Month: September 2016

The Texas Rangers’ magic number to clinch the American League West is 1 and they will try to do that tonight when they travel to Oakland to open a 3-game set. The leftie Cole Hamels takes the hill for the Rangers and he will try to redeem himself after getting beat up in his last start against Oakland. Hamels is 14-5 on the season, with an ERA of 3.42, and a WHIP of 1.32. Texas is 33-9 in Hamels’ last 42 starts and 16-6 in his last 22 road starts. Oakland’s Kendall Graveman gets the nod tonight for the Athletics and he is 10-10, with an ERA of 4.21 and a WHIP of 1.33. Oakland is 0-5 in Graveman’s last 5 starts against the American League West, 0-6 in their last 6 home games and 17-9 in their last 26 against southpaws. Texas should clinch the West tonight.

Tonight’s pick:

Texas Rangers

After being swept at home by the Atlanta Braves, the New York Mets stay in Queens and open a 4-game set tonight against the Philadelphia Phillies. The Mets will try to right the ship when they send Seth Lugo to the hill. Lugo is 4-2 on the season, with an ERA of 2.35, a WHIP of 1.04 and the Mets are 5-0 in his last 5 starts. The southpaw Adam Morgan gets the start for Philadelphia and he is 2-10, with an ERA of 5.57, a 1.46 WHIP and the Phillies are 1-6 in his last 7 road starts. Morgan has pitched a career 8-2/3 innings against the Mets and has yielded 11 runs on 15 hits in that short span. Head to head, Philadelphia is 16-38 in the last 54 meetings and 4-12 in their last 16 at Citi Field. New York is 4-0 in their last 4 when facing lefties. The Mets are tied with the Giants and Cards in the wild card hunt and cannot afford another performance like the one against the Braves.

Tonight’s pick:

New York Mets

The Washington Nationals will look to Max Scherzer tonight to end their 4 game skid, when they play the final game of a 3 game set against the Miami Marlins in South Florida. Scherzer is the league leader in strike outs with 259 and over his last 3 starts he is 2-0, with an ERA of 1.74, and a WHIP of 1.11. The Nats are 10-1 in Scherzer’s last 11 starts and 5-2 in his last 7 against the Marlins. Tom Koehler will take the mound for Miami and over his last 3 outings he is 0-1, with an ERA of 3.38, and a WHIP of 1.31. The Marlins are 0-5 in Koehler’s last 5 starts and 1-5 in his last 6 against the Nationals. Washington’s Bryce Harper is in a major slump and rumor has it he is suffering from a bad shoulder so let’s see what he does tonight. The Nationals magic number to clinch the National League East is 4. I think after tonight, it will be 3.

Tonight’s pick:

Washington Nationals

The Washington Nationals took a thumping yesterday from the National League’s worst team, the Atlanta Braves, but I don’t see that happening again today. The Nats have dominated the Braves, winning 36 of their last 51 meetings and are 7-2 in their last 9 in Atlanta. Joe Ross takes the hill for the Nationals and he is 7-4, with a 3.49 ERA, and a 1.26 WHIP. The Braves counter with Matt Wisler, who is 6-12, with an ERA of 5.00, a WHIP of 1.33, and the Braves are 1-4 in Wisler’s last 5 home starts. Andy Fletcher is calling today’s game and the Braves are 2-6 with Fletcher behind the dish.

Today’s pick:

Washington Nationals

The Baltimore Orioles should continue their dominance over the Tampa Bay Rays today when they send Chris Tillman to the hill. Tillman is 16-5, with a 3.68 ERA and he is 3-0, with an ERA of 3.04 in 4 starts against the Rays this season. Baltimore is 5-0 in Tillman’s last 5 starts against Tampa. The Oriole’s Mark Trumbo, who leads the Majors with 42 home runs, is expected back in the lineup today after sitting out the last game with back spasms. Matt Andriese gets the start for the Rays and he is 7-7, with a 4.46 ERA, and he is 0-3 with a bloated 9.24 ERA against the Orioles. The Rays struggle at Camden Yards, going 1-8 in their last 9 games there.

The Texas Rangers’ magic number to clinch the west is 7, and they’ll try to inch closer today when they host the Oakland Athletics in Arlington. Yu Darvish gets the start for the Rangers and he is 5-4, with a 3.28 ERA, and defeated Oakland on August 17th, yielding 2 runs on 8 hits in 7 innings of work. Texas is 6-1 in Darvish’s last 7 starts. The Oakland Athletics will give Raul Alcantara the nod today and he’ll be making his third Major League start. Alcantara is 0-1, with a 7.27 ERA, has struck out just 4 batters in 8-2/3 innings, and has served up a home run in each of his 2 starts. The Athletics are 3-13 in their last 16 against the American League West and they are 0-4 in their last 4 in Arlington.

Today’s picks:

Baltimore Orioles
Texas Rangers

The Miami Marlins still have a glimmer of hope to get a wild card spot and their chances get better because the doctor ordered a 3-game set in Philadelphia. Tom Koehler takes the hill for the Marlins and he is 9-11, with an ERA of 3.97, and Miami is 8-0 in his last 8 starts against a team with a losing record. Adam Morgan gets the nod for Philadelphia and he is 2-10, with an ERA of 5.73, and the Phillies are 1-7 in his last 8 home starts. Look out Morgan because Giancarlo Stanton is expected back in the line up for the Marlins.

Today’s pick:

Miami Marlins