Month: April 2021

The Arizona Diamondbacks got off to a horrendous start to the season but have turned things around, winning 8 of their last 10, and find themselves one game above .500. Tonight they will send Madison Bumgarner to the hill when they face the Colorado Rockies in Game 2 of their 4-game set at Chase Field. The veteran southpaw is 2-2 with an elevated ERA of 6.31 but appears to have found the stuff that once made him one of the most dominating pitchers in the Majors. Mad Bum was stellar in his last outing, pitching a no hitter against the Atlanta Braves. Unfortunately it doesn’t count due to the commissioner’s inane rule that double header games will be 7 innings. The Rockies road troubles continue and they find themselves just 1-9 in their last 10 away from Coors Field. The Rockies will have Jon Gray tapping the rubber and he has been one of the lone bright spots for Colorado. Gray is 3-1 with an ERA of 2.54 but is a mediocre 5-5 in his career against the Snakes, with a 4.97 ERA. The Rockies are a dismal 8-20 in their last 28 road games against a left-handed starter and 1-4 in their last 5 at Chase Field.
TONIGHT’S PICK: ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

Refer to yesterday’s blog for game 1 of the Chicago White Sox Detroit Tigers double-header.
TODAY’S PICK: CHICAGO WHITE SOX – GAME 1

The Chicago White Sox did something last night they rarely do and that is lose to the Detroit Tigers. Chicago will look to get back on track against lowly Detroit tonight and I expect they will do just that. The White Sox will send lefty Carlos Rodón to the rubber. Rodón not only has a no-no this year, he is 3-0 with a .047 ERA, a 0.68 WHIP, and will be facing the league’s worst offense, who are averaging just 3.08 runs per game. Unlike Detroit, Chicago scores runs, averaging 5.00 per game, and they will be facing Casey Mize, who has struggled. Mize is 1-2 with a 5.23 ERA, a 1.45 WHIP, and in his last two starts he yielded 11 runs in 9-2/3 innings of work. The Tigers are 3-13 in their last 16 at Guaranteed Rate Field and 0-6 in their last 6 against a left-handed starter. Good luck, Detroit.
TONIGHT’S PICK: CHICAGO WHITE SOX

After last night’s pounding of the Colorado Rockies, 12-0, the San Francisco Giants find themselves in the top spot in the National League West. The Giants and Rockies will meet again tonight at Oracle Park, a place where Colorado has had trouble winning games. The Rockies have lost 4 straight in San Francisco and are winless on the road at 0-7. San Francisco has won 7 of their last 10 and are an impressive 9-2 this year at Oracle Park. The Giants will turn to Aaron Sanchez to continue their dominance over the Rockies and he has been delivering. Sanchez is 1-1, with a 1.83 ERA, a 1.02 WHIP, and in his last outing he pitched 5 scoreless innings against the Miami Marlins, resulting in a 3-0 Giants victory. Chi Chi González is the expected starter for the Rockies. González has pitched well, with a record of 1-0, an ERA of 3.00 and a 1.47 WHIP, but in his 15 innings of work he has walked 7 batters with just 8 Ks and has an OBP of .349.
TONIGHT’S PICK: SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS

The Seattle Mariners will take their 7-4 road record into Minute Maid Park tonight to open a 4-game set with the Houston Astros. The expected starters will be José Urquidy for Houston and Justus Sheffield for Seattle. Urquidy has struggled in the early going, with a record of 0-2, a 5.14 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. Sheffield’s numbers are not much better, at 1-1, with a 4.86 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP, but he is a southpaw and Houston is just 1-5 in their last 6 games against a left-handed starter. Seattle fell to Boston yesterday, 5-3, but following a loss they are 11-1 in their last 12 and 6-2 in their last 8 as a road dog. The Mariners have taken 2 out of 3 from the Astros this year, and Houston is just 4-6 on the season at Minute Maid Park.
TONIGHT’S PICK: SEATTLE MARINERS

The Colorado Rockies will send Jon Gray to the rubber today when they go for a series win against the Philadelphia Phillies at Coors Field. Gray has been on his mark thus far. He is 2-1 with a 2.42 ERA, a 1.12 WHIP, and has been a Philly killer in his career at Coors Field, where he is a perfect 3-0 with a nasty ERA of just 1.37. Despite last night’s 7-5 victory, Philadelphia is still just 2-8 in their last 10 in Colorado and their expected starter, Chase Anderson, has not been getting it done. He is 0-2 with a 4.15 ERA, a 1.15 WHIP, and Philly has had trouble posting back-to-back wins, going 0-6 in their last 6 following a win.
TODAY’S PICK: COLORADO ROCKIES

When Jacob deGrom and Marcus Stroman take the hill for the New York Mets the result is usually the same, they win. DeGrom pitched a gem last night, blanking the Washington Nationals at Citi Field, 6-0, to snap their 3-game skid and take Game 1 of the 3-game set. Today it will be Stroman’s turn to deliver and I expect him to do just that. Stroman has been throwing flames, with a record of 3-0, a nasty 0.89 ERA, and a WHIP of only 0.69. Joe Ross is expected to get the nod for the Nationals. Ross is 1-1, with an elevated ERA of 5.87, a 1.30 WHIP, and his last turn is one he would like to forget. Ross was scorched by St. Louis, allowing 10 runs in 4-1/3 innings of work, resulting in a 12-5 trouncing by the Cardinals. The Mets have won 4 straight in Queens, are 7-0 in Stroman’s last 7 starts, and have won 9 of the last 12 meetings with the Nationals at Citi.
TODAY’S PICK: NEW YORK METS