hander Jeff Locke matches pitches with A's righty Bartolo Colon. Locke 8-1 on the season with a sparkling 2.12 ERA is off back-2-back victories and heads to the mound on a 16-game undefeated streak. Locke has yet to lose at PNC Park this season going 4-0 with Pirates 6-2 over his eight starts. Colon experiencing a rare loss last outing giving up 2 runs over 7.0 innings his first defeat in nine trips to the hill has an 11-3 mark on the campaign with a 2.78 ERA. Colon carries to the mound a 6-2 record in eight road starts. From a team perspective, these division leading clubs have both done well against the opposite league. Pirates are 11-3 vs the Junior League split between 5-2 at home, 6-1 away, Athletics 11-4 going 8-2 at home, 3-2 on the road. A pitching duel to be sure with the balance swinging A's way as they're 6-0 opening a series w/Colon, the hurler is 6-1 off a super quality start (=>7 inn, >3 runs), 7-1 in night games and A's are 5-2 as road dogs vs a left-handed starter. One final tid-bit, Pirates nipped 4-3 Sunday have not responded well from a one-run loss, they're 0-3 at home in the situation.
Cincinnati Reds at Milwaukee Brewers
Cincinnati opens a three game set at Miller Park Monday and sends out Homer Bailey who just delivered his second career no-hitter in the last 10 months. Reds are expected to be healthy road favorite with MR NO-NO on the hill and having done quite well vs Milwaukee this season winning 6-of-7 meetings. Plenty of reason to back Cinci, but baseball handicapping involves looking at all angles and a few stand out against the Reds in this one. Reds are just 5-8 last few years at Miller Park. Reds lone loss vs Brewers this season came w/Bailey on the mound with a deeper dive showing the club on a 1-4 skid vs Milwaukee w/Bailey. Other MLB handicapping trends of interest, pitchers off unbelievable mastery on the mound have not always performed to expectation the next start. A cruise through our trusted baseball betting data base tells us the last eight hurlers recording a perfect game had a 4-4 TSR the following trip to the mound while the last sixteen pitchers and one team (Seattle) recording no-hitters have an 8-9 TSR the next start. One final tid-bit: When one of these amazing hurlers faces a division foe the next game the TSR tumbles to 4-7. Little wonder, division foes face each other many times each season therefore are well aware of strengths, weaknesses of each player and team. By the way, Bailey lasted 4 innings getting tagged with a ND following his NO-NO last September in a loss to division rival St Louis.
MLB Odds and Picks -- Vegas top moneymakers meet when A's visit Pirates
By: The Linemakers
Sportingnews.com
Monday's game between Pittsburgh and Oakland isn’t just about two first-place teams squaring off, it’s also a matchup between the two biggest moneymakers in the Las Vegas sports-betting industry.
The Pirates, while compiling a 53-34 record, have paid loyal bettors $2,402 if wagering $100 units each game, which is by far the highest total in baseball this season and possibly the main reason bettors aren't backing off the Bucs. The next-best moneymaker has been the A’s, showing a $1,267 profit.
Only 12 teams have shown a profit for the first half of the season. The Pirates compiled their lofty numbers by winning as underdogs quite often, but that has changed lately due to winning. Favored in the last two games at Wrigley Field, they proceeded to lose each. But in tonight’s home game, they are a pick ’em in a matchup between two All-Star pitchers, Bartolo Colon (11-3, 2.78 ERA) and Jeff Locke (8-1, 2.12 ERA). Locke has allowed two runs or less in his last five starts and has allowed no runs in seven of his 17 starts this season. The left-hander comes off a 6-5 win against the Phillies on Wednesday in which he allowed only two earned runs in 5.2 innings.
Colon had won a career-high eight consecutive starts with a 1.37 ERA before losing 3-1 to the Cubs on Wednesday. He allowed only two runs in seven innings in the loss. In four starts against the Pirates, he’s 2-1 with 1.50 ERA, but hasn’t faced them since 2007.
If looking at past history, the Pirates don’t appear to have a chance today. The A’s have gone 9-0 against them in interleague play -- they have never met in the postseason -- and have won by a 65-28 margin. Their last visit to Pittsburgh was in 2002. But the new and improved Pirates have won eight straight in interleague play, outscoring their opponents 41-21.
Today’s matchup could be a possible World Series preview between two of the best-run franchises in baseball. While Oakland plucks away the best low-rent castoffs in baseball using sabermetrics, the Pirates have gone the way of Tampa Bay by building a beast from within. Pittsburgh has used the draft to become a major player in the game and should see its first winning season since 1992, Barry Bonds' last season with the Bucs.
We think the Pirates will get the win tonight and end their two-game losing streak. Losing two in a row is a rarity for the Pirates. The last time it happened before Sunday was June 5 at Atlanta when they lost three straight. The only other time they lost three straight was in the first week of the season to the Dodgers when they started 1-5.
If thinking World Series champions for either team, Oakland is currently 10-to-1 while the Pirates are 15-to-1.
Monday's selections:
Pirates (Locke) -105 vs. A’s
Royals (Jeremy Guthrie) +132 at Yankees
Cubs (Matt Garza) +107 at White Sox
Rangers (Derek Holland) +101 at Orioles
Mets (Matt Harvey) -110 at Giants
Mets/Giants UNDER 6.5 (-110)
Season to date record: 162-159-2 (+766)