Month: August 2018

The New York Yankees have lost two in a row but should be able to get back on track tonight when they open a 3-game set against the Toronto Blue Jays in the Bronx. The Yankees will go with the newly-acquired Lance Lynn. Since donning pinstripes, Lynn has been paying dividends, going 1-0, with a 0.54 ERA and 22 K’s in 16-2/3 innings of work. The Jays will counter with Marcus Stroman, who is 4-8, with a 5.03 ERA and Toronto is 0-5 in his last 5 starts at Yankee Stadium. Stroman is battling a blister on his pitching hand which is never a good thing. Yankees should get this one.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK YANKEES

The Philadelphia Phillies have a golden opportunity to gain some ground on the Atlanta Braves when they play a doubleheader today at Citizens Bank Park against the NY Mets. In game 2, southpaw Steven Matz will be tapping the rubber for the Mets. Matz will be making his first start since coming off the DL and he is 5-9, with a 4.35 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP. The Phillies will send Zack Eflin to the bump. Eflin is 8-4, with a 3.57 ERA, a 1.10 WHIP, and the Phillies are 4-1 in his last 5 home starts. Philadelphia is tough at home, at 39-19, and at Citizens Bank Park they crush lefties, going 18-6 in their last 24.
TODAY’S PICK: GAME 2 PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

The Los Angeles Dodgers are in a tailspin, losing 5 in a row, but should wiggle out of it tonight because Hyun-jin Ryu will be tapping the rubber. Before Ryu went on the DL, he was 3-0, with a 2.12 ERA and a WHIP of only 0.88. The Giants will give the nod to Derek Holland. The southpaw is 6-8, with a 3.97 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. At the Ravine, the Dodgers are 39-19 in the last 58 against lefties. LA gets back on track tonight.
TONIGHT’S PICK: LOS ANGELES DODGERS

The New York Yankees have had issues with the Tampa Bay Rays in Tampa but it’s a different story when they meet in New York. The two team will open a 3-game set tonight in the Bronx. The Yankees are expected to give the nod to J.A. Happ, who is 12-6, with a 4.07 ERA, and a 1.13 WHIP. Since joining the Yankees from Toronto, he is a perfect 2-0 with a 2.65 ERA and a 0.76 WHIP. The Rays will once again start a reliever and are expected to go with Hunter Wood. Wood will probably pitch an inning or two, and in 25-1/3 innings of work he is 0-0, with a 3.91 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. New York has won 5 of 6 meetings with Tampa in the Bronx this year and the Rays are 6-21 in their last 27 trips to Yankee Stadium.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK YANKEES

There will be a pitching mismatch tonight at Globe Life Park in Arlington when the Arizona Diamondbacks visit the Texas Rangers. Arizona will send their ace to the hill, Zack Greinke, who has been doing what he does best, deliver. Greinke is 12-7, with a 2.89 ERA, and a 1.04 WHIP. Texas will give the nod to Bartolo Colón, who is 6-10, with a 5.18 ERA, and a 1.27 WHIP. The Diamondbacks bats came alive yesterday when they smashed 5 home runs in a 9-2 trouncing of the Cincinnati Reds. They should get to Colón tonight.
TONIGHT’S PICK: ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

Good things happen when Zack Godley taps the rubber for the Arizona Diamondbacks and he better be on his game today at Great American Ball Park if the D’backs want to avoid being swept by the last place Cincinnati Reds. Godley is 12-6, with a 4.35 ERA, a 1.43 WHIP, and Arizona is 4-1 in his last 5 road starts. The Reds will counter with Luis Castillo, who is 6-9, with a 4.91 ERA, and a 1.33 WHIP. Castillo did not look sharp in his last start against the D’backs on May 29th, where he gave up 5 runs in 5 innings of work in a 5-2 Arizona win. Arizona leads the Majors with 92 runs scored in the first inning and they need to jump on Castillo early.
TODAY’S PICK: ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

With the loss to the San Diego Padres last night at Petco Park, the Philadelphia Phillies have now been held scoreless in their last two games, blanked by Arizona on Wednesday, 6-0, and by the Friars last night, 2-0. The Phillies have the arsenal to put up numbers, it’s just a matter of time before they do, and tonight could be that night. The Pads and Phillies will play the second game of a 3-game set tonight and San Diego is expected to send Walter Lockett to the rubber. Lockett will be making his third Big League start and has struggled. He is 0-2, with an elevated ERA of 9.28, a 2.34 WHIP, and he did not look good in his last outing, surrendering 5 runs and 9 hits to the Chicago Cubs. Philadelphia will turn to their ace, Aaron Nola, to get them back on track. Nola is 12-3, with a 2.37 ERA, a WHIP of only 0.99, and the Phillies are 5-0 in his last 5 turns against the National League West. Philadelphia and Atlanta are tied for the National League East lead. The Phillies need to beat bottom feeders like the Padres if they want to keep pace and they know it.
TONIGHT’S PICK: PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES