Bruce Marshall
Cubs at Cardinals
Pick: Cubs
There seems to be a belief that the Cubs gear it down tonight because they have sewn up the NL Central and Joe Maddon likely subs liberally. But the Cards are effectively out of the NL wild card picture themselves, and Thursday starter Lance Lynn has been awful in recent starts, allowing 14 runs and 17 hits plus 6 walks over just 9 2/3 IP in his last three starts. Meanwhile Kyle Hendricks is off of eight straight quality starts for the Cubs in his last tune-up before the playoffs next week.
Chase Diamond
Astros vs. Red Sox
Play: Astros -101
This game features the 98-60 Astros and the 92-66 Boston Red Sox both teams have a'lot to play for in this 4 game series but I would argue Houston even more as they are just 1 game behind the Indians for Home field advantage in the playoffs. Brad Peacock goes for the Astros he is 12-2 with a 2.98 ERA he just seems to get the job done but he has extra incentive tonight. The Red Sox are probably the only team he has struggled against he is 0-2 with a 12.38 ERA in 3 starts.
BRANDON LEE
Tampa Bay at New York
Play: New York -1½
We cashed in on the Yankees run line Wednesday in a comfortable 6-1 win at home over the Rays an I'll fire right back with New York on the run line Thursday for a lot of the same reasons we backed them yesterday. Tampa Bay was eliminated from playoff contention on Tuesday and are going to find it hard to get up here, as all they can do is maybe keep the Yankees from winning the division, as they already clinched the top Wild Card. New York is playing relaxed and are swinging the bats well. They also have another strong starter on the mound with Sonny Gray, who allowed just 1 run on 4 hits in his last outing and has been one of the better AL pitchers in the 2nd half. Tampa counters with Jacob Faria, who has given up 8 runs on 12 hits in his last 2 starts (11 1/3 innings) and did not throw well in his lone start against New York this season.
ALEX SMART
Astros vs. Red Sox
Play: Over 9
The Houston Astros bats are on fire and have put 37 runs up on the board in their L/3 after a 3 game sweep of Texas and enter this game on a roll and will be hard to control tonight by Boston's Starting hurler Rodriguez (6-6,391 ERA). Meanwhile, the Astros starter Peacock despite of a 12-2 record and 2.98 ERA on the season has struggled in the past vs the BoSox offense , recording a 0-2 record along with a bloated 12.38 ERA in his three career starts against them, and 0-1 along with 11.74 era in two starts at Fenway Park. I'm betting both these capable offenses do some damage tonight and help us eclipse the beatable Total.
The Astros are 15-4 over after a 5 game span where they have hit .333 or better with a combined average of 12.4 rpg scored. Houston is 9-0 over off three straight divisional wins dating back to last season with a combined average of 15.1 rpg scored. Boston scored 10-7 win last time out, and are 14-4 OVER after scoring more than 10 runs or more with a combined average of 13.3 rpg getting scored.
DOUG UPSTONE
Astros vs. Red Sox
Play: Under 9
The Astros offense has been hot most of the season and definitely lately. However, they might slow down a bit tonight against Boston and here is why. AL teams like Houston scoring 5.4 or more runs a game, against a team with a bullpen ERA of 3.75 or lower, when the total is 9 or 9.5, with a starting pitcher whose winning percentage is better than 80%, are 32-7 Under the past two decades.
JOHN MARTIN
Rays vs. Yankees
Play: Rays +182
The Yankees are realizing they're not going to catch the Red Sox. At three games back with only four games to play, they would need to win out and have the Red Sox lose out. Neither are likely to happen. So I don't think the Yankees should be this heavily favored given their mental state right now. And this starting pitching matchup is almost dead even. Jacob Faria is 5-4 with a 3.32 ERA and 1.20 WHIP in 13 starts for the Rays, while Sonny Gray is 10-11 with a 3.31 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 26 starts for the Yankees. The Rays may not win, but I can't pass up this price given the situation and pitching matchup.
DAVE PRICE
Angels vs. White Sox
Play: Over 10½
The Key: I expect a slug fest tonight in this Angels/White Sox contest. Bud Norris has been good out of the bullpen for the Angels, but he is not a starter in this league. He is only averaging 2.7 innings in his 2 starts this year. The White Sox will get into the Angels' bullpen early in this one. Dylan Covey has yet to win this season in 11 starts, going 0-7 with a 7.81 ERA and 1.72 WHIP while allowing 46 earned runs in 53 innings and averaging only 4.8 innings per start. The OVER is 9-1 in Norris' last 10 starts as a favorite of -100 to -150.
Jeff Benton
Your Thursday freebie is the Yankees on the Run Line to get the job done over the Rays.
Last night New York matched their Tuesday win with another 6-1 win over Tampa, as the Yanks have now won 8 of the past 10 over the Rays in this year's season series.
New York also happens to be on an 11-1 run at Yankee Stadium, and will go with Sonny Gray who allowed just 2 runs over 8 innings back on September 10th to Tampa - but was the hard-luck loser in that one! Gray will work against Jacob Faria who is making his first start since the middle of August after being sidelined with an abdominal strain.
Tampa Bay is just 3-8 their last 11 on the road, and they are simply playing for pride. New York still has the slimmest of chances to capture the division crown if Boston goes belly-up against Houston this long weekend, so back the Yankees on the Run Line this Thursday night.
4* N.Y. YANKEES -1.5
Eric Schroeder
My free play is on the Kansas City Royals, as they won for me last night. They contine their final homestand, hosting the Detroit Tigers, and I think we're looking at a blowout win.
Though the Royals don't have a magic number. but instead face a tragic number, they're looking to end the season with some pride after a 4-7 skid on their final road trip of the season. They won last night, and now look to finish off this series with a victory.
The Royals have a laundry list of free agents for the offseason, some from the World Series team, and they'll want to show out for the fans who will be there to see them this week.
The Tigers, meanwhile, have lost nine straight and come into this one mired in a 4-22 skid this month. And since one of those victories was a 13-2 rout of the Royals, I think Kansas City will be looking for a bit of revenge in this series.
Take the Royals on the Run Line tonight, as they continue this series with a blowout.
1* ROYALS -1.5
Bob Balfe
Braves -105
Both teams are making reservations for the golf course in a few days, but the clear pitching edge goes to Julio Teheran and it’s not even close. Teheran has struggled this year, but is finishing strong. Peters has been roughed up in his short work this year and at this price I will go with the more established pitcher.
Harry Bondi
IOWA STATE (+5) over Texas
Even when Texas was a power program, this has always been a close series. The Longhorns have won 11 of the last 13 meetings outright, but are just 7-6 ATS and we see another nail-biter tonight. Iowa State’s offense is rocking and rolling, averaging 41 points per game, including a 41-point effort against an Iowa defense that almost upset high-flying Penn State last week. The Cyclones are also 11-4 ATS in their last 15 home games, including three covers in their last four tries as a single-digit home dog. Meanwhile, Texas is on a 3-8 ATS slide away from home, including a 1-4 ATS mark as a road chalk. Home dog!