Thursday's Best MLB Bets
Colorado Rockies at Pittsburgh Pirates (+105, 8.5)
Lots of teams jump off to quick starts and then fade into mediocrity – or worse – as the MLB season rolls along. The Pittsburgh Pirates could easily be one of those teams, though they do have one thing going for them: things can’t get much worse than they’ve been over the last few years.
Pittsburgh just took two out of three at St. Louis to sit at 4-2 heading into Thursday’s home opener backed by some solid starting pitching. Five of Pittsburgh’s six starters have thrown at least six innings and own a 2.52 combined ERA heading into Paul Maholm’s second outing of the season.
"We're not going to lower the bar based on other people's opinions of who we are or what we are," manager Clint Hurdle told reporters after Wednesday’s win. "We've got to get championship-level execution and we've got to have those standards."
We’ll see how that plays out down the road, but we don’t mind taking a shot with the Bucs while they’re hot.
Pick: Pirates
Tampa Bay Rays at Chicago White Sox (-115, 8.5)
It’s almost too easy to pick on the terrible Tampa Bay Rays right now.
The Rays suffered their fifth straight loss to start the season Wednesday afternoon against the Angels and now have to face a White Sox club that is riding high after a big comeback win over the Royals.
Chicago was down 6-3 in the ninth but tied it up by getting to Joakim Soria of all people and Brent Morel smacked a two-run single in the 12th to earn a 10-7 win. The White Sox hammered out 18 hits and probably would have wrapped up the victory much earlier if they didn’t commit four errors.
"Crazy game. Very crazy game," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen told reporters. "Both sides. But thank god we win."
With both clubs playing on a quick turnaround, you have to side with momentum - and offense - even though we never like to bet against David Price.
Pick: White Sox
Thursday MLB Tips
By Kevin Rogers
The Thursday afternoon baseball card is a loaded one with eight of the 10 games being played under the sun. Several teams are trying to get out of town with a victory while other clubs are just looking to get in the win column for the first time. The Rays head to the South Side of Chicago attempting to escape their early-season funk, while the Phillies and Mets finish off their series at Citizens Bank Park. We'll start in the Bronx with the Yankees trying to close out the Twins.
Twins at Yankees
The Bombers have owned Minnesota whether it's the regular season or postseason over the years as the two clubs meet in the series finale. The Twins stole Tuesday night's game in extra-innings, 5-4 after erasing a 4-0 deficit in the eighth inning. Minnesota goes for only its fourth victory in the last 22 meetings against New York, dating back to the 2009 season.
The Twins send out their ace Francisco Liriano (0-1, 8.31 ERA) to the mound on Thursday, looking to rebound from a tough opening start. The southpaw allowed four hits and four earned runs in 4.1 innings of a 6-1 loss at Toronto, while giving up a pair of homers. Minnesota's offense didn't help out Liriano by picking up just one hit against Kyle Drabek, the only game so far this season the Twins have been favored in. Liriano also hopes to turn around his luck against the Yankees, as the Twins are winless in five career starts, including an 0-3 mark last season.
A.J. Burnett (1-0, 5.40 ERA) received plenty of run support in his season opening victory over the Tigers, 10-6. The righty scattered five hits and three earned runs in five innings, picking up his first home victory since September 1 of last season against Oakland. Burnett has seen plenty of success against the Twins, as the Yankees have won all five of his starts versus Minnesota since 2009.
The Yankees are 4-1 to the 'over' this season, while five of the last seven home meetings against the Twins have finished 'under' the total. Minnesota returns to Target Field for a five-game homestand on Friday, starting with Oakland. The Yankees make the short trip to Boston on Friday to battle the struggling Red Sox for three games at Fenway Park.
Rays at White Sox
Tampa Bay is the first team to start 0-5 and be falling back into its old Devil Ray ways after Wednesday's home loss to the Angels. The Rays look to change their fortune with a trip to the Windy City against the White Sox, the first road game this season for Joe Maddon's club. The Sox are coming off a wild series against the Royals in which both games were decided in extra innings.
The man trying to get Tampa Bay off this losing streak is ace David Price (0-1, 5.14 ERA), who was anything but spectacular in his season debut against Baltimore. Price struck out seven batters in seven innings, but allowed four earned runs for the second time in his last 10 starts dating back to last season. The Rays are winless in Price's three career starts against the White Sox, including a 4-1 setback last April at U.S. Cellular Field as a short underdog.
The last time Edwin Jackson (1-0, 3.00 ERA) faced the Rays, the right-hander tossed a no-hitter at Tropicana Field as a member of the Diamondbacks. Jackson needed 149 pitches to complete the no-no, as he walked eight batters in the 1-0 victory. The righty has turned in a pair of quality outings against Tampa Bay in his career, while coming off a victory in his season-opening start at Cleveland.
The Rays took four of seven meetings last season, including two in blowout fashion on the South Side. The White Sox look to keep their hot bats going by cashing the 'over' in four of the first five games after Wednesday's comeback victory at Kansas City.
Mets at Phillies
There aren't many reasons to be surprised about anything Philadelphia does in the regular season since the Phillies have the most loaded starting rotation in the league. On the flip side, the Mets weren't expected to do much this season with Johan Santana sidelined until the All-Star break and a brand-new manager in Terry Collins. However, the Mets won three of the first four games out of the gate to infuse some optimism into this struggling franchise.
The task won't be easy in the series finale for New York as reigning Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay (0-0, 1.50 ERA) takes the mound for the Phillies. Halladay received a no-decision in his season debut against the Astros, tossing six innings and allowing five hits and one earned run. Houston was on its way to an upset victory as nearly $3.00 underdogs, but the Phillies rallied in the ninth inning to stun the Astros, 5-4. Halladay won all five meetings against the Mets in his first season with the Phillies in 2010, including a complete-game shutout last May in a 10-0 rout.
Jon Niese (0-0, 2.57 ERA) looked sharp in his debut against the Marlins last Saturday by delivering seven innings of four-hit ball as the Mets rallied to win in extra innings, 6-4 as $1.20 underdogs. The southpaw held his own in three starts against the Phillies last season by putting together quality outings each time. Niese shut down the Phillies in a 9-1 thrashing last April by yielding four hits in seven innings, while striking out seven.
vegasinsider.com
Astros, Cincinnati Reds conclude set
By: Stephen Nover
The baseball season isn’t even a week old and already the Cincinnati Reds have served notice they are the team to beat again in the National League Central Division.
The Reds are off to their best start since they won the World Series in 1990. Cincinnati had outscored its opponents 31-13 in opening 4-0.
The Houston Astros also have made a statement in losing their first four games while getting blown out three times: They are going to be bad again.
Houston opened 0-8 last year on its way to losing 34 of 51 games during April and May.
The Astros turn to Brett Myers on Thursday to get back on track against a Cincinnati club that is 20-7 in its last 27 home games through this past Tuesday. Game time is 9:35 a.m. PT. It’s the third and final game of the series.
The Reds are going with Sam LeCure, who is the team’s temporary No. 5 starter having moved into the rotation after Homer Bailey was put on the disabled list with a shoulder injury.
The starting pitching matchup definitely favors Houston with Myers, but it’s been real tough to go against the Reds so far.
Cincinnati led the National League in most offensive categories last year and the Reds are right up their so far this year ranking first in homers and runs. It’s not surprising since the Reds retained virtually their entire team from last season.
It’s worth noting, too, the Reds have drawn 18 walks during their first four games. They finished 10th in the National League in bases on balls in 2010.
The Reds made the playoffs for the first time in 15 years last year in large part by going 49-30 versus NL Central foes, posting a winning record against every division opponent except St. Louis.
Cincinnati opened this season sweeping Milwaukee at home averaging 7.7 runs per game, hitting .350 with a .641 slugging percentage in winning all three games.
Myers gave Houston a quality start in the Astros’ opening game, a 5-4 road loss to Roy Halladay and Philadelphia this past Friday. Myers gave ‘dog bettors hope against Halladay, a 240 favorite, by holding the Phillies to one earned run on three hits and three walks in seven innings.
Unfortunately for Myers, who came out of the game holding a 1.29 ERA, closer Brandon Lyons blew the game for the Astros.
Myers, a 30-year-old right-hander, has been highly reliable pitching at least six innings in 33 consecutive starts. He was 14-8 last year with a 3.14 ERA and had 180 strikeouts.
Myers is 3-3 career-wise versus Cincinnati with a 4.14 ERA. That’s a lot better than how the Astros have fared against the Reds having lost 20 of the past 27 meetings through Game 1 of the series. This includes a 2-12 mark in Cincinnati.
LeCure made the big leagues for the first time last year. The 26-year-old right-hander had a 2-5 mark with a 4.50 ERA in 48 innings. LeCure has thrown seven career innings against the Astros and has a 1-0 mark and a 2.57 ERA to show for it along with six strikeouts.
Houston is 27-61 in its last 88 road contests when facing a right-hander. The Astros have managed only 13 runs in their first four games batting a puny .215 during this span. New second baseman Bill Hall has managed only one hit in his first 15 at bats.
The ‘over’ has cashed during 12 of the last 17 times when the Astros have faced a right-hander on the road. The ‘over’ also has cashed during Houston’s past five road matchups.
Veteran umpire Jim Reynolds will have the plate on Thursday, his second assignment this season. He worked last Saturday's game in Washington, a 6-3 Nats win against the Braves that went 'over' the 7½-run total. The 'over' held an 18-10-1 advantage in Reynolds' plate assignments last season.
Cloudy skies with an increased chance of rain during the late afternoon is in the Cincinnati forecast for Thursday. The Astros return home after this contest for their home opener Friday against the Marlins. The Reds will travel to Arizona on Friday where they begin a seven-game swing out west that includes a four-game series in San Diego.