Baseball Information
National League
Diamondbacks @ Pirates
Anderson is 1-3, 7.20 in his last four starts; under is 6-4 in his last ten.
Liriano is 4-0, 3.38 in his last seven starts; his last five went over.
Pittsburgh won eight of last 11 games (over 7-3-1). Pirates won five of last seven games with Arizona; under is 4-0-1 in last five. D'backs lost three of last five games; four of their last seven went over.
Marlins @ Brewers
Conley is 0-0, 5.89 in his two starts (over 2-0); Marlins scored 28 runs in both of those games.
Cravy is 0-4, 5.64 in his four starts; all four games stayed under.
Marlins won five of last seven games; over is 7-2-1 in their last ten- they lost seven of last 11 games with Milwaukee (under 6-3-2). Brewers won three of last four games-- under is 4-1-1 in their last six.
Giants @ Cardinals
Vogelsong is 1-1, 4.34 in his last four starts (over 2-2).
Lynn is 1-2, 8.49 in his last three starts; under is 7-3 in his last ten.
Giants won four of last six games with St Louis; five of last seven in series went over total. SF won four of last five games overall; six of last eight games stayed under. Cardinals won nine of last 12 games; three of last five games went over.
Nationals @ Rockies
Zimmerman is 0-3, 3.68 in his last six starts; over is 4-2-1 in his last seven.
Hale is making first start since July 9; he is 1-4, 7.06 in his last six starts; over is 5-2-1 in his last eight.
Washington lost its last six games, allowing 36 runs; over is 4-2-1 in their last seven games; Nationals lost three of last four with Colorado; over is 3-1-1 in last five series games. Rockies lost six of last seven games; three of their last four games went over the total.
Braves @ Padres
Former Padre farmhand Wisler is 0-1, 8.40 in his last three starts; four of his last five went over.
Padres are 2-11 in las 13 Shields starts (0-2, 4.50 in his last four); four of his last five starts went over.
Atlanta lost five of last seven games; over is 7-4-1 in their last 12. Braves lost six of last eight games with San Diego- five of last six went over the total. Padres won five of last seven games overall-- nine of their last 12 went over.
American League
Twins @ Bronx
Pelfrey is 0-2, 12.64 in his last four road starts; three of his last four starts overall went over the total.
Sabathia is 0-1, 2.25 in his last two starts; over is 6-4 in his last ten.
Minnesota lost six of last eight games with Bronx; eight of last nine in series went over. Twins won four of last seven games overall, with three of last four staying under. Bronx won four of last five; four of their last six went under.
Indians @ Red Sox
Bauer is 1-4, 6.11 in his last six starts; six of his last nine stayed under.
Rodriguez is 1-3, 7.36 in his last five starts (over 4-1).
Red Sox won five of last eight home games, scoring 76 runs; their last eight games overall went over. Cleveland lost three of last five games; four of their last six stayed under. Tribe won six of last eight vs Boston; five of those eight games stayed under the total.
Mariners @ Rangers
Iwakuma pitched a no-hitter last time out; he is 2-0, 1.46 in his last three starts. Five of his last seven starts stayed under.
Gonzalez is 0-3, 9.47 in his last four starts (over 3-1).
Rangers lost seven of last nine games with Seattle; under is 8-3 in last eleven series games. Texas won its last five games overall; five of their last six at home stayed under. Mariners lost three of last four games; four of their last six games went over the total
Rays @ Astros
Odorizzi is 0-0, 4.82 in his last three starts; four of his last five went over.
Feldman is 1-0, 2.16 in his last four starts; over is 5-3 in his last eight.
Tampa Bay lost three of last four games, allowing 24 runs; over is 9-3 in their last 12 games. Astros won three of last five games; six of their last nine stayed under total. Rays won eight of their last nine games with Houston (under 6-2-1).
White Sox @ Angels
Danks is 1-1, 2.37 in his last three starts; four of his last stayed under.
Richards is 1-3, 4.54 in his last five starts; three of his last four went over.
White Sox won four of last five games with the Angels; home side won nine of last 11 series games. Chicago won four of last seven games; over is 7-5 in its last 12 games. Angels lost six of their last eight games; five of their last seven went under the total.
Interleague
Blue Jays @ Phillies
Dickey is 4-0, 1.91 in his last six starts; five of his last seven stayed under.
Nola is 3-0, 4.94 in his last four starts (Phils scored 34 runs); all four games went over the total.
Toronto won nine of last ten games with Philly; four of last five went over the total. Blue Jays won 12 of last 14 games overall; eight of their last nine went under the total. Philly lost five of last six; its last three games stayed under.
Mets @ Orioles
deGrom is 3-0, 1.31 in his last six starts; three of his last four stayed under.
Gausman lost his last two starts but is 1-0, 0.86 in his last three home starts; under is 6-2-1 in his last nine starts overall.
Orioles won six of last seven home games, but lost last eight games with the Mets; eight of last nine series games stayed under. New York lost last three games, scoring total of six runs- three of their last four games went over
Royals @ Reds
Volquez is 1-2, 4.05 in his last thee starts; four of his last six stayed under.
Iglesias is 2-1, 2.89 in his last three starts; three of his last four went over.
Royals won seven of last eight games against the Reds; four of last five in series went over total. KC won eight of its last ten games; three of its last four on road stayed under. Cincinnati lost six of its last eight games; five of its last six went over the total
Tigers @ Cubs
Sanchez is 0-3, 6.94 in his last four starts; over is 7-1-2 in his last ten.
Hammel is 1-0, 2.35 in his last three starts; four of his last six went over.
Cubs won 13 of their last 15 games overall, but lost eight of last ten with the Tigers; over is 7-3 in last ten series games. Detroit lost five of its last seven games, with four of last six staying under
Dodgers @ A's
Kershaw is 5-0, 0.75 in his last six starts; eight of his last nine stayed under.
Doubront is making first start for A's; he was 0-1, 8.56 in his last three starts for Toronto. Over is 3-1-1 in his last five starts
Oakland is off an awful 0-7 road trip in which they were outscored 52-20; they won four of last five games with the Dodgers- five of last six series games stayed under. LA won five of last six games; three of last four went over the total. For what its worth, it is Mark McGwire Bobblehead Night in Oakland.
Win-loss records this year for team with this starting pitcher:
Az-Pitt-- Anderson 8-12; Liriano 12-10
Mia-Mil-- Conley 2-0; Cravy 0-4
SF-StL-- Vogelsong 10-8; Lynn 13-9
Wsh-Col-- Zimmerman 13-11 (0-4 last 4); Hale 2-6
Atl-SD-- Wisler 6-4; Shields 11-14 (2-11 last 13)
Min-NY-- Pelfrey 12-10; Sabathia 10-12
Cle-Bos-- Bauer 10-13 (1-5 last 6); Rodriguez 8-6
Sea-Tex-- Iwakuma 6-5; Gonzalez 4-4
TB-Hst-- Odorizzi 10-9; Feldman 7-8
Chi-LA-- Danks 11-11; Richards 12-10
Tor-Phil-- Dickey 12-12 (5-0 last 5); Nola 4-1
NY-Balt-- deGrom 15-7 (6-0 last 6); Gausman 3-5
KC-Cin-- Volquez 16-8; Iglesias 4-6
Det-Chi-- Sanchez 12-12; Hammel 11-11 (4-1 last 5)
LA-A's-- Kershaw 13-10; Doubront (1-3 w/Tor)
Times this starting pitcher allowed a run in first inning:
Az-Pitt-- Anderson 7-20; Liriano 4-23
Mia-Mil-- Conley 0-2; Cravy 0-4
SF-StL-- Vogelsong 5-18; Lynn 8-22
Wsh-Col-- Zimmerman 7-24; Hale 5-8
Atl-SD-- Wisler 5-10; Shields 9-25
Min-NY-- Pelfrey 3-22; Sabathia 10-12
Cle-Bos-- Bauer 5-23; Rodriguez 3-14
Sea-Tex-- Iwakuma 4-11; Gonzalez 1-8
TB-Hst-- Odorizzi 5-9; Feldman 4-15
Chi-LA-- Danks 7-22; Richards 6-22
Tor-Phil-- Dickey 4-24; Nola 3-5
NY-Balt-- deGrom 6-22; Gausman 3-8
KC-Cin-- Volquez 5-14; Iglesias 3-10
Det-Chi-- Sanchez 6-24; Hammel 9-22
LA-A's-- Kershaw 5-23; Doubront 1-4
Umpires
Az-Pitt-- Home side is 20-5 in Reynolds games; last three stayed under.
Mia-Mil-- Underdogs won five of last seven Miller games.
SF-StL-- Three of last four Wendelstedt games went over.
Atl-SD-- Under is 5-3 in last eight Guccione games.
Min-NY-- Over is 6-1-1 in last eight Hoberg games.
Cle-Bos-- Seven of last nine Muchlinski games stayed under.
Sea-Tex-- Under is 6-1-2 in last nine Hoye games.
TB-Hst-- Favorites won 13 of last 15 Fagan games.
Chi-LA-- Under is 9-4-1 in last fourteen Nauert games.
Armadillosports.com
Game of the Day: Mets at Orioles
By Covers.com
New York Mets at Baltimore Orioles (+101, 7.5)
Jacob deGrom goes for his team-high 11th victory as the New York Mets kick off a nine-game road trip on Tuesday night with the first of two interleague contests against the Baltimore Orioles. The Mets, who hold a 4 1/2-game lead over Washington atop the National League East, will be trying to rebound after getting swept at home in a three-game series versus Pittsburgh.
DeGrom is unbeaten over his last six starts, not allowing a run in half of them to lower his ERA to 2.03 - second in the majors to Zack Greinke of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Orioles opened a 10-game homestand with a four-game sweep of the Oakland Athletics to snag the second wild card in the American League. Seldom-used designated hitter Steve Clevenger followed up Sunday's four-hit performance with the second homer of his career, a three-run shot in Monday's 4-2 victory that moved Baltimore five games over .500 for the first time since July 2. Orioles right-hander Kevin Gausman, who has pitched at least seven innings in three of his past four starts, will oppose deGrom.
LINE HISTORY: The Orioles opened in the +107 range but are now +101. The total opened and remains at 7.5.
INJURY REPORT: Mets - 1B Lucas Duda (Questionable, back), 3B David Wright (60-day DL, back). Orioles - C Matt Wieters (Probable, hamstring).
WEATHER: Temperatures expected to be in the low-80s under mostly cloudy skies. Wind will blow out to center at around 6 mph.
WHAT CAPPERS SAY: "The most impressive thing about the Mets' run this season is that they've done it despite a rash of injuries. Check the current list of injured players on this team (either on the DL or out for the season) and you'll see enough quality players to field a decent AAA-level club. More bad news on the pitching front for the O's who saw the delayed return of ace Chris Tillman on Tuesday go very badly in Seattle. Tillman lasted just 2 1/3 innings in that one. Of course when you can score 18 runs like the O's did on Sunday, it doesn't matter how mediocre your starters are." Covers Expert Big Al McMordie.
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mets RH Jacob deGrom (11-6, 2.03 ERA) vs. Orioles RH Kevin Gausman (2-4, 4.48)
DeGrom matched his season high with four walks last time out, but he more than compensated by striking out 10 and limiting Colorado to two hits over seven scoreless innings. It was the fifth quality start in as many outings since the All-Star break for deGrom, who is 2-0 and has permitted a total of six runs in that span. Since losing his first three decisions away from home this season, deGrom is 5-1 over his last seven road starts.
Gausman struck out eight and yielded three runs over seven innings in his last outing, but it went for naught as the Orioles were no-hit by Seattle's Hisashi Iwakuma. He was tagged for six runs in 5 2/3 innings by the Los Angeles Angels in his previous turn, which followed a pair of solid outings in which he gave up two runs over 14 2/3 innings. Gausman is 1-0 with a 1.50 ERA in six appearances (three starts) at home.
TRENDS:
* Under is 5-0 in the last five meetings.
* Mets are 8-0 in the last eight meetings.
* Mets are 17-4 in deGroms last 21 starts as a favorite.
* Orioles are 0-6 in their last six interleague games as an underdog.
CONSENSUS: Fifty-nine percent of Covers users are backing the visiting Mets.
MLB: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Miami Marlins at Milwaukee Brewers
The Miami Marlins will be looking to continue a solid trend for 'Over' bettors when they visit Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday. In the Marlins last sixteen games 'Over' gamblers have rejoiced with a sparkling 12-3-1 mark at the betting window. Adam Conley with a 5.00 ERA slated to get the ball for Marlins and Tyler Cravy sporting a 5.55 ERA expected to start for Brewers, the total is currently set at 8.5 runs. Note, Marlins have 9 'Over' 3 'Under' 1 'Push' on the road with a total set between 7.5 and 8.5
Washington Nationals at Colorado Rockies
The Washington Nationals have hit the skids and after being blanked in San Francisco Sunday have lost six straight and 20 of 30 since the mid-summer classic. Heading into Colorado Tuesday, the Nats pegged as -$1.55 road favorites will count on Jordan Zimmermann to stop the bleeding. You bet Washington at some risk. The Nationals have lost Zimmermann's last four starts and five of his last seven away games. Nationals have also struggle away from the Capital recently going 4-17 in road games and enter the contest 6-14 on the campaign opening a road series. One final betting nuggets, Nats have struggled following a game in which they were blanked going 2-6 on the year which includes 1-4 on the road.
Seattle Mariners at Texas Rangers
Mariners Hisashi Iwakuma returns to the mound for the first time since tossing a NO-NO vs Orioles on August 12th. Mariners have had success vs Rangers with Iwakuma winning 8 of his last 10 starts. But before you jump all over Mariners keep in mind the last thirteen starters tossing or involved in a no-hitter have a 3-10 team start skid the next trip to the hill. The Mariners are currently -$1.17 favorite when they visit the Texas Rangers Tuesday.
Steve's Screen Shot
By Steve Merril
Dodgers @ A’s -- Clayton Kershaw’s recent 37-inning scoreless streak was snapped back on August 7th in his very first pitch thrown against the Pirates. Five days later, Kershaw threw 8 scoreless innings against the Nationals. LA’s bullpen has a 5.02 ERA on the road, but the southpaw usually takes them out of the equation, having lasted at least eight innings in five of his last six outings. Oakland is only hitting .246 against left-handed starters while going 10-22 against this season. Kershaw is a massive -220 favorite, so look for derivative bets like Oakland team total Under or first 5 innings Under when they open in the morning.
Tigers @ Cubs -- The Cubs are -160 favorites over the Tigers, but Anibal Sanchez already beat the Cubs at home back in June. He held Chicago scoreless on six hits in 7.2 innings of work. My concern is the fact that Sanchez is 3-6 with a 5.09 ERA in nine road starts this season. He has allowed 13 HRs in those games as well. Jason Hammel isn’t going deep in games (5.2 innings per start), but he’s getting results because the Cubs’ bullpen has been solid in his games. Still, there’s value on Tigers in this game, so I lean to the road underdog at +150 or more.
Blue Jays @ Phillies -- Aaron Nola will be making his third home start of the season for Philadelphia. He has allowed just 3 runs and 10 hits in his previous two home outings. Toronto is only hitting .211 while scoring just 3.9 runs per game in their last seven games overall. R.A. Dickey is 4-0 with a 1.49 ERA in his last six starts. The knuckleballer gave up 2 unearned runs to the Phillies back on July 29th in Toronto. Overall, Dickey owns a 2.58 ERA and 1.23 WHIP in 11 career starts against Philadelphia. I like Under 8.5 (-115) in this game.
Mariners @ Rangers -- Backing a pitcher after a no-hitter is always tricky, but there’s a lot to like about Seattle’s Hisashi Iwakuma on Tuesday night. The righty has not lost in four road starts this season, and he just beat the Rangers on August 7th. Overall, Iwakuma is 7-3 with a 3.29 ERA in 12 career starts against the Rangers. Elvis Andrus (6-31), Shin-Soo Choo (3-13), Josh Hamilton (4-18), Leonys Martin (3-19), Mitch Moreland (5-24), and Jurickson Profar (1-11) all struggle with Iwakuma. Seattle -135 is the only way I’m looking in this game.
Tuesday Scouting Edge
By Coach Fletcher
Minnesota Twins at New York Yankees
C.C. Sabathia has dominated the Twins in his career to the tune of a 19-9 record and a 3.13 era. But the last time C.C. went to the hill in Minnesota, the Twins rocked him for 5 runs, 6 hits, and 2 home runs in just 5 2/3 innings. Of course, the Yankee offense responded and Sabathia was spared the loss. C.C. is coming off 2 straight quality starts which is a good sign. On the negative side, he hasn’t won a game since July 8. The Yanks are 23-14 against the Twins when Sabathia starts. He’s only allowed 3 runs in his last 12 innings with 12 hits, but none left the park.
Miami Marlins at Milwaukee Brewers
The Miami Marlins are 47-70. When Giancarlo Stanton went on the DL on July 1, their season was officially over. When Jose Fernandez joined Stanton on the DL August 19, more losses piled up. Look for the Phillies to pass up the Fish in another week. The Milwaukee Brewers are 51-68 and gaining on the Cincinnati Reds in their attempt to avoid the cellar. Adam Conley goes for the Marlins and they aren’t quite sure whether he’s a starter or reliever. He’s had 2 starts recently and has a 5.59 era in his 9 2/3 innings of starting pitching. Tyler Cravy takes the bump for the Brewers. Tyler is 0-4 with a 5.92 era in 24 1/3 innings of work. In Cravy’s last 3 starts he’s given up 13 runs in 15 1/3 innings for a 7.63 era. The Brew Crew opened at -145 with a total of 8.5.
Washington Nationals at Colorado Rockies
The Giants pretty much ended the Nationals season when they swept them in SF last week. The Nats are 4.5 games back of the Mets and 9.5 back for the Wild Card. Say adios to Washington. This squad of underachievers might finally get a win today going against the Rockies who have lost 6 of their last 7 and are only 2 games ahead of the Phillies for the worst record in MLB. Jordan Zimmerman is the starter for the Nats. He is 8-8 with a 3.34 era. He’ll go against David Hale who is 3-4 with a 5.69 era. At home, Hale is much better at 3-1 with a 5.52 era. In Zimmerman’s last start vs the LAD, he went 7 innings and only allowed 2 hits and 1 run. Zimmerman fanned 7 but was still saddled with the loss as the Nats were shut out 3-0 by Clayton Kershaw. Zimmerman seems to have Colorado’s number since he is 5-0 with a 2.10 era. Zimmerman is 2-0 at Coors Field with a 3.74 era. In one start last year at Washington, Hale shut out the Nats on 5 hits in 5 innings. Washington opened up at -160.
Seattle Mariners at Texas Rangers
In his last start, Hisashi Iwakuma no hit the Baltimore Orioles pitching a complete game and walking 3. So what happens after a pitcher throws a no-hitter? In general, the results are not so good. According to sportingcharts.com, pitchers have generally struggled in their subsequent start. Cumulatively, the pitchers combined to post a 4.93 era, 1.38 whip and an 8-10 record in their following start. Looking at perfect games, since 2007 perfecto pitchers had a combined winning percentage of .641. For the remainder of the season after the gem, the percentage dips to .594.
Atlanta Braves at San Diego Padres
The total opened at 7 in this game pitting Matt Wisler for the Braves and James Shields for the Padres. Wisler is 5-2 with a 4.74 era and Shields is 8-5 with a 3.89 era. In his last 3 starts Wisler is 0-1 with an 8.40 era. Shields is also 0-1 in his last 3 starts with a 4.74 era. The totals have gone over in 4 of Wislers last 5 starts and the same holds true for Shields. San Diego tops MLB with 57.9% of their games going over and the Braves have 52.7% of their games going over. However in runs per game stats, the Padres rank 21st at 3.97 and the Braves come in 27th at 3.73. For Iwakuma, he’s 4-2 this year with a 3.86 era. He’s gone 4-1 over his last 5 with a 2.47 era. He’s 7-3 with a 3.50 era in 13 career starts against the Rangers.
Dave's MLB Tuesday
By Dave Essler
Mets-Orioles: If the season ended Monday the Orioles would be a wild card team, and they're only two games behind Toronto in the loss column. The Mets have a LITTLE breathing room but of course must win the NL East because in all likelihood both WC teams in the NL come out of the Central. New York hasn't had a great IL record this season, but the one team they did beat twice was these Orioles. A lot has changed since May. Hard to fade DeGrom and his 0.89 WHIP on the season - Mets haven't been scoring for him - Duda questionble - Gausman has been good (great) at home, but in limited starts and against lesser teams. Not sure how either team scores a ton - both pens solid.
Twins-Yankees: New York gets healthy finally, but headed into Monday had only had more than 8 hits in a game twice in the last eleven games. NOW Sabathia is going to pitch against Pelfrey, and if I thought the Twins would score Monday, I think they will Tuesday. Not sure I can get behind Pelfrey as easily as I could have got behind Gibson. If the total came to 8.5 (it may) I'd give it some serious thought. We'll see what happens Monday night.
Toronto-Phillies: Seems cheap at -175 for the Jays here - but we know Beurhle can struggle. Nola - good, bad, or indifferent, isn't going to pitch deep and no chance of getting behind the Philadelphia pen with it's 5.24 ERA over the last week. Because the Jays haven't seen Nola I could make a case at that price for the Phillies F5 - don't forget Buerlhe has to hit.
Pirates-Arizona: We'll see how the Monday game goes - but if I am ever going to back the D-Backs it's against a left handed pitcher. Liriano looked a little shaky his last three starts and Anderson might fare better in the bigger park at Pittsburgh. Put it this way, -190 isn't happening.
Cleveland-Boston: Automatically not taking the Indians against a LHP - Boston or nothing.
Royals-Reds: What's not to like about the Royals facing a RHP in a small park? Well, they don't get to use the DH and Volquez faces a former team. As hard as it is to look at a Reds game, the Royals pen hasn't been lights-out lately and the Reds never has been - so perhaps the over, money already forced it to 7.5 at Bookmaker.
Tigers-Cubs: I suppose the instinctive thing to do would be to take the Cubs. Maybe - but Hammel has given up a HR in each of his last four starts and hasn't pitched through the sixth inning. Now go to the fact that many of the Cubs have seen Sanchez from his days with the Fish - and the Tigers bullpen isn't existing - so I am interested in that total - but the Tigers will likely sit V-Mart (or perhaps play him at first, but I doubt it) and lets' not forget who IS back for Detroit. Cubs may not be a slam dunk here.
Seattle-Texas: Is Iwakuma over valued off of the no hitter? Certainly not at -125, even to the Rangers who have been hitting. Tough to take Gonzalez now that teams are getting more looks at him, and impossible for me to take the Rangers bullpen. The heat could very well be a factor, especially in the second game, for Seattle. MAYBE the over.
Rays-Astros: The Rays are not far off the Wild Card pace at all, and Houston is obviously trying to fight off the Angels. I think the 'Stros might have overcome the "jitters" of actually playing for something - it seemed like that hit them a couple of weeks ago. Odorizzi was roughed up by the Falcons Braves last time out and isn't the same on the road as he is in the Trop. Have to think this is Houstons' game to lose.
Giants-Cardinals: San Francisco is only two back of the Dodgers in the loss column, while the Cardinals are four clear of the Pirates. Leake just pitched against the Cardinals in St. Louis and shut them out on four hits. Conventional wisdom says St. Louis makes the adjustments - Giants pen is finally performing like they usually do, very well. Perhaps a futures bet on the Giants here. Lynns' last two home starts have not gone well at all, and in fact the last seven games his WHIP is 1.51, which surprised me - throwing conventional wisdom out the window here.
Rays, Astros hook up
By Sportsbook.ag
TAMPA BAY RAYS (59-59) at HOUSTON ASTROS (64-55)
Sportsbook.ag Line: Tampa Bay +100, Houston -110, Total: 8.0
The Rays look to get back over .500 with a win over the Astros in Houston on Tuesday.
Tampa Bay currently sits 6.5 games back in the AL East and will need to really get hot in order to climb its way back into the playoff race. The Rays were fresh off of a three-game sweeping at the hands of the Rangers heading into Monday’s meeting with the Astros, but they were able to come away with a 9-2 victory after really hitting Scott Kazmir hard early on. The Astros had won three of their previous four games before taking the loss on Monday. They’ll need to come away with a victory or two in this series if they want to keep their place at the top of the AL West standings.
Starting this game for the Rays will be RHP Jake Odorizzi (6-6, 3.09 ERA, 99 K) and he’ll be going up against RHP Scott Feldman (5-5, 4.17 ERA, 51 K) for the Astros. These teams have played each other four times this season and the Rays are 4-0 in those contests. Tampa Bay is also 6-2 when playing the Astros in Houston over the past three seasons. This Rays team is 32-21 against the money line after a game where their bullpen gave up no runs this season.
The Astros, meanwhile, are an outstanding 35-14 against the money line after two or more consecutive home games this season. OF Steven Souza (Hand) is out for the Rays in this game and OF George Springer (Wrist) is close to a return for the Astros, but won’t be playing in this one.
Odorizzi really struggled in his last appearance for Tampa Bay, allowing six earned runs on nine hits in just 6.0 innings of work. He had, however, allowed three or less runs in his previous five starts and should be able to turn things around in Houston on Tuesday. The last time he saw this team, the 25-year-old pitched 5.2 innings of shutout baseball and struck out five batters in the process. One guy who will be a real x-factor for Tampa in this game is SS Asdrubal Cabrera (.268, 8 HRs, 32 RBIs). Cabrera went 2-for-4 with three RBIs on Monday and is now 11-for-22 over the past six games. He is also 4-for-7 in his career against Scott Feldman and could be in for a big game on Tuesday.
3B Evan Longoria (.277, 13 HRs, 54 RBIs) was 3-for-5 with two runs scored on Monday for the Rays. He is just 2-for-12 against Feldman in his career, but does have a homer and three RBIs in the matchup. He could really help his team if he is to get it going offensively in this one. 2B Tim Beckham (.227, 6 HRs, 25 RBIs) hit a three-run homer in Monday’s meeting with the Astros. Anything he can provide at the plate would be a big bonus for this team moving forward this season.
Feldman has really started to pitch well lately, allowing just two earned runs in his past 12.0 innings on the mound. He’s picked up three quality starts in his last four outings, but this will be his first time facing the Rays this season. Offensively, this team is going to need to figure out Odorizzi. He shut the Astros out in 5.2 innings of work the last time he pitched against them and Houston’s lineup as a whole is just 5-for-40 against the pitcher lifetime.
If the Astros are going to pick up a victory in this game then SS Carlos Correa (.286, 14 HRs, 38 RBIs) will need to step his game up. Correa hasn’t homered in the past nine games and has just two RBIs in that time. He is one of this team’s most reliable hitters and needs to make something happen at the plate on Tuesday. 2B Jose Altuve (.303, 9 HRs, 50 RBIs), meanwhile, is actually the team’s most reliable hitter. He’s now had a multi-hit performance in six of his past 10 games and the Astros could use another one against Tampa in this game.
DH Evan Gattis (.236, 18 HRs, 61 RBIs) could be an x-factor for Houston here. He homered on Monday and the Astros really need him to get hot moving forward. He is one of their only sources of power and this team can really use some firepower the rest of the season.