Month: October 2017

The New York Yankees will send Luis Severino to the hill today to try to send this series back to Cleveland for Game 5 of the American League Divisional Series. Severino was not sharp in his last outing but chalk that up to post-season jitters. With that behind him, I see Severino throwing strikes today. He was the ace for the Yankees this year, going 14-6, with an ERA of 3.11, and a 1.06 WHIP. The Bombers are 14-2 in his last 16 starts and 5-0 in his last 5 home starts. Cleveland will counter with Trevor Bauer. Bauer is 18-9, with a 4.03 ERA, a 1.33 WHIP, and he will be on just 3 days rest which could be an issue. Brian O’Nora will be behind the dish and the Yankees are 5-2 in his last 7 when he is pulling the strings.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK YANKEES

The New York Yankees are down 0-2 in the American League Divisional Series and on the brink of elimination, but now the series switches to Yankee Stadium. Joe Girardi will hand the ball to Masahiro Tanaka, who finished the season hurling flames. Tanaka was 13-12, with an ERA of 4.74, and a WHIP of 1.24, but in his last outing against Toronto, he struck out 15 with no walks and yielded just 3 hits in 7 scoreless innings. Terry Francona will call on Carlos Carrasco to throw strikes. Carrasco has been lights out, with a record of 18-6, a 3.29 ERA, and a 1.10 WHIP. He has not lost since August 22nd but likes to be active. On nine days rest or more, the Indians are 1-9 in Carrasco’s last 10 starts. New York proved on Friday that they can go toe-to-toe with Cleveland and are tough to beat in the Bronx, with a record of 14-3 in their last 17 home games. Needless to say, the crowd will be up for this one. The Bombers live to see another day.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK YANKEES

The Washington Nationals were blanked, 3-0, at home by the Chicago Cubs in Game 1 of the National League Divisional Series yesterday. This game today is vital for Washington because if they are 0-2 going into Chicago for Game 3 this thing is over and they know it. Two lefties will oppose each other, with the Cubs sending Jon Lester to the hill to face the Nationals Gio González. Lester has had a decent year, posting a record of 13-8, with a 4.33 ERA, and a WHIP of 1.32, but against a team with a winning record, the Cubs are just 3-7 in Lester’s last 10 starts. González’s numbers are better. He is 15-9, with a 2.96 ERA, a 1.18 WHIP, and the Nationals are 16-5 in his last 21 home starts against a team with a winning record. As potent as Chicago’s offense is, they are 0-4 in their last 4 games against lefties and 0-6 in their last 6 road games against southpaws. The Nationals bats were silent yesterday, mustering only 2 hits. Remember, Lester is vulnerable to the steal, so if the Nationals bats come alive and they can get on base, they should head to Wrigley with a split.
TODAY’S PICK: WASHINGTON NATIONALS

Chavez Ravine will be the venue tonight for Game 1 of the National League Divisional Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Arizona Diamondbacks. The best southpaw in the game, Clayton Kershaw, will get the nod for the Dodgers. The flame-throwing lefty has a record of 18-4, with an ERA of 2.31, a stingy WHIP of 0.95, and has dominated Arizona this year, going 2-0 with an ERA of only 0.59. He will be opposed tonight by Taijuan Walker. The Diamondbacks have gone 0-4 in Walker’s last 4 starts and he is 9-9 on the season, with a 3.49 ERA, and a 1.33 WHIP. Arizona has won the last 6 meetings with Los Angeles but when Kershaw is on the hill it is a different story. The Dodgers are 4-0 in his last 4 starts against the Diamondbacks and 4-0 in his last 4 home starts against the Snakes. The number is high but don’t be afraid – consider the Dodgers.
TONIGHT’S PICK: LOS ANGELES DODGERS

The American League Division Series kicks off today at Minute Maid Park and I like Chris Sale and the Boston Red Sox to take game 1 over Justin Verlander and the Houston Astros. This won’t be easy for Boston with Verlander on the hill. The veteran has been down this road before. Verlander is 15-8 on the season, with an ERA of 3.36, and since joining the Astros from Detroit, he is 5-0, with an ERA of just 1.06. The southpaw, Chris Sale, has enjoyed success against Houston, going 5-1 with an ERA of 1.31 in 6 career starts. Sale is 17-8 on the season, with a 2.90 ERA, and the Red Sox are 7-2 in his last 9 road starts. Houston led the American League in hitting with an average of .282 but they are 6-13 in their last 19 games against lefties. Road dog today.
TODAY’S PICK: BOSTON RED SOX

Two teams that know each other well, the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies, will meet at Chase Field tonight to decide the National League Wild Card. The Diamondbacks will send Zack Greinke to the hill to face the Rockies’ Jon Gray. Greinke has had another outstanding year, going 17-7, with an ERA of 3.20, and a 1.07 WHIP. The same can be said for Gray, who went 10-4, with an ERA of 3.67, and a 1.30 WHIP. Greinke has been lights out at home, posting a record of 13-1. Arizona had the upper hand this year over Colorado, winning 11 of the 19 contests, and outscoring them 101-69. I like the home team in this situation.
TONIGHT’S PICK: ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

The New York Yankees hope to continue their dominance over the Minnesota Twins in post-season play when they square off tonight in the AL Wild Card game in the Bronx. The Yankees defeated the Twins in the AL Division Series in 2003, 2004, 2009 and 2010, going 12-2 during that span. There is no pitching edge tonight because both hurlers are equally lethal. The Yankees Luis Severino is 14-6, with a 2.98 ERA, and a 1.04 WHIP. Severino was 3-0 in 5 starts in September, with a 2.10 ERA, allowing just 15 hits and striking out 38 batters in 30 innings of work. The Twins counter with Ervin Santana. Santana is 16-8, with a 3.28 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP but has an ERA of 5.60 in 20 career starts against the Bombers. Minnesota is 0-5 in their last 5 playoff games, 17-50 in their last 67 meetings with New York, and 14-42 in their last 56 trips to Yankees Stadium. Edge Bombers.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK YANKEES