Will Rogers
Boston vs. Atlanta
Pick: Atlanta
Here is a free play on the Atlanta Hawks over the Boston Celtics....
1. Celtics Stink - They have lost 13 of 14 including eight in a row. The most surprising part of all is that the one win came against Miami. The last time they won a road game was all the way back on February 10th, which was before the All-Star Break. After blowing a 19-point lead against Detroit on Saturday, you have to wonder how they'll respond tonight.
2. Have to Bounce Back - Atlanta lost last night to Detroit, 102-95, here at home. The loss puts them just 1.5 games ahead of the Knicks for the final available playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. This is a team that is 22-15 at home averaging slightly over 100 points/game.
3. X-Factor - Over their last three games, Boston has allowed 118, 111 and 115 points.
TJ Pemberton
Boston Celtics vs. Atlanta Hawks
Play: Boston Celtics +7
Surprisingly, the Hawks have defended home court well this year, winning twenty-two of their thirty-four victories in the Peach State. Boston holds a horrific 8-30 road record. However, one of these fleeting triumphs came against the Atlanta Hawks by a seven-point difference in November. The Celtics are 2-1 against the Hawks on the year and their only defeat was a one point loss in December. Perhaps, the feather in the cap of the Celtics’ season has been their role as a pest to this Hawks team. As a 7.5 point underdog, the Celtics have gained a vote of confidence that they will at least make this a game. The Celtics have dropped their last eight, perhaps that streak ends tonight. In any event, this will be a close game and seemingly Atlanta will back in to the 2014 playoffs.
Betting Trends:
Celtics are 4-1 ATS in the last 5 meetings in Atlanta.
Hawks are 0-8 ATS in their last 8 Wednesday games.
Jeff Scott Sports
3 UNIT PLAY
San Francisco/ Arizona Over 7 (-130): The Giants are really scoring some runs this year as they have averaged a solid 5.88 rpg through 8 games this year and they had 5 hits, 2 walks and 2 ER's in just 4.1 innings vs Bronson Arroyo earlier in the year. another thing we have going for us in this one is an Arizona bullpen that has a 5.85 ERA this year. On offense, Arizona has not been all that bad as they have averaged 4 rpg and they did score 4 runs off of Tim Lincecum earlier in the year. Tim now has a 6.65 ERA in his last 8 starts vs the Diamondbacks. The Over is 16-5 in Arizona's last 21 games vs a right-handed starter and the Over is 10-1 in San Fran's last 11 vs the NL West. This one should get there rather easily.
2 UNIT PLAY
Tampa Bay/ Kansas City Over 8.5 (-115): Hard to see this one as a pitcher's duel like yesterday, as the pitching will not be a strong as in the 1-0 game that was tossed last night. Jake Odorizzi pitched well in his first start of the year, but still he has a 4.09 ERA in 7 career starts and the Royals are due for a break out game. Jeremy Guthrie struggled in his first start this year, allowing 4 ERs in just 5.2 innings vs the White Sox. Guthrie is used to struggling as he has a 4.04 ERA last year and a 4.76 ERA 2 years ago. The Rays offense has struggled in the early going, but they have hit righties at a .260 clip and have scored 4.47 runs per 9 innings off of them so far this year. I can see both teams getting at least 4 runs each in this one.
Dave Essler
Texas Rangers +125
First off, the Red Sox have just not got it in gear yet and are already 1-4 at home. I do know Beltre is probably out, but he hasn't fared well against Peavy anyways. And that's the Jake Peavy who had some injuries that held him back this Spring, so I cannot count on him yet. Honestly, there's enough other sticks in the lineup to compensate for that, IMO. Boston isn't very familiar with Ross, and they're without Middlebrooks and perhaps Carp. Neither bullpen has been overly impressive yet, but at this price and with the total coming down (partially w/o Beltre) this is worth the price.
Tom Barton
Chicago vs Minnesota
Pick: Chicago -2
The Bulls are out for revenge here and playoff positioning while the TWolves are coming off of their biggest win of the year. This is a perfect letdown spot for the young Twolves who knocked off the Spurs last night and a great time to jump on Chicago. The Bulls are well rested after last playing 4 days ago while Minnesota plays a back to back. The Bulls also have the added incentive of a revenge game where Noah missed last game and the Wolves went on to win. Chicago sees blood in the water and that blood is by the Pacers. If the Bulls can improve their positioning they would set up to have to go through Indy not Miami for the championship. So I can go into stats and trends here but the simple fact is we have a better team in the Bulls, well rested, with more to play for against a letdown spot Minnesota team. Bulls win this one.
Stephen Nover
Orlando Magic +5.5
Brooklyn is in prime letdown territory after being the first team to go 4-0 in a season series against Miami since LeBron James joined the Heat. The Nets nipped the Heat, 88-87, last night in Miami. The Nets haven't lost at home since Jan. 31, but their road play usually isn't that good. On the season, the Nets are seven games below .500 when being the visitor. They are 6-10 during their past 16 away matchups, including going 2-5 ATS in their last seven away games. Brooklyn's roster is full of veterans past their prime. It's tough for many of them, especially at this late stage of the season, to have a lot of energy when playing without rest. Orlando can takes its place among the worst of the lottery teams - when playing away from Amway Center. At home, though, Orlando is very respectable just two games below .500. The Magic have been money-winners at Amway Center going 13-4-1 ATS during their last 18 home contests, including 4-1-1 ATS in their last six home matchups. The Magic are 9-2 ATS the past 11 times when home to an opponent with a losing road record. While the Nets are playing in back-to-back spot, the Magic have been idle since Saturday when they defeated the Timberwolves, 100-92, at home. Minnesota has just upset Miami the previous night, too. The Magic are especially dangerous at home when Arron Afflalo, Nikola Vucevic and Jameer Nelson are all playing. That should be the case today as the 7-foot Vucevic is expected to be in action after missing the last two games because of a sore Achilles. Vucevic scored 19 points and pulled down 12 rebounds when the Magic beat the Nets, 107-86, when they last hosted them on Nov. 3.
Dennis Macklin
Philadelphia 76ers vs. Toronto Raptors
Play: Philadelphia 76ers +13
Toronto has won six of seven and the 76ers have lost 29 of their L31. That said, the Sixers are still playing hard with what little they have covering four of their last five. The Raptors have won six of seven and will probably just be happy to get outa Dodge with a win here. The Barney's are 3-0 in the series this year with wins by 10-8-9 points. A similar result here gets us the money. Grab the points.
Jack Jones
Chicago Cubs +109
I have no doubt that by season's end the Chicago Cubs are going to be one of the most improved teams in the league from a year ago. Sure, their 2-5 start is concerning, but they could easily be 5-2 right now. Four of their five losses have come by two runs or less, including three by exactly one run.
This team is showing great value as a home underdog to the Pittsburgh Pirates tonight. I believe they actually have the edge on the mound behind Jason Hammel, who was an excellent offseason acquisition. He'll take on Wandy Rodriquez for a second time this season.
Hammel won the first match-up by allowing just one earned run and three base runners over 6 2/3 innings of a 3-2 Chicago victory on April 3rd. The win improved him to 3-0 with a 3.51 ERA and 1.013 WHIP in four career starts against the Pirates. His teams have gone 4-0 in those four contests.
Pittsburgh is 51-65 (-29.3 Units) in its last 116 games as a road favorite of -110 or higher. Hammel is a notorious fast starter, going 10-2 (+9.1 Units) against the money line in April games over the last three seasons. The Pirates are 0-6 in their last six games with a total set of 9.0-10.5 runs. Chicago is 12-2 in its last 14 games with Lazaro Diaz behind home plate. Bet the Cubs Wednesday.
Hollywood Sports
San Diego Padres at Cleveland Indians
Prediction: Cleveland Indians GM 2
Cleveland (4-3) has won 8 of their last 11 games at home. The Indians have also won 5 of their last 6 games that were the second half of a double-header. They send out Bauer who enjoyed a 1.59 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and an opponent's batting average of .175 at home last season pitching for the Diamondbacks. Bauer has big-time potential who was throwing in the mid-90s during spring training. He should fare well against this Padres team that has lost 6 of their last 7 games against right-handed starting pitchers.
San Diego (2-5) has lost 8 of their last 10 games in Inter-League play. They counter with Erlin who was 3-3 with a 4.12 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP last year -- but those numbers skyrocketed to a 7.06 ERA, 1.75 WHIP and an opponent's batting average of .326 when on the road. Those are ominous signs when now facing this Indians team that has won 24 of their last 31 games against left-handed starting pitchers. Take Cleveland with the money line in Game Two of this double-header while listing both starting pitchers.
Jeff Scott Sports
3 Unit Play
San Diego/ Cleveland Over 8.5 (-105) (Game 2): Yes it's a bit risky to play an over in a game two not knowing who may be resting or not for that game, but I can still see these teams putting up some runs in this one. Yesterday the teams combined for 14 runs in a game with a bit better pitching then we will see in this one. Also seeing the Offenses struggling in game one, has me expecting a better offensive output in game 2. Robbie Erlin will be making the start for the Padres and he had a 4.12 ERA last year. He will be going up against a Cleveland team that has averaged 6.25 rpg at home thus far and 4.86 rpg overall. The Padres offense has struggled this year but they always hit better on the road and Trevor Bauer has struggled in his limited Big league career, with a 5.67 ERA in 8 carer starts. I expect the offenses to wake up for this one and put at least 10 runs on the board.
Cajun Sports
New York Yankees -174
This play is too expensive for a regular play on our Late Phone Service but the Yankees qualify in a super system that is active today and it also covers against the Run Line. Play ON MLB home favorites of 140 or more after a five or more run loss and its not the first game of a series in a day game. This system has a record of 77-26 SU for 74.8 percent winners and a profit of +3367 Units. In regards to the run line the Play ON team in this system averages winning by a score of 5.5 to 3.4.
Harry Bondi
PITTSBURGH (-115) over Chicago Cubs
Pittsburgh has started the season just as our baseball handicapper Frank Drake predicted going 5-2. The Cubs, on the other hand have disappointed those that thought it was going to be different on the north side this year. Sure, it's early but despite the hype the Cubs look like a 70 win team. Tonight's Pirates starter Wandy Rodriguez went 2-0 with a 2.13 ERA in two starts against the Cubs in 2013. Cubbies usually struggle with lefty's although their 2-5 start shows they are struggling with everyone!
Bob Balfe
Rangers / Red Sox Over 8.5
The Rangers have not had decent pitching this year, but they showed yesterday that they can generate runs still. I think this is a great team to go OVER the total on until Vegas starts adjusting the lines. This game starts at 4PM EST just giving you a heads up. Take the Over
Teddy Covers
Detroit at Cleveland
Play: Detroit +6.5
I used the Cavs +6.5 as a free play when they travelled to Detroit less than two weeks ago and emerged with a one point SU victory. In the rematch tonight, once again this pointspread is out of whack with current realities, but this time it’s Detroit offering legitimate value for their supporters.
The Cavs suffered brutal back-to-back losses last weekend; blown out by a Hawks team that they were chasing for the final playoff spot in the East, then knocked off at home in OT by the Bobcats. While the Cavs remain technically alive for that last berth, they’ll need to win every game while the Hawks and Knicks lose every game; an extremely unlikely proposition. For a squad with major chemistry issues that haven’t dissipated as the season has progressed, it’s hard to picture a circle-the-wagons level of effort this evening.
Detroit won at Cleveland on their last visit to Quicken Loans Arena – their fourth straight win against the Cavs on this floor. And both of the Pistons home losses to the Cavs this year came by a combined total of five points – there’s not a lot of separation between these two teams.
Without Josh Smith in the lineup, the Pistons knocked off Atlanta last night in SU fashion; an injury that helps Detroit more than it hurts them – Rodney Stuckey took advantage of the extra playing time; dominating in his absence. Even on the second night of back-to-backs, this pointspread is too rich with Pistons value to leave alone.
Wunderdog
Miami vs. Memphis
Pick: Under 182
The Memphis Grizzlies' poor start to the season may cause them to be on the outside looking in come playoffs time. They are chasing Phoenix at 1 game shy of the #8 and final seed in the Western Conference playoffs race. Memphis is a big time defensive team, and that will be the focal point tonight. On the other side, don't discount an angry Miami team that's coming off a home loss, as the Heat will be bringing it tonight - and that means defense for the two time reigning champions. The Heat bring the defensive "A" game vs. a winning team, and are 9-2 to the UNDER in their last 11 against one. The Grizzlies match the defensive mode vs. a winning team as well at 11-3 to the UNDER in their last 14 when facing one. The UNDER has prevailed to a 15-5 mark in the last 20 in this series, including five straight UNDER the total in Memphis. Defense will rule the roost in this one, so make the play on the UNDER.