Weekend Cheat Sheet
Marc Lawrence
Another round of Interleague play resumes this weekend and the MLB CHEAT SHEET is right here to guide you through as intra-division play between both circuits continues on the MLB front.
This guide is designed to help you isolate a few key best bets as we focus on four different series on this weekend's Interleague card. Keep in mind that all pitcher records are 'team starts' unless noted otherwise.
FYI: Three interesting Interleague team trends of note as we enter the weekend - Boston is 30-10 in its last 40 as a host... Minnesota is 21-6 in its last 27 contests... San Diego is 4-20 in its last 24 games.
Enjoy the Father's Day weekend...
Atlanta Braves at Boston Red Sox
Most Recent Series Result: Red Sox 8-2 last ten games vs. Braves
Most Recent Series Result: at the Site: Red Sox 4-2 last six games home vs. Braves
Key Day/Month Stat: Red Sox 15-5 home on Sundays; Braves 6-14 away on Sundays
Best Arm in the Series: Red Sox' Matsusaka 1-0 3.37 ERA career team starts vs. Braves
Worst Arm in the Series: Braves' Vazquez 2-7 4.74 ERA career team starts vs. Red Sox
Chicago White Sox at Cincinnati Reds
Most Recent Series Result: White Sox 9-0 last nine games vs. Reds
Most Recent Series Result at the Site: White Sox 6-0 last six games away vs. Reds
Key Day/Month Stat: White Sox 8-2 on Saturdays; Reds 5-15 on Saturdays
Best Arm in the Series: White Sox' Contreras 2-0 4.85 ERA career team starts vs. Reds
Worst Arm in the Series: Reds' Harang 0-1 4.08 ERA career team starts vs. White Sox
Arizona Diamondbacks at Seattle Mariners
Most Recent Series Result: Mariners 9-3 last twelve games vs. Diamondbacks
Most Recent Series Result at the Site: Mariners 4-2 home vs. Diamondbacks
Key Day/Month Stat: Mariners 7-1 home on Sundays; Diamondbacks 5-11 on Sundays
Best Arm in the Series: Diamondbacks' Garland 10-5 3.71 ERA career team starts vs. Mariners
Worst Arm in the Series: Diamondbacks' Davis 2-7 5/10 ERA career team starts vs. Mariners (1-4 5.00 ERA away)
Los Angeles Dodgers at Los Angeles Angels
Most Recent Series Result: Angels 12-5 last seventeen games vs. Dodgers (2-1 this season)
Most Recent Series Result at the Site: Angels 7-1 last eight home vs. Dodgers
Key Day/Month Stat: Dodgers 14-2 on Saturdays; Angels 1-4 on Saturdays
Best Arm in the Series: Angels' Lackey 4-0 0.33 ERA home career team starts vs. Dodgers; Angels' Jerred Weaver 4-1 1.58 career team starts vs. Dodgers (2-0 home)
Worst Arm in the Series: Dodgers' Jeff Weaver 0-5 7.63 ERA last five team starts vs. Angels (0-3 last three away)
MLB Weekend Top 10
By Bodog
Top 10 paying teams
1. Los Angeles Dodgers (43-23, 16.81 units)
2. Texas Rangers (37-27 SU, 12.13 units)
3. Boston Red Sox (40-25 SU, 9.44 units)
4. Los Angeles Angels (35-29 SU, 8.20 units)
5. Milwaukee Brewers (37-29 SU, 7.43 units)
6. Cincinnati Reds (33-31 SU, 5.32 units)
7. Philadelphia Phillies (36-27, 4.32 units)
8. Pittsburgh Pirates (31-34, 3.56 units)
9. Toronto Blue Jays (36-31 SU, 2.52 units)
10. San Francisco Giants (34-31 SU, 2.12 units)
Top 10 paying pitchers
1. Matt Palmer, L.A. Angels (8-1 team record, 10.4 units)
2. Josh Johnson, Florida (11-3, 7.89 units)
3. Tim Wakefield, Boston (10-3, 6.98 units)
4. Chad Billingsley, L.A. Dodgers (11-3, 6.56 units)
5. Jason Marquis, Colorado (9-4, 6.35 units)
6. Matt Cain, San Francisco (10-3, 6.19 units)
7. Vicente Padilla, Texas (8-3, 6.03 units)
8. Jeff Suppan, Milwaukee (9-5, 5.95 units)
9. Eric Stults, L.A. Dodgers (7-2, 5.85 units)
10. Jeff Niemann, Tampa Bay (9-4, 5.60 units)
This weekend's top 10 storylines
1. Blue Jays putting starters Roy Halladay and Casey Janssen, closer Scott Downs on DL
2. Mariners send Erik Bedard to DL with shoulder inflammation.
3. Cubs manager Lou Piniella promises “tough decisions” for slumping ballclub
4. Brewers OF Ryan Braun leaves game with back stiffness; expected return Friday
5. Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen blames blister for Johan Santana's struggles
6. A’s OF Ryan Sweeney (sprained left knee) expected to return Thursday
7. Carl Pavano’s Saturday start for Cleveland pushed to Wednesday; Tomo Ohka to fill in
8. Yankees SS Derek Jeter leaves game early with stiff left ankle
9. Twins put OF Denard Span on DL with inner ear infection
10. Cards to activate SS Khalil Greene, play him at third base
This weekend's top 10 games to bet on
1. Sunday: L.A. Dodgers at L.A. Angels (8:05 p.m. Eastern, ESPN)
It’s another edition of Sunday Night Baseball featuring two of the most profitable teams in the majors. The Angels took two of three at Chavez Ravine last month.
2. Saturday: N.Y. Yankees at Florida (7:10 p.m.)
A.J. Burnett (8-5 team record, +1.88 units) starts for the Yankees against Josh Johnson, the No. 2 pitcher on our money list.
3. Sunday: Atlanta at Boston (1:35 p.m., TBS)
Tim Wakefield and his dancing knuckleball take the mound for Boston. Wakefield is stuck on nine wins alongside Chad Billingsley, Matt Cain and Kevin Slowey. Jair Jurrjens (7-7, -1.95 units) goes for Atlanta.
4. Saturday: Tampa Bay at N.Y. Mets (4:10 p.m., FOX)
The Mets are 12-5 in their last 17 games at newly minted Citi Field. Tampa Bay is 2-8 in its last 10 on the road.
5. Friday: Cleveland at Chicago Cubs (2:20 p.m.)
Chicago has scored one run (or fewer) in four of its last six contests, prompting manager Lou Piniella’s threat to make some lineup changes. The under is 14-4 in the last 18 Cubs games.
6. Saturday: St. Louis at Kansas City (4:10 p.m., FOX)
Chris Carpenter (4-4, -0.37 units) has pitched five straight quality starts, during which the Cardinals scored a grand total of nine runs. The under is 5-2-1 for Carpenter thus far.
7. Friday: Texas at San Francisco (10:15 p.m.)
Randy Johnson (7-6, +1.54 units) turns 46 in September, and he’s still mowing ‘em down with 64 strikeouts in 70 innings of work.
8. Sunday: Milwaukee at Detroit (1:05 p.m.)
The under is 21-8 in Detroit’s last 29 games, but only 7-7 on the season for Justin Verlander (9-5, +3.49 units). His streak of nine quality starts was snapped last week in St. Louis.
9. Friday: Pittsburgh at Colorado (9:10 p.m.)
Yes, that’s the Pirates on our Top 10 money board. They’re No. 19 in the majors in hitting with a .726 OPS and No. 13 in pitching with a 4.22 ERA – not entirely awful, which is a big improvement.
10. Saturday: Chicago White Sox at Cincinnati (7:10 p.m., MLBN)
The fledgling MLB Network wraps up our preview with the hottest pitcher in the National League, Cincinnati’s Johnny Cueto (8-5, +3.71 units). The under is 9-4 in his starts.