Free Picks for Tuesday, April 4th, 2017 from some of the nations best and worst handicappers
Ray Monohan
Raptors vs. Pacers
Play: Raptors +2½
This play just missed out on our premium card. The Raptors are hot right, and that means they are going to make you money on Tuesday night. They take on the Pacers looking for their third win in a row and at this spread their is all kind of value. Even without Kyle Lowry the Raptors just continue to win. Just two games ago they beat this Pacers team 111-100.
This game isn't going to be easy, as Indiana will have the crowd with them but the Raptors have been playing too well as of late to ignore. Some Trends to note. Raptors are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games following a ATS loss. Pacers are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games following a ATS win. Raptors are 9-3 ATS in the last 12 meetings in Indiana.
The Raptors will come in and extend their winning streak.
Jim Feist
Tampa Bay Lightning at Boston Bruins
Play: Tampa Bay Lightning +155
Streaky Boston has won 5 in a row but don't forget before that they lost 4 in a row. Tampa Bay is in town, playing well, #13 in goals scored, fourth on the power play, #16 in goals allowed, #12 in penalty killing. And the Lightning are 5-0 in their last 5 road games.
Mike Lundin
Yankees vs. Rays
Play: Rays +105
The Tampa Bay Rays defeated the New York Yankees 7-3 on Sunday, and I like the Rays to clinch this three-game series with another win tonight.
Jake Odorizzi did not look particularly sharp during spring training, but he went 2-1 with a 2.29 ERA in three starts against the Yankees last season and no one on the current Yankees roster has good numbers against him. CC Sabathia meanwhile was knocked around for nine runs on 20 hits and six walks in 14 2/3 innings through three starts against the Rays in 2016.
Not a great spot for the Bronx Bombers with a day off on the road since Sunday's matchup, and we can note that the Yankees are 6-15 in their last 21 games following an off day.
Red Dog Sports
Sunderland vs. Leicester
Play: Leicester -1
We won our Soccer Game Of The Month on Leicester, as they defeated Stoke 2-0. Leicester has played well since firing their coach Ranieri. Their last few home games have been wins by 3-1, 3-1, 2-0 and 2-0. Sunderlund is last of the 20 EPL teams with a record of 5-18-5 (-26 goal difference). Leicester may be looking ahead to their upcoming Champions League match in April but I like their chances to win by 2 goals on Tuesday.
Marc Lawrence
Angels vs. Athletics
Play: Angels +100
Edges - Angels: 9-2 last eleven games in this series… Athletics: Sean Manaea 0-2 career team starts in this series… With Matt Shoemaker off a fine spring camp in which he had 21 K’s and only 5 BB’s, we recommend a 1* play in the L.A. Angels.
3G-Sports
Seattle vs. Houston
Play: Houston -145
I think we have a major edge with the opening line in an Astros game for Tuesday. I like McCullers at home and the Astros hitters have good numbers vs. Iwakuma. McCullers returns to the mound after missing the final two months of the 2016 season with an elbow sprain. He went 6-5 with a 3.22 ERA in 14 starts last year after beginning the season on the disabled list. Look for Houston to get another win at home here on Tuesday night.
Rob Vinciletti
Chicago vs. St Louis
Play: Chicago -134
Look for the Cubs to bounce back and get their first win with J. Arietta on the mound. Arietta has won 6 straight road starts in April. He has an 8-2 record with a solid 2.15 era vs the Cards. St. Louis counters with A. Wainwright. In his last 2 starts vs the Cubs he allowed 10 runs in 8+ innings. The Cubs also fit a nice 87% system that plays on certain road favorites with a total that is 8 or less and off a 1 run road favored loss vs an opponent off a 1 run home dog win that also scored 4 or less and had `10+ hits in the win.
Big Al
Yankees vs. Rays
Play: Rays +104
For veteran Yankees starter, RH C.C. Sabathia, heading into this season (his 17th in the Majors) the question is whether his 2016 campaign was a glass half empty or half full? On the half full side, Sabathia posted a 3.91 ERA in 30 starts, and that's his lowest-such number in five years. But Sabathia also had a losing campaign at 9-12 (the second-most losses of his career) and his walk rate increased to the highest level since 2004 (3.3) while his K:BB ratio went down to just 2.34-to-1. And although he went 1-0 against the Rays last season, Sabathia also logged an ugly 5.52 ERA and 1.77 WHIP in three starts covering 14 2/3 innings vs. them. On the opposing side, few starters in the league had as dominant a second half in 2016 as Rays RHP Jake Odorizzi. All Odorizzi did after the All-Star break was go 7-1 with a 2.71 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 14 starts covering 83 innings. Odorizzi will look to carry that hot streak into 2017, and based on his solid Spring training campaign, there's no reason to think that at just 27 years old, he won't be able to. And Odorizzi does by far his best work at home, where he has a 3.14 career ERA in 50 starts (vs. just 4.43 in 48 starts elsewhere).
Scott Spreitzer
San Francisco at Arizona
Pick" San Francisco
Johnny Cueto looked great in spring training and now he gets to pitch in Chase Field where he was 3-0 last season and 4-0 with a 2.54 ERA the last three years. Cueto is 8-4 with a 1.89 ERA in April since 2014, including 4-1 and 2.65 last season when he won 13 of his first 14 decisions. Patrick Corbin was 1-8 with a .290 opponent batting average at home while allowing 47 earned runs in 76 innings. San Francisco tagged him for 13 runs (eight earned) and 22 hits in 19 2/3 innings. The Giants have won 13 of the last 16 meetings overall and 43 of their last 64 games at Arizona. Also, San Francisco has won 13 of Cueto's last 18 road starts. The Giants wasted two home runs by Madison Bumgarner, who was the first pitcher to hit two home runs on Opening Day in MLB history, in their 6-5 loss on Sunday. Look for them to bounce back tonight.
Scott Rickenbach
Brooklyn at Philadelphia
Play: Under 222½
This total is up a full five points from it's opener of 217.5 and Philly tends to play a little better defense when at home. This is especially true when they see it as a winnable game which this one certainly is as they host the lowly Nets. Of course Brooklyn is one of the few team in the league with a record worst than that of Philadelphia's so the Sixers will got all out here. The 76'ers have had just 1 over in their last 7 home games. Philly has held 6 of their last 8 opponents under 46% from the field when at home and they've held their opponent to combined 39% from the field in their last 3 home games combined. The Nets come into this one having stayed under the total in 10 of their last 15 games. Also, the under is 9-5 this season when Brooklyn is off of an upset win as an underdog and the Nets are an identical 9-5 to the under when they face a divisional foe. The Sixers are 10-3 to the under this season when they are off of a divisional game and Philly is coming off of a hard-fought loss at Toronto on Sunday.
John Martin
Sacramento Kings -2.5
The Sacramento Kings have won three of their last five games overall coming in. They beat two playoff teams in the Clippers and Grizzlies, and also went on the road and topped the Timberwolves as 12.5-point dogs. They continue to play for pride here down the stretch. The Mavericks have lost four of their last five and are out of the playoff hunt now. That could be why they are expected to rest three key players tonight in Harrison Barnes, Wesley Matthews and Jose Juan Barea. They could also be without both Dirk Nowitzki and Seth Curry, who are both questionable with injuries. The Mavs are just 11-26 on the road this season and clearly not trying to win right now.
Chip Chirimbes
Blazers vs. Jazz
Play: Jazz -6½
Portland was on a great run winning six straight and 8-of-9 before falling to Minnesota last night. The Trailblazers standout center Jusuf Nurkic is out with a broken right leg and he is missed as the Wolves Karl-Anthony Towns dominated with 34 points and 12 rebounds. A long road trip has Portland dragging and they fall in the high altitude.
Andrew Gold
Hornets vs. Wizards
Play: Hornets +4
We like the Hornets here tonight as they are surging right now trying to make the playoffs. They are only one game back now of the Heat and Pacers. This line has dropped from the opener and that comes as no surprise to me because the Wizards have nothing to play for here as they have locked up a spot plus they are playing their first game back from a hard west coast trip.
Jimmy Boyd
Indians vs. Rangers
Play: Rangers +141
I really like the value here with the Rangers as a big home underdog against the Indians. Texas let one get away in yesterday's season opener. The Rangers jumped out to a 5-1 lead, but allowed 5 runs in the final 3 innings to fall 5-8. I look for Texas to bounce back in a big way at home against Cleveland, who is going to send out Carlos Carrasco.
I just feel that Carrasco is getting way too much respect here. He only threw 11 innings in spring training because of a shoulder injury and the birth of his child. I just don't see him being sharp and this is not the park or team you want to face without your best stuff. With that said, Carrasco hasn't had great luck against the Rangers in the past, as he's just 1-3 with a 5.73 ERA in 7 appearances against them.
Texas will counter with one of the more underrated starters in Martin Perez, who showed a lot of promise in his first full season back from Tommy John surgery in 2016. He was at his best at home, where he went 8-3 with a 3.24 ERA in 18 starts.