MLB News and Notes Saturday 6/5

Saturday FOX Tips
By Kevin Rogers

The Saturday FOX baseball card involves three divisional matchups and one showdown between division leaders. The Rays and Rangers continue their series in Arlington, while the Cardinals and Brewers send out two young pitchers to the mound. We'll begin in the Big Apple with a pair of NL East rivals meeting up.

Marlins at Mets - 4:10 PM EST

Florida swept New York in mid-May to improve to 6-1 this season against the Mets. The Marlins look to continue their dominance over the Amazins' on Saturday afternoon at Citi Field. Two southpaws take the hill with Nate Robertson and Jonathon Niese facing off.

Robertson (4-4, 4.30 ERA) hasn't been spectacular by any stretch for the Marlins, but Florida can't be disappointed with the 5-6 record it has when the lefty starts. The southpaw was acquired from Detroit in spring training and usually pitches into the sixth inning, although he owns just three quality starts in 11 outings. Two of those quality starts have come on the road in wins at Chicago and Philadelphia, including a scoreless outing against the Phillies. Two of Robertson's four victories have been registered versus New York, including an April 8 win at Citi Field.

The Mets counter with Jonathon Niese (1-2, 4.79 ERA), who last pitched at Sun Life Stadium in Miami last month when he left with an injured hamstring. Niese exited in the third inning of a 10-8 loss on May 16 to the Marlins, getting charged with five runs (two earned). The Mets are 3-1 in Niese's four home starts, despite his ERA at Citi Field sitting at 4.22 and WHIP of 1.97. One of Niese's two quality outings this season came in the April 8 loss to Robertson and the Marlins, as the Mets' southpaw delivered six innings of eight-hit ball.

The Marlins have won eight of their last nine against left-handed starting pitchers, even though only two of those victories have come on the road. Following a 2-4 start at home, the Mets are riding a 17-5 run at Citi Field.

Brewers at Cardinals - 4:10 PM EST

After seasoned pitchers Adam Wainwright and Randy Wolf took the mound on Friday night, two fresher faces in Chris Narveson and Adam Ottavino face off on Saturday afternoon.

Narveson (4-3, 5.81 ERA) has been shaky since entering the Milwaukee rotation in late April from the bullpen. The southpaw was staked a 4-0 lead at Florida his last time out, but allowed five earned runs in 5.2 innings of a 13-5 setback. Narveson did strike out eight Marlins, tied for his second-highest "K" total of the season. The Brewers have won three of Narveson's four road starts, including at Arizona and Los Angeles as underdogs.

The Cardinals have risen back to the top of the NL Central following a 5-2 run, sending out the 24-year old Ottavino (0-1, 6.35 ERA) for his second career start. The righty was knocked around in his debut against the Cubs, giving up five hits and four earned runs in 5.2 innings of a 5-0 setback. Ottavino's control wasn't there, as he issued six walks while striking out five.

The Brewers are 6-2 the last eight meetings at Busch Stadium, as Milwaukee tries to improve on a 6-12 mark in Game 2's this season. The Cardinals have finished 'over' the total in four of the last six games against left-handed starting pitchers.

Rays at Rangers - 4:10 PM EST

Tampa Bay takes in the league's best road record of 21-6 to Arlington for the second game of a weekend set with Texas. The Rays send out James Shields, who looks for his fifth road victory of the season.

Shields (5-3, 3.62 ERA) is coming off his worst start of the season, an 8-5 home loss to the White Sox. The righty yielded 11 hits and seven earned runs in 5.1 innings, falling as a $1.70 'chalk.' That outing snapped a seven-game quality start streak for Shields, who has road wins at the Yankees, Red Sox, Mariners, and White Sox. Shields hasn't fared well during the day, owning an 0-2 mark with an ERA of 4.74 (compared to a 5-1 record and 3.06 ERA at night).

The Rangers send out Tommy Hunter (1-2, 4.05 ERA at Triple-A) for Saturday's start, making his 2010 debut. Hunter finished last season at 9-6 with the Rangers, while owning an ERA of 4.10. The right-hander pitched at Triple-A Oklahoma City as part of a rehab assignment after injuring an oblique muscle in spring training. Texas won seven of his ten home starts last season, including a 3-1 win over the Rays last July.

Ron Washington's squad has won five of the last six home meetings in this series, with four of those games finishing 'over' the total. Tampa Bay's best record in any game of a series is in Game 2's, owning a 13-5 mark.

Angels at Mariners - 4:10 PM EST

These AL West rivals meet for their third series of the season with the Angels claiming four of the first six matchups. Seattle has played much better at home recently with wins in five of its previous six contests at Safeco Field.

Ervin Santana (5-3, 3.43 ERA) has been one of the hotter pitchers in baseball with wins in each of his last four outings. Santana allowed six earned runs in this span, while striking out 28 and hitting the 'over' three times. Prior to this hot streak, the Mariners knocked around the righty to the tune of 10 hits and five earned runs in 6.2 innings of an 8-1 Seattle victory in early May.

The Mariners counter with innings-eater Doug Fister (3-3, 2.45 ERA), who has pitched at least seven innings in eight of his previous nine starts. Seattle has alternated wins and losses in each of Fister's last five outings, coming off a home defeat to the Twins when the righty gave up three homers in a 5-4 setback. The M's have dropped four of Fister's last five home starts, including a 4-3 loss to the Angels on May 8.

The Angels are 6-4 in their last ten as a road underdog, while winning six of their last seven against right-handed starters. The light-hitting Mariners are 5-3-1 to the 'over' the previous nine contests at Safeco Field, as Seattle has allowed four runs or less five times in this span.

vegasinsider.com

Saturday Night Baseball
By Judd Hall

We’ve hit the first weekend of June in Major League Baseball and that means we can start talking more about positioning. Saturday’s card gives us a couple of prime time games that have some bearing on the divisional races as playoff gab grows. Let’s look at the battles.

Padres (32-21, +1,292) at Phillies (28-24, -528) – 7:05 p.m. EDT

Bettors and fans alike have been waiting for the other shoe to drop when it comes to San Diego’s fantastic play this season. The Padres have won 8 of their last 11 games with a similar mantra: Do just enough on offense to help out their starting pitchers. Adrian Gonzalez has been one of the bigger cogs in the batting order, hitting .500 with a homer and four runs batted in during the Pads’ last three games.

Jon Garland (6-2, 2.15) will no doubt use that offense to his advantage. It’s not really like he needs the offensive help right now. Garland has lasted at least five innings in his last nine games, while allowing a total of 10 earned runs.

While Garland has been great for the Pads, he’s had his issues with Philadelphia. He’s only 0-3 with an 8.02 earned run average in four starts against the Phillies. And he has lost his only start at Citizens Bank Park.

The Phils find themselves looking up at Atlanta in the National League East after going 2-9 in their last 11 games of the year. Look no further than Philly’s suddenly silent bats for its woes. Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Raul Ibanez have hit a combined .181 with 5 RBI over their last 10 games this year.

Philadelphia better get some sort of rhythm at the plate to help out Jamie Moyer (5-5, 4.26) on Saturday night. Moyer has lost his last three starts this season with an ERA of 3.50. To be fair to the old fart on the hill, the Phillies’ offense has scored one run in those three fixtures.

The majority of sportsbooks have listed the Phillies as $1.38 home faves (risk $138 to win $100) with a total of nine.

San Diego is just 3-3 in its road games against left-handed pitching, losing two straight. The ‘under’ is 4-2 in those spots.

The Phils are 29-10 over the last two years against NL West foes at Citizens Bank Park, winning 11 of their last 13 in this role.

Tigers (28-25, +241) at Royals (21-33, -639) – 7:10 p.m. EDT

Is it possible that Jim Joyce screwing the pooch in the most epic of ways turned the Tigers’ season around? After Armando Galarraga’s botched perfect game, Detroit rung up 12 runs on the Indians to finish that series strong.

Detroit now gets 15 more games against teams with losing records as they fight to overtake the Twins in the American League Central. Justin Verlander (5-4, 3.75) will get the ball on Saturday, looking to snap a personal two-game losing streak. But Verlander has been afflicted with a lack of offensive support in those starts, getting just one run from them against the A’s on May 31 and crossed the plate three times on the road against the M’s on May 25.

Verlander has enjoyed great success at Kauffman Stadium during his career, evidenced by a 5-2 record with a stellar 1.72 ERA in nine starts. However, he did allow four earned runs in five innings of work in a 8-4 win in KC on April 5.

Kansas City seems to be content in playing out the string already in yet another lousy season. They’ve found themselves on the wrong side of the final score five times in its last six games.

Luke Hochevar (5-3, 5.10) will take the mound for the Royals in Game 2 of this series. He allowed four earned runs on six hits in five innings of work back on April 12 against the Tigers. Not great numbers, but still ended up with the win in a 10-5 triumph at Comerica Park.

Most betting outlets are posted Detroit as a $1.35 road favorite with a total of 9 ½.

Kansas City has been a solid fade when posted as a home pup against AL Central foes, evidenced by a 16-32 mark.

Detroit has lost three of its last four games as a road “chalk” against teams in the AL Central. The ‘over’ is 3-1 in those tests.

The Tigers are 5-4 as road faves this season, with the ‘under’ going 5-4.

The Royals have gone just 8-9 as home ‘dogs in 2010, but have won two straight in this role.

vegasinsider.com

MLB RoundUp For 6/5
By Dan Bebe

National League

Marlins @ Mets (-125) with a total of 9.5
Jon Niese has not been good against the Marlins this year. He gave up 3 runs in 6 innings in his first start of the season, which I suppose is alright, but in his last start, he allowed 5 runs (2 earned) in 2 innings before suffering a hamstring injury. I'm not sure it made much of a difference. Niese was in the process of making his 3rd consecutive terrible start, and after a pretty decent run in late April, it seemed like Niese was going back to not living up to expectations, again. Robertson, interestingly, has pitched quite well against the Mets this year, giving up a run in 5 innings in New York in April, and then 3 runs (2 earned) about 3 weeks ago. He didn't go deep in the game either time, but as has been the Robertson way, he's been hovering right on the cusp of "quality", but not quite getting there. I don't like backing a pitcher coming off the DL, but I also don't much care for backing a pitcher who doesn't ever clear 6 innings. It's going to come down to whether the Marlins can rack up 3-4 runs off Niese. Leans: Marlins

Brewers @ Cardinals (-155) with a total of 9.5
Albert Pujols is 2-for-4 with a HR off Narveson.
This game isn't worth exploring. Ottavino isn't good enough to deserve a -155 line, nearly regardless of the competition, but Narveson stinks, too, and the Brewers are a time bomb on a nightly basis. When you get an X-Files game like this one ("Trust No One" - yeah, I felt good when I came up with that moniker), it's best to just pass. Leans: None

Cubs (-120) @ Astros with a total of 7
Marlon Byrd is 4-for-13 with a HR and 2 RBI off Oswalt before 2010;
Geovany Soto was 4-for-12 off Oswalt before 2010;
Ryan Theriot is 6-for-17 with 2 RBI off Oswalt before 2010.
Roy Oswalt has not had any shortage of experience against the Cubs, going 14-12 in his career with a 3.67 ERA, including 7 shutout innings of a 4-3 win against Chicago earlier this season. Silva is a perfect 7-0 on the year, a perfect 2-0 against Houston lifetime, and that, too, includes a solid start this season, 7 innings, 2 unearned runs. So, does anyone have a true edge, here? Not really. Oswalt is coming off his worst start of the season, so a seasoned veteran like Roy is likely going to want to bounce back, especially since he wants to be the best trade bait possible, and Silva will be dealing with one of the weaker offenses in baseball. This all looks pretty right to me. Leans: None

Reds (-130) @ Nationals with a total of 9
As a guy that bases a large amount of his data on player match-ups, this one is a bit of a head-scratcher. Going on recent trends doesn't help a whole lot. Leake has been pitching his butt off, but the Reds can't seem to win any of his recent starts - he's gotten a total of 1 run in his last 2 starts, so despite going 13.1 innings and allowing just a single run, he's got nothing to show for it. Troublesome. Atilano has been something of the opposite. He reliably gives up 2-4 runs every time to the hill, but he's 5-1 on the season thanks to some beefy run support. While I believe Leake is the better pitcher, the Reds the better team, and the Nats probably colder than Cincinnati, I don't like either side. I'm trying to find a way to back the favorite, here, but if Washington whacks out 10 hits off Leake and backs Atilano with big-time offensive numbers, well, I just don't want to take that chance. Leans: Reds

Padres @ Phillies (-135) with a total of 9
Adrian Gonzalez is 5-for-15 with 3 HR and 6 RBI off Moyer since '05;
Yorvit Torrealba is 3-for-7 off Moyer;
Placido Polanco is batting .323 with a HR and 6 RBI off Garland since '05;
Carlos Ruiz is a perfect 3-for-3 off Garland with a HR and 2 RBI.
Jon Garland is a career 0-3 with an 8.02 ERA against the Phillies. I'd love to ride his strong arm THIS YEAR to a victory as an underdog, and we all know how good the Padres have been on the road, but something about this line is telling me to stay away. Garland is going to draw some action, there's no question, especially with his 6-2, 2.15 ERA this season. Moyer has some name recognition, but most bettors recognize it not because he's been outstanding, but because he's on Centrum Silver. Moyer has received zero run support in his last few starts, but he's been pitching well enough to win, and because of Garland's career issues with the Phils, it's just not the right time. Leans: Phils, Over

Giants (-120) @ Pirates with a total of 8
Pat Burrell is 4-for-13 with a HR and 4 RBI off Maholm;
Pablo Sandoval is 3-for-6 off Maholm;
Ryan Doumit is 7-for-15 with a HR and 4 RBI off Wellemeyer.
Todd Wellemeyer is a total and complete mess on the road; sometimes handicapping can really be simplified, and I wonder if this isn't one of those times. Let me run a quick note by you - Wellemeyer's best road start is one in which he went 4 innings and gave up 2 runs in San Diego. Outside of that start, which equates to a 4.50 ERA, Wellemeyer gave up 7 runs in 4 innings to the Dodgers, 4 runs in 4.1 innings to the Dodgers, and 5 runs in 5 innings to the D'backs. The expectations for this one aren't incredibly high. Maholm is coming up 3 or 4 pretty good starts in a row, and he remains a fairly serviceable option. He's 1-1 with a 3.13 ERA against the Giants, and as you can see, Pat Burrell is basically the Giant with the best history against him. Leans: Pirates

Rockies (-130) @ Diamondbacks with a total of 10
The D-Train is back, and he's ready to save the day for Arizona, or something. I'm honestly surprised Arizona hasn't decided to try to employ him as a setup man, or some position where Dontrelle's insane arm slot can be used for 1 inning of deception. In any case, he's not the answer. Chacin might very well be the answer. He's 3-3 with a 3.62 ERA, and that is not an easy number to maintain when you have to make half your starts at Coors. Most of Chacin's bad starts have come at home, for what that's worth. He went 6 innings and gave up 2 runs when he faced the D'backs, so I have to wonder if this is a team that he can simply solve, or if he caught Arizona at the perfect time. I don't trust that D'backs pitching staff, front to back on this one, but Colorado almost looks too easy. Let's wait and check out some line movement, and of course, let's wait and get some info on how the Friday night game goes, and we'll reapproach this one. Leans: Rockies

Braves @ Dodgers (-110) with a total of 7.5
Yunel Escobar is 3-for-8 with 3 RBI off Billingsley.
Chad Billingsley is 1-2 with a 3.65 ERA against the Braves, and has quietly been one of the hottest pitchers in baseball over the past 6 weeks. I can only think that, given the way he's been throwing, Billingsley will give the Dodgers 6 innings of roughly 2-run baseball. Hanson is an interesting case. He had one complete blowup, but has responded to it well with back-to-back solid starts. He allowed 4 runs in 6 innings the one time he's seen the Dodgers, but a lot of that damage was done by an Andre Ethier homer. The Dodgers bats still don't appear to have completely woken back up, so this one might come down to the bullpens. I hesitate to back either club, since we know how tough the Dodgers are at home, and we also know how hot the Braves have been. I lean slightly to the Dodgers, since we know how well LA can hit righthanders when they get going, but it's not on the top of my list. Leans: Dodgers

American League

Yankees (-125) @ Blue Jays with a total of 9
Alex Rodriguez was 3-for-7 off Romero coming into this year;
Jose Bautista is 8-for-24 with a HR and 3 RBI off Pettitte;
John Buck is 4-for-10 with a HR and 2 RBI off Pettitte;
John McDonald is 6-for-19 with a HR and 3 RBI off Pettitte.
This one could seemingly go either way. Pettitte is having his best season in years, but is just 11-9 with a 4.97 career ERA against the Jays, and a few of the current Toronto position players have decent numbers against him. Romero, like Pettitte, is having a very strong year, but like Pettitte, carries a rather robust ERA against this opponent. Romero is 1-1 against the Yanks, but the 5.94 ERA is less than stellar. And, surprisingly, he seemed to pitch better against New York on the road than at home. I'm honestly a tad concerned about how Romero deals with the Bombers. I'm also a tad worried about how Pettitte handles the Jays. Leans: Yankees

Angels @ Mariners with a total of N/A
Milton Bradley was 6-for-14 with a HR and 2 RBI off Santana before 2010;
Ichiro is batting .304 with a HR off Santana since '05. Leans: None

Rays (-130) @ Rangers with a total of 10
Carlos Pena is 2-for-4 with 2 HR and 3 RBI off Hunter;
Julio Borbon is 3-for-4 off Shields;
Vlad Guerrero is 11-for-26 with 2 HR and 6 RBI off Shields;
Michael Young is 4-for-10 with 2 HR and 4 RBI off Shields.
I think before we pull the trigger on this one, we're going to need some confirmation on what we're getting from Tommy Hunter. This is a kid I saw pitch when he was with Bakersfield, and he's a big guy that, according to what I kept hearing, is like the new model Joe Blanton. He beat Tampa last year, and holds a 3.48 ERA against them, and as we covered yesterday, the Rays just don't seem to play well in Texas. Shields is 2-1 with a 4.82 ERA against the Rangers, so he's been decent enough, but doesn't really compare to his season numbers, which are generally in the 3's. Leans: Rangers

Red Sox (-205) @ Orioles with a total of 8
David Ortiz is batting .304 with 2 HR and 7 RBI off Guthrie before 2010;
Dustin Pedroia was batting .321 off Guthrie in 28 AB before 2010;
J.D. Drew is 6-for-20 with a HR off Guthrie before this season;
Miguel Tejada was 4-for-9 off Lester before this year;
Matt Wieters was 5-for-9 with 2 RBI off Lester before this year;
Ty Wigginton was 6-for-13 off Lester with a HR before 2010.
REMATCH ALERT! Yeah, this one has a few "buts" to keep it from being too tempting. Lester is a career 10-0 against the Baltimore Orioles. That is called total domination. The Red Sox are hitting the heck out of the ball right now, and they get to take aim at Jeremy Guthrie, who, to his credit, is pitching better this year (3-5, 3.85 ERA). That being said, he's 1-5 career against the Red Sox with a 4.72 ERA, and he lost to them once already this year. Leans: Red Sox RL

Indians @ White Sox (-160) with a total of 9
SEMI-REMATCH ALERT! This will be the third time these pitchers have faced the other club, so I think it's safe to say that player numbers need not be re-typed. Talbot beat Peavy a couple weeks ago, though they each had a start against the opposition that didn't come head-to-head. Talbot has been a beast against the White Sox so far this year. He's 2-0 against them with a 1.69 ERA, and it seems pretty clear that this is just a team he's comfortable against. I know there's the theory that a pitcher might have some issues the third time he faces a team, but I'm not sure I buy it. I am somewhat concerned by the magnitude of the line, though. Peavy has been pretty bad, and one of those awful starts did come against the Indians. The line almost feels too high. I'd like to try to find a way to back the Indians here, and I still might. Peavy was a -130 road favorite against Talbot in the last meeting, so I suppose the 30 cent swing to the home venue isn't all that weird. Leans: Indians

Tigers (-150) @ Royals with a total of 8.5
Miguel Cabrera was 8-for-9 off Hochevar with 4 RBI before facing him twice this year;
Carlos Guillen is 4-for-10 with a HR and 3 RBI off Hochevar;
Billy Butler was batting .423 in 26 AB with 2 HR and 3 RBI off Verlander before 2010;
Alberto Callaspo was 3-for-7 off Verlander before this year.
Justin Verlander has some mild ownage of the Royals in his career, going 9-2 with a 2.58 ERA. Of course, the one time he faced them this year, at the very start of the season, he gave up 4 runs in 5 innings. Hochevar has faced the Tigers twice this year, going 7.2 dominant innings the first time, then giving up 4 runs in 5 innings the second go-round, though the Royals won both. That's really all you need to know, as Verlander has a tendency to give up a run or two in his starts, lately, and Hochevar has been going deeper and deeper in ballgames. Being that he semi-eliminates the Royals pen, that huge edge for the Tigers becomes diminished, and I'd be very cautious before backing Detroit. Leans: None

Twins (-125) @ Athletics with a total of 7.5
Mark Ellis is 4-for-7 off Liriano with 2 RBI;
Rajai Davis is 4-for-9 off Liriano.
Interestingly, Francisco Liriano's career numbers against the weak-hitting A's aren't that good. He's 1-2 with a 5.08 ERA against Oakland, and as we've noted before, Liriano is trending down just a tad. He's not pitching poorly, so don't misconstrue my remarks, but teams are starting to get some hits off him, and a run here and there. Cahill, for Oakland, has been amazing since coming back to the A's this year. He still walks too many batters, but all that movement on his pitches makes him very tough. He also has decent numbers against the Twins from last year. I wish the A's bullpen was a little more trustworthy, but it is what it is, and I like them, nonetheless. Leans: Athletics

Tips and Trends

Los Angeles Angels at Seattle Mariners

Angels: Los Angeles is back to .500 for the year after winning 7 of their last 10 games. The Angels are 28-28 overall this year, and only trail by 1.5 games in the competitive American League West division. The Angels can thank their offense for their recent win streak, as they've scored 5 runs or more in 7 of their last 9 games. Los Angeles won 2 of the 3 against the Mariners less than a week ago. Los Angeles is a respectable 12-15 on the road this year, and they will look to improve on that record in Seattle. The Angels are -0.36 and +2.64 units both SU and on the RL respectively this year. Righty Ervin Santana will look to continue his sharp form, as he's won his past 3 starts. For the year, Santana is 5-3 with an ERA of 3.43 and a WHIP of 1.24. The Angels are 6-1 in their last 7 games against a right-handed starter. Los Angeles is 4-0 in Santana's last 4 starts overall. The Angels are 5-1 in Santana's last 6 starts with 4 days of rest. Los Angeles is 29-13 in Santana's last 42 starts against the American League West.

Angels are 36-15 last 51 road games against a team with a losing record.
Under is 12-3 last 15 Saturday games.

Key Injuries - 1B Kendry Morales (leg) is out.

PROJECTED SCORE: 2

Mariners (-114, O/U 7.5): The biggest news coming out of Seattle is the retirement of Ken Griffey Jr. Seattle has dealt with adversity all season long, and that's a big reason why they are in last place in the American League West. The Mariners are 22-31 this year, the 4th worst mark in the American League. The glass is half full though, as Seattle has won their past 3 games thanks to dominating pitching. The Mariners have allowed 1 run in each of their past 3 games. P Doug Fister will look to keep the streak going, despite being winless in his last 3 starts. Fister is 3-3 this year, with an ERA of 2.45 and a WHIP of 0.96. The Mariners are 5-1 in their last 6 games against a right-handed starter. Seattle is 2-5 in Fister's last 7 starts against the American League West. The Mariners are 1-4 in Fister's last 5 home starts overall.

Mariners are 5-1 last 6 home games.
Over is 5-1 last 6 games against the American League West.

Key Injuries - C Josh Bard (leg) is out.

PROJECTED SCORE: 5 (Side of the Day)

Atlanta Braves at Los Angeles Dodgers

Braves: Is Atlanta ever going to lose again? That's the million dollar question going around baseball right now, as the Braves have won 9 consecutive games. The Braves have skyrocketed up the standings thanks to their current winning streak, and currently have a 3 game lead in the National League East. Atlanta is 32-22 this year, trailing only San Diego for the best record in the National League. Atlanta is +6.82 and -0.45 units SU and on the RL respectively this year. P Tommy Hanson is looking to keep up his great season, as the Braves have won 8 of his 10 starts this year. Hanson is 5-3 with an ERA of 3.78 and a WHIP of 1.26 this season. The Braves are 8-1 in their last 9 road games against a right-handed starter. Atlanta is 4-1 in Hanson's last 5 starts against a team with a winning record. The Braves are 5-1 in Hanson's last 6 road starts.

Braves are 6-0 last 6 against a team with a winning record.
Under is 4-1 last 5 road games against a team with a home winning percentage greater than .600%.

Key Injuries - 3B Chipper Jones (finger) is questionable.

PROJECTED SCORE: 2

Dodgers (-115, O/U 7.5): Los Angeles has won 4 of their last 5 games to stand 31-23 on the season. The Dodgers are struggling offensively a bit, as they've scored a total of 5 runs over their past 3 games. Tonight marks the 6th consecutive game that Los Angeles has been the listed favorite. Only 1 opponent has scored more than 4 runs against the Dodgers over their past 8 games. Los Angeles is +2.45 and -1.65 units respectively this year. Lefty Clayton Kershaw starts for the Dodgers tonight, as the Dodgers have won 7 of his 11 starts this year. Kershaw is 5-3 with an ERA of 2.95 and a WHIP of 1.33 this year. The Dodgers are 4-1 in their last 5 games against a right-handed starter. Los Angeles is 22-7 in their last 29 home games against a right-handed starter. The Dodgers are 5-0 in Billingsley's last 5 starts overall. The Dodgers are 2-6 in Billingsley's last 8 home starts against a team with a winning record.

Dodgers are 8-2 last 10 home games against a team with a losing road record.
Under is 6-0-1 last 7 during game 3 of a series.

Key Injuries - 3B Casey Blake (back) is questionable.

PROJECTED SCORE: 3 (UNDER - Total of the Day)