MLB: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Baltimore Orioles at Toronto Blue Jays
In one of only five scheduled for Major League Baseball on Thursday the Toronto Blue Jays try to inch closer to the .500 level when they open a four game set against division rival Baltimore Orioles. The Jays (19-27, -$904) won for the fifth time in six home games Wednesday defeating Rays 4-3 in 10-innings. Jose Bautista was the hero in the victory going 4 for 4 with 2 yard-ball. Jays pin their hopes on Brandon Morrow (1-3, 5.16 ERA). The right-hander will be looking to improve on his first start since returning from upper back/neck injury an outing that saw the hurler post 5 innings of 7 hit 5 run ball in a loss at New York. Meanwhile, Orioles (25-21, +$350) off a pair of wins over Yankees but just 2-6 last eight on the diamond count on Kevin Gausman in the opener. Gausman making his Major League debut was 2-4 with a 3.11 ERA in eight starts with Double-A Bowie. Blue Jays turning things around winning 6-of-9 plating 5.8 runs/game are worth a second look as they're on a smart 3-1 stretch vs Orioles w/Morrow, own an impressive 28-8 (+$1614) mark last thirty-six as favorites hosting Baltimore.
MLB Odds and Picks
By: The Linemakers
Sportingnews.com
LAS VEGAS – There are only five games on Thursday’s MLB card, the most interesting of which is the Angels – riding a season-high four-game winning streak – traveling to Kansas City to play a Royals squad fresh off of losing a series against the Astros. The Royals have lost 12 of their last 16 games and fell below .500 for the first since April 6 with their 3-1 loss on Wednesday.
The Angels, meanwhile, are finally giving us a sample of what their talented roster shows on paper. Mike Trout has been on a tear over his last 21 games, batting .359 with seven home runs and 22 RBIs after hitting just .252 with two homers and 12 RBIs over his first 27 games.
But it feels like we’ve already seen this episode a couple of times this season, the one where the Angels fool us into thinking they’re finally living up to expectations, only to lapse into another losing stretch. They won three in a row in a sweep over the Cardinals, April 19-21, then proceeded to lose seven of their next nine games. They started another three-game win streak on May 9, but then lost five of their next six.
Their current four-game run has come behind timely hitting and usually great starting pitching. They have outscored their opponents by a combined 37-12 over their recent surge. However, they are still only 19-27, 10.5 games behind the Rangers in the AL West, a massive hole to climb out of.
The exception to the great starting pitching over L.A.’s four-game win streak was Joe Blanton (0-7, 6.62 ERA), who takes the mound tonight. Blanton lasted just 4 1/3 innings Saturday, allowing 11 hits and four runs to the White Sox in a game the Angels eventually won, 12-9, behind Alberto Callaspo’s five RBIs. Ironically, as bad as Blanton was, it was the first time the Angels had won a game he started all season. The Angels had lost eight consecutive games behind Blanton, and he got tagged for the loss in seven of them.
Blanton has given up more than four earned runs only twice in his nine starts, and one those games was 10 days ago at Anaheim against the same Royals lineup he’ll face tonight. In 4 2/3 innings, he gave up seven runs off 12 hits in an 11-4 loss. So what’s in store for Blanton tonight?
You have to be impressed by the Angels’ recent hitting. Everyone has chipped in, including the likes of Howie Kendrick (.333 in May), but can you really side with Blanton?
It’s hard to go against a winning streak, and the Royals have been playing poorly lately, but Blanton has been so consistently bad – or good, if you’ve been cashing all season by betting against him.
The Royals come with Ervin Santana (3-3, 2.77 ERA), who had several up-and-down moments during his eight seasons with the Angels, when he posted 96 wins, second most to Jered Weaver over that span. The Royals have lost his past three starts, with Santana taking the loss in the last two.
But the Royals have gotten everything they’ve asked for out of Santana thus far; they just haven’t given him any run support. Over his last three starts, the Royals have averaged only two runs a game. Over his previous four starts – all Royals wins – they gave him only 3.25 runs per game, almost identical to the type of support, or lack of it, he got in his final two seasons with the Angels.
We think Santana will come with another steady performance, and the Royals will score enough off of Blanton to make it last.
Thursday’s selections:
Royals (Santana) -135 vs. Angels
Blue Jays (Morrow) -130 vs. Orioles
Season to date record: 87-76-1 (+1285)