Author: Roger

Who is the hottest team in the Majors right now? You would have to say the New York Yankees. The Bombers just took two straight from a really good Milwaukee Brewers team in Milwaukee, outscoring them by a ridiculous number of 30-8. Tonight the Yankees will travel to Camden Yards to open a 4-game set with the Baltimore Orioles. Expected starters are Clarke Schmidt for the Yankees and Grayson Rodriguez for the O’s. Schmidt has pitched well, with a record of 2-0, a 3.55 ERA, and a 1.46 WHIP. Rodriguez is 3-1 with a 4.45 ERA, a 1.41 WHIP, and was roughed up in his last turn by the LA Angels, yielding 7 runs on 11 hits over 4-1/3 innings of work resulting in a 7-4 loss. The Bombers’ bats are on a fire and should be able to get to Rodriguez tonight. As long as Aaron Boone doesn’t rest some of his hot hitters, which he has a tendency to do once they get in the zone, the Yanks should come out on top.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK YANKEES

The 13-15 Tampa Bay Rays are on the verge of being swept by the 5-22 Chicago White Sox today in an early one on the south side. But not so fast. The Rays are definitely in a slump but that happens in baseball and doesn’t last forever. Today’s expected starters will be Zack Littell for the Rays, who is 1-1 with a 3.33 ERA, and Erick Fedde for the Sox, who is 1-0 with a 2.73 ERA. The Rays are the better team on the field today by far. They have the edge in runs scored, batting average, hits, homers and team ERA. If Tampa Bay gets swept today, the blame falls on management and maybe something needs to change.
TODAY’S PICK: TAMPA BAY RAYS

With the Oakland Athletics 3-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles last night at Birdland, the A’s have now won two straight. This is not the same team as a year ago. The Athletics are also coming off a series split with the Yankees in the Bronx but they will come back down to earth today at the Yard. The Orioles will have Cole Irvin on the hill and Baltimore is 6-1 in his last 7 home starts. The Orioles are averaging over 5 runs per game and the Athletics are under 3. Baltimore also has the edge in batting average, hits per game and homers.
TODAY’S PICK: BALTIMORE ORIOLES

The Atlanta Braves will go for a 3-game sweep over the Miami Marlins tonight at Truist Park and should get it done. The Braves are a scoring machine, averaging 6 runs per game, and will be facing Sixto Sánchez. He is 0-1 with a 6.14 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. Atlanta will send Reynaldo Sánchez to the hill and he will keep Miami’s scoring to a minimum or maybe none at all. Sánchez is 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP.
TONIGHT’S PICK: ATLANTA BRAVES

The Baltimore Orioles took game 1 of their 3-game set from the Los Angeles Angels last night at Angel Stadium. Tonight the O’s should make it two straight because Grayson Rodriguez is on the hill for the Orioles. He is 3-0 with a 2.63 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. On the flip side, the Angels are expected to have Griffin Canning on the hill. Canning is 0-3 with a bloated ERA of 8.05 and a 1.58 WHIP. Gunnar Henderson and company should be able to get to this guy.
TONIGHT’S PICK: BALTIMORE ORIOLES

The New York Yankees should have no problem taking care of business today against the Oakland Athletics in the Bronx. The 15-7 Bombers will have southpaw Carlos Rodón on the hill. Rodón is 1-1 with a 3.66 ERA. The 8-14 Athletics are expected to have JP Sears tapping the rubber. He comes in at 1-1 with a 4.36 ERA. New York is averaging just shy of 5 runs per game and Oakland is under 3. The Yankees are a team that wants to win while the A’s just want to jump ship and get to Vegas — and you can’t trust a team like that. The Yankees won’t come cheap but buck up.
TODAY’S PICK: NEW YORK YANKEES