Wednesday's MLB National League Betting Cheat Sheet
By Covers.com
Check out our quick-hitting betting notes for Tuesday's American League games:
Atlanta Braves at Milwaukee Brewers (-132)
Hot pitching stat: Brewers right-hander Matt Garza limited right-handers to a .231/.297/.390 slash line last season.
Cold batting stat: Braves outfielder Justin Upton is 2-for-10 with four strikeouts against Garza.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the high-30s with a 33 percent chance of rain and wind blowing in from left field at 8 mph.
Key betting note: Braves are 1-9 in the last 10 meetings in Milwaukee.
Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh Pirates (-160)
Cold pitching stat: Cubs starter Edwin Jackson was 0-4 with a 6.27 ERA in six April starts in 2013.
Hot batting stat: Chicago shortstop Starlin Castro is 6-for-15 in his career against Pirates starter Charlie Morton.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the mid-50s with a 44 percent chance of rain.
Key betting note: Cubs are 1-9 in Jackson's last 10 starts.
Colorado Rockies at Miami Marlins (-109)
Hot pitching stat: Marlins starter Henderson Alvarez didn't allow a home run to a right-handed hitter in 194 at-bats last season.
Hot/Cold batting stat: Miami veteran Garrett Jones is 7-of-14 with a pair of homers lifetime versus Rockies starter Jordan Lyles.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the mid-70s with sunny skies and wind blowing from right to left field at 9 mph.
Key betting note: Under is 7-1-3 in Rockies' last 11 games versus the National League East.
St. Louis Cardinals at Cincinnati Reds (+102)
Hot pitching stat: Reds left-hander Tony Cingrani held opponents to a .196 batting average in 26 appearances.
Hot batting stat: Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday is 2-for-3 with three walks in his career against Cingrani.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the low-60s with a 49 percent chance of thunderstorms and wind blowing in from center field at 5 mph.
Key betting note: Under is 12-3-1 in Cincinnati's last 16 home games.
Washington Nationals at New York Mets (+125)
Hot pitching stat: Nationals lefty Gio Gonzalez went 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA in three starts against the Mets.
Cold batting stat: Mets outfielder Curtis Granderson has just two hits in 16 career at-bats versus Gonzalez.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the mid-50s with partly cloudy skies and wind blowing out to right field at 5 mph.
Key betting note: Nationals are 6-0 in Gonzalez's last six starts against the Mets.
San Francisco Giants at Arizona Diamondbacks (-111)
Cold pitching stat: Diamondbacks righty Trevor Cahill was tagged for five runs on eight hits over four innings in his first start of the season.
Cold batting stat: Arizona first baseman Paul Goldschmidt batted .212 with 17 strikeouts in 66 at-bats against San Francisco in 2013.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the low-60s with partly cloudy skies and wind blowing from left to right field at 15 mph.
Key betting note: Over is 8-2 in Arizona's last 10 home games against right-handed starters.
Los Angeles Dodgers at San Diego Padres (+103)
Cold pitching stat: Dodgers right-hander Dan Haren went 2-3 with a 6.29 ERA in April last year.
Cold batting stat: Padres outfielder Will Venable has just one hit - a homer - in 13 career at-bats versus Haren.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the high-50s with a 94 percent chance of rain and wind blowing from left to right field at 11 mph.
Key betting note: Under is 6-0 in the last six meetings in San Diego.
Wednesday's MLB American League Betting Cheat Sheet
By Covers.com
Check out our quick-hitting betting notes for Wednesday's American League games:
Kansas City Royals at Detroit Tigers (-190)
Hot pitching stat: Tigers right-hander Max Scherzer was 3-0 with 28 strikeouts in 27 innings against the Royals in 2013.
Hot batting stat: Royals outfielder Alex Gordon is 11-for-28 with a pair of homers lifetime against Scherzer.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the mid-40s with partly cloudy skies and wind blowing from left to right field at 5 mph.
Key betting note: Tigers are 7-1 in their last eight games against a left-handed starter.
Minnesota Twins at Chicago White Sox (-135)
Cold pitching stat: Twins righty Kevin Correia was 4-8 with a 5.24 ERA in 15 road starts a season ago.
Hot batting stat: Minnesota outfielder Josh Willingham has three hits, including a homer, in six at-bats against White Sox starter Felipe Paulino.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the mid-30s with a 64 percent chance of rain and wind blowing from left to right field at 13 mph.
Key betting note: Twins are 3-14 in Correia's last 17 starts.
Cleveland Indians at Oakland Athletics (-117)
Hot pitching stat: Indians starter Zach McAllister threw 7 2/3 shutout innings in his only start against Oakland last year.
Hot batting stat: Cleveland infielder Ryan Raburn is 3-for-5 with four RBIs in his career against Athletics starter Jesse Chavez.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the high-50s with partly cloudy skies and wind blowing from left to right field at 6 mph.
Key betting note: Under is 7-1 in Cleveland's last eight games versus the American League West.
Boston Red Sox at Baltimore Orioles (-107)
Cold pitching stat: Orioles right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez struggled in April last season, going 1-2 with a 7.13 RA in five starts.
Hot batting stat: Red Sox veteran Jonny Gomes has five hits, including a pair of homers, in 12 at-bats versus Jimenez.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the high-50s with a 33 percent chance of showers.
Key betting note: Under is 23-5-2 in Lackey's last 30 starts on grass.
Toronto Blue Jays at Tampa Bay Rays (-170)
Cold pitching stat: Blue Jays lefty Mark Buehrle went 0-2 with a 5.76 ERA in four starts versus the Rays in 2013.
Cold batting stat: Rays outfielder David DeJesus is a .179 hitter in 78 career at-bats against Buehrle.
Weather: N/A
Key betting note: Over is 7-1 in Tampa Bay's last eight games against division foes.
New York Yankees at Houston Astros (+138)
Cold pitching stat: Yankees righty Hiroki Kuroda went 4-10 with a 4.05 ERA on the road last season, compared to 7-3, 2.35 at home.
Cold batting stat: New York outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury hit just 6-for-31 against the Astros in 2013.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the high-70s with a 20 percent chance of rain and wind blowing out to left-center field at 13 mph.
Key betting note: Under is 10-1-1 in New York's last 12 games.
Seattle Mariners at Los Angeles Angels (-130)
Cold pitching stat: Angels lefty Hector Santiago was 1-4 with a 4.08 ERA at home last year.
Hot batting stat: Los Angeles outfielder Mike Trout batted .352 in 71 at-bats against Seattle in 2013.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the mid-50s under partly cloudy skies with wind blowing from left to right field at 6 mph.
Key betting note: Under is 7-0 in Seattle's last seven games against a left-handed starter.
Interleague
Philadelphia Phillies at Texas Rangers (-150)
Cold pitching stat: Phillies righty Kyle Kendrick was 4-8 with a 4.91 ERA in 15 road starts last year.
Hot/Cold batting stat: Rangers first baseman Prince Fielder is 3-for-5 with a homer and five RBIs versus Kendrick.
Weather: Temperatures will be in the high-70s with a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms and wind blowing in from right field at 14 mph.
Key betting note: Over is 5-1-1 in Texas' last seven games.
MLB: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Washington Nationals at New York Mets
When a series of favorable baseball betting conditions emerge, the sports betting community takes notice. Such is the case with the Tuesday matchup that has Washington Nationals and left-hander Gio Gonzalez taking on the New York Mets. The Nationals' hurler heads to the mound with a solid 8-3 April Team Start Record since arriving in Washington back in 2012. Gonzales also hits the rubber with a near perfect 6-1 TSR as a member of the Nationals when facing New York Mets. MLB handicappers digging deeper will also find Nationals have thrived in game-two of a series posting a smart 12-3 record last 15 occurrences and performed exceptionally well after allowing five or more runs the previous game going 10-1 last eleven situations. The baseball handicapping numbers in Washington and Gonzalez's favor along with Mets struggling against southpaw starters the past fifteen games (3-12) the MLB pick for today is Washington. According to the current betting odds at BOVADA.LV, the Nationals are -$1.40 road favorite with a total of 7.
Phillies, Rangers finish series
By Sportsbook.ag
Philadelphia Phillies (1-1) at Texas Rangers (1-1)
Sportsbook.ag Line: Texas -170, Philadelphia +160, Total: 9.5
The Phillies and Rangers wrap up their first series of the 2014 season when they play the rubber match of their three-game set on Wednesday night.
Philadelphia's big acquisitions in the offseason were surprising as the team added even more age to its veteran club with OF Marlon Byrd (36 years old) and RHP A.J. Burnett (37 years old). Of the eight offensive players that started on Opening Day for the Phils, five were over the age of 34, but this group has shown that they still have signs of life with 16 runs on 25 hits in the first two games.
Texas made news in its offseason when it dealt Ian Kinsler for big-bopper 1B Prince Fielder, while also adding free agent OF Shin-Soo Choo in an attempt to bolster its offense. With 13 runs and 24 hits over the first two games, scoring runs won't be a problem for the Rangers. But injuries to three of their starting pitchers (Yu Darvish, Matt Harrison, Derek Holland) have given them limited pitching depth, and players like Joe Saunders and Robbie Ross will need to fill the void for the time being.
The visiting Phillies will be sending veteran RHP Kyle Kendrick (10-13, 4.70 ERA in 2013) to the mound while Texas will send the aforementioned youngster, LHP Robbie Ross (4-2, 3.03 ERA as a reliever in 2013), to the bump, as he tries to win the series for his team. Before this three-game set, these two clubs had not faced each other since 2011, when the Phillies won 2-of-3 games at home. On the road last season, Philadelphia really struggled with a 30-51 record (.370), while the Rangers had a strong 46-36 home record (.561).
Kyle Kendrick has been a solid innings-eater for the Phillies for years now and topped 180 frames for the second time in his career last season. He added a curveball to his repertoire during Spring Training, and it seemed to improve his game as he went 1-0 with a 2.81 ERA (1.25 WHIP) and 13 strikeouts in 16 innings. Kendrick has yet to face the Rangers, but has gone toe-to-toe with some of the players on the roster and a few of them have taken him to the woodshed.
In their careers, 1B Prince Fielder (3-for-5, 1 HR, 5 RBI), OF Shin-Soo Choo (2-for-8, 2 HR, 4 RBI) and 3B Adrian Beltre (2-for-4, 2 doubles) have all had success in the matchup.
The Phillies bullpen really had its struggles in 2013, having the fourth-worst ERA (4.19) while going 25-26 and converting only 32-of-48 save opportunities (67%). This season has been no different, as the relievers have already allowed four runs on six hits and six walks in 6.1 innings (5.69 ERA, 1.90 WHIP). Closer Jonathan Papelbon (5-1, 2.92 ERA in 2013) has been one of the best ninth-inning pitchers for nearly a decade and has 286 saves in 326 chances (88%) in his career, but saved fewer than 30 games (29) last year for the first time since 2005.
Robbie Ross has spent the last two seasons with the Rangers as a relief pitcher, throwing in 123 games (127.1 IP) over that time. He was effective in that role with a 2.62 ERA and 25 holds, but injuries to several arms in the Texas rotation forced Ross back to his original role he had when he first joined the organization. Ross last started when he made six starts for the Texas Double-A affiliate in 2011, going 1-1 with a 2.81 ERA and 8.4 K/9. He also started three times this spring, pitching seven scoreless innings while striking out eight batters in his last appearance.
Philadelphia’s offense has been hot so far against Texas’ shallow rotation while having 17 hits over the first two games of the series and should be fresh in the beginning of the season while having plenty of aging players.
The Rangers actually boasted one of the best relief corps in the league last season, pitching to a 35-18 record and 2.91 ERA (4th in league) while converting 46-of-57 saves (81%). RHP Joakim Soria (1-0, 3.80 ERA in 2013) has not pitched more than 25 innings since 2011, but is an experienced closer with 160 saves in 180 opportunities (89%) between 2007 and 2011 with the Royals, and earned the win for Texas on Tuesday night. However, the 'pen has been shaky in the two games with a 7.56 ERA and 1.68 WHIP in 8.1 innings.