Andrew Lange
San Diego at Arizona
Play: Over 8.5
I don't know how it is possible but Josh Collmenter's velocity continues to trend in the wrong direction. He's almost like a knuckballer where velocity is secondary to movement and location but the proof is in the pudding as Collmenter has allowed 17 earned runs over his last four starts. Kirk Gibson has his concerns about whether or not the funky right-hander is breaking down. Bottom line is if Gibson is spotting something, then we should probably take notice. San Diego's Odrisamer Despaigne burst onto the scene with a handful of stellar starts but like Collmenter, he isn't fooling many hitters these days. He's fanned 37 batters in 60.1 innings and isn't built for much beyond pitching at night in Petco Park. The concern here is obviously two suspect offenses with multiple key bats on the bench. I'l however put my faith in the fact that there will be a lot of balls put in play tonight and both bullpens grade out as below average (the Padres much different with Huston Street gone and Joaquin Benoit dealing with shoulder problems). The price is right to step in with a play on the over.
Sports Atari
Seattle Mariners -1 -142
After only a single hit, the Red Sox turn around and face arguably the best arm in the AL. They aren’t ready for this. 0-5 at home and they welcome a rested Mariners squad that is only half a game behind the 2nd wild card spot.
Seattle has won 11 of 15 and 14 of 19 when King Felix starts. Hernandez is 5-2 with a 1.75 ERA in 10 recent starts and 13-4, 1.99 ERA overall. The Mariners lead the league in ERA at 2.93.
Joe Kelly is mismatched heavily here going up against a proven ace. Kelly gave up 7 runs, 6 walks in 4 innings on Sunday to Houston. He has a 0-1, 5.29 ERA in his last 3 starts and 2-3, 4.67 ERA overall this season.
What can I say here? The Mariners are priced high for a big reason. They’re 8-3 in their last 11 as a favorite and they can’t afford to lose easy, mismatched games like this. This is not a good board today in the MLB and we should only be betting on the best of the best games.
Bob Balfe
New England Patriots -6
I think the Panthers are in trouble this year. I do not think they will be able to put up the points needed to win a lot of football games this year. The Patriots for the first time in many years actually have to play with heart in the preseason because some of their players are a work in progress. Brady will prove tonight he is still and elite QB in this league. Take the Patriots.
New York Jets -1
I don't see the Giants winning many games if this running game does not get going. Someone on this team is going to have to step up when it comes to carrying the ball. The Jets have done some good things and the QB competition is healthy for all involved. This should be a good one, but I like the depth of the Jets a bit more. Take the Jets.
Detroit Lions -3
I like what Jacksonville has done. They will complete this year, but they need to get past putting up 3's on the board and more 7's or they will never be a playoff team. Detroit has a great passing team and on this surface they should put up a few points. This system has been in place for sometime and i expect them to be too much at home. Take the Lions
Green Bay Packers -7
The Raiders are again a work in progress with a new starting QB. Their second stringer wont play tonight so it will be a 3rd stringer playing with some first and second stringers. Green Bay is a tough place to play even if its a preseason game. Green Bay has a great offense and need to get better on defense. I think they give their fans something to be hopeful for tonight against a team that is still being molded. Take the the Packers.
Chicago Bears +7
Size is going to be a big advantage this year with the way these refs are calling the games. Smaller corners won't be able to touch the receiver at all so its going to be tough to defend these guys. Chicago has monster players and are one of the few teams that won't be scared of this Seattle Defense. Look for the Seahawks to brush through this game without injury. What do they have to prove to anyone? Take the Bears.
Tony Stoffo
Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Detroit Lions
Play: Jacksonville Jaguars +3.5
The Public all on the Lions here with 65% of all bets placed - yet the odds makers have already had to move this line a full 1 1/2 points off the opener in the Jaguars favor - as some blocks of Sharp money has landed on Jacksonville in this spot. So let's follow the money and release a play on the underdog Jaguars tonight.
BONES BEST BETS
NATIONALS -1 -103
10 in a row for Washington have to keep riding them while they are red hot. The Nationals are an incredible 14-4 in Fister’s starts this season, and he has allowed 0 ER in each of his past 3 starts (0.89 WHIP). Hudson has struggled for the Giants of late and owns a 6 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP over his last 3 starts.
RED SOX TT UNDER 3 -125
Just once since June 13th have the Mariners allowed more than 4 runs when King Felix takes the hill. The Red Sox offense has been non-existant of late scoring just 1.8 runs per game over their past 5 – not a good stat heading up against King Felix.
ANGELS ML +147
We’ve been riding these guys for awhile now and they continue to cash in. The Athletics Sonny Gray has had 3 consecutive starts not up to his standards as he is 0-3 over this stretch with a 6.48 ERA and owns an extremely high 1.92 WHIP. Angels starter, Hector Santiago has 2 starts against these A’s this season where he has pitched a total of 13 innings allowing just 1 run.
BREWERS ML -143
The Pirates are 11 games below .500 on the road and have lost 7 of 8 overall. The Brewers have been playing great baseball winning 5 of their last 6. Gallardo has given up 1 earned run or less in 4 of his last 5 starts. Locke has given up 4 runs or more in 3 of his last 5 starts. He has also struggled on the road with a 1.42 WHIP. The Brewers have also won 7 of the last 9 meetings this year.
Jeffrey James
Carolina Panthers +5.5
Look for Cam Newton to get more playing time here than Tom Brady which will help the Panthers cause a ton. The Patriots have been 0-6 ATS in game 3 of the pre-season since coach Bill knows what he has in his QB and offense so he does not need them to play as much as other teams. Carolina is 6-1 ATS in the pre-season against AFC teams while New England is 4-8 against NFC teams.
Harry Bondi
SEATTLE (-7) over Chicago
The Seahawks have been money in the pre-season under Pete Carroll and we have used them often, including in this space last week when they crushed San Diego 41-17. Seattle is 11-2 ATS during Carrol's reign and we see non reason to expect anything but another blowout tonight with both squads starters expected to play into the third quarter. Seattle superior depth will insure the cover in the fourth quarter.
OC Dooley
Twins +100
At most offshore outlets Minnesota actually opened as a home favorite but a this afternoon progresses we have seen a shift in the money-line towards Detroit who is one-and-half games out in the American League Central divisional chase. One of the keys to this pick surrounds the fact that Detroit is coming off the worst possible defeat as newly acquired David Price just tossed a ONE HIT gem on the road against his former team (Tampa) and yet managed to lose by a 1-0 final score. It is very difficult to shake off a defeat of that magnitude and tonight the Tigers have to deal with Tommy Milone who started the season in an Oakland uniform. In what turned out to be his final Athletics start before being traded eventually to the Twins, Milone also tossed a ONE HIT gem and is certainly capable of a quality outing. Admittedly Milone did struggle in his most recent start by he had problems properly gripping the baseball on a RAINY night. I have mentioned several times on the premium service spanning the past couple of weeks that even though Minnesota is in last-place, they actually ENHANCED their roster by getting a couple of veterans back from lengthy stays on the disabled list. One of those veterans is the face of the franchise Joe Mauer who has hit safely in 20 of the past 21 games where he has been healthy enough to take the field. Infielder Brian Dozier just became a member of the 20-20 club (20 homers, 20 stolen bases) which is something the Twins franchise has not seen in an entire DECADE. Underdog Minnesota does have an edge this evening on the mound as Tommy Milone has already had the pressure of starting a postseason game. On the flipside Detroit’s Robbie Ray has made only 5 starts at the major league level
Anthony Michael
Chicago Bears +7
Have to love the Bears here in this spot. They are in a great trend spot here playing off of 2 SU home wins and now going on the road. That is a 46-26 ATS spot. There is also a great go against on Seattle since they are favored by more than a touchdown off of a double digit SU win. That is a 3-20 ATS trend against the Seahawks. Take this big number of points with the Bears here.