Sports Gambling Hotline
Orlando -6 at NEW JERSEY
Comp play winner last night on Cleveland as the road favorite over Philadelphia. Now 9-3 the last 12 days with our free plays.
Another road favorite that will cover tonight, as we like Orlando over New Jersey.
The Magic lost by double-digits last night at home to the Knicks, as Orlando has now dropped 2 of 3, and have failed all 3 against the spread. They need to step it up as they close the regular season, and they will be able to do just that against the tired Nets tonight.
New Jersey lost last night at Detroit, but were able to cover their 3rd in a row. A look at the Nets last 5 games shows each of those games came against playoff-bound teams, the last pair of games on the road!
The Nets will hit the wall in tonight's home game we feel sure of it.
Series numbers show Orlando having won the last 4 meetings, while covering in 3 of those 4.
No issue laying a few road points, as the Magic need to get their act together, while the Nets are just thinking about getting to the finish line on Wednesday.
Play on the Magic.
5♦ ORLANDO
Chris Jordan
Golden State at UTAH
Golden State suffered a rough home loss last night, against a gritty and physical Rockets team, and now must go into Salt Lake City and take on a pissed-off Utah team that lost in San Antonio.
The Jazz are 2-1 against Golden State so far this season, including a road win, and though it’s always a good idea to be careful of Nelly's run-and-gun team, I don’t know how wound up it will be on the road after last night’s 222-point affair.
The Warriors are 2-6 ATS the last eight meetings with Utah, while they’ve dropped four of their last five to the books when playing in Salt Lake City. I’ll lay the home chalk here and look for a huge, double-digit win.
1♦ UTAH JAZZ
Seattle (-110) at OAKLAND
Side with the M’s and Felix the Cat tonight in this AL West clash, as they’ll notch a second-straight road win behind who is likely their ace this season. He comes in off a rather strange season-debut, in which he twisted his ankle in the first inning and though bothered by it off and on over eight frames, he still held the Twins to one run in the season-opener. Impressively, he escaped a first-and-second, no-out jam in the first inning without allowing a run and proceeded to dodge another bullet – an even bigger predicament - in the fifth, when the Twins loaded the bases with none out. Yet the crafty northpaw surrendered just one run.
He should get the run support he’ll need against young Josh Outman, who was considered a longshot to win a spot in the starting rotation this spring, but secured the No. 5 job with a solid outing in his final start, against the Royals. Let me be the first to say this, I think Ken Griffey Jr. will welcome the lefty to the 2009 campaign with at least one bomb today.
And once the M’s secure the lead, look for Hernandez to handcuff the A’s with a live arm that fires both a two- and four-seam fastball, power sliders, two-plane curveballs and a stunning change. Easy winner boys, as the M’s dominate in this one.
1♦ MARINERS
Drew Gordon
Oklahoma City +7 at MILWAUKEE
Solid Free Play winner with the Marlins over the Mets 5-4 Friday! We switch gears to the Hardwood with this FREE winner Saturday night...
Sorry, but there's no way in hell a team playing as badly as the Bucks should be favored by this many over ANYONE. Milwaukee has all but put up a white flag, losers of 9 of their last 10 games (2-8 ATS over that span), and playing like a team that just doesn't care anymore. They mustered one nice home win over the Celtics in Mid-March, but since then, have lost 5 straight at home, including an ugly outright home loss to sorry-ass Memphis last Saturday!
While the Thunder also have nothing to play for, at the very least, they're still playing competitive basketball, beating the Bobcats outright 84-81 yesterday as 3'-point home pups! True, they're playing in the tail end of a back-to-back, but that hasn't been a problem for this young Thunder team, going 11-5 ATS with no rest this season! Also, its no secret this Thunder team has been a solid bet on the road, going 23-14 ATS away on the season! And as a final note on trends, the Thunder are an outstanding 13-4 ATS in their last 17 meetings with the Bucks!
From a match up standpoint, Durant/Green and Villanueva/Jefferson all but cancel each other out, but its Krstic and Westrbook who give the edge to the Thunder. Bell, Sessions, and Gadzuric wouldn't start on 90% of NBA teams, and it'll show tonight, as the younger, hungrier Thunder throughly outplay them. Of course, its late in the season and with nothing to play for, you expect this game to feature little defense, which benefits the Bucks. However, in the end, even if the Bucks do win, covering the bloated number is another story entirely!
Take Oklahoma City plus the points over Milwaukee in this NBA match up.
2♦ OKLAHOMA CITY
Seattle (-110) at OAKLAND
Did you see King Felix in his season opener?! Despite twisting his ankle in the 1st, he still locked down the Twins over 8 innings, allowing just 1 run on 5 hits, striking out 6 in the process! More of the same today, as Hernandez has been downright nasty against the Athletics recently, going 6-2 with a 2.17 ERA in 8 outings over the last 2 seasons! The fact they hit just .217 off of him over that span cannot be good news for A's-backers!
Opposing Hernandez is the A's rookie Josh Outman, who's been just about average since joining their staff, going 1-2 with a 4.56 ERA in six appearances last season. The southpaw is hardly overpowering, and I'm just not convinced by a guy who was a virtual "no-name" this Spring. He's going to take his lumps this season, and it all starts today against a Mariners offense that took future star Brett Anderson behind the woodshed yesterday.
Finally, we know from last season that the M's are pretty fond of hitting lefties, ranking 12th in runs socred off of them, and batting a solid .279 against them (good for 5th in the Majors)! In the end, the last time they faced Outman, they collected 8 hits off of him, scored 4 runs, and got the win... More of the same today, as King Felix holds down his end of the bargain, while the M's offense takes care of the rest.
Take Seattle behind Hernandez over Oakland and Outman in this MLB match up.
3♦ SEATTLE
Karl Garrett
Philadelphia (-115) at COLORADO
G-Man sports a 12-5 comp play mark the last 17 days.
Tonight on the diamond I will go with the Phillies over the Rockies.
To say Philadelphia is sporting a little World Series hangover is an understatement, as the Phils could very well be 0-4 were it not for their improbable come back win over Atlanta the other day when they received their World Series rings.
Yesterday, they were flattened 10-3 in the Rockies home opener, but I like them to bounce-back from that loss with the win tonight.
For one thing, Brett Myers is already making his second start of the year, and should be sharper than Jorge De La Rosa in his first assignment of the season.
For another, Philly did go 5-0 against Colorado in last year's season series.
The Phils are overdue for a break out win, while the 3-1 Rockies are about due for a clunker.
Take Philadelphia.
2♦ PHILADELPHIA
Nick Parsons
Vancouver Canucks @ Colorado Avalanche
Play: UNDER 5 1/2
Member Play: Roberto Luongo saved the Canucks Tuesday. They repaid him with an easier night Thursday. After relying almost exclusively on Luongo's stellar 46-save outing for a 4-1 win over Calgary two nights earlier, the Canucks only needed 20 saves from their star goaltender and a second-period power play goal from Ryan Kesler, to beat Los Angeles 1-0 on Thursday. Against the 13th-place Kings, Luongo faced one fewer shot all game than he did in the first period in a 46-save, 4-1 win over Calgary on Tuesday night; expect another similar effort this evening! The Av's have seen the total go under the posted number in all four games they've played in April while the Canucks have seen it go under the number in 10 of 16 games after playing 3 consecutive home games; look for these trends to continue and for the situation the Canucks find themselves in to play significant rolls in the outcome of this game; play on the UNDER!
Jimmy Boyd
1 Unit on Kansas City Royals +175
We'll grab the Royals showing excellent value as a home underdog today in this bounce back spot. Sabathia was awful in the opener at Baltimore and this is a Royals team that has seen plenty of him when he was pitching at Cleveland. After scoring just 1 run yesterday, I expect the Royals to be aggressive against the big lefty today. The Royals counter with a lefty and that has been the way to go against the Yankees as they are just 15-30 against the money line in road games against left-handed starters over the last 3 seasons. The Royals are 6-0 in their last 6 during game 2 of a series, 15-3 in their last 18 games vs. a starter with a WHIP greater than 1.30, and 13-5 in their last 18 games vs. a left-handed starter. Bet the Royals at a great price tonight.
Carlo Campanella
Ny Yankees vs. Kan Royals
Yankees improved to 2-2 yesterday after they opened this series at Kansas City with a solid 4-1 win. They Yankees have struggled to this point of the season and are now heavily favored on the road because they start ace-picther, CC Sabathia on the mound. We're will to go against this large road Favorite as we find Sabathia losing his last 2 starts against these Royals, getting shelled for 18 Hits and 8 Earned Runs in just 14 Innings Pitched! He'll need better numbers than those to get a win today against a 2-2 Kansas City team that sends Horacio Ramirez to start on the mound. Ramirez is 2-1 against the Yanks and has held them to 5 Earned Runs in 20 Innings Pitched.
7* Play On Kansas City
Jim Feist
SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS / SAN DIEGO PADRES
Take SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
San Diego has a weak all around team, with no speed and below average defense. They lost opening night as a favorite behind Jake Peavy. Peavy played in the World Baseball Classic, a tough opening stretch to deal with for pitchers. The Giants go with Jonathan Sanchez, one of the many talented young arms on this staff. He struck out six over 4.2 innings against the Dodgers on Sunday evening. A nice price on a very live dog. Play the Giants.
Greg Shaker
Toronto Blue Jays at Cleveland Indians
Play: Under 8
Everything about this game today in Cleveland points to an Over at least as far as recent play and pitching goes, and certainly the woes of the Indians throwing staff. Both Throwers did not look very smart in their first outing this year with Halladay allowing 2 Homers and 5 runs in his first performance, and Lee getting pounded hard at Texas. Yesterday's action saw 20 runs by these two teams and once again, Cleveland saw some seriously bad throwing by their relievers. But these two guys are two of the best and they both have a very competitive nature. They will have the benefit of a wind that is blowing in from center and they both also have the benefit of doing well verses their opponent. Lee was also fantastic against the Blue Jays last season, throwing 17 scoreless innings over two starts. Halladay's lifetime mark verses Cleveland has been very good despite faltering last year when he faced the Tribe. We can discount the Indians poor start partly due running into a strong hitting and motivated Texas Squad and I was very happy about that with 2 wins on Texas this week. All of these things have given us a pretty good opportunity today with a much better betting line than we normally would have and that means it is time to jump. It is going to take 9 to beat us, and that may be a hard thing to accomplish, because the likelihood of at least of these hurlers getting back ontrack is very good. Let's forget all stats concerning past history though because that means much less than what is going on now, and what is going on now is two very good starting pictchers sitting in their Hotel Room right now and focusing on a good Saturday effort. Winning Baseball Totals is all about putting ourselves in good situations and this is one of those.
Jimmy The Moose
San Jose Sharks at Los Angeles Kings
Prediction: Under
San Jose has played under the total in 8 of their last 10 games. The under is 7-1 in their last 8 vs. Western Conference opponents. The under is 19-7-2 in their last 28 vs. a Pacific Division opponent. The under is 10-2 in the Kings last 12 games. LA has played under the total in 5 of their last 6 vs. a Western Conference opponent. The under is 7-2 in their last 9 home games vs. a team with a winning road record. The under is 5-1 in the Sharks last 6 trips to Los Angeles. The under is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings. Play the under.
DUNKEL
Phoenix at Memphis
The Suns are just 2-5-1 ATS in their last 8 games as a road favorite and run into a Memphis team that is 4-0 ATS in its last 4 games as a home underdog between 1 and 4 1/2 points. The Grizzlies are the underdog pick (+2 1/2) according to Dunkel, which has the game even. Dunkel Pick: Memphis (+2 1/2).
Game 701-702: Cleveland at Philadelphia
Dunkel Ratings: Cleveland 126.716; Philadelphia 118.535
Dunkel Line & Total: Cleveland by 8; 195
Vegas Line & Total: Cleveland by 6 1/2; 187 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Cleveland (-6 1/2); Over
Game 703-704: New York at Orlando
Dunkel Ratings: New York 114.506; Orlando 125.972
Dunkel Line & Total: Orlando by 11 1/2; 214 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Orlando by 10 1/2; 209 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Orlando (-10 1/2); Over
Game 705-706: Miami at Boston
Dunkel Ratings: Miami 119.226; Boston 125.466
Dunkel Line & Total: Boston by 6; 197 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: No Line
Dunkel Pick: N/A
Game 707-708: Indiana at Atlanta
Dunkel Ratings: Indiana 118.356; Atlanta 123.192
Dunkel Line & Total: Atlanta by 5; 205 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Atlanta 6 1/2; 211 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Indiana (+6 1/2); Under
Game 709-710: New Jersey at Detroit
Dunkel Ratings: New Jersey 113.645; Detroit 119.280
Dunkel Line & Total: Detroit by 5 1/2; 194
Vegas Line & Total: Detroit by 7; 189 1/2
Dunkel Pick: New Jersey (+7); Over
Game 711-712: Phoenix at Memphis
Dunkel Ratings: Phoenix 118.531; Memphis 118.683
Dunkel Line & Total: Even; 221 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Phoenix by 2 1/2; 226
Dunkel Pick: Memphis (+2 1/2); Under
Game 713-714: Washington at Toronto
Dunkel Ratings: Washington 110.613; Toronto 120.890
Dunkel Line & Total: Toronto by 10 1/2; 228
Vegas Line & Total: No Line
Dunkel Pick: N/A
Game 715-716: Charlotte at Oklahoma City
Dunkel Ratings: Charlotte 119.040; Oklahoma City 112.907
Dunkel Line & Total: Charlotte by 6; 194 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Charlotte by 3 1/2; 187
Dunkel Pick: Charlotte (-3 1/2); Over
Game 717-718: New Orleans at Dallas
Dunkel Ratings: New Orleans 114.173; Dallas 123.972
Dunkel Line & Total: Dallas by 10; 208
Vegas Line & Total: Dallas by 6; 195 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Dallas (-6); Over
Game 719-720: Utah at San Antonio
Dunkel Ratings: Utah 116.239; San Antonio 123.116
Dunkel Line & Total: San Antonio by 7; 197 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: San Antonio by 3 1/2; 191 1/2
Dunkel Pick: San Antonio (-3 1/2); Over
Game 721-722: LA Lakers at Portland
Dunkel Ratings: LA Lakers 123.534; Portland 127.957
Dunkel Line & Total: Portland by 4 1/2; 197
Vegas Line & Total: LA Lakers by 1; 195
Dunkel Pick: Portland (+1); Over
Game 723-724: Sacramento at LA Clippers
Dunkel Ratings: Sacramento 109.693; LA Clippers 112.564
Dunkel Line & Total: LA Clippers by 3; 230
Vegas Line & Total: No Line
Dunkel Pick: N/A
Game 725-726: Houston at Golden State
Dunkel Ratings: Houston 121.682; Golden State 116.505
Dunkel Line & Total: Houston by 6; 225
Vegas Line & Total: No Line
Dunkel Pick: N/A
MLB
LA Dodgers at Arizona
The Dodgers look to bounce back from yesterday's loss and take advantage of an Arizona team that is just 1-5 in Yusmeiro Petit's last 6 starts as an underdog. Los Angeles is the pick (-110) according to Dunkel, which has the Dodgers favored by 1. Dunkel Pick: LA Dodgers (-110).
Game 951-952: Pittsburgh at Cincinnati
Dunkel Ratings: Pittsburgh (Karstens) 14.206; Cincinnati (Cueto) 14.959
Dunkel Line: Cincinnati by 1; 10
Vegas Line: Cincinnati (-120); 9
Dunkel Pick: Cincinnati (-120); Over
Game 953-954: Houston at St. Louis
Dunkel Ratings: Houston (Oswalt) 15.501; St. Louis (Wainwright) 14.429
Dunkel Line: Houston by 1; 7
Vegas Line: St. Louis (-140); 7 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Houston (+130); Under
Game 955-956: NY Mets at Florida
Dunkel Ratings: NY Mets (Hernandez) 15.519; Florida (Nolasco) 14.918
Dunkel Line: NY Mets by 1/2; 9
Vegas Line: Florida (-145); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: NY Mets (+135); Under
Game 957-958: Chicago Cubs at Milwaukee
Dunkel Ratings: Cubs (Zambrano) 14.767; Milwaukee (Bush) 15.490
Dunkel Line: Milwaukee by 1; 7 1/2
Vegas Line: Chicago Cubs (-140); 8 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Milwaukee (+130); Under
Game 959-960: Washington at Atlanta
Dunkel Ratings: Washington (Lannan) 14.406; Atlanta (Kawakami) 15.475
Dunkel Line: Atlanta by 1; 10 1/2
Vegas Line: Atlanta (-165); 9
Dunkel Pick: Atlanta (-165); Over
Game 961-962: Philadelphia at Colorado
Dunkel Ratings: Philadelphia (Myers) 16.128; Colorado (De La Rosa) 15.118
Dunkel Line: Philadelphia by 1; 9
Vegas Line: Colorado (-110); 10
Dunkel Pick: Philadelphia (+100); Under
Game 963-964: LA Dodgers at Arizona
Dunkel Ratings: LA Dodgers (Stults) 14.686; Arizona (Petit) 13.473
Dunkel Line: LA Dodgers by 1; 10 1/2
Vegas Line: LA Dodgers (-110); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: LA Dodgers (-110); Over
Game 965-966: San Francisco at San Diego
Dunkel Ratings: San Francisco (Sanchez) 14.524; San Diego (Peavy) 15.686
Dunkel Line: San Diego by 1; 6
Vegas Line: San Diego (-160); 7
Dunkel Pick: San Diego (-160); Under
Game 967-968: Texas at Detroit
Dunkel Ratings: Texas (Harrison) 14.841; Detroit (Verlander) 16.060
Dunkel Line: Detroit by 1; 9 1/2
Vegas Line: Detroit (-165); 10 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Detroit (-165); Under
Game 969-970: Toronto at Cleveland
Dunkel Ratings: Toronto (Halladay) 15.186; Cleveland (Lee) 15.623
Dunkel Line: Cleveland by 1/2; 9
Vegas Line: Toronto (-125); 8
Dunkel Pick: Cleveland (+115); Over
Game 971-972: Seattle at Oakland
Dunkel Ratings: Seattle (Hernandez) 14.900; Oakland (Outman) 15.946
Dunkel Line: Oakland by 1; 7
Vegas Line: Seattle (-110); 7 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Oakland (+100); Under
Game 973-974: Boston at LA Angels
Dunkel Ratings: Boston (Penny) 15.577; LA Angels (Saunders) 14.078
Dunkel Line: Boston by 1 1/2; 10
Vegas Line: LA Angels (-110); 9
Dunkel Pick: Boston (+100); Over
Game 975-976: Minnesota at Chicago White Sox
Dunkel Ratings: Minnesota (Liriano); 15.232; White Sox (Colon) 16.767
Dunkel Line: Chicago White Sox by 1 1/2; 9 1/2
Vegas Line: Minnesota (-115); 8 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Chicago White Sox (+105); Over
Game 977-978: Tampa Bay at Baltimore
Dunkel Ratings: Tampa Bay (Niemann) 14.833; Baltimore (Guthrie) 16.285
Dunkel Line: Baltimore by 1 1/2; 10
Vegas Line: Baltimore (-120); 9 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Baltimore (-120); Over
Game 979-980: NY Yankees at Kansas City
Dunkel Ratings: NY Yankees (Sabathia) 15.679; Kansas City (Ramirez) 16.863
Dunkel Line: Kansas City by 1; 9 1/2
Vegas Line: NY Yankees (-185); 9
Dunkel Pick: Kansas City (+175); Over
Jeff Alexander
1 Unit on Baltimore Orioles -107
The Orioles are traditionally fast starters. In fact, they are 12-5 against the money line in home games in April over the last 2 seasons. And while the Rays made a remarkable turnaround in 2008, we can't overlook the fact that they are 51-139 in their last 190 road games vs. a team with a home winning % of greater than .600 and 99-216 in their last 315 games as a road underdog. Guthrie outshined Sabathia on Opening Day and the Orioles are 6-1 in his last 7 starts during game 2 of a series. I'll take the O's tonight.
VEGAS EXPERTS
Chicago Cubs at Milwaukee Brewers
Brew Crew starter Dave Bush will not be happy to see the Cubbies tonight. That's because he owns a 1-10 team start record in his career vs. the Northsiders, including team losses in all three starts last season. His counterpart Carlos Zambrano always shines in the role of road favorite as he owns a 11-2 team start record as a favorite of $1.25 or more away from home. Chicago dominated Milwaukee last year at Miller Park, taking 9 of 13 games.
Play on: Chicago Cubs
Nelly
Indiana over Detroit
The Pacers are playing exceptional ball right now even though the playoffs will not be a reality for the team. Indiana has won six of the last nine games and is 7-2 ATS in that stretch. On the year Indiana is 23-15 at home with an excellent ATS record while Detroit continues to be one of the worst ATS teams in the league even in supposed must-win situations. The Pistons managed to squeak out a narrow win at home last night against New Jersey in a similar situation and this could be a tough spot facing a fifth road game in the last seven games and facing travel after a big win last night. The Pacers lost narrowly in Atlanta last night but this is a team that continues to play hard despite their place in the overall standings. Indiana has covered in four of the last five meetings in this series and the Pacers continue to be a very tough team to beat at home. Indiana is a team playing much better than its record as the starting lineup is finally healthy and key young players have really grown into outstanding roles.
Ron Raymond
TOR (-125) vs CLE
When ANY MLB Team played as a -120 to -140 Road Favorite - Vs. Left handed pitchers - Coming off vs. American League opponent - Coming off a Road win as a Underdog - Coming off 1 over; The Road Fave (TORONTO) is 17-9 (65%) in this spot since 97.