Hollywood Sports
20* Braves
Ben Burns
10* Bobcats
Fairway Jay
20* Pistons Over
Tom Freese
20* Pacers/Wizards Over
Ben Burns
10* Bobcats
Canucks Under
Sharks Under
Larry Ness
Clippers
Mavericks
Pacers Over
Nick "BookieKiller" Parsons
6* New Jersey -185
For a number of different reasons I believe the value in this contest is on New Jersey:
The Flyers were just 4-8 their last 12 overall and limped into the playoffs.
They were just 1-5 their last six on the road.
New Jersey on the other hand was 4-1 its last five and 17-8 its last 25 in front of the home town crowd.
Bottom line: Brodeur vs. Boucher.
Marty Brodeur had the second most wins this season of his hall of fame career; and you know he's raring to go after a disappointing performance at the Olympics.
“We believe in our group,” captain Jamie Langenbrunner said recently. “We believe we can accomplish a lot. We have to go out and prove it though. We set ourselves up pretty good the last couple of years and not answered. I think the pressure is on us to do that.”
Although the Flyers got the better of the Devils in the regular season series, I expect New Jersey to take advantage of this situation and blow out Philadelphia in front of the home town crowd; play on NEW JERSEY!
Bob Balfe
Houston -7.5
The Rockets are good enough to be a playoff team and probably could be a solid 3 seed in the East. This year, however, the West had extremely too much competition and they were left out, losing a lot of close, tough games. Without Chris Paul in the lineup, the Hornets have no real scoring threat and will not be able to establish any sort of momentum offensively. The Rockets are a much better team, especially on the defensive side of the basketball, and should run away with this game early to close out their NBA regular season and hit the drawing boards to come back strong and more powerful next year. Take Houston.
Tony George
Texas -109
CJ Wilson toes the rubber for Texas tonight on the road. He last pitched 7 innings with 9 strikeouts and 2 base on balls with a ) ERA back on the 8th of this month. Texas off a 4-2 win last night and Clevelands batting average against southpaws is deplorable and I do not look for them to give their starter Masterson much run support in what should be a low scoring affair in Cleveland tonight. Texas has also switched up their closer here early in the season. Better hitting and offense, better starter and equal bullpen against a struggling team, I like the short number on the moneyline tonight. Play 1 Unit on Texas.
Lenny Del Genio
Cincinnati +105
The Reds beat the Marlins last night and have won the first two games of the series. Tonight, the Reds send out righty Bailey while the Marlins counter with Volstad. In Bailey’s first start he recorded a victory, beating the Cubs 5-4 allowing three earned runs in five innings of work. Volstad wasn’t as fortunate as he lost his opening start to the Dodgers despite allowing only two earned runs in 6 2/3 innings of work. Bailey pitched against these Marlins once last season and it was a gem going seven innings and allowing no earned runs and only three hits. For Volstad in his one career start against the Reds it’s not one he wants to remember as Florida lost the game 7-0. In that start he allowed seven hits and three runs in six innings. Florida and Volstad are listed as $115 favorites over the Reds tonight, not a good situation of the Marlins righty. Over the last two years Volstad has an awful 3-10 team start record as a home favorite of $110 or more. Our Dog of the Week is on Cincinnati.
Marc Lawrence
Dallas -7.5
The Mavericks host the Spurs in the final game of the season for both clubs tonight in a terrific winning spot for Dallas. It starts with the fact that teams playing in their Last Home Game of the season off back-to back SU and ATS wins against an opponent of a home win are 21-3 SU and ATS since 1991, including 17-0 SU and ATS if the foe is off a win of five or more points. In addition, the Mavericks are 5-0 SU and ATS in this series when playing on a 3-0 SU and ATS winning run. They are also 5-0 SU and ATS in the final game of the regular season when facing an opponent off a SU and ATS win. On the flip side, San Antonio is 0-5 ATS in the road in its final game of the regular season. Look for more of the same here this evening. We recommend a 3-unit play on Dallas.
Rocketman
Texas -110
Texas is 8-2 at Cleveland the past 3 years. Rangers are 4-0 in their last 4 games as a road favorite of -110 to -150. Rangers are 4-0 in their last 4 vs. American League Central. Rangers are 4-0 in their last 4 games as a road favorite. Rangers are 13-3 in their last 16 games as a favorite of -110 to -150. Indians are 3-13 in their last 16 vs. American League West. Indians are 1-5 in their last 6 after scoring 2 runs or less in their previous game. Indians are 1-5 in their last 6 home games vs. a left-handed starter. Indians are 2-10 in their last 12 games with the total set at 7.0-8.5. Indians are 2-11 in their last 13 when their opponent allows 2 runs or less in their previous game. Indians are 1-10 in their last 11 games vs. a left-handed starter. Indians are 1-10 in their last 11 games as a home underdog. Indians are 0-6 in their last 6 home games vs. a team with a winning record. Indians are 0-5 in their last 5 home games with the total set at 7.0-8.5. Indians are 1-5 in Mastersons last 6 starts as an underdog. Indians are 1-7 in Mastersons last 8 starts. Indians are 1-7 in Mastersons last 8 starts on grass. Indians are 0-4 in Mastersons last 4 starts during game 2 of a series. Indians are 0-4 in Mastersons last 4 home starts. Indians are 0-4 in Mastersons last 4 starts with 5 days of rest. Indians are 0-4 in Mastersons last 4 starts as a home underdog. Rangers are 6-0 in the last 6 meetings in Cleveland. Rangers are 6-0 in the last 6 meetings. We'll play Texas for 4 units tonight!
Evan Altemus
3 Units: Oakland -105
There is great value in this play, as you get one team at even money who has some strong advantages over their opponent. Lefty Jason Vargas gets the start for Seattle, and he was absolutely horrible in his first start of the season. He faces off against Oakland lefty Gio Gonzalez, who looks to be off to a good start this season. The Mariners hitters have struggled this season, despite winning yesterday. They are only hitting .220 as a team and .207 against lefties so far this season. Gonzalez faced Seattle on the road last year late in the season and did fairly well but not dominant. However, Vargas struggled as a starter last year, and I expect Oakland to hit him fairly hard tonight. In addition, the A’s bullpen has done well this season and much better than the Mariners pen. The A’s were shutdown last night, but I expect them to bounce back tonight with the better pen, better starter, and better line-up.
Executive
250% Jazz
The Duke's Sports
Texas Under (8') for 2 Units
The Indians are struggling to produce runs while the Rangers, with the exception of Cruz, Guerrero and recently Arias, have not gotten rolling offensively. Tonight, we see value with the "under" with two starters who can throw strikes and eat innings. Colby Lewis, who steps i for C.J. Wilson (food poisoning), was solid in his season debut at home vs Seattle. Lewis is 0-4 O/U in his last 4 road starts. On the other hand, Justin Masterson was solid in his season debut going 5 innings on the road with 1 ER and 5 strike-outs. Masterson is 1-6-1 O/U in his last 8 overall. As a team, the Rangers are 5-18-3 O/U in their last 26 after allowing 2 runs or less. We'll stay "under" here.