National League
Braves @ Pirates
Blair is 0-2, 4.95 in his four starts (over 2-2).
Nicasio is 1-2, 4.03 in his last four starts; four of his last six starts went over.
Pirates lost eight of last 13 games (over 9-3-1). Atlanta lost nine of its last 11 games; five of its last seven games stayed under.
Marlins @ Phillies
Chen is 3-0, 4.01 in his last four starts (over 4-3).
Velasquez is 4-1, 3.32 in his seven starts (under 4-3).
Miami is 15-6 in its last 21 games; over is 11-3-1 in their last 15 road games. Phillies won six of their last nine games- five of their last seven home games stayed under.
Nationals @ Mets
Scherzer is 2-1, 4.00 in his last four starts (over 4-2-2).
Syndergaard is 1-2, 3.76 in his last four starts; four of his last five starts went over.
Washington lost its last four road games; under is 3-1-1 in its last five games overall. Mets lost five of their last six games; seven of their last eight stayed under.
Cubs @ Brewers
Hendricks is 2-0, 2.04 in his last three starts (under 4-2).
Anderson is 0-5, 9.99 in his last five starts; over is 5-1-1 in his starts.
Cubs are 11-3 in their last 14 games (over 10-4). Milwaukee is 5-3 in its last eight home games; four of its last five games overall stayed under.
Rockies @ Cardinals
Bettis is 1-2, 5.47 in his last four starts; four of his last six starts stayed under.
Garcia is 2-0, 1.29 in his last two starts; under is 4-1-1 in his last six.
Rockies won their last four games; six of their last eight stayed under. St Louis won four of its last six games; six of its last eight went over.
Giants @ Padres
Bumgarner is 3-0, 2.36 in his last four starts, all of which went over.
Rea is 2-0, 3.32 in his last three starts (over 5-2).
Giants won last five games, allowing 11 runs; under is 8-1 in their last nine. Padres won four of last six games; four of their last five stayed under.
American League
Mariners @ Orioles
Miley is 3-0, 3.14 in his last four starts, three of which went over.
Jimenez is 1-2, 6.08 in his last four starts (under 5-2).
Seattle lost its last three games; four of its last five went over. Baltimore won seven of last eight games; under is 6-4 in their last 10 home games.
Rays @ Jays
Archer is 2-0, 2.28 in his last four starts; five of his last seven stayed under.
Stroman is 1-0, 3.00 in his last three starts; four of his last six starts stayed under. .
Tampa Bay lost five of its last seven games; four of its last six stayed under. Blue Jays lost four of last five games (over 4-1).
Twins @ Tigers
Hughes is 0-4, 8.50 in his last four starts; his last three starts went over. .
Pelfrey is 0-4, 7.07 in his seven starts; his last three starts went over.
Minnesota is 4-17 on the road; over is 9-3 in their last 12 games. Detroit lost 11 of last 14 games; eight of its last ten went over.
Astros @ White Sox
Keuchel is 0-4, 7.98 in his last five starts (over 3-1-1).
Rodon is 0-3, 7.42 in his last five starts (under 5-2).
Houston lost its last four games, all of which went over. White Sox lost four of their last five games; eight of their last ten games went over.
Red Sox @ Royals
Porcello is 6-1, 3.11 so far this season; four of his last six starts stayed under.
Ventura is 1-2, 8.36 in his last three starts (under 4-3).
Boston won seven of its last eight games; its last seven games went over. Royals are 4-7 in their last 11 games; their last three games stayed under.
Rangers @ A's
Hamels is 2-0, 3.70 in his last four starts (under 4-3).
Surkamp is 0-3, 6.55 in five starts (under 4-1). Oakland scored total of 13 runs in those five games.
Texas won eight of last ten games; seven of its last nine games went over. A's won three of last four games; six of their last eight games went over.
Interleague
Reds @ Indians
Simon is 1-3, 8.27 in his last five starts (over 4-1-1). .
Salazar is 2-2, 1.94 in his seven starts (under 5-1-1).
Reds lost six of their last eight games; under is 3-2-1 in their last six. Indians lost three of last five games; over is 7-3-1 in their last eleven.
Bronx @ Diamondbacks
Pineda is 0-3, 7.06 in his last four starts, all of which went over.
Greinke is 1-1, 3.79 in his last three starts; five of his last seven stayed under.
Bronx is 7-4 in its last 11 games; seven of its last eight games went over. Arizona lost five of last six games; four of its last five games stayed under the total.
Angels @ Dodgers
Weaver is 0-2, 10.20 in his last three starts; three of his last four went over.
Kershaw is 3-0, 0.72 in his last three starts (over 4-4).
Angels won their last four games; four of their last five games went over. Dodgers won three of last five games; three of their last four games went over.
Teams won-lost records when this pitcher starts:
Atl-Pitt-- Blair 0-4; Nicasio 4-3
Mia-Phil-- Chen 4-3; Velasquez 5-2
Wsh-NY-- Scherzer 5-3; Syndergaard 4-3
Chi-Mil-- Hendricks 3-3; Anderson 2-5
Col-StL-- Bettis 3-4; Garcia 4-3
SF-SD-- Bumgarner 5-3; Rea 5-2
Sea-Balt-- Miley 5-2; Jimenez 4-3
Bos-KC-- Porcello 6-1; Ventura 5-2
TB-Tor-- Archer 3-5; Stroman 5-3
Minn-Det-- Hughes 1-6; Pelfrey 1-6
Hst-Chi-- Keuchel 2-6; Rodon 2-5
Tex-A's-- Hamels 6-1; Surkamp 2-3
Cin-Clev-- Simon 1-5; Salazar 3-4
NY-Az-- Pineda 2-5; Greinke 4-4
LAA-LA-- Weaver 3-4; Kershaw 7-1
Starting pitchers allowing 1+ runs in first inning:
Atl-Pitt-- Blair 2-4; Nicasio 2-7
Mia-Phil-- Chen 3-7; Velasquez 2-7
Wsh-NY-- Scherzer 4-8; Syndergaard 1-7
Chi-Mil-- Hendricks 2-6; Anderson 3-7
Col-StL-- Bettis 2-7; Garcia 1-7
SF-SD-- Bumgarner 2-8; Rea 4-7
Sea-Balt-- Miley 2-7; Jimenez 2-7
Bos-KC-- Porcello 2-7; Ventura 3-7
TB-Tor-- Archer 3-8; Stroman 1-8
Minn-Det-- Hughes 4-7; Pelfrey 5-7
Hst-Chi-- Keuchel 3-8; Rodon 3-7
Tex-A's-- Hamels 2-7; Surkamp 1-5
Cin-Clev-- Simon 3-6; Salazar 0-7
NY-Az-- Pineda 4-7; Greinke 2-8
LAA-LA-- Weaver 2-7; Kershaw 7-1
Umpires
Mia-Phil-- Three of four Basner games went over.
Az-Pitt-- Six of last nine Kulpa games stayed under.
TB-Tor-- Road team won five of last six Wegner games.
Minn-Det-- Under is 3-1-1 in last five Nelson games.
Tex-A's-- Three of last four Barry games stayed under.
Cin-Clev-- Under is 5-1-1 in last seven Everitt games.
NY-Az-- Three of last four Culbreth games stayed under.
LA-LA-- Favorites won seven of last eight Gibson games.
Armadillosports.com
MLB: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Washington vs New York
Both the NY Mets and Washington National look to halt skids when the two clubs open a three-game set at Citi Field Tuesday night.
For the home team, Noah Syndergaard looks to help the New York Mets avoid a five-game skid. Syndergaard bringing a 3-2 record, 2.53 ERA to the mound has yet to record a win at home but carries a solid 7-2 team start record opening a series.
On the other mound, Max Scherzer is tasked with helping Nationals avoid a three game slide. Scherzer off a nine-inning gem striking out 20 batters heads to the hill with a 4-2 record, 4.15 ERA but is saddled with a 1-3 team start record vs Mets since his arrival in Washington.
Tuesday's Diamond Notes
By Kevin Rogers
VegasInsider.com
Hottest team: Giants (7-3 last 10)
San Francisco picked up a nice amount of revenge on Arizona this past weekend after getting swept by the Diamondbacks at home last month. The Giants pulled off a four-game sweep of Arizona at Chase Field, while giving up only seven runs in the four victories. San Francisco is riding a five-game winning streak, as the Giants travel south to San Diego to face a Padres’ squad that is returning home from a 4-3 road trip. Madison Bumgarner gets the ball in the opener at Petco Park, as the Giants are 4-0 in his last four starts, while the ‘over’ has cashed each time.
Coldest team: Blue Jays (3-6 last nine)
It’s been a rough couple of days for Toronto, coming off the brawl at Texas on Sunday, followed by a 13-2 drubbing at the hands of the Rays on Monday. The Blue Jays dropped to 19-21, even though that’s a better record through 40 games than the 18-22 mark to begin last season when Toronto eventually won the AL East title. Toronto has lost three straight games at Rogers Center, as Marcus Stroman looks to turn things around and improve on his 4-0 record against Tampa Bay.
Hottest pitcher: Rick Porcello, Red Sox (6-1, 3.11 ERA)
Porcello received an extra day off following Monday’s rain-out at Kansas City. The Boston right-hander has won six of seven decisions this season, while allowing six earned runs in his last four starts. The Red Sox own a 2-1 record in his three road outings, while Porcello has received at least five runs of support in five of his seven trips to the mound. However, Porcello is winless in his last three starts against the Royals since 2014.
Coldest pitcher: Dallas Keuchel, Astros (2-5, 5.58 ERA)
The Cy Young hangover for the Houston southpaw is evident as Keuchel is winless in his last five trips to the hill. Keuchel was racked by the Red Sox his last time out, giving up 10 hits and eight earned runs in six innings of work of an 11-1 defeat, the fourth straight road loss for the left-hander. Keuchel has allowed at least five earned runs in four of his last five starts, while the Astros have plated two runs or less in each of his past four outings.
Biggest UNDER run: Diamondbacks (6-2-1 last nine at home)
Arizona’s offense exploded in Monday’s opener against the Yankees, as the D-backs eclipsed the ‘over’ for only the second time in the past nine games at Chase Field. Last night’s performance snapped a 10-game home streak of scoring four runs or less, as Arizona sends out Zack Greinke to the mound. Greinke has hit the ‘under’ in three of his last four home starts, while the Yankees have scored three runs or less in each of Michael Pineda’s previous six outings.
Biggest OVER run: Red Sox (7-0 last seven)
Boston’s offense is coming off an incredible homestand by plating 73 runs in seven games, while going ‘over’ the total in each contest. The Red Sox have finished ‘under’ the total in four of the past six games away from Fenway Park as they travel to Kansas City to begin a three-game series. The Royals were riding an 8-1 mark to the ‘over’ prior to three consecutive ‘unders’ cashed in this past weekend’s series against the Braves. In seven meetings last season between the Red Sox and Royals, the ‘over’ finished 5-1-1.
Matchup to watch: Nationals vs. Mets
These two NL East rivals meet for the first time this season as each team sends out its ace in the series opener. Max Scherzer is coming off one of the most dominant performances of his career in his last outing against the Tigers, striking out 20 in a complete game victory. The last time these teams met to close out the 2015 season at Citi Field, Scherzer struck out 17 batters as he no-hit the Mets, 2-0. Noah Syndergaard counters for New York, as the New York right-hander knocked out two home runs and allowed two earned runs in a 4-3 victory at Los Angeles in his last start. After the Mets won 11 of Syndergaard’s 14 starts at Citi Field last season, the Mets own a 1-2 record in his three home starts in 2016.
Betcha didn’t know: Last season as a member of the Red Sox, Wade Miley allowed 12 runs in 6.1 innings against the Orioles. Miley gets another shot at Baltimore to open its three-game series at Camden Yards as the Mariners have won each of his past four starts, including a 3-1 record in his four outings away from Safeco Field.
Biggest public favorite: Pirates (-175) vs. Braves
Biggest public underdog: Yankees (+120) at Diamondbacks
Biggest line move: White Sox (+100 to -110) vs. Astros
Royals, Red Sox square off
By Sportsbook.ag
BOSTON RED SOX (24-14) at KANSAS CITY ROYALS (18-19)
Sportsbook.ag Line: Boston -127, Kansas City +117, Line: 7.5
After a postponement on Monday, Rick Porcello and the Red Sox kick off a three-game set with Yordano Ventura and the Royals in Kansas City.
The Red Sox (24-14) and the Royals (18-19) will open their series on Tuesday after the opener on Monday was postponed, and then they’ll play a day-night doubleheader on Wednesday. Boston, tied with the Orioles for first place in the American League East, took three out of four from the last-place Astros this past week and have won seven of eight overall.
The Royals (18-19) took two of three from the lowly Braves this past weekend. Prior to that set, Kansas City had lost four out of five.
On the mound for the Red Sox in the series opener will be RHP Rick Porcello (6-1, 3.11 ERA, 46 SO, 10 BB, 6 HR in 46 1/3 IP), who hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in a start since his first outing of the season.
He’ll be opposed by RHP Yordano Ventura (3-2, 4.62 ERA, 26 SO, 28 BB, 4 HR, 37 IP), who has had lots of trouble finding the strike zone.
This will be the first meeting of the season between these two clubs, though Boston has gone 10-4 against the Royals (including a 5-2 mark at Kauffman Stadium) since the start of 2014.
Nine of 13 games between these teams have gone OVER THE TOTAL in that period (including six of seven in Kansas City).
The Red Sox have gone 10-6 away from Fenway Park in 2016, and the Royals have posted an 11-6 home record.
Kansas City has struggled to score this season (131 runs – 13th in AL), and they don’t have much power (33 HR – tied for 13th in AL).
Ned Yost’s best hitter this season, far and away, has been 1B Eric Hosmer (.336, 6 HR, 17 RBI, .392 OBP).
CF Lorenzo Cain (.274, 5 HR, 18 RBI, .338 OBP) has gotten hot of late, but Alex Gordon (.222, 4 HR, 10 RBI, .331 OBP) and DH Kendrys Morales (.201, 5 HR, 16 RBI, .257 OBP) haven’t been themselves at the plate. Kansas City has seen a ton of Porcello, who pitched in Detroit from 2009-14.
Gordon is 11-for-41 against him with two home runs and seven RBIs, and Hosmer is 9-for-26 with a pair of homers.
2B Omar Infante (.236, 0 HR, 4 RBI, .268 OBP) is 6-for-12 against the 27-year-old and Cain is 5-for-13, though SS Alcides Escobar (.264, 0 HR, 11 RBI, .298 OBP) has really struggled against the New Jersey native, going 6-for-34, as has Morales (5-for-25 with 1 HR, 1 2B and 6 SO).
In three career starts against the Red Sox, Ventura has gone 1-2 with a 5.19 ERA.
Unlike the Royals, the Red Sox can really hit. They lead the American League in runs with 229 (the next closest team, the Rangers, have 179), average (.298) and on-base percentage (.359).
An incredible five starters—SS Xander Bogaerts (.338, 4 HR, 22 RBI, .390 OBP), CF Jackie Bradley Jr. (.331, 6 HR, 30 RBI, .374 OBP), DH David Ortiz (.320, 10 HR, 33 RBI, .405 OBP), 1B Hanley Ramirez (.319, 4 HR, 23 RBI, .367 OBP) and 3B Travis Shaw (.317, 5 HR, 26 RBI, .391 OBP)—are hitting over .300, and 2B Dustin Pedroia (.299, 6 HR, 20 RBI, .349 OBP) is right behind them.
No one on John Farrell’s roster has more than seven career at-bats against Ventura. Bogaerts and Bradley Jr. each have a pair of hits off him in seven at-bats, and Ortiz is 2-for-5.
RF Mookie Betts (.262, 6 HR, 27 RBI, .306 OBP) is 2-for-6 against the 24-year-old righty with a double and an RBI. In 20 career starts against the Royals, Porcello is 8-6 with a 4.58 ERA.