Author: Roger

The Philadelphia Phillies are clicking on every cylinder and will go for a 4-game series sweep of the San Francisco Giants today at Citizens Bank Park. Not only are the Phillies hot but so is their ace and expected starter for tonight, Zack Wheeler. Wheeler is 3-0 over his last 3 turns with a ridiculous ERA of only 0.49 and a 0.76 WHIP. The Giants are expected to send Mason Black to the hill. He will be making his big league debut and what an introduction it will be. Black will have to face the likes of Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and J.T. Realmuto. Philadelpha has won 5 straight, 9 of their last 10, and 16 of their last 19. Tough task for anybody.
TODAY’S PICK: PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

The 15-18 St. Louis Cardinals and the 7-26 Chicago White Sox will wrap up their 3-game series this afternoon at Busch Stadium. The White Sox tied the series last night in a rain delayed extra innings game, 6-5, but that still gives them just two wins on the road this season. Chicago is expected to turn to the young lefty, Garrett Crochet, to throw strikes and he has potential but isn’t there yet. Crochet is 1-4 with a 5.97 ERA, a 1.10 WHIP, and Chicago is 0-5 in his last 5 starts. St. Louis is probably going with a bullpen game, and it is yet to be determined who gets the first leg. Following a loss, the Cardinals are 4-1 in their last 5 and 6-0 in their last 6 interleague games against a left-handed starter.
TODAY’S PICK: ST. LOUIS CARDINALS

The Minnesota Twins will go for their twelfth straight win when they host the Boston Red Sox today in the middle game of their 3-game set at Target Field. The Twins are hot but keep in mind 10 of their 11 wins were against the lowly White Sox and another bottom feeder, the Los Angeles Angels. The Red Sox lost last night, 5-2, but have played well on the road with a record of 11-6 and can get to the Twins expected starter, Pablo López. López is 2-2 with an elevated ERA of 4.83, a 1.04 WHIP, and is 0-1 in his career against the Red Sox with a 6.35 ERA. The Red Sox are expected to pitch a bullpen game today with Brennan Bernardino getting the first leg. Bernardino is 0-1 with an ERA of only 0.73 and a WHIP to match, at 0.73. I like Boston in this situation and all good things must end.
TODAY’S PICK: BOSTON RED SOX

The Cleveland Guardians return home tonight to Progressive Field to open a 3-game set with the struggling Los Angeles Angels. The Guardians own the top spot in the AL Central with a record of 20-11 and are 8-4 at home. The Angels are dead last in the AL West with a record of 11-20 and are 7-9 on the road. Tonight’s expected starter for LA is José Soriano, who is winless at 0-4 with a 4.76 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. Cleveland is expected to counter with Tanner Bibee and he has been dealing. Bibee is 2-0 with a 3.45 ERA, a WHIP of 1.31, and over his last 3 turns his ERA has dropped to just 1.53. The Guardians, who are averaging over 5 runs per game, should get to Soriano and you know Bibee will keep the Troutless Halos’ scoring to a minimum.
TONIGHT’S PICK: CLEVELAND GUARDIANS

The Boston Red Sox will go for their fifth straight win and a series sweep of the San Francisco Giants when they wrap up their 3-game set this afternoon at Fenway. Boston has outscored San Francisco over the first two games, 10-2, and is expected to turn to Josh Winckowski to keep it rolling. Winckowski is 1-1 on the season with a 3.50 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP over 18 innings of work. Kyle Harrison is expected to take the mound for the Giants. He comes in at 2-1 with a 4.09 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP over 33 innings of work. The Giants are just 1-6 in their last 7 interleague road games and the Red Sox have the edge in runs per game, batting average, hits, homers, etc., etc., etc.
TODAY’S PICK: BOSTON RED SOX

The Philadelphia Phillies will go for a series win when they wrap up their 3-game set this afternoon with the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium. The Phillies are expected to have their ace on the hill, Zack Wheeler. Over his last 3 starts Wheeler has been dealing, going 2-1 with a 1.96 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. The Angels are expected to counter with Patrick Sandoval and over his last 3 starts, not so good. Sandoval is 0-2 with a 6.75 ERA and a 1.77 WHIP, which doesn’t bode well when you have the worst bullpen in the league. Philadelphia has played well on the road, at 10-5, and LA will be without Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon.
TODAY’S PICK: PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

The 15-13 Minnesota Twins will go for their ninth win in a row when they face the 6-23 Chicago White Sox tonight in the second game of their 3-game set on the south side. The Twins’ recent success, with the exception of the 3-game sweep of the Angels, has been at the hands of the White Sox, winning all 4 in Minnesota last week and taking game 1 last night in Chicago. Tonight’s expected starter for the Twins is Simeon Woods Richardson and he has been delivering since he was called up. The young gun is 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA and a WHIP of only 1.00. The White Sox are expected to have Michael Soroka on the hill and he is not off to a good start. Soroka is 0-3 with an elevated ERA of 6.83, a 1.69 WHIP, and Chicago is 1-5 in his last 6 starts. The Twins have the edge in every conceivable category imaginable and the only way they lose this one is if they just take it for granted.
TONIGHT’S PICK: MINNESOTA TWINS