Stan Lisowski
Boise St / Toledo Over
Rockets have scored 23 or more points in 40 of their last 50 home games while Boise totals 40+ points themselves over 60% of the time in the last 5 seasons. The Broncos have averaged 44.5 points scored in their 5 most recent encounters with the MAC conference.
Jimmy Boyd
1 Unit on Boston Red Sox -136
Boston's lead over Tampa Bay in the wild card race is fading fast, but I like the Red Sox to get the job done tonight behind ace Josh Beckett, who has been nearly unhittable at Fenway. Beckett is 5-1 (10-2 on the ML) with an ERA of 2.24 in 12 home starts this season. Looking back, the Red Sox are 27-10 in his last 37 home starts. He's also 7-3 on the money line in 10 career home starts against the Rays. Shields has pitched very well for Tampa this season but clearly can't be trusted in Bean Town. The Rays are 7-15 in Shields' last 22 starts vs. the Red Sox and 1-8 in his last 9 road starts vs. the Red Sox. Lastly, Boston is 20-4 when out to avenge a home loss of 6 runs or more to an opponent over the last 3 seasons. It's winning by an average of 3.0 runs in this situation. We'll bet Boston.
Black Widow
1* on Washington Nationals -115
We'll side with the Washington Nationals Friday as a small home favorite over the Florida Marlins. Florida is exhausted after playing a double-header yesterday with Philadelphia, losing both games in heartbreaking fashion. The Marlins are 0-4 in their last four games, scoring exactly one run in each. This is a team that has packed it in and will not show up for Game 1 of this series with the red hot Nationals. Washington continues to fight, going 5-0 in their last five games overall. They carry a ton of momentum into this one, and send a quality starter to the mound. John Lannan has been solid at home all season, going 5-7 with a 3.26 ERA in 16 home starts. He'll be up against Javier Vazquez, who is 10-11 with a 4.40 ERA in 29 starts for the Marlins. Vazquez has allowed seven earned runs and 18 base runners over 11 innings in two starts versus Washington in 2011. The Marlins are 5-17 (-12.0 Units) against the money line after 4 or more consecutive losses this season. Lannan is 8-1 (+9.1 Units) against the money line vs. poor power teams - averaging 0.9 or less HR's/game in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons. The Nationals are winning in this spot 6.0 to 3.2 on average. Take the Nationals on the Money Line.
Dave Price
1 Unit on Arizona Diamondbacks +106
The Snakes are worth a shot at this price. They're an NL-best 18-4 since Aug. 23, while the Padres have dropped 17 of their last 20. Plus, the Diamondbacks are 6-1 in their last 7 meetings with San Diego. We'll take Arizona.
Rocketman
Tampa Bay @ Boston
Play On: Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is on a mission right now. They have pulled themselves within 3 games of Boston in the Wild Card race. Boston is only 3-11 so far in September. Tampa Bay is 9-3 their last 12 games overall. Tampa Bay bullpen has a 3.82 ERA overall this year. James Shields is 15-10 with a 2.70 ERA overall this year, has a 3.11 ERA on the road this season and is 3-0 with a 0.71 ERA his last 3 starts. Tampa Bay is 5-1 at Boston this year. We'll recommend a small play on Tampa Bay tonight!
Jeff Alexander
1 Unit on Detroit Tigers -131
Look for the Tigers to bounce back strong tonight after seeing their 12-game win streak come to an end. The Athletics are 0-4 in their last 4 games following a win, and they'll have their work cut out for themselves against Fister who's 4-0 (5-0 on the ML) in his last 5 starts without allowing more than 1 earned run in any of those outings. Also, the Athletics are just 3-8 in Cahill's last 11 home starts. Take the Tigers.