Wednesday's Best MLB Mound Matchup
Cliff Lee, Texas Rangers (+121) vs. David Price, Tampa Bay Rays (-128)
Cliff Lee (12-9, 3.19 ERA)
The Rangers’ move to bring Lee to Arlington was based solely on this start.
Lee wasn’t overly impressive in his 15 starts for Texas, going just 4-6 with a 3.98 ERA. But there is no denying the left hander’s success in the postseason. He was untouchable in last year’s playoff run with the Philadelphia Phillies, going 4-0 and posting a 1.56 ERA through five starts.
Lee faced the Rays three times this season, losing all three starts while boasting a 4.56 ERA in those matchups. However, only one of those starts came while he was a member of the Rangers. Lee gave up six runs on 10 hits while striking out 10 batters over 7 2-3 innings of work in a 6-4 loss to Tampa Bay on August 16. He is 6-5 with a 2.87 ERA in 13 career starts against the Rays.
"We knew it was going to be Tampa or New York, but now we know it's Tampa, so it should be a good series," Lee told MLB.com. "They're a good team and so are we. We're not going to play any slouches from here on out. It's the real deal. It's going to be a lot of fun. Hopefully, we go in there and play the game the way we can and move on to the next round."
Lee posted a mark of 13-15 over/under in his 28 starts this season.
David Price (19-6, 2.72 ERA)
The Rays ace is in the running for the American League Cy Young after closing the season with four wins in his last five starts. Price even worked some relief innings this Saturday, tuning up for his showdown with the Rangers.
The southpaw pitched 5 2-3 innings of postseason baseball as a member of the 2008 Tampa Bay team that lost to the Phillies in the World Series. Price picked up one win and struck out eight batters with an ERA of 1.59.
Price faced the Rangers just once this season, giving up just two earned runs on five hits while striking out eight in six innings of work for a 6-4 win and outdueling Lee in the process. For his career, Price hasn’t been as successful versus Tampa Bay. He is just 1-2 with a 7.44 ERA when staring down the Rangers.
Price finished with a 13-18 over/under mark in his 31 starts this season.
Wednesday Divisional Tips
By Kevin Rogers
The road to the Fall Classic begins on Wednesday with a trio of games to get the baseball postseason underway. Two aces that were solid throughout last year's postseason will start on the road, while the Phillies look for their third straight World Series appearance. We'll being at Tropicana Field as the Rays seek their second pennant run in three seasons when they host the Rangers.
Rangers at Rays - 1:35 PM EST
A pair of division winners meets up in this ALDS matchup as Texas makes its first appearance in the postseason since 1999. The Rangers wrapped up the AL West by easily winning the division by nine games, finishing at 90-72. The Rays clinched their second-ever AL East title when the Yankees lost on Sunday at Fenway Park, as Tampa Bay will have home-field advantage until the World Series.
David Price (19-6, 2.72 ERA) may fall short of the AL Cy Young Award, but the southpaw has anchored this Tampa Bay staff to its second-best record in franchise history (96-66). Price finished off a fantastic season with a strong September, as Tampa Bay went 6-0 in his six starts, while allowing eight earned runs. The former Vanderbilt star was lights-out at home, compiling a 9-2 record to go along with a 1.96 ERA. Price received a no-decision in his only start against the Rangers this season, giving up five hits and two earned runs in six innings of a 6-4 victory.
The opposing pitcher in that game was Cliff Lee (12-9, 3.18 ERA), who allowed six earned runs in seven innings, while taking the loss. Lee's numbers have taken a hit since his trade from Seattle to Texas in July, as the Rangers are 6-9 in his 15 starts with only seven quality outings. That number worsens on the road, with Texas going 2-6 in Lee's eight starts on the highway, a stark contrast to the 5-2 away mark with Seattle.
Tampa Bay beat Texas four of six times this season, including all three meetings at the Trop. The 'over' was a profitable play, hitting five times, as the winning team scored at least six runs in each meeting. The Rays are listed as a $1.50 favorite to claim the series, while the Rangers sit at a $1.30 underdog to advance to the ALCS.
Reds at Phillies - 5:05 PM EST
Philadelphia attempts to win its third consecutive pennant as Cincinnati is the first hurdle for the Phillies to jump in that quest. The Reds comfortably won the NL Central with a 91-71 mark, topped off by a 27-19 run after getting swept by the Cardinals in mid-August. The Phillies went on a 27-8 spurt since late August to take firm control of the NL East, winning the division by six games over the Braves.
Roy Halladay (21-10, 2.44 ERA) makes his postseason debut for the Phillies, coming off the third 20-win season of his career. Halladay ended the regular season with a complete-game shutout of the Nationals, ending a streak of six straight starts in which he allowed at least three earned runs. The right-hander had two vastly different outings against Cincinnati this season, as he shut out the Reds at home in a five-hit effort on July 10 in a 1-0 victory. In Halladay's only start at the Great American Ballpark, he allowed a season-high 13 hits, but struck out 10 in a 4-3 defeat as $1.50 favorite.
The Reds counter with Edinson Volquez (4-3, 4.31 ERA), who also makes his first appearance in the playoffs. Volquez is two seasons removed from a 17-6 campaign, in which the righty made the National League All-Star team. Tommy John surgery sidelined Volquez for a year and a half, but he rebounded in the last three months as Cincinnati went 9-3 in his 12 starts. Since allowing five earned runs in 0.2 innings at San Francisco on August 23, Volquez has yielded six earned runs in his last four outings, while leading Cincinnati to a 3-1 record in that span.
The Phillies won five of seven meetings against the Reds this season, while sweeping a four-game set from Cincinnati at Citizens Bank Park in July. Four of the seven games were decided by one run, including three in Philadelphia. The Phillies are by far the biggest favorite to claim an opening round series, listed as nearly $3.00 'chalk' to advance to the NLCS. If you want a potentially nice payout, you can side with the Reds to win this series by laying $1.00 to win $2.40.
Yankees at Twins - 8:35 PM EST
The reigning World Series champions begin on their road as the Bombers play the first playoff game ever at Target Field against the Twins. Minnesota's huge second half without Justin Morneau showed what kind of depth the Twins have offensively, as Ron Gardenhire's team is in the postseason for the second straight season. The only problem is they run into the Yankees again, who eliminated Minnesota in a three-game sweep in 2009.
Cy Young frontrunner CC Sabathia (21-7, 3.18 ERA) looks to duplicate last season's postseason success in which the southpaw finished 3-1 in five starts. Sabathia has saved his best pitching for August and beyond since donning the pinstripes last season, as New York is 23-6 in his post-August outings. The former Indian and Brewer hasn't faced the Twins this season, but has beaten Minnesota six straight times dating back to 2007.
The Twins send out Francisco Liriano (14-10, 3.62 ERA), who has saved his worst pitching for now. The Minnesota lefty is 0-3 in his last three starts with an ERA of 8.10. Liriano owns a solid ERA at Target Field (3.11), but the Twins are just 9-7 in his 16 home starts. The 26-year old hasn't beaten the Yankees in four career starts, including a pair of defeats this season.
The Yankees have owned the Twins in the past, claiming 14 of the last 16 meetings since the start of the 2008 season. New York went 4-2 against Minnesota this season, while winning a pair of one-run contests at Target Field. Despite being the Wild Card squad and starting the series on the road, the Yankees are a $1.80 favorite to win this ALDS. The Twins are a solid $1.60 takeback with the home-field advantage to capture this best-of-five series.
vegasinsider.com
MLB Playoffs
Wednesday, October 6
Tampa Bay was 4-2 vs Texas this season, losing first two, winning the last four; five of the six games went over total; Rays scored 24 runs in sweeping Texas in last series, in mid-August. Lee was 4-0, 1.56 in five postseason starts LY; he was 2-1, 2.25 in four September starts, after he got roughed up in last five August starts. Lee was 0-3, 4.94 vs Rays in '10, but two of those three starts were when he was with the Mariners. Price is 4-0, 1.88 in his last six starts; he beat Texas 6-4 Aug 16 (two runs/six IP). Five of his last seven starts stayed under total.
Home side won six of seven Reds-Phils games this season, with Cincy losing all four games played here (outscored 15-10-- Philly won 1-0 in last two games). Four of last five series games were decided by one run. Volquez is 1-1, 1.95 in his last four starts since getting KO'd by Giants in 1st inning Aug 23rd (last three stayed under). Halladay is 5-0, 3.44 in his last five starts; he was 1-1, 2.12 in two starts against Reds this year, with home team winning both games.
Bronx was 4-2 against the Twins this year, allowing total of seven runs in the four wins, 6-8 runs in losses; teams haven't met since late May. Liriano is 1-3, 6.98 in his last four starts; he was 0-1, 3.46 in two starts vs Bronx this year (five runs/13 IP). Seven of his last eight starts went over the total. Sabathia is 8-2, 3.26 in his last 11 starts; he didn't throw against the Twins this season.
Tips and Trends
New York Yankees at Minnesota Twins
YANKEES: (-135, O/U 7) New York ended the season in a bit of a slump, losing 7 of their final 10 games. As a result of their poor play down the stretch, the Yankees lost the American League East division and instead enter the post-season as the AL Wild Card. New York finished the season with a record of 95-67 SU, including a road record of 43-38. The Yankees were -4.61 and +11.27 units both SU and ATS this season. The Yankees are looking to win their 28th World Series Championship this year. Lefty C.C. Sabathia will make the road start tonight, as he is 21-7 SU with an ERA of 3.18 and a WHIP of 1.19 this year. The Yankees are 4-1 in their last 5 Divisional Playoff games. New York is 47-18 in their last 65 games against the American League Central. The Yankees are 6-13 in their last 19 games during game 1 of a series. New York is 0-9 in their last 9 games against a left-handed starter. The Yankees are 39-12 in Sabathia's last 51 starts as a favorite. New York is 35-16 in Sabathia's last 51 starts following a Quality Start in his last appearance.
Yankees are 10-1 last 11 playoff games as a favorite.
Over is 5-0-1 last 6 playoff road games.
Key Injuries - 1B Nick Johnson (wrist) is out.
Projected Score: 5 (SIDE of the Day)
TWINS: Minnesota gets another chance to beat the Yankees in a playoffs series. Last season, the Twins were eliminated from the postseason thanks to the Yankees, who happened to come from behind in each of their 3 victories. Minnesota finished the season with a record of 94-68 SU, including 53-28 SU at home. The Twins are hopeful that ace Francisco Liriano can finally beat the Yankees, as he's never done so in his career. Liriano has a career ERA of 3.12 against the Yankees, including 4 starts. Liriano finished the regular season with a record of 14-10 SU, including an ERA of 3.62 and a WHIP of 1.26 this year. Minnesota ended the season +13.19 and -2.03 units both SU and AT. The Twins are 5-0 in their last 5 games as a home underdog of +110 to +150. Minnesota is 5-2 in their last 7 games following an off day. The Twins are 5-18 in their last 23 playoff games overall. The Twins are 1-4 in their last 5 games against a left-handed starter. Minnesota is 3-14 in their last 17 playoff games as an underdog. The Twins are 4-1 in Liriano's last 5 starts as an underdog. Minnesota is 1-10 in Liriano's last 11 starts against the American League East.
Twins are 1-12 last 13 Divisional Playoff games.
Over is 5-1 last 6 playoff games as an underdog of +110 to +150.
Key Injuries - 1B Justin Morneau (concussion) is out.
Projected Score: 3
What a game Halladay had especially for his first ever post season game.