Monday’s Streaking and Slumping Starting Pitchers
Only three games on Monday and there aren’t really any hot arms to talk about. Here’s a look at a few starting hurlers for Monday who aren’t dealing their best stuff these days.
Slumping
Rodrigo Lopez (2-6, 4.70 ERA), Arizona Diamondbacks
If Arizona had any kind of depth to their starting rotation, Lopez would have been bumped to the bullpen a long time ago. The Mexican righty has delivered quality starts in just two of his last six appearances and Arizona is 0-5 in his last five outings.
A.J. Burnett (6-5, 4.33 ERA), New York Yankees
It’s been a month to forget for this Yanks starter. Burnett is 0-3 with a 9.00 ERA in 16 innings in June. Even worse, he’s been taken out of the park six times and he has almost as many walks (9) as he does strikeouts (10).
Gio Gonzalez (6-5, 4.21 ERA), Oakland A's
It’s been a rough go for the A’s most talented pitcher. Oakland is just 1-3 in Gonzalez’s last four trips to the mound and he owes a 6.04 ERA in June. He’s given up three home runs in his last two starts and he’s only pitched six or more innings once this month.
MLB RoundUp For 6/21
By Dan Bebe
Interleague Play
Royals @ Nationals (-150) with a total of 9
Wilson Betemit is 5-for-12 off Livan Hernandez with a HR and 2 RBI;
Jason Kendall is 3-for-7 off Hernandez since '05.
Has the collapse begun? Livan Hernandez is coming off his worst start of the season, by a longshot. The regression had to come, eventually, but do we think it lasts more than 1 game? Washington has been slumping pretty hard, but Kansas City got clobbered in Atlanta, as well.
Reds @ Athletics (-119) with a total of 8
Both of these starters are coming off poor outings. In fact, both are coming off 2 poor outings. This opening number is pretty strongly pro-Athletic, in terms of the Reds strongest starter being a slight dog. I don't like choosing between struggling starters and trying to figure out who bounces back sooner, though I must admit, Gio's home numbers are pretty strong. Leake has great stuff, works quickly, but I can't see this kid maintaining his current amazingly low ERA. That being said, this ballpark (and the A's offense) can make a lot of pitchers look good.
Yankees (-170) @ Diamondbacks with a total of 10.5
Derek Jeter is batting .400 off Lopez with a HR and 3 RBI since '05.
Rodrigo Lopez has seen plenty of the Yanks, and he's 8-8 lifetime with a 5.90 ERA - not too impressive. A.J. Burnett is a tough cat to figure out, and he's been pretty bad since the middle of May. He's certainly a better fade candidate, though it's just tough to know what to expect with Arizona.
Monday's Tip Sheet
By Chris David
Interleague Records
Interleague action continues this week with two more series on tap between the American and National League. The NL was hoping to reverse their bad luck against the AL this season and they started out well but all of the good fortune is now forgotten, especially after this past weekend.
The AL posted a 27-15 record last weekend, which included four sweeps by the Red Sox, White Sox, Rangers and Mariners. The AL now holds a 92-76 lead and it appears that the NL will now lose bragging rights for the seventh straight season.
Most of the clubs will be traveling tonight, but we still have three games on tap, including a pair on the West Coast.
Kansas City (29-42) at Washington (31-40)
The Royals and Nationals are both hoping to regain some confidence this week after getting swept over the weekend by the Braves and White Sox respectively. Kansas City was playing well against the NL recently, capturing two of three from both the Reds and Astros, but its luck ran out against Atlanta. Even though they were swept by the best squad in the NL East, the Royals were in every game and the three setbacks only came by a combined six runs.
Washington hasn’t had any success against the AL, posting a 3-9 record this season. The club has dropped six straight and eight of nine and most of the blame can be pointed towards the offense. The team has posted three runs or less in seven of the eight losses, while posting nine in the lone win.
A pair of veterans will look to get their teams back on track tonight when the Royals’ Bruce Chen (3-1, 4.15 ERA) battles the Nats’ Livan Hernandez (5-4, 2.94 ERA). Washington has gone 6-1 at home when Hernandez takes the hill and the lone loss was a 2-0 setback to Colorado in late April.
The Nats have been made favorites (-150) for this affair, while the total is hovering at 9, which seems a little high when you delve into it further. First, the Nats aren’t hitting the ball well at all plus Hernandez has watched the ‘under’ go 11-1 in 13 appearances this season.
N.Y. Yankees (44-26) at Arizona (27-44)
The Yankees start a six-game road trip on the West Coast tonight with a quick stop against the Diamondbacks before wrapping up interleague play against the Dodgers over the weekend. New York has gone 7-5 versus the NL this season, which includes a 2-1 record over the Mets this past weekend. The Diamondbacks just finished a 1-5 road trip against Boston (0-3) and Detroit (1-2), losing all five decisions by two or more runs.
Arizona has been made a heavy home underdog (+160) for this affair against New York (-170) and even though the records don’t compare, the D-Backs do own a 17-16 record in the desert this season. And Yankees’ starter A.J. Burnett (6-5, 4.33 ERA) has dropped three straight decisions, plus New York’s offense has been slumping. The one-potent attack has been handcuffed to 13 runs over the last five games, which has resulted in five straight ‘under’ tickets.
The Diamondbacks will counter with Rodrigo Lopez (2-6, 4.70 ERA) and he’s looking to break out of a funk as well. Arizona has lost eight of his last 10 starts and five in a row. Unfortunately for this hurler, his offense has been held to four runs or less in eight of 14 appearances. Despite the inconsistent run support, oddsmakers still made the total 10 ½ runs for this game. Arizona leads the majors with a 48-25 ‘over’ record and that includes a 6-3 ‘over’ mark against AL opponents this season as well.
Since Arizona beat New York in seven games of the 2001 World Series, the Yankees have gotten some sort of revenge in interleague play by winning seven of the nine encounters, with the last meeting happening in 2007.
Cincinnati (37-34) at Oakland (34-37)
“The Reds are finally showing us who we thought they were,” explained VegasInsider.com handicapper Kevin Rogers. “Every season, you’ll see a team jump out of the gates, winning close games, receiving great pitching from no-name hurlers and then all of a sudden the bubble bursts and it blows up in a big way.”
One of those unknown pitchers for the Reds, Mike Leake (5-1, 3.02 ERA), will try to help his team get back on track tonight. Cincinnati has gone 9-4 in his 13 appearances but the Arizona State rookie is coming off two bad outings that watched him give up 10 earned runs, 20 hits and seven walks. Oakland’s offense doesn’t carry a lot of pop but the Reds can’t score lately anyway. Cincinnati put up 1 run in its three losses to the Mariners over the weekend and has mustered up 13 runs over the last seven games.
The Athletics avoided a sweep the Cardinals on Sunday with a 3-2 win, which concluded a dismal 2-7 road trip against NL squads. Fortunately, Oakland wraps up interleague play against the slumping Reds and the powerless Pirates at home this week. The A’s will try to get on track tonight behind lefthander Gio Gonzalez (6-5, 4.21), who’s been much better at home (4-2, 2.90 ERA) this season. For whatever reason, Cincinnati has been good at home (9-5) against southpaws but much worse on the road (2-6).
The total on this game opened at 8 and has dipped to 7 ½ runs at most books. The Reds have watched the ‘under’ cash in five straight after seeing the ‘over’ go 6-0 in the previous six. Leake has seen the ‘under’ go 8-4 but Gonzalez has been a good ‘over’ bet at 9-4, which includes a 6-1-1 run.
vegasinsider.com
Tips and Trends
New York Yankees at Arizona Diamondbacks
Yankees (-170, O/U 10.5): New York enters the week with the best record in all of baseball at 43-26 SU. The Yankees were able to exact their revenge on the Mets in a battle of surging clubs. New York has had great pitching of late, and also had some timely hitting in route to the best record. The Yankees are +3.33 and +10.45 units respectively, both SU and on the RL this year. New York is 18-16 SU on the road this year, with a chance to improve on that record when facing the lowly Diamondbacks. P A.J. Burnett will get the start tonight, as he tries to rebound from his brutal form of late. For the season, Burnett is 6-5 with an ERA of 4.33 and a WHIP of 1.40. The Yankees are 12-2 in their last 14 interleague games against a right-handed starter. New York is 54-23 in their last 77 games against a starter with a WHIP greater than 1.30. The Yankees are 7-1 in Burnett's last 8 starts as a favorite of -151 to -200. New York is 2-5 in Burnett's last 7 road starts against a team with a losing record. The Yankees are 1-4 in Burnett's last 5 starts as a favorite.
Yankees are 19-7 last 26 games against a team with a winning percentage below .400%.
Under is 4-0 last 4 road games with the total set between 9 and 10.5 runs.
Key injuries - LF Marcus Thames (hamstring) is out.
PROJECTED SCORE: 7 (Side of the Day)
Diamondbacks: Arizona has really fallen on hard times, as they currently have the 2nd worst record in the National League at 27-43 SU this year. The good news is that they have a winning record at home this year, 17-16 SU. The bad news is the fact they get to face the Yankees at home in their next series. Arizona is -14.79 and -7.34 units both SU and on the RL this year. P Rodrigo Lopez will get the start tonight, as he is 2-6 with an ERA of 4.70 and a WHIP of 1.39 this season. The Diamondbacks are 5-1 in their last 6 games against a starter with a WHIP greater than 1.30. The Diamondbacks are 7-15 in their last 22 games against a right-handed starter. Arizona is 1-6 in their last 7 interleague home games against a right-handed starter. The Diamondbacks are 1-4 in Lopez's last 5 starts as a home underdog. Arizona is 0-5 in Lopez's last 5 starts against a team with a winning record.
Diamondbacks are 2-12 last 14 interleague games as a favorite of +110 to +150.
Over is 6-1 last 7 interleague games as an underdog of +110 to +150.
Key injuries - None.
PROJECTED SCORE: 3
Cincinnati Reds at Oakland Athletics
Reds: Cincinnati is happy to get out of Seattle, as they only scored 1 run in their 3 games series with the Mariners. To no surprise, the Reds were swept by the lowly Mariners. Cincinnati has now lost 6 of their last 7 games, and have fallen further behind the Cardinals in the National League Central Division. The Reds are now 37-33 SU on the year, including 14-16 SU on the road. Cincinnati is -2.53 and -1.43 units both SU and on the RL this season. Luckily for the Reds, they send their young ace to the mound tonight in P Mike Leake. Leake is 5-1 this year, with an ERA of 3.02 and a WHIP of 1.40. The Reds are 16-7 in their last 23 games against a starter with a WHIP greater than 1.30. The Reds are 8-21 in their last 29 interleague road games against a left-handed starter. Cincinnati is 1-4 in their last 5 games against a left-handed starter. The Reds are 1-4 in Leake's last 5 starts with the total set between 7 and 8.5 runs.
Reds are 0-7 last 7 games as an underdog.
Under is 5-0-1 last 6 road games against a team with a losing record.
Key injuries - C Ryan Hanigan (thumb) is out.
PROJECTED SCORE: 2
Athletics (-120, O/U 8): Oakland has lost 7 of their last 10 games, but this team is happy after their latest game. Oakland beat the favored Cardinals yesterday in their final road game of a road trip. Back at home, Oakland will look to improve on their season long record of 34-37 SU. The Athletics trail the Rangers by 8.5 games in the American League West Division. The Athletics are -1.01 units and -7.28 units both SU and on the RL respectively this season. Lefty Gio Gonzalez will take the mound tonight, as he looks to beat the Reds. Gonazalez is 6-5 this year, with an ERA of 4.21 and a WHIP of 1.36. The Athletics are 4-1 in their last 5 home games against a right-handed starter. The Athletics are 3-7 in their last 10 games against a starter with a WHIP greater than 1.30. Oakland is 6-0 in Gonzalez's last 6 starts as a home favorite. Oakland is 5-0 in Gonzalez's last 5 starts as a favorite of -110 to -150. The Athletics are 2-6 in Gonzalez's last 8 starts against a team with a winning record.
Athletics are 12-3 last 15 games as a home favorite of -110 to -150.
Under is 20-6 last 26 home games against a team with a winning record.
Key injuries - C Kurt Suzuki (rest) is questionable.
PROJECTED SCORE: 3 (UNDER - Total of the Day)
Diamond Trends - Monday
By Vince Akins
Reds at Athletics – The Reds are 0-9 since April 15, 2010 on the road when they are off a loss in which they never led for a net profit of $937 when playing against. The Reds are 0-8 since May 19, 2010 as an underdog vs. a team that has a worse record for a net profit of $800 when playing against. The Reds are 0-6 since April 15, 2010 on the road after a loss in which they had 6 or fewer hits for a net profit of $615 when playing against. The Athletics are 7-0 since August 05, 2009 at home within 20 cents of pick ‘em after a win in which they allowed 6 or fewer hits for a net profit of $735. The Athletics are 7-0 since August 31, 2009 when Gio Gonzalez starts as a favorite for a net profit of $700. The Athletics are 0-6 since May 30, 2010 when they are off a win in which they never trailed for a net profit of $625 when playing against.
Yankees at Diamondbacks – The Yankees are 8-0 since June 02, 2009 as a 140+ favorite after a win in which their starter pitched at least 8 innings for a net profit of $800. The Yankees are 7-0 since April 10, 2009 as a road 140+ favorite after a win and it is the first game of the series for a net profit of $700. . The Yankees are 6-0 since April 14, 2009 when A.J. Burnett starts after facing 25 or fewer hitters for a net profit of $610The Diamondbacks are 0-6 since April 16, 2010 when they are off a loss in which they held the lead and it is the first game of a series for a net profit of $600 when playing against. The Diamondbacks are 0-5 since May 26, 2010 when Rodrigo Lopez starts vs a team that has hit more grounders than fly balls season-to-date for a net profit of $500 when playing against.
Royals at Nationals – The Nationals are 0-7 since May 22, 2009 at home vs. a team that has lost at least their last three games and it is the first game of a series for a net profit of $710 when playing against. The Nationals are 6-0 since April 25, 2010 at home when they are off a loss in which they held the lead for a net profit of $735.