Thursday Service Plays

Big Al Mcmordie

Game: Tampa Bay Rays at Baltimore Orioles
Prediction: Baltimore Orioles

Reason: At 7:05pm our member selection is on the Baltimore Orioles over the Tampa Bay Rays. There are at least two ways in which Tampa is not as 'bad' as they've been in years past. First, they've cleansed themselves by removing the word 'Devil' from their name. Secondly they've actually got a stacked lineup with the likes of veterans Carl Crawford and (new Ray) Cliff Floyd, slugger Carlos Pena, and talented youngsters BJ Upton and Evan Longoria, although the latter is starting the season in the minors. Add to those offensive sparkplugs a top 3 starting rotation of Shields, Garza, and (when soon healthy) Kazmir, and you have the makings of a very good core upon which to build. Their problem this year will likely be the same problem they had in '07 - the bullpen. Tampa's relievers weren't just the worst in baseball in 2007, they became one of the worst in MLB history with an official relief ERA of more than six runs over the course of the entire season! They haven't done much if anything to improve on that this season, adding just one significant name to bullpen, that of former All-Star closer Troy Percival and it's very unclear at this point whether he will help or hurt this struggling group of pitchers. These teams are almost exact opposites of one-another with one of Baltimore's only strong suits seeming to be their bullpen, although it's too early to tell, but the initial signs seem very promising. Baltimore may very well finish behind Tampa at the end of the season, but look for their bats to come alive against a starter (Sonnanstine) whose ERA was almost as bad last year as the aforementioned worst bullpen in baseball. Let's not annoint the Rays a playoff team just yet. Take Baltimore.

Jimmy The Moose

Game: Tampa Bay Lightning at Washington Capitals
Prediction: over

Reason: Tampa played the over last night in Carolina and the over is 5-1 in their last 6 road games. This will be the Lightning's 3rd game in 4 night and and the over is 5-2-2 in their last 9 games played in this sitution. Washington's been keeping their playoff hopes alive thanks to solid goaltending and timely scoring. Facing a tired and bad Tampa team expect them to fill the net tonight. The over is 11-4 in the last 15 meetings between the clubs. Play the over.

VEGAS SPORTS PICS

Ohio State Buckeyes - 2.5 over Massachusetts Minutemen

Ohio State which played in last season's NCAA national champ game is 12-2 last 14 postseason games off handily defeating a decent Mississippi team 81-69 in the semifinals. (NIT champ game)

MLB

Houston (Chacon) + 135* over (at) San Diego (Wolf)

Houston is 5-4 last nine games at San Diego. The Astros are 8-2 last ten games as a dog. Chacon made one start vs. Padres last season, allowing no runs on three hits over seven innings.

Baltimore (Trachsel) + 110* over Tampa Bay (Sonnanstine)

Sonnanstine went 1-2 with a 8.04 ERA vs. Orioles last season. Baltimore, which beat Tampa 9-6 Wednesday before the smallest ever Camden Yard's crowd, is 4-1 last five Trachsel home starts.

ARMVIN SPORTS

NHL
NY RANGERS at NY ISLANDERS Over 5

MLB
PITTSBURGH

Dave Cokin.

TAM Devil Rays and BAL Orioles.
Take " TAM Devil Rays".

Andy Sonnanstine got roughed up in his rookie campaign, but he's been impressive this spring for the Rays and appears undervalued right now. There does not appear to be much left in the tank of Steve Trachsel, who was really terrible last season. Trachsel never had great BB/K ratios, but they were beyond awful last year. Fading Trachsel at any reasonable price seems worthwhile, and I'll play that game for the day on the Rays."

Jim Feist.

TAM Devil Rays and BAL Orioles.
Take "TAM Devil Rays".

Tampa Bay has a talented young offense, one with speed in BJ Upton and Carl Crawford, and power with Carlos Pena. They pounded out 10 hits and 6 runs in the opener, winning at Baltimore. The Orioles are short on pitching and power after trading Miguel Tejada and ace lefty Erik Bedard over the winter. Think about this: Kevin Millar was their opening day clean up hitter! There aren.5?t many 37-year old starters who have never beaten Tampa Bay, but Baltimore starter Steve Trachsel is one, at 0-3 with a 5.93 lifetime ERA against Tampa. Another good spot for the visitors, Play the Rays!

Insider Sports Report!

4* Kansas City (Greinke)/Detroit (Bonderman) UNDER 9
Range 9.5 to 8.5

3* Tampa Bay (Sonnanstine) -110 over Baltimore (Trachsel)
Range +115 to -130

3* Portland +5 over Houston (NBA)
Range +7 to +3

ARTHUR RALPH

Super Pick: SACRAMENTO KINGS NBA

900 GOLD KEY : Dallas NHL

Free play U MASS NIT

Karl Garrett 11-0 the last 11 days 😮

Tonight I am playing the NIT Championship Game UNDER the posted total, as I think the linesmakers have posted a rather tall impost on this game. Both team have shown flashes of rapid-fire offense throughout the tournament, but for the season, the Buckeyes have played UNDER the total in 19 of their 32 lined games, while Massachusetts has been UNDER the posted price in their last 3 NIT games, and 6 of their last 7 overall.

You can expect some early nerves to work into the equation as the basket will get small at the start of this game helping us to get on a lower-scoring track for the first half for sure.

Just too many points to combine for in a game that should be more defensive-oriented for both schools involved.

The G-Man is going UNDER the posted total in tonight's final, as I look for move to 12 straight comp winners.

5* UNDER (on a 1* to 5* basis)

Sports Advisors

NIT

Massachusetts (25-10, 17-14-1 ATS) vs. Ohio State (23-13, 17-14-1 ATS)

Ohio State, which reached last year’s NCAA Tournament final before losing to Florida, made it to the NIT title game by breezing past Mississippi 81-69 Tuesday as a two-point chalk. The Buckeyes are 4-0 SU and ATS in the NIT, with all four wins by double digits. The end-of-season surge followed a 2-5 stretch (2-4-1 ATS) that kept Thad Matta’s team out of the NCAA Tournament.

Massachusetts knocked off two-time defending national champion Florida 78-66 as a four-point underdog in Tuesday’s other semifinal to spoil a rematch of last year’s NCAA Tournament championship game. The Minutemen, who rallied from a nine-point halftime deficit against the Gators for their second straight upset win, have been sterling for five weeks now, going 10-1 SU and 8-3 ATS in their last 11 outings.

These two teams met twice earlier this decade, with Ohio State winning both games and the two squads splitting the cash. The Buckeyes won 54-51 at home as an 11-point chalk in December 2000 and 70-62 in January 2002 as a four-point road favorite.

The Buckeyes are on a 7-0 ATS tear in non-conference play and sport additional positive ATS trends of 5-0 as a favorite, 5-1 against winning teams, 4-1 after a SU win, 7-2 as a neutral-site chalk and 10-4 in postseason play. On the negative side, though, they are 2-6-1 ATS in their last nine as a chalk of less than seven points.

The Minutemen are in the midst of pointspread tears of 6-2 against winning teams, 6-2 as an underdog and 5-2 ATS after a spread-cover. However, despite Tuesday’s win, UMass is still just 2-5 ATS in its last seven as a neutral-site pup, and 1-5 ATS in its last six Thursday starts.

Both teams are averaging 74.4 points per game over their last five contests, but Ohio State (49.5 percent) is shooting the ball much more efficiently than UMass (44 percent) over this stretch. Defensively, the Buckeyes are yielding 64.2 ppg in their last five (42 percent shooting), while the Minutemen are allowing 67 ppg (39.4 percent shooting).

For Ohio State, the over is on runs of 4-1 overall, 4-0 as a neutral-site chalk, 7-3 at neutral venues overall and 8-0 when playing on Thursdays. On the flip side, the under is on streaks for Massachusetts of 6-1 overall (3-0 last three), 6-0 after a victory and 6-2 as an underdog. However, the overall is 18-9-1 in UMass’ last 28 non-conference clashes.

ATS ADVANTAGE: MASSACHUSETTS

NBA

Chicago (29-45, 32-42 ATS) at Cleveland (42-33, 35-40 ATS)

The Cavaliers come back home after last night’s quick trip to Charlotte, as they host a Bulls team on the verge of being eliminated from playoff contention.

Cleveland held off the Bobcats 118-114, barely cashing as a three-point road chalk to halt an 0-4 ATS slide. The Cavs have won consecutive games after going 3-6 in their previous nine.

Chicago is coming off Tuesday’s 106-92 home loss to the Celtics, falling way short as a 7½-point favorite. The Bulls, who beat Milwaukee 114-111 at home on Saturday, are in the midst of a disturbing trend in which they have lost exactly two games after each of their last four victories, and they’re just 4-9 SU in their last 13, going 3-7 ATS in their last 10.

These division rivals have met twice this year, both within a four-day span a month ago. Cleveland won 95-86 as a 4½-point home chalk on March 2, with the Bulls getting revenge in a 107-96 win as a 4½-point home favorite four days later. The Cavs are still 7-3 ATS in the last 10 series clashes overall and 7-1 ATS in the last eight in Cleveland.

Additionally in this rivalry, the home team is 12-4 ATS in the last 16 meetings and the favorite has cashed in nine of the last 12 battles.

The Cavs have been solid at home of late, going 10-1 in their last 11 at Quicken Loans Arena, but just 6-5 ATS. Meanwhile, the Bulls have lost 10 of their last 11 road games (5-6 ATS), including the last six in a row (2-4 ATS).

Chicago is 1-4 ATS in its last five as an underdog. Meanwhile, Cleveland is mired in ATS funks of 1-4 on back-to-back nights, 3-5 as a chalk and 4-12 as a favorite of 5 to 10½ points. On the bright side, the Cavs have cashed in 18 of their last 26 divisional contests.

For Cleveland, the under is on streaks of 6-3 overall, 8-1 at home and 26-11 on Thursdays. However, for the Bulls, the over is on runs of 9-5-1 overall, 4-0-1 on the road, 5-2 on Thursdays and 8-3-1 in divisional play. Finally, the under is 6-1 in the last seven series meetings at Quicken Loans Arena.

ATS ADVANTAGE: CLEVELAND and UNDER

Houston (49-25, 41-31-2 ATS) at Portland (38-37 SU and ATS)

The suddenly slumping Rockets look to get back on track when they resume their five-game Western Conference road trip with a game at the Rose Garden against the Blazers.

Houston has followed up its historic 22-game winning streak by losing five of its last eight, including Monday’s last-second 99-98 loss at Sacramento as a 2½-point road underdog. Two days earlier the Rockets started their trip with a 109-88 loss to the Spurs as a 6½-point ‘dog. Since cashing in 12 consecutive games during its long winning streak, Rick Adelman’s squad is just 2-7-1 ATS in its last 10.

Playing without star guard Brandon Roy (injury), Portland lost its third in a row last night in Los Angeles, falling 104-91, but barely cashing as a 13½-point road underdog. The Blazers have followed up a 6-3 run by going 1-4 in their last five, and they’ve also failed to cash in five of their last eight contests.

The Rockets have had Portland’s number this year, winning all three meetings (2-1 ATS) by margins of 89-80 and 95-83 at home, and 89-79 on the road. Going back to the end of last season, Houston is 4-0 against the Blazers, but the teams have split the cash. In fact, the underdog is 6-2 ATS in the last eight series clashes.

Despite their recent pointspread downturn, the Rockets are still on ATS streaks of 16-5-1 as a favorite, 4-1 as a road chalk, 4-1-1 against the Northwest Division, 22-8-3 on Thursdays and 13-5-1 when playing one day of rest.

Portland has been burning money at home lately, going 3-13 ATS in its last 16 as a host. It is also 1-4 ATS in its last four as an underdog and 0-4 ATS in its last four versus the Southwest Division. However, the Blazers have cashed in 21 of their last 29 as a home pup, and they’re 5-0 ATS in their last five when playing on back-to-back nights.

The under is 7-1 in the last eight series meetings overall (3-0 this year) and 9-4 in the last 13 clashes at the Rose Garden. Also, the under is on streaks of 6-0 for Portland overall, 4-2 for Portland at home, 42-19-1 for Portland against the Southwest Division, 6-2-1 for Portland on the second night of a back-to-back, 18-5 for Portland against winning teams, 6-2 for Houston as a favorite, 5-0 for Houston as a home favorite and 6-0 for Houston against the Northwest.

ATS ADVANTAGE: HOUSTON and UNDER

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Pittsburgh (1-1) at Atlanta (1-2)

Mike Hampton returns to the mound for a regular-season game for the first time since undergoing serious elbow surgery in 2005 as the veteran southpaw leads the Braves against the Pirates and Zach Duke (3-8, 5.53 ERA in 2007) in the rubber match of a three-game series.

Atlanta broke open a 3-2 game Wednesday night with a seven-run eighth inning, cruising to a 10-2 victory after losing the series-opener 12-11 in 12 innings on Monday. Going back to last year, the Braves are 10-3 in their last 13 home games. Meanwhile, the Pirates are stuck in slumps of 3-14 overall and 17-36 on the road.

This series has belonged to Atlanta in recent years, as the Braves are 43-20 in the last 63 meetings, going 26-8 in the last 34 at Turner Field.

Hampton, who posted a 2.16 ERA in five starts in the exhibition season, hasn’t been on the mound since Aug. 19, 2005, when he gave up seven runs on 11 hits in 3 1/3 innings in a 12-7 home loss to the Padres. He made just 12 starts in that 2005 season, going 5-3 with a 3.50 ERA.

Since joining the Braves in 2003, Hampton is 32-20 with a 3.96 ERA. Also, Hampton has owned the Pirates in his career, going 10-3 with a 2.71 ERA in 22 appearances (16 starts).

Duke struggled with consistency last year, and after June, he made just three appearances (two starts) with Pittsburgh. All three of those appearances came in September, and he went 0-1 with a 3.86 ERA. The Pirates were 0-4 in his final four starts of 2007, and the southpaw was a disaster on the highway last year, going 2-5 with a 6.17 ERA in 11 games (10 starts).

Duke made one start against Atlanta last year and gave up four runs on nine hits in 5 2/3 innings in a 4-1 home loss. For his career, he’s 1-2 with a 3.43 ERA versus the Braves, including 1-1 with a 2.35 ERA in two starts at Turner Field.

The over is 7-1 in Hampton’s last eight starts (4-0 in the last four) and 8-2 in Duke’s last 10 outings (5-1 on the road). However, the under is 3-0 in Duke’s three starts against the Braves.

The over is 6-1 in the last seven series meetings overall (2-0 this week) and 5-1 in the last five clashes in Atlanta.

ATS ADVANTAGE: ATLANTA and OVER

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Toronto (1-1) at N.Y. Yankees (1-1)

Two highly touted pitching prospects square off at Yankee Stadium tonight, as the Blue Jays’ Dustin McGowan (12-10, 4.08 ERA in 2007) opposes Phil Hughes (5-3, 4.46) in the finale of a three-game series between these A.L. East rivals.

After suffering a 3-2 loss in Tuesday’s opener, Toronto came back last night and held on for a 5-2 victory behind a strong outing from starter A.J. Burnett. Despite that result, New York is still on runs of 20-10 overall going back to last season and 42-18 at home.

The Yankees are still 11-6 in the last 17 meetings with the Blue Jays, going 6-3 at home.

Hughes came up from Triple-A in late April last year but got hurt in his second start and was sidelined more than three months. He finished making 13 starts, and he was especially solid in September as he went 3-0 with a 2.73 ERA in five starts, with New York winning all five contests.

Hughes made seven starts at Yankee Stadium as a rookie, going 1-2 with a 5.91 ERA, as opposed to 4-1 with a 3.11 ERA on the road. The righthander also faced Toronto three times, going 1-1 with a 4.70 ERA.

McGowan, in his first full season as a starter, was solid in the second half of the season, going 7-6 with a 3.67 ERA in 15 post-All-Star-break outings. However, the righthander struggled on the road, going 4-7 with a 4.91 ERA in 14 starts, including 1-1 with a 6.35 ERA in two outings at Yankee Stadium (eight runs allowed in 11 1/3 innings).

For his career, McGowan is 2-2 with a 5.63 ERA in nine appearances (four starts) against the Bronx Bombers. Also, Toronto went 4-2 in McGowan’s six September appearances last year, but both losses came against the Yankees as he allowed 10 runs in 9 1/3 innings.

The under was 19-8 in McGowan’s 27 starts last year, including 5-1 in his last six on the road. On the flip side, the over is 4-1 in Hughes’ last five overall and 4-1-1 in his last six at home.

The under is 24-10-2 in the last 35 head-to-head meetings at Yankee Stadium, including 13-5 in the last 18 and 2-0 in this series.

ATS ADVANTAGE: N.Y. YANKEES and UNDER

Bobby Maxwell

Two elbow surgeries and a lot of therapy and recovery and Mike Hampton is back on the mound for the Braves. He hasn't pitched since August 2005 and tonight we're banking on him being just a bit rusty and the Pirates getting the better of him. Take the home underdog Pirates in this one.

Back injuries, elbow injuries and a 35-year-old guy trying to look good in the final year of that obnoxious $121 million contract he signed is what I see going on tonight. But I also see the Pirates unloading on him and his average stuff tonight.

These teams have split the first two games of this series with the Pirates getting the opener 12-11 in 12 innings and the Braves winning Wednesday 10-2.

Paul Maholm goes for the Pirates after finishing 10-15 last season with a 5.02 ERA. The lefty had a solid start at Turner Field last season, giving up three runs on eight hits in six innings as the Pirates fell 5-1. But look for him to get plenty of offensive support from Xavier Nady who is crushing it so far, going 5-for-10 with two homers and six RBIs in two games. Against Hampton, Nady is a career 4-for-5.

We don't wish any ill will toward Hampton but we're realists and don't see him pitching a gem tonight. Grab the plus money and play the Pirates.

3* PITTSBURGH

Cappers Access

Rockies

Twins

UMass

EZ WINNERS MLB

1 STAR: (951) ARIZONA (+$116) over Cincinnati
(Listing Davis and Cueto)
(Risking $100 to win $116)

1 STAR: (953) WASHINGTON (+$163) over Philadelphia
(Listing Bergmann and Moyer)
(Risking $100 to win $163)

1 STAR: (965) KANSAS CITY (+$164) over Detroit
(Listing Greinke and Bonderman)
(Risking $100 to win $164)

1 STAR: (961) PITTSBURGH (+$139) over Atlanta
(Listing Duke and Hampton)
(Risking $100 to win $139)

SportsKingz

MLB

ATLANTA -140

COLORADO -120

SAN DIEGO -150