DAVE MALINSKY
6* Denver
4* Colorado Over
3* Texas-Feldman
John Morrison
Oakland 5pm Start
Cleveland
Detroit
Tom Stryker
4* Atlanta
Marc Lawrence
MLB Super Pick Play! - Friday 5/29:
Play On: Cleveland w/Lee vs Pettite
Note: The Indians open a three-game series with the Yankees at
Progressive Field in Cleveland tonight when Cliff Lee takes on Andy Pettite in a matchup of southpaws. Lee enters tonight's contest knowing he is 4-1 in his last five team starts against the Pinstripes while Pettite is 0-3 in his last three starts against the Tribe. With Lee in solid KW form with 2 walks and 15 strikeouts in his last three starts, we'll stay at home with the Indians here tonight.
NARC LOW RANCE ( Marc Lawrence )
Premium Plays are Poor
Free Plays are Bad
Teddy Covers
20* GOY Big Ticket: Nuggets
Big Ticket: Pirates
Stephen Nover
Denver vs. LA Lakers
Play Denver
I like the Nuggets to take care of business at home. This has a chance to be a Denver blowout because the Lakers have a serious fatigue issue that is magnified playing in Denver's high altitute.The Lakers have played nearly twice as many games as the Nuggets have during the past 3 1/ 2 weeks. Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol are near exhaustion, especially Bryant.The Lakers know they need to be at full strength for a Game 7 at home. That's their game to win. Los Angeles has failed to cover the past five times it has won.The Nuggets have covered in eight of their last nine home contests.The Nuggets have been the superior team for much of the playoffs despite being down 3-2. Certainly they are the more physical and nastier of the two teams.
This is a three-unit play on the Nuggets.
Bob Balfe
Nationals/Phillies Over 9.5 runs
Detwiler/Happ
Lenny Del Genio
15* AL Game of the Week
Play on Kansas City
Zack Greinke has rightfully grabbed all the headlines for the Royals this season as the club continues to tread water around the .500 mark (a real rarity in KC!), but what about this Brian Bannister? So far this season, the Royals have won six of his seven starts thanks to a 2.79 ERA from the right-hander. The Royals have done very well vs. Chicago this season, taking four of five meetings including a three-game sweep in the Windy City at the beginning of the month. The Pale Hose are not a very good team vs. right-handed pitching (just 4.0 runs per game/.248 team batting average), losing 20 of 33 games. They are also very sub-par on the road, losing 15 of 24. If not for a random 17 run performance Memorial Day vs. the Angels, those numbers would be even worse. Over the last season plus, they are just a 33% proposition as a road underdog. Kansas City is a very profitable +25.8 units (45-32) since the start of the '08 season vs. southpaws, so look for them to tee off on Chicago starter Richard. Kansas City is our 15* AL Game of the Week.
Savannah Sports
3* Dodgers / Cubs Under 8
Al Demarco
5 Dime - Denver Nuggets
In Game Four on Monday in Denver, the Nuggets outrebounded LA 58-40, outscored the Lakers by 18 in the paint, and rolled to a 19-point win despite Carmelo Anthony scoring just 15 points and missing 17-of-24 three-point attempts.
In Game Five on Wednesday in Los Angeles, the Nuggets still outrebounded LA 43-42, but they got outscored in the paint 54-36 and lost by nine despite watching Kobe Bryant score just 22 points.
The big difference in the two contests was in Game Five Denver couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, missing 11 consecutive shots at one point as LA rallied from a seven-point deficit and took control of the game with a 23-5 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters. And it didn't help that the Nuggets were awful once more from beyond the arc, again missing 17-of-24 three-pointers launched.
The other difference was in the way the contest was officiated. In Game Four at Denver, the Lakers were flagged for 31 fouls versus 24 for the Nuggets. But in Game Five at the Staples Center, LA got the benefit of the homecourt advantage as Denver was whistled for 30 personals, eight more than the Lakers.
Phil Jackson moaned about the perceived inequality of officiating after Game Four. It was George Karl's turn to question the disparity after Game Five. Don't be surprised to see a looser game called tonight as the officials let both teams play. And that would give the Nuggets - who want and need to get out on the break in transition at every opportunity - the advantage. That would once again open up the outside for their three-point shooting and get Chauncey Billups, who took just two shots in the fourth quarter of Game Five, more involved in the offense.
In the regular season meetings, Denver was consistently hammered on the boards by the Lakers, but this series has seen the Nuggets - especially Anthony, Kenyon Martin, Nene and Chris Andersen - attack the glass. Their collective effort has put a damper on LA's fastbreak opportunities.
Denver should be up 3-2 in this series rather than facing elimination tonight, but its Game One meltdown has left them in a do-or-die situation. But as I've written many times in my blog over the past couple of weeks, the Lakers have repeatedly failed to take advantage of opportunities to put their opponents away on the road. Remember Games Four and Six at Houston in the second round? Or even Game Four of this series?
The oddsmakers know the public is going to be on Denver tonight; thus the heavy price you're paying. But this game goes either one of two ways: the Nuggets roll in a double-digit blowout or they lose outright. I chose the former.
As for the price, buy a little insurance. If you've got Denver -5, buy down the 1/2 point to make the Nuggets a 4 1/2 point chalk so you get the win should they prevail only by five.
If you've got Denver -5 1/2, buy down to -5 so you get the push should the Nuggets only win by five points.
If for some reason you're left with -6, despite price-shopping, buy down to -5 1/2 so you get the win should the Nuggets prevail by six.
Robert Ferringo
Take L.A. Angels (-170) over Seattle
Take L.A. Angels (-1.5, +115) over Seattle
Take Philadelphia (-160) over Washington
Take N.Y. Mets (-165) over Florida
Take Texas (-105) over Oakland
If game one loses
Take Texas (-150) over Oakland
Take Milwaukee (+105) over Cincinnati
Take San Diego (+115) over Colorado
Take St. Louis (+110) over San Francisco
Take Detroit (+110) over Baltimore
DOC
4 Units Denver Nuggets
C-Stars Sports
1000 Units Top Play Denver minus the points over Lakers
1000 Units Pittsburgh over Houston
1000 Units Florida/Mets UNDER the total
Steven Budin-CEO
FRIDAY'S PICK CALI-CARTEL
25 DIME RELEASE
Denver Nuggets
Note from Steve Budin:
As I release this selection from the Cali-Cartel, I see the line on this game is anywhere from Denver -5 to -5 1/2.
If you have -5 1/2, buy down the 1/2 point to Denver -5 so you get at least a push should the Nuggets only win by five points.
If you have -5, buy down the 1/2 point to Denver -4 1/2 so you get a win should the Nuggets only win by five points.
If this line increases - or you get stuck with Denver at -6 despite shopping around - you would still buy down the 1/2 point to make the Nuggets a 5 1/2 point favorite, guaranteeing a win should they prevail only by six points.
Take it from a former bookmaker and the guy who fathered the offshore sportsbook industry: we're using the power of money - our bulging bankroll - against the bookmaker in these cases.
Why not buy a little extra insurance at a few cents on the dollar to protect your investment? As CEO of a multi-million dollar company I can tell you it's the right move, just like I knew it was the right move when as a bookmaker I saw smart players doing the same thing when the opportunity presented itself.
Winning Way Sports
2.5 units on Detroit Tigers +110
- Willis & Bergesen