Category: Baseball

The Chicago Cubs will open a 4-game set tonight on the north side with the Miami Marlins. Tonight’s expected starters are Jameson Taillon for Chicago and A.J. Puck for Miami. Taillon is making his season debut for the Cubs. The big guy can throw heat and is 2-0 in his career against the Marlins with an ERA of only 0.54. Puk is a career reliever and should still be in that roll. As a starter, he is 0-3 with a 5.91 ERA. The Cubs are the side to consider.
TONIGHT’S PICK: CHICAGO CUBS

Are the New York Yankees going to be swept by the Toronto Blue Jays? I say not. Marcus Stroman will be on the hill for the Bombers and he will be motivated to deliver against his old team. Stroman is 1-1 with an ERA of only 2.12 and a 1.06 WHIP. Enough said.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK YANKEES

The 10-6 Baltimore Orioles have the 6-9 Minnesota Twins’ number. In game 1 of their 3-game set last night, the Orioles rolled to a 7-4 win and have now won 5 straight against the Twins. Tonight in game 2, the expected starters are Grayson Rodriguez for Baltimore and Chris Paddack for Minnesota. Paddack is 0-0 with a 4.15 ERA and a 1.85 WHIP. Rodriguez is 2-0 with an ERA of only 2.50, a 1.17 WHIP, and Baltimore is 10-1 in his last 11 starts against a team with a losing record. The Orioles get it done tonight at Birdland.
TONIGHT’S PICK: BALTIMORE ORIOLES

The St. Louis Cardinals will head to the west coast tonight to open a 3-game set with the Oakland Athletics. The Cards, who have lost their last two, are expected to send Sonny Gray to the hill to get them back on track. Gray was lights out in his season debut against a potent Philadelphia Phillies lineup. Gray pitched 5 scoreless innings, yielding 5 hits with 5 punch outs ,and the Cardinals went on to a 3-0 win. The Athletics are expected to counter with Ross Stripling. Stripling has struggled through his first 3 starts, going 0-3 with a 5.50 ERA and a 1.72 WHIP. I expect Sonny will be extra motivated tonight against his old team plus the Red Birds have the edge in runs scored, batting average, and hits.
TONIGHT’S PICK: ST. LOUIS CARDINALS

The Arizona Diamondbacks will go for a series win today at Chase Field when they host the St. Louis Cardinals in the rubber game of their 3-game set. The D-backs will turn to their ace, Zac Gallen, to get the job done and just like last season that is what he is doing. Gallen is 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA, a 1.19 WHIP, and always wants to put the screws to the team that drafted him but let him go. The Cards will counter with Miles Mikolis. He is 1-1 with a 4.77 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP. The Snakes have the edge in runs scored, batting average, hits, homers, and is the side to consider today.
TODAY’S PICK: ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

The 8-4 Atlanta Braves and the 2-12 Miami Marlins will play the second game of their 3-game set this afternoon at LoanDepot Park. The Braves poured it on once again last night, pounding the Marlins, 8-1. Atlanta is expected to send flamethrower and southpaw Chris Sale to the hill. Sale, who has been battling injuries the last few years, appears to be back to Sale form. The future Hall of Famer is 1-0 with a respectable 3.38 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. Miami is expected to turn to Max Meyer to throw strikes. Meyer has been delivering with a record of 1-0, a 2.46 ERA, a WHIP of only 0.73, and he had better be on his mark today or this Braves lineup will do damage. Atlanta is averaging just shy of 7 runs per game, averaging over 11 hits, and has a team batting average of .308 which are all the best in the majors. The bottom line is the Braves can score runs and the Marlins can’t. The Fish are averaging just over 3 runs per game and with Sale on the hill, the Braves are the side to consider.
TODAY’S PICK: ATLANTA BRAVES

The 6-6 Cincinnati Reds have lost their last two games but a trip to the south side tonight for a matchup with the 2-10 Chicago White Sox might be just what the doctor ordered. The expected starters for tonight’s game are lefty Andrew Abbott for the Big Red Machine and Chris Flexen for the White Sox. In two starts this season, Abbott is 0-1 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Flexen is 0-2 with a 5.91 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. The Reds should be able to get to Flexen. They are averaging over 5 runs per game and over 8 hits. The White Sox are just 1-4 at home and have had issues with left-handed starters. They are just 1-6 in their last 7 against southpaws and 1-8 in their last 9 against the NL Central.
TONIGHT’S PICK: CINCINNATI REDS