Month: July 2020

The Tampa Bay Rays will have southpaw Blake Snell on the hill when they open a 3-game set tonight at the Yard against the Baltimore Orioles. Snell, the 2018 Cy Young winner, can deliver and the Rays are 16-7 in their last 23 meetings with Baltimore.
TONIGHT’S PICK: TAMPA BAY RAYS

The New York Mets will look to rebound tonight against the Boston Red Sox when the two clubs meet again at Citi Field. Boston came out on top last night, beating New York’s ace Jacob deGrom in a tight one, 6-5. Tonight the Red Sox will have yet another flamethrower to contend with, southpaw Steven Matz. Matz was spectacular in his season debut against Atlanta, yielding just 1 run and 2 hits with 7 Ks in 6 innings of work. That can’t be said for Boston’s expected starter, lefty Martín Pérez. Pérez was awful in his season debut, yielding 5 runs on 6 hits, resulting in a 7-2 loss to the lowly Baltimore Orioles. New York has had its way with the American League East, winning 4 of their last 5, and Matz has been lethal at Citi Field. In 2019, he was 8-2 with a 2.31 ERA. Consider the Boys from Queens.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK METS

The Milwaukee Brewers should have their tail between their legs today after blowing a 6-2 lead late in last night’s game, falling to the Pittsburgh Pirates, 8-6. Tonight they meet again for the final game of a 3-game set at PNC Park. The expected starters for tonight’s matchup are Brandon Woodruff for the Brewers and Joe Musgrove for the Pirates. Musgrove has faced the Brewers 4 times in his career with negative results, going 0-1 with a bloated 6.46 ERA. Despite last night’s debacle, Milwaukee is still 20-8 in their last 28 meetings with Pittsburgh, 4-1 in their last 5 trips to PNC Park, and Woodruff was 2-0 last year in 4 turns against the Bucs. The Brew Crew get it done.
TONIGHT’S PICK: MILWAUKEE BREWERS

The Los Angeles Angels will be glad to be back in So Cal tonight for their home opener against the Seattle Mariners after dropping 3 of 4 to the Oakland Athletics to open the season where they mustered just 11 runs. The good news is Anthony Rendon is expected to make his Angel debut which will add some pop at the plate and should ignite their staggering offense. Seattle also lost 3 of 4 to Houston and are now a pathetic 17-46 in their last 63 against the American League West. The pitching matchup is sketchy on both sides with two lefties expected to get the nod: Justus Sheffield for the Mariners and Patrick Sandoval for the Angels. In 2019, Sandoval was 0-4 with a 5.03 ERA and Sheffield was 0-1 with a 5.50 ERA. Los Angeles should be licking their chops. They are 5-0 in their last 5 against a left-handed starter, 5-1 in the last 6 meetings with Seattle, and 4-1 in their last 5 against them at home.
TONIGHT’S PICK: LOS ANGELES ANGELS

Two southpaws are expected to oppose each other tonight when the Chicago Cubs visit the Great American Ball Park for a matchup with the Cincinnati Reds. Wade Miley will get the nod for the Reds and he was on the money last year for the Houston Astros. Miley was a dominant 14-6, with a 3.98 ERA, and a 1.34 WHIP. Jon Lester takes the hill for the Cubs and is coming off a so-so year where he was 13-10, with a 4.46 ERA, and a 1.50 WHIP. In three turns last year against the Reds, Lester was 0-1 with a 4.02 ERA. Chicago has had trouble on the road against lefties, going 2-8 in their last 10, and are just 4-10 in their last 14 in Cincinnati. This is a good spot to take the home dog.
TONIGHT’S PICK: CINCINNATI REDS

The Tampa Bay Rays will seek their second straight victory and a series win over the Toronto Blue Jays in an early one today at Tropicana Field. Toronto is expected to send Thomas Hatch to the hill. Hatch will be making his Big League debut and has never pitched past AA so expect the Rays to put up some runs. Tampa is expected to send lefty Blake Snell to the rubber. The Rays are 6-2 in his last 8 starts against Toronto and he owns a 2.88 lifetime ERA against the Jays. Tampa has won 16 of the last 23 meetings with Toronto and notch another this afternoon.
TODAY’S PICK: TAMPA BAY RAYS

The Philadelphia Phillies will look to even the score with the Miami Marlins when they play the second game of a 3-game set in a matinée today at Citizens Bank Park. The Marlins took Game 1 yesterday in a 5-2 victory and have had the Phillies’ number of late, winning 9 of the last 13 meetings, but today they have to face Zack Wheeler. Wheeler has dominated the Marlins in his career, owning a 7-3 record with a nasty ERA of 1.91 to go along with a WHIP of only 0.93. Miami is expected to send Caleb Smith to the hill and the last time he faced Philadelphia he was lit up, allowing 6 runs including 2 homers in just 3 innings of work. The Phillies’ bats have yet to come alive and it’s just a matter of time before they do. Today could be that day.
TODAY’S PICK: PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES