Baseball Information
National League
Cubs @ Pirates
Haren was 0-2, 4.50 in his last three starts for Miami; seven of his last 10 starts stayed under the total. .
Locke is 1-2, 5.64 in his last four starts; under is 4-1-1 in his last six.
Cubs won five of their last seven games with Pittsburgh; Chicago won its last six games overall (under 5-0-1). Pirates won five of last eight (under 3-0-1 in last four games).
Dodgers @ Phillies
Anderson is 0-2, 4.98 in his last four starts; under is 3-1-1 in his last five.
Harang is 1-6, 7.94 in his last seven starts (over 5-2).
Phillies are 13-3 since All-Star break; over is 3-1-2 in his last six. Dodgers won four of last six games with the Phillies; under is 5-2-1 in last eight. LA won four of its last five games; over is 3-1-1 in their last five.
Diamondbacks @ Nationals
de la Rosa is 2-0, 2.14 in his last three starts; four of his last six went over.
Gonzalez is 4-0, 2.02 in his last six starts.
Washington is 4-8 in last 12 games overall; six of last nine stayed under the total- they won eight of last ten games with Arizona- six of last nine in series went over. D'backs lost six of their last nine games (under 6-3).
Giants @ Braves
Bumgarner is 3-1, 3.65 in his last four starts; under is 5-3-1 in his last nine.
Perez is 1-1, 9.00 in his last three starts; six of his last nine went over.
Giants lost three of last four games with Atlanta; six of last seven went over the total. SF won 15 of last 20 games; under is 5-3-2 in their last ten. Braves lost seven of last nine games (over 4-0-1 in last five).
Mets @ Marlins
Harvey is 2-2, 3.48 in his last five starts; under is 5-3 in his last eight.
Phelps is 0-3, 3.57 in his last four starts (under 3-1); Marlins scored total of five runs in those four games.
Mets won eight of last ten games; four of their last seven went over- they lost four of last seven with Miami- four of last six went over. Marlins lost nine of last 11 games (under 10-5 in last 15 games).
Cardinals @ Reds
Cardinals are 16-3 when Martinez starts; he is 3-1, 2.19 in his last six starts. Under is 8-1-1 in his last ten starts.
Holmberg allowed two runs in six IP (100 PT) in his first '15 start.
St Louis won five of last eight games with Cincinnati; last six series games stayed under. Cardinals won three of last five games; nine of their last 11 stayed under. Reds won five of last seven games; under is 6-1-1 in last eight.
Padres @ Brewers
Kennedy is 2-0, 2.37 in his last three starts; eight of his last nine went under.
Jungmann is 3-2, 2.02 in his last five starts (under 4-1).
Brewers lost 11 of last 14 games; under is 9-1-2 in last 12. Milwaukee is 5-7 in its last 12 games with San Diego (under 9-3). Padres won five of their last seven games (over 6-1).
American League
Royals @ Tigers
Cueto is 1-0, 2.50 in his last three starts; three of his last four went over.
Boyd was 0-2, 14.85 in his two starts for Toronto (over 1-1).
Royals are 6-3 in last eight games with Detroit; seven of last 10 series games stayed under. KC lost four of its last six games overall. Tigers are 3-6 in last nine games overall- they fired their longtime GM this week.
Twins @ Blue Jays
Duffey is making first MLB start; he is 6-8, 2.66 in 21 AAA starts this year. .
Hutchison is 1-1, 8.39 in his last five starts (over 4-1).
Minnesota won six of last ten games with Toronto; three of last four stayed under Twins lost eight of last ten games overall, with last five staying under. Blue Jays won six of last seven games; their last three stayed under.
Red Sox @ Bronx
Wright is 1-3, 6.11 in his last five starts (over 4-1).
Severino is making MLB debut; he was 7-0, 1.91 in 11 AAA starts.
Boston lost seven of its last eight games with Bronx; four of last seven in series stayed under the total. Red Sox won three of last five games; eight of their last nine went over. Bronx won eight of its last nine home games.
Astros @ Rangers
Kazmir hasn't allowed a run in his first two Houston starts (1-0, 14.2 IP); he is 2-0, 0.53 in his last five starts-- six of his last seven stayed under.
Martinez is 1-4, 7.68 in his last six starts (over is 3-1-1 in his last five).
Houston lost six of last eight games with Texas; four of last six went over the total. Astros won five of last eight games (over 5-3). Rangers won six of last seven games; over is 6-4-1 in their last eleven.
Rays @ White Sox
Ramirez is 0-1, 5.00 in his last three starts; three of his last four went under.
Rodon is 1-3, 6.93 in his last five starts; four of his last six went over.
Rays won six of last seven games with Chicago; five of last six went over the total. Tampa Bay won its last three games, scoring 20 runs; five of their last six on road went over. White Sox lost five of last six games; 10 of their last 11 games went over.
Orioles @ A's
Chen is 1-2, 4.80 in his last five starts; under is 8-1-1 in his last ten.
Graveman is 0-3, 7.11 in his last four starts; four of his last five stayed under.
Baltimore won eight of last 11 games; under is 5-2-1 in their last eight road games. A's lost eight of last 12 games; nine of those twelve games stayed under. Orioles lost four of last six games with Oakland; nine of last 12 in series went over the total.
Indians @ Angels
Salazar is 2-2, 2.15 in his last four starts (under 3-1).
Santiago is 0-1, 8.10 in his last two starts; his last five all went over.
Angels lost ten of last 12 games; seven of last ten went over-- they're 6-3 in last nine games with Indians (under 7-5 in last 12). Indians lost nine of last 13 games, with five of last six staying under.
Interleague
Mariners @ Rockies
Walker is 1-1, 6.82 in his last five starts (over 4-1).
Rusin is 0-2, 6.75 in his last five starts; over is 5-3-1 in his last nine.
Rockies are 4-8 in last 12 games; over is 6-1-1 in their last eight. Colorado lost its last four games with Seattle; over is 3-0-1 in last four series games. Seattle won its last three games, scoring 22 runs-- over is 6-3-1 in their last ten.
Win-loss records this year for team with this starting pitcher:
Chi-Pitt-- Haren (10-11 w/Mia); Locke 11-9
LA-Phil-- Anderson 10-10; Harang 6-12 (1-9 last 10)
Az-Wsh-- de la Rosa 12-9; Gonzalez 12-7
SF-Atl-- Bumgarner 12-9; Perez 5-4
NY-Mia-- Harvey 12-8; Phelps 5-12 (0-5 last 5)
StL-Cin-- Martinez 16-3; Holmberg 1-0
SD-Mil-- Kennedy 9-10; Jungmann 6-4
KC-Det-- Cueto (11-9/0-1); Boyd 0-2
Min-Tor-- Duffey 0-0; Hutchison 14-7
Bos-NY-- Wright 2-5; Severino 0-0
Hst-Tex-- Kazmir (10-10/2-0); Martinez 10-9 (2-8 last 10)
TB-Chi-- Ramirez 11-5; Rodon 8-6
Balt-A's-- Chen 12-8; Graveman 8-9 (0-4 last 4)
Clev-LAA-- Salazar 12-7; Santiago 11-9
Sea-Col-- Walker 12-9; Rusin 2-8
Times this starting pitcher allowed a run in first inning:
Chi-Pitt-- Haren 2-21; Locke 4-20
LA-Phil-- Anderson 8-20 (7 of last 9); Harang 6-18
Az-Wsh-- de la Rosa 5-21; Gonzalez 2-19
SF-Atl-- Bumgarner 5-21; Perez 4-9
NY-Mia-- Harvey 6-20; Phelps 6-17
StL-Cin-- Martinez 3-19; Holmberg 0-1
SD-Mil-- Kennedy 7-19; Jungmann 1-10
KC-Det-- Cueto 5-20; Boyd 1-2
Min-Tor-- Duffey 0-0; Hutchison 9-21 (5 of last 7)
Bos-NY-- Wright 3-7; Severino 0-0
Hst-Tex-- Kazmir 2-20; Martinez 6-19 (4 of last 5)
TB-Chi-- Ramirez 4-16; Rodon 5-14
Balt-A's-- Chen 6-20; Graveman 5-17
Clev-LAA-- Salazar 6-19; Santiago 6-20
Sea-Col-- Walker 5-21; Rusin 4-10
Umpires
Chi-Pitt-- Under is 6-2-1 in last nine Randazzo games.
Az-Wash-- Over is 8-3-1 in last twelve Morales games.
LA-Phil-- Seven of last nine Porter games went over.
SF-Atl-- Underdogs are 10-11 (+$240) in Scott games this year.
StL-Cin-- Six of last eight May games stayed under.
NY-Mia-- Underdogs won three of last five BWelke games.
SD-Mil-- Five of last seven Carapazza games went over.
Min-Tor-- Three of last four Woodring games went over.
KC-Det-- Under is 9-5 in last fourteen Foster games.
Hst-Tex-- Last three Reynolds games went over total.
TB-Chi-- Under is 11-6 in last seventeen Hudson games.
Balt-A's-- Under is 7-1-1 in last nine Bellino games.
Bos-NY-- Favorites won last five Danley games; three of last four stayed under the total.
Cle-LA-- Over is 4-1-1 in last six Hoberg games.
Sea-Col-- Road team won last three Pattillo games.
Armadillosports.com
Wednesday Scouting Report
By Coach Fletcher
Seattle Mariners at Colorado Rockies
Taijuan Walker drives me crazy. It's like going to a restaurant in a foreign country that you have never heard of! You just don't know what to expect. That is Mr. Walker in a nutshell. Walker is 8-7 with a 4.73 era. You might wonder how he won 8 games with such an inflated era. In his last start he went the full 9 innings against the Twins allowing just 1 run and 1 hit (HR) while fanning 11. In his previous 2 starts he went a total of 10 1/3 innings allowing 10 runs, 8 earned, on 13 hits. He walked 3 and struck out 10. In the 2 starts before that he went 11 innings and gave up 11 runs and 13 hits and gave up 3 home runs. So in the 4 previous starts he went 21 1/3 innings allowing 19 earned runs and 26 hits. Prior to those 4 disasters he threw another 6 innings giving up just 1 hit and 0 runs. And before that he went 7 innings allowing 1 run and 7 hits. So your guess is as good as mine regarding his performance today. Walker opened as a -125 favorite.
Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees
Just who is Luis Severino? For one thing, he's the starting pitcher for the NYY today. He's spent parts of 4 seasons in the minor leagues. He has no experience in the majors. He's 6 feet tall and weighs 195 pounds and is only 21 years old. He's coming up from Scranton/Wilkes- Barre in the International League, at the Triple-A level. He went 7-0 there with a 1.91 era. Prior to that he was at Trenton in Double-A ball where he ws 2-2 with a 332 era in 2014. His K/BB ration dwindled as he moved up the ladder from A ball to Triple-a where it was about 3:1. Overall his minor league record was 23-11 with a 2.30 era in more than 300 innings. Severino has been considered the #1 prospect in the Yankee organization for the past 2 years. His name was bandied about in trade rumors for such names as Cole Hamels, Johnny Cueto and David Price. But the Yankees refused to budge and include Severino in any trades. Severino opened as a -170 favorite which tells you what the linemakers think about him.
Minnesota Twins at Toronto Blue Jays
Unlike Severino, Duffy isn't getting any respect from the linemakers. He opened on the other side of -189 which quickly zoomed to -200. Like Severino, Duffy hasn't thrown a pitch in MLB regular season play. Duffey is right handed, stands 6'3" tall and weighs in at 220. He comes from Rochester in the Triple-A International League where he was 4-5 with a 2.72 era. Earlier Duffey was with Chattanooga in Double-A ball where he went 2-2 with a 2.56 era. Overall Duffey was 28-28 in 4 seasons of minor league ball with a 3.25 era. Duffey was drafted in the 5th round of the 2012 drafat out of Rice.
Kansas City Royals at Detroit Tigers
Matt Boyd will make his first start for the Tigers after being acquired in a trade. Hopefully he will improve a great deal from his starts for Toronto. Boyd made 2 starts for Toronto and came away with a gigantic era of 14.85! All in all in MLB Biyd has thrown 6 2/3 innings in his 2 starts and given up 15 hits and 11 earned runs. A full 33% of those hits were 4 baggers. At least his whip was only 2.40. Boyd's K/BB ration was a nice 7:1. Boyd's major league struggles come as a little bit of a surprise because he had a good minor league record. He went 9-2 with a 1.62 era in the minors. At Triple-A Buffalo he had an era 0f 2.72. Unfortunately Boyd is going against Johnny Cueto. Cueto opened as a -170 favorite.
Houston Astros at Texas Rangers
Scott Kazmir Brings a 14 2/3 inning scoreless streak when the Astros meet cross town rival Texas. Since being traded to the Astros from Oakland, Kazmir has yet to allow a run. His July era of 0.26 was the 3rd lowest in MLB history. Kazmire is 6-5 on the year with a 2.10 era which tells you what kind of support he got in Oakland. In his last 7 starts he has gone 3-1 with an era of just 0.93. In his firt 15 stars he went 4-5 with an era of 2.27. He's only allowed 1 earned run in his last 23 innings. Kazmir's era is 0.39 in his last 3 starts which doesn't bode well for the Rangers. Their starter, Nick Martinez, has a 7.63 era in his last 3 starts. Kazmir has shut out Texas twice this year, one for 7 innings and another for 8 innings. He only allowed 1 hit in each of those appearances. In his other start he went 6 innings giving up 3 hits and 3 runs on 2 round trippers.
Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Seattle at Colorado
The Seattle Mariners will start Taijuan Walker in the finale of this interleague series with Colorado. Not the best news for Rockies. The Mariners are 9-1 in Walker's last 10 starts including a one-hitter in a 6-1 victory last outing. The most compelling numbers in Mariners’ favor are the figures compiled Rockies. The team is 2-14 vs the Junior Circuit this season, 9-27 the last 36 games vs the A.L.
Baltimore at Oakland
The closing matchup of a three game series is today’s baseball betting focus as the Oakland Athletics host the Baltimore Orioles this afternoon at O.co Coliseum. Righthander Kendall Graveman will toe the rubber for Bob Melvin's squad bringing a 6-7 record to the hill with a 3.84 ERA. As a team the A's have lost 8-of-12 including two losses with Graveman on the hill. Graveman will be matching pitches with Baltimore's lefthander Wei-Yin Chen, who has an 5-6 record this season with a 3.24 ERA. Orioles are enjoying an 8-3 stretch that includes two victories with Chen on the mound. Oddsmakers have given Baltimore the nod opening Orioles -$1.30 road favorites. Taking an road favorite is a risky proposition, though in this case, the amount of supporting data in favor of Baltimore makes it much less risky. The Orioles have won seven of Chen's last ten starts and won four of Chen's five career starts vs Oakland. Additionally, facing a southpaw has not been good for the A's this year, since losses in 19 of 27 games has been the end result. An afternoon game at home is also an obstacle for the A's, who are 8-14 at home in daylight hours. The number is even worse when the starter is Graveman (1-4).
Red Sox, Yankees meet in N.Y.
By Sportsbook.ag
BOSTON RED SOX (47-60) at NEW YORK YANKEES (60-45)
Sportsbook.ag Line: New York -170, Boston +160, Total: 9
The Boston Red Sox look to pick up the pieces after a devastating loss in game one of this series as they take on their rivals, the New York Yankees, for the second of three contests.
It has been another long season for the Red Sox, and despite making a ton of big moves in the offseason to acquire names such as Ramirez, Sandoval and Castillo, they have been unable to get the job done. After Tuesday’s loss, they brought their record since the All-Star break to 5-13 while losing all eight games played on the road in that stretch.
They opened up this set looking flat in the Bronx, taking a close game into the seventh inning before letting the Yanks offense drive in nine runs as the Boston offense saw their top four batters in the lineup go 0-for-15 in the 13-3 loss. SS Xander Bogaerts (.315) was hitless in the defeat, but has been the team’s hottest hitter and in the last 10 games has gone 15-for-42 (.357) with 10 runs scored.
While the Sox are struggling, the Yankees are looking like a new team as they lead the AL East by 5.5 games over the Blue Jays. Their second-best scoring offense has led the team to a record of 12-5 since the Midsummer Classic and has won all but a single contest out of seven at home during that stretch.
New York scored double-digit runs for the fourth time in the last seven games, scoring an average of 9.9 runs per game during that time, when they went 8-for-15 in the 13-3 win on Tuesday night. OF Chris Young (.268) continued his dominance of lefties (.363 vs LHP) in the game as he was 3-for-4 with four runs scored, a homer and three RBIs.
It will be RHP Steven Wright (4-4, 4.53 ERA) who gets the call to toe the rubber in this one for the Red Sox while a night after top prospect Henry Owens earned his first career start for Boston, the Yankees prized prospect, RHP Luis Severino (0-0, 0.00), will take the ball for the first time in a big league uniform.
The road has been unwelcome for this Boston group in 2015 as they are 20-32 (.385) away from the confines of Fenway and will be facing the Yanks who have posted a record of 31-17 (.646) when they play in front of their fans.
This rivalry has lost some of its luster over the years, but the teams have still played tough and since the start of the 2013 season New York holds a slight 25-23 edge in the series; going just 11-13 at home during that time though.
This year, the Yankees have been able to take 7-of-10 games against the Red Sox and in the last four games have outscored them 29-15. Trends show that New York is just 7-7 as a home favorite of -150 or more this season while also being 22-7 (.759) in home games at night this year.
Some big bats could be missing from the lineup the Red Sox as OF Hanley Ramirez (Knee) is questionable while 2B Dustin Pedroia (Hamstring) and OF Mookie Betts (Concussion) ride the DL. New York will be missing both OF Mason Williams (Shoulder) and 2B Dustin Ackley (Back) who are currently on the 15-day DL.
Wright had a long road to the majors as he spent nearly six seasons in the minor leagues with both the Indians and Red Sox before making his debut in 2013 with Boston. He was never a prized prospect, but was able to get the job done and earned himself some time with the MLB club after some solid 2014 numbers (2.57 ERA, 9.4 K/9) over 21 innings.
In 2015, Wright has pitched in 14 games (7 starts) and has failed to get many out via the strikeout (5.9 K/9) while giving up tons of homers (1.66 HR/9). In his 39.1 frames as a starter, he has a 4.58 ERA and has allowed eight long balls (1.83 HR/9). The 30-year-old is coming off of a solid outing against the White Sox, though, when he went seven innings, giving up two runs on six hits with eight strikeouts (2 walks) in a winning effort.
He did have one start against the Yanks last year and despite taking a loss did well with five innings of pitching in which he gave up two runs (0 ER) on four hits with four strikeouts.
As a team, the players that have faced Wright from New York are a collective 6-for-32 (.188) with four strikeouts as OF Carlos Beltran and C Brian McCann each have a double in the matchup.
The Red Sox bullpen has gone 13-16 with a 4.07 ERA (1.35 WHIP) and are 25-for-39 (64%) in save opportunities. Koji Uehara (2.33 ERA, 23 saves) has been hot of late and over his last nine appearances (9.2 IP) he has allowed one run on five hits with a 16:2 K/BB ratio.
The Yankees would not allow other clubs to add Severino to any trade deals when the deadline hit and now they get to showcase the young arm that has been climbing up prospect lists since he was added to the team in 2012. The righty is a mere 21-years-old, and after beginning last season with the high-A club in Tampa, has risen quickly through each stop and was a stud in his 11 starts with the triple-A affiliate RailRiders.
He went 7-0 with a 1.91 ERA (0.93 WHIP) with that club, and despite seeing his strikeouts (7.3 K/9) dip lower than double digits per nine innings for the first time since A-ball, was able to keep his control (2.5 BB/9) and did not give up a single homer in the 61.1 innings at the triple-A level.
With this being his first start of many, Severino has never had the chance to face the Red Sox or any of their batters at this level, but will need to be careful against DH David Ortiz who has begun to heat up with a .317 average to go along with five homers and 16 RBIs in 60 at-bats since the break.
On the other side of things, the young righty might make easy work of OF Hanley Ramirez if he plays as the outfielder is a poor 14-for-62 (.226) with 12 strikeouts and no HRs in his past 16 contests.
New York’s relievers have been solid and are 18-10 with a 3.35 ERA (1.15 WHIP) as they have been successful in 33-of-41 (80%) save chances. Andrew Miller (1.75 ERA, 23 saves) has yet to blow a game this year and owns an amazing 54:12 K/BB ratio with 14 hits allowed over his 36 innings of work.
Game of the Day: Astros at Rangers
By Covers.com
Houston Astros at Texas Rangers (+134, 9.5)
It appears first-place Houston made a solid move in acquiring Scott Kazmir prior to the trade deadline, and the Astros hope the investment continues to pay dividends when they visit the Texas Rangers on Wednesday for the finale of their three-game series. Kazmir, the American League Pitcher of the Month for July whose 0.26 ERA during that period was the third-lowest in the month's history, has yet to allow a run in two starts since joining his hometown team and has dominated Texas.
“He was great coming out of the draft. He had a really good start to his career. He traveled different roads to get to where he is today,'' Astros manager A.J. Hinch told the Houston Chronicle about Kazmir, who was 2-0 in five starts with the Astros and Oakland in July. "Now he’s in the thick of the pennant race pitching for a team that acquired him at the deadline to be a force in his hometown. The story continues to get better. We hope to add another chapter in the rest of the year.” Kazmir on Wednesday must play the role of stopper as the Rangers made it two straight over Houston with a 4-3 victory Tuesday to climb within two games of Toronto for the final wild-card spot and six of the first-place Astros in the AL West. Nick Martinez takes the ball on his 25th birthday Wednesday after snapping a six-start winless streak (0-4) in his last turn for Texas, which has won three straight and five of six while already extending their unbeaten series string to five (4-0-1).
LINE HISTORY: The Rangers have held steady at their opening number of +134. The total has also stayed put at 9.5 runs.
INJURY REPORT:
Astros - RF G. Springer (Mid Aug, wrist), SP B. Peacock (60-day DL, abdominal).
Rangers - RP T. Scheppers (15-day DL, knee), C R. Chirinos (15-day Dl, shoulder), C C. Corporan (15-day DL, thumb), 1B K. Blanks (15-day DL, Achillies), SP N. Tepesch (60-day DL, elbow), SP D. Holland (60-day DL, shoulder), RF A. Richardson (60-day DL, back), 2B J. Profar (60-day DL, elbow).
WEATHER REPORT: There should be a moderate pitchers wind gusting in from right field at 10 miles per hour. Otherwise, expect clear skies and temperatures in the high 90's at game time.
UMPIRE REPORT: The MLB's best home team ump, Jim Reynolds, will be calling strikes for this game. The home team is 17-4 in the 21 games he has been behind home plate. The over is 17-12-2 in Reynolds' games and he also has a strike rate of 63.23 percent.
PITCHING MATCHUP: Astros LH Scott Kazmir (6-5, 2.10 ERA) vs. Rangers RH Nick Martinez (6-6, 4.01)
Kazmir immediately got a taste of the pennant race when he received a no-decision after allowing three hits and three walks while striking out five in 7 2/3 innings of a 3-0 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday. That performance - his first in an Astros uniform at Minute Maid Park - followed up a 4-0 victory at Kansas City on July 24, when he permitted three hits in seven frames. The 31-year-old is 11-5 with a 2.98 ERA in 21 starts versus Texas, including 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA in three turns this season while with Oakland, and has little trouble with Prince Fielder (2-for-16), who is second in the AL in batting with a .329 average.
Martinez yielded two runs in 6 1/3 innings of a 6-3 victory over San Francisco on Friday. The Florida native gave up 27 runs in 34 2/3 frames over his previous six starts, with the last five turns during that stretch coming on the road. Martinez is 2-1 with a 1.80 ERA in five games (three starts) versus Houston - all last season.
TRENDS:
* Astros are 1-8 in their last nine road games versus a right-handed starter.
* Rangers are 5-0 in their last five games as an underdog.
* Under is 9-1-1 in the Astros last 11 road games.
* Over is 9-1-1 in the Rangers last 11 games versus a left-handed starter.
CONSENSUS: The public is backing Houston in this AL West showdown, with 63.98 percent of wagers taking the favored Astros.
Wednesday's Tip Sheet
By Matt Zylbert
VegasInsider.com
Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees
What a shock! Another nationally televised game on ESPN features the New York Yankees, as this week’s Wednesday Night Baseball affair highlights arguably the biggest rivalry in all of professional sports. It goes a bit beyond that, though, in this particular contest, as the Yankees will see the Major League debut of their No. 1 prospect, according to MLB.com, right-hander Luis Severino (NR), who has been as good as advertised at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, posting a 1.91 ERA in 11 starts. He also recorded a 50/17 K/BB ratio in 61 1/3 innings. Interestingly, at 21 years and 166 days-old, Severino will become the youngest pitcher to make a start in the big leagues this season.
He won’t be the only rookie pitching at Yankee Stadium tonight as the Red Sox will trot out a freshman of their own, that being knuckleballer Steven Wright (4-4, 4.53 ERA). Someone might want to ask Elias Sports Bureau when the last time Boston used exclusively rookie pitchers for the entirety of a three-game set, let alone involving the arch rival Yankees, as that’s exactly the case in this series. Henry Owens made his debut last night for the Red Sox, and after Wright makes his assignment tonight, the club will lean on yet another rookie, Eduardo Rodriguez, in tomorrow’s finale. In any event, Wright enters tonight’s start with a lot of momentum, coming off his best performance of the year when he outdueled Chris Sale and held the White Sox to just two runs over a season-high seven innings, while striking out eight. Due to the hype surrounding Severino, though, the Yankees are the heavy favorites here, carrying -190 chalk in most places.
Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh Pirates
One trade deadline acquisition starting pitcher made his team debut in this series, that being J.A. Happ, who made his first start as a member of the Pirates last night, but did not experience the best results. The Cubs will hope for a different type of performance when their haul from the Marlins, Dan Haren (7-7, 3.42 ERA), makes his first start with the club in game two of this series. It’s been a wild journey for the 34-year-old right-hander, who almost retired prior to Opening Day after not being dealt to a west coast team at his request. Well, at least he finds himself significantly closer there after going from Miami to Chicago, and he’ll be thrust right into a heated playoff race as well. The Cubs are getting ahold of Haren’s services seemingly at the perfect time, as he’s been in a nice groove as of late. The veteran starter has registered a quality start in four of his past five outings, and has impressively pitched into the sixth inning or beyond in his last 14 consecutive starts. Despite this, the Cubs are interestingly a +115 road ’dog this evening.
The Pirates were getting similar consistency from their starter tonight, Jeff Locke (6-6, 4.21 ERA), who recently had a run where he yielded three runs or less in seven straight outings. In his past two assignments, though, the southpaw has been tagged for seven combined runs, spanning only ten innings. Thus, it’s interesting that he’s the favorite in tonight’s contest. It’s even more suspect when you consider this: Of any team Locke has faced two or more times this season, the 27-year-old has registered his worst numbers against the Cubs, having a 10.22 ERA and 2.43 WHIP (!) in three starts facing them. Not only that, Chicago has managed to hit .382 as a team when Locke is the opposing pitcher. At the same time, Locke has been much better in his home starts (2.90 ERA, 1.26 WHIP) in 2015 compared to on the road (6.43 ERA, 1.69 WHIP). The over/under is currently listed at 7.5.
San Francisco Giants at Atlanta Braves
A couple of weeks ago, Atlanta Braves star first baseman Freddie Freeman made his return from a lengthy stint on the disabled list, one that cost him 30 games due to a wrist injury. Unfortunately, the face of the Atlanta franchise just went back on the DL yesterday, this time with an oblique issue, and if the last time is any indication, the Braves offense could be in for some major struggles. That could mean an opportune start for Giants ace Madison Bumgarner (11-6, 3.39 ERA) tonight, as his team will be going for the series victory in this rubber matchup to conclude a three-game set. Bumgarner might actually be salivating at his assignment this evening, considering he’s coming off a start in which he allowed a season-high-tying six runs in Texas. Overall, though, he’s still been good, as he’s actually racked up seven or more strikeouts in eight out of his past ten starts, while logging seven innings or more in seven of those instances. The linesmakers have him as a -175 favorite, with that number increasing in some shops.
The Braves, meanwhile, will counter with Williams Perez (4-1, 4.14 ERA), who is also coming off a recent DL stint that cost him over a month. The 24-year-old rookie was enjoying a very nice first season in the bigs prior to his injury, maintaining a desirable 2.88 ERA and was even undefeated in nine starts. Then came his return, and the Phillies greeted him unpleasantly by socking the right-hander for nine runs on nine hits in just over four innings of work. As a result, Perez’ ERA jumped up more than a full run, en route to suffering his first loss of the campaign. If there’s one thing going in his favor tonight, though, it’s that Perez had his most impressive outing of the year against these same Giants, when he shut them out over seven innings at the end of May at AT&T Park. As a result, the over/under is currently 7 for this encounter.
Houston Astros at Texas Rangers
In the finale of the latest Lone Star Series, the first-place Astros will be trying to dodge a three-game sweep at the hands of the Rangers in Arlington this evening at Globe Life Park. Fortunately for them, they have the hottest American League pitcher on the mound in this assignment to lead them towards accomplishing that goal. Of course, that would be referring to the recently-acquired Scott Kazmir (6-5, 2.10 ERA), who has been everything the club has hoped for thus far through his first two outings with his hometown team. In fact, he’s yet to surrender a run in an Astros uniform, carrying a scoreless streak of 14 2/3 innings entering tonight’s start. Furthermore, he’s coming off an unbelievable July that saw him win AL Pitcher of the Month honors… after registering an insane 0.26 ERA in the month -- the third-lowest July ERA in Major League history. Thus, it’s no wonder the left-hander is laying -155 chalk as a road favorite.
Tasked with delivering a sweep for the Rangers will be birthday boy Nick Martinez (6-6, 4.01 ERA), who turns 25-years-old today. Martinez was actually experiencing similar success compared to Kazmir earlier in the year, as he carried a miniscule 2.03 ERA through the season’s first two months. After a regression, Martinez was actually sent down right around the All-Star break, and while his ERA is now north of four, with a 1.42 WHIP on the year, the right-hander appears to be heading back in the right direction after a solid six-inning, two-run performance his last time out against the defending world champion San Francisco Giants. That performance also snapped a six-game losing streak by the Rangers in games started by Martinez, so perhaps he’s re-entering his groove from the beginning of the campaign. Bettors will want to think about that, plus Kazmir’s mastery over the past month-and-change, when evaluating the over/under for this one, which currently sits at 9.5.