The Consensus Group Guaranteed Selections
5000* BASEBALL DIAMOND DOMINATOR WINNER
LA Angels w/Garland -115
INDIAN COWBOY COMP
Sacramento +9
Detroit comes off a monster win at Washington as they won 99-62, nearly dropping 100 points on the road and I think they are in for a bit of a let down today against Sacramento. Look, Sacramento is one of those teams that has the knack of losing ballgames on the road, but remaining competitive because of their defense. Remember, this team went on the road to Houston and lost 65-73 (by 8), went on the road to San Antonio and lost 67-68 (by 1), went on the road to Minnesotta and lost 76-80 (by 4), and lost 73-78 to Indiana (by 5), in fact, this team is 3-1 of late in covers on the road, and it has been quite a long time since this team has lost by double-digits on the road, the Monarchs to their credit are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 road ballgames, and the Shock are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 ballgames following an ATS win meaning that I vegas keeps an eye on this public team's ability to cover. I'll take the Monarchs to likely lose by 5 here as that's what I have this game pegged at.
Elite Sports Circle Guaranteed Selections
5000* ELITE STEAM BASEBALL WINNER
Whitesox w/Danks
King Creole
ANA / BOS Over 9
1* Play on: OVER THE TOTAL
For tonight's nationally-televised game on ESPN, let's take a look at tonight's Home Plate Umpire. Although TOM HALLION is only 11-1 O/U on the season, we DO note that he's gone 7-2 O/U in his last 9 games overall. Average runs scored in his current 78% 'OVER' streak is 11.8. He's also gone 3-1 O/U in Boston ROAD games throughout his career.... and 8-2 O/U in all LA ANGEL games. We'll also take comfort in knowing that Mother Nature might might be giving us an assist this evening.... as weather forecasts indicate that winds will be blowing OUT to Right Field in excess of 10 MPH.
Both of tonight's pitchers have very POOR numbers against their respective opponents. TIM WAKEFIELD is 5-1 O/U in his last 6 starts vs the Halos since the 2003 season. His numbers "In THIS Park" include 3 starts in that time frame. Innings pitched: 12.1 (He hasn't made it into the 5th inning in ANY of those 3 starts). Earned runs allowed: 17! That's an ERA In this Park that's approaching explosive levels (12.41!). And naturally, he's gone a PERFECT 3-0 O/U in those three road starts. Meanwhile, JOHN GARLAND just got HAMMERED in his last start, going only 2.2 innings... allowing 12 hits + walks... and 7 earned runs in a 9-2 loss to the Oakland A's. In his recent career against the Red Sox, he's gone 4-1-1 O/U since the 2005 season. ERA vs Boston is 6.52.
Lenny Del Genio's Sunday Night Smash **6-0 Sun Night Run**
Play on Boston at 6:05 ET. The Angels have taken the first two meetings of this series and four straight overall against the Red Sox, but we're taking the contrarian approach tonight. Certainly, it is worth noting Boston's recent poor play on the road (2-9 L11), but this team is simply too good to allow this trend to continue. Also, the early start will greatly aid Tim Wakefield, who is unbeaten in daytime starts this season with a 3.68 ERA. The reason being that his patented knuckleballer is just plain harder to see in this afternoon affairs. Jon Garland was on the hill the last time the Angels lost, a 9-2 loss to Oakland, where he surrendered seven runs and 10 hits in less than three innings of work. Garland has been very bad in the role of home favorite over the last two seasons, losing three of four in this role. He has also really struggled against the Red Sox in his career, posting a 5.57 ERA. Wakefield, meanwhile, has a 2.13 ERA in his last nine starts dating to late May, and is coming off a very strong outing, as he allowed one run and two hits in seven innings in a 12-1 win over Baltimore last Saturday. Boston is our Sunday Night Smash.