Author: Roger

The Houston Astros will go for a 3-game sweep of the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field today and they should do it. The pathetic 19-67 Rockies are expected to send Kyle Freeland to the hill and his numbers are terrible. The southpaw is 1-9 with a 5.56 ERA, a 1.58 WHIP, and Colorado is 0-7 in his last 7 home starts. The 52-34 Astros are expected to give the start to Brandon Walter and he will keep one of the worst hitting teams in the league in check. Walter is 1-1 with a 3.34 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. The ‘Stros have won 7 straight against the Rockies. They are also 4-0 in their last 4 interleague games against a left-handed starter and 6-0 in their last 6 in Game 3 of a series. Everything points to a Houston win.
TODAY’S PICK: HOUSTON ASTROS

The red hot Pittsburgh Pirates will go for a 3-game sweep of the visiting St. Louis Cardinals today in an early one at PNC Park but not so fast. Sonny Gray will be toeing the rubber for the Cardinals and he has been in the zone. Gray is 8-2 with a 3.36 ERA, a 1.09 WHIP, and in his last start against the Cleveland Guardians he threw a complete game (which is rare these days) yielding just 1 hit, no runs, 11 K’s, and the Cardinals went on to a 5-0 win. Gray is also 2-0 this season against the Bucs with an ERA of only 0.75. Mitch Keller is slated to start for the Pirates. Even without Nolan Arenado, who is not expected to be in the lineup today, St. Louis should be able to get to Keller. Keller is 2-10 with a 3.90 ERA, a 1.22 WHIP, and has just 1 win over his last 5 starts. Pittsburgh has won 5 straight but keep in mind this team is still averaging only 3.5 runs per game and with a dialed-in Sony Gray on the bump, good luck.
TODAY’S PICK: ST. LOUIS CARDINALS

After going 19-7 in the month of June, the Houston Astros are now in the top spot in the AL West. Tonight they will travel to Coors Field to open a 3-game set with the worst team in baseball, the 19-65 Colorado Rockies. If the altitude doesn’t play a factor, the ‘Stros should cruise to an easy victory. Chase Dollander is expected on the hill for the Rockies and how this guy is still in the Bigs is puzzling. Dollander is 2-8 with a 6.06 ERA, a 1.43 WHIP, and Altuve and company should be licking their chops. The rookie southpaw, Colton Gordon, is expected to get the nod for the Astros. Gordon is everything Houston hoped he would be. He is 3-1 with a 3.98 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. In his last turn against the very talented Philadelphia Phillies, Gordon allowed just 4 hits, no runs and the Astros went on to a 2-0 victory. Houston has won the last 5 meetings with Colorado and is the better team by far, 1 through 9.
TONIGHT’S PICK: HOUSTON ASTROS

The 47-37 Tampa Bays Rays are just 1½ games back of the New York Yankees for the lead in the AL East and will open a 3-game set tonight at Steinbrenner Field against the 34-52 Athletics. The Rays have been hot in the month of June, going 17-9, and are expected to call on their ace, righty Drew Rasmussen, to throw strikes. Rasmussen is 7-5 with an excellent ERA of 2.46, a WHIP of just 0.96, and is 2-0 in his career against the A’s with a 0.69 ERA. The Athletics are expected to give the nod to southpaw Jacob Lopez (2-4, 3.56 ERA, 1.30 WHIP) and he has been dealing. Over his last 4 starts, Lopez has allowed just 14 hits and only 2 runs but that doesn’t bother Tampa. They are 4-0 in their last 4 against a left-handed starter. The Athletics are the third worst team in the majors with a record of 19-25 on the road, and even with a hot hurler on the mound Tampa should prevail.
TONIGHT’S PICK: TAMPA BAY RAYS

The Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies will play the rubber game of their 3-game set in a matinée today at Truist Park. After blanking the Braves on Friday 13-0, the Phillies’ bats went cold yesterday, mustering just 4 hits in a 6-1 loss. Philadelphia holds a 1/2 game lead over the New York Mets for the top spot in the NL East with Atlanta sitting 9-1/2 back. The Phillies are expected to send lefty Ranger Suárez to the hill and he has been delivering. Suárez is 6-2 with a 2.08 ERA, a 1.22 WHIP, and last faced the Braves on May 27th when he pitched a gem, yielding only 4 hits, no runs, and the Phillies went on to a 2-0 win. Atlanta is expected to counter with Spencer Strider who is 3-5 with a 4.07 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP, but don’t let his numbers fool you. Strider is a quality pitcher. If Philadelpha wants to remain at the top of the NL East, they have to beat their division rivals and they know that. Philadelphia has the edge today in starting pitching, runs scored, run differential, batting average, hits, and homers. Consider the road dog in this one.
TODAY’S PICK: PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

The 51-32 Detroit Tigers lost the opener of their 3-game set to the 40-42 Minnesota Twins last night at Comerica Park, 4-1. Detroit is not in the habit of losing two in a row and should even the score this afternoon in front of the home crowd. The best in the AL are expected to hand the ball to Casey Mize. The flamethrower is 7-2 with a 2.88 ERA, a 1.24 WHIP, and the Tigers are 6-0 in his last 6 home starts against a team with a losing record. Bailey Ober is expected on the hill for the Twins. Ober is 4-5 with an elevated ERA of 4.90, a 1.37 WHIP, and Minnesota is 0-6 in his last 6 starts. Detroit is the side to consider.
TODAY’S PICK: DETROIT TIGERS

The 48-34 New York Mets are back on track, riding a 2-game winning streak, and have reclaimed the top spot in the NL East. Tonight they will travel to PNC Park to open a 3-game set with the 32-50 Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates do not score runs, averaging just 3.3 per game, and that will be a problem once again tonight against the Mets’ expected starter, southpaw David Peterson. Peterson is 5-3 with an excellent ERA of 2.98, a 1.22 WHIP, and New York is 8-1 in his last 9 starts in Game 1 of a series. The Bucs will likely counter with Mitch Keller who is 1-10 with a 4.02 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. The Mets score more than the Pirates, give up less, and are the side to consider.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK METS