Inside the Chalk

The Seattle Mariners will go for a sweep over the Kansas City Royals when they wrap up their 3-game set today at T-Mobile Park. The expected starters for today are reigning AL Cy Young winner southpaw Robbie Ray for Seattle and righty Carlos Hernández for KC. Ray’s numbers are not Cy Young material, at 2-1 with a 4.19 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP, but he has seemed to have found his groove. In his last turn against the Rangers, he allowed just 2 runs on 4 hits over 6 innings of work resulting in a 6-2 Mariners win. Hernández has struggled and is winless, at 0-0 with a 7.27 ERA and a 1.96 WHIP. The Royals have had issues with left-handed starters, going 1-4 in their last 5, and are 1-5 in their last 6 meetings with the Mariners. The AL West leading Mariners have been on a roll, winning 5 of their last 6, and are 4-0 in their last 4 home games against a right-handed starter. Seattle should get this one.
TODAY’S PICK: SEATTLE MARINERS

The Toronto Blue Jays will go for a series win over the Houston Astros when they play the middle game of their 3-game set today at Minute Maid Park. The AL East leading Jays have won 3 straight and are expected to send their young flamethrower, Alek Manoah, to the hill. When Toronto drafted Manoah 11th overall in 2019, they got what they expected and then some. Since debuting in 2021, he has shown he is special. In 22 career starts for Toronto, the Jays are 18-4 and he is showing no signs of slowing down. Manoah is off to a 2-0 start this year with a stingy 1.50 ERA, a .092 WHIP, and he goes deep into games. Houston has lost 3 straight and will turn to José Urquidy to right the ship. Urquidy was lit up in his last turn in a 7-2 loss to Seattle, surrendering 6 runs on 8 hits in 4 innings of work. On the season, he is 1-1 with a 7.00 ERA, a 1.44 WHIP, and was 1-1 last year against Toronto with an ERA of 6.35. The Blue Jays are the most talented team in the American League and they are young. Keep an eye on them.
TODAY’S PICK: TORONTO BLUE JAYS

After a 7-game road trip against two of the best in the West, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres, the Atlanta Braves will return home tonight to open a 3-game set with the Miami Marlins. Atlanta’s bats have been quiet but should find a spark tonight against Miami’s expected starter, southie Trevor Rogers. His season has gotten off on the wrong foot. Rogers is 0-2 with a bloated ERA of 12.15, a 2.25 WHIP, and in his career against the Braves he is 0-2 with an ERA of 6.92. Not good. The Braves are expected to counter with Kyle Wright and he has been on his mark. Wright comes in at 1-0, with a 1.64 ERA and a WHIP of only 0.73, and that could spell trouble for a Marlins team that has also been struggling at the plate. The Champs have won 5 of the last 6 against Donnie Baseball’s team and are worth considering tonight.
TONIGHT’S PICK: ATLANTA BRAVES

The Oakland Athletics will go for a series win over the Baltimore Orioles today when the two clubs wrap up their 4-game set at the Coliseum. Runs have been hard to come by in the first three games so we will give the edge to the A’s in this one. The expected starter for Oakland is Paul Blackburn and he has been delivering. Blackburn is 1-0 with an ERA of only 1.80 and a nasty WHIP of 0.90 in 10 innings of work. On the flip side, Tyler Wells is expected to take the hill for Baltimore. Wells comes in at 0-1 with an elevated 6.35 ERA and a 1.76 WHIP in 5.2 innings of work. The A’s are 4-0 in their last 4 following a loss and should be able to get to Wells today.
TODAY’S PICK: OAKLAND ATHLETICS