Sean Murphy
6* Senators / Red Wings Over 5.5
Fantasy Sports Gametime
Play Philadelphia (-175) over St. Louis (Top MLB Play)
Roy Halladay has won 19 of the last 22 games when the total posted is seven runs or less and he has also won 8 consecutive games as a favorite of -125 to -175. Roy Halladay has won 6 consecutive games when pitching on a Friday and he is 3-1 vs. St. Louis over his career with an ERA of 2.37.
Play Arizona (+140) over Milwaukee (BONUS MLB PLAY)
NHL
Play Detroit (-230) over Ottawa (Top NHL Play)
Play New York Rangers (+100) over Los Angeles (Bonus NHL Play)
BIG AL
3* Phillies/Cardinals Over 6.5
It just so happens that the stars have aligned for this game five and each team will have their unquestioned ace on the mound tonight as Chris Carpenter and Roy Halladay face off in that game that will end someones season. So you'd think runs would be hard to come by, but that certainly hasn't been the pattern either for Carpenter, Halladay, or for the games in this series so far. Check out these stats: the over is 11-7 in Carpenter's road starts this season and 5-1-1 in his last seven against the Phillies, while the over is also 21-12 in Halladay's 33 starts, 10-6 in his home starts, and 6-2 in his last eight overall. Not to be left out is the fact that the Cards have gone 'over' in 64 of 110 night games, while three of the four games in this series have also gone over the total. Take the 'over.'
3* Stars/Blackhawks Over 5.5
The NHL is back and the NBA is locked out, and that could benefit several NHL teams in the attendance category, and perhaps none more so than the Dallas Stars. Dallas is the home of the 2010-2011 NBA champion Mavericks, and the Stars ranked just 23rd in home attendance last season at just over 15,000 per game which is 26th in the league in home ice capacity at just over 81%. The NBA lockout could help improve those numbers dramatically, even if the Stars didn't do much to improve their team during the off-season and may likely slip from their ninth-place finish in 2010-2011. The Blackhawks on the other hand, did make some improvements, and should be much closer to their 2009-2010 Championship team, even if they still aren't good enough to recapture their Cup form from two years ago. Despite finishing just eighth in the Western Conference last year, the Blackhawks were a very potent scoring team, finishing fourth in the NHL in goals per game at 3.07. And Dallas could improve this season on their offense (17th ranked at 2.71 goals per game) despite the loss of center Brad Richards as Brenden Morrow should improve on this 33 goals season and the Stars also signed a very good offensive defenseman in Sheldon Souray. The over is 7-1 in the last eight meetings and 7-2-1 in the last 10 meetings in Dallas. Take the 'over.'
Paul Leiner
100* Phillies/Cards Over 6.5
50* D´Backs +130
Info Plays
7* Diamondbacks / Brewers Under 7½
Sammy P
15* Chicago Blackhawks
Ben Burns
10* D'Backs / Phillies Under 7.5
8* Brewers
6* Phillies
Crown City Sports Consultant
6* Fresno St. +20.5
Bob Balfe
Arizona Diamondbacks +143
The Brewers have been the best baseball team in all of baseball at home. They have a losing record on the road, so that tells me they are a product of their home park. While it’s a good thing to win a lot of games at home, it tells me they really are not a balanced team. Tonight, it’s a one game series with the winner going home. I like the Diamondbacks pitching better tonight and they have all the momentum. The Brewers for the first time will feel what it's like to have all the pressure put on them to win a key game at home. Let’s see if they can handle it. Take Arizona.
Philadelphia Phillies -169
I never play favorites this big in baseball, but this is a closeout game with the best pitcher in baseball on the mound at home. If the Phillies lose this game, then at least they went out going down behind their best pitcher. This is going to be a very close game and I expect it to be low scoring coming down to a save opportunity. The Phillies were the best team in baseball this year and with Halladay on the mound in a do or die situation you have to like their chances. Take the Phillies.
Mike Seba
Boise St at Fresno St
Pick: Over 58
You should be able to count the number of punts in this game on one hand as two teams with very efficient offenses face off. This has the look of a score in the 60's and both teams will want to put on a show in the nationally televised game. Fresno State will score on anyone, but are also giving up points at a very high rate and Boise is just the team to take advantage of them. I like the OVER here since it is less than 60.
Dom Chambers
50 Dime Boise State -21
Jeff Benton
20 Dime Boise State -21
10 Dime Brewers
John Chang
20 Dime Boise State Broncos -21
As much as these two coaches would like to call this series a "Rivalry," Boise has absolutely dominated the Bulldogs. They've covered in 9 out of the last 10 matchups, and they've been beating teams' heads in this season. We all know about Kellen Moore, his explosive offensive attack, and the surprisingly stout defense. The Boise offense didn't quite look like itself in the 20 point win over Nevada last game. But I expect those kinks to be worked out in a big way tonight on national television. To further aid the Broncs, their sophomore receiving threat Geraldo Boldewijn has been cleared to play tonight. That adds a seriously tall and fast option for Kellen Moore to hit downfield, and that should open up some running room for the always dangerous Doug Martin. This play should be a slam dunk. Take the visitors
Larry Ness
10* Division Series GOY - Phillies
The Tigers beat the Yanks 3-2 last night and now the two biggest payroll teams (NYY & Red Sox) are both ‘home for the year.’ Could the Phillies (4th-highest payroll) be next? Roy Halladay and Chris Carpenter began their careers together with the Toronto Blue Jays (Carpenter was drafted in 1992, Halladay in 1995) but now find themselves squaring off in a decisive Game 5 as members of the Phillies and Cardinals, respectively. This is a “dream matchup,” according to Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, who set it up by pitching Carpenter on three days’ rest for the first time in his career in Game 2. “They’ve got so much common history and they’re both great pitchers, great competitors, and now we’re going to do it,” La Russa said. “It’s going to be as good as it gets. We’re looking forward to being there and trying our best. And they are so close, they both have a lot of weapons. You can see each of those guys four times and they’ll give you something different all four times. Halladay is every bit as good as his record and his awards and all that, but Carp is in that same category.” I beg to differ. If one wants to talk about “the Carpenter of old,” fine but NOT the Carpenter of 2011. A week ago Wednesday was one of the great days in MLB history (do I have to remind anyone of the details?). After Carpenter threw a complete game, two-hit shut out, giving the Cards an 8-0 win over the Astros (note: Houston owned MLB’s worst record in 2011 at 56-106), all I heard was how “clutch” he was. Has anyone seen him pitch this year? Entering that game on September 28 (by the way, the Cards scored five runs for him in the top of the first, making his job relatively simple!), Carpenter ranked DEAD-LAST among ALL starters this year in MLB vs the moneyline. He was minus-$1,285, making him the biggest “money burner” of ANY pitcher. The win moved him ahead (at minus-$1,185) of just ONE pitcher, Pittsburgh’s Paul Maholm (7-19 and minus-$1,202), for the 2011 regular season. And that effort makes him a ‘STUD?’ La Russa (as mentioned earlier) started him on three days’ rest (for the first time in his career) in Game 2 of this series and stud that he is these days, Carpenter lasted three innings while allowing five hits, three walks and four ERs, to fall behind 4-0. Only an excellent St Louis comeback against Cliff Lee (Sandy Koufax to those who no NOTHING about MLB history), got him ‘off the hook.’ So now I’m expected to believe Carpenter’s ready to be “great,” as La Russa claims? I’m not buying it for a second. Halladay’s been terrific for second straight year with the Phillies (wasn’t bad with Toronto, either), going 19-6 with a 2.35 ERA in 32 regular season starts (team was 24-8). In Game 1 of this series, he allowed a three-run HR to Lance Berkman in the first inning, but dominated the rest of the way. He would retire the last 21 batters he faced, turning over an eight-run lead to the bullpen (which stumbled) in an 11-6 win. Let’s remember Halladay’s first postseason start was a no-hitter (missed a perfect game with a solo walk!) in Game 1 of the NLDS vs Cincy and then he split two games with the Giants in the NLCS. That leaves him 3-1 (2.70 ERA) in his modest postseason career. Somewhat surprisingly, visiting teams are now 9-6 in deciding Game 5s since division series began back in 1995 (Tigers won last night) but let me also note that Game 3 winners of a series tied at one-all (that would be Philly in this series), have gone on to win 20 of the previous 24 series. This isn't about what’s happened in the past (to other teams) but rather about a pitcher at the very top of his game (Halladay) vs a former excellent pitcher in Carpenter, a long way from his. The price is steep, as it should be. Lay it!
Line2Win
NCAAF - Boise St -21 (2 Units) - Boise has played exceptionally well on defense this season allowing an average of 17 points and no more than 21 points in any contest thus far. Fresno has played some fairly talented competition and played them tight, but they are still allowing too much points on the defensive side. Boise should cover this one by 4 Td's on the road.
NHL - Dal/Chi Over 5.5 goals - Late movement suggests this one will go over bet 1.15 to win 1 unit