Inside the Chalk

Two of the best flamethrowers in the business will oppose each other today at Munute Maid Park when the Houston Astros send Justin Verlander to the rubber and the Cleveland Indians start Corey Kluber. Kluber is 20-7, with a 2.89 ERA and a 0.99 WHIP. Verlander is 16-9, with a 2.52 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP. Verlander knows how to get it done in the post-season with a record of 11-6 and a 3.07 ERA. Consider the World Champs.
TODAY’S PICK: HOUSTON ASTROS

The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Atlanta Braves will square off tonight at Dodger Stadium in Game 1 of the NLDS. Lefty Hyun-jin Ryu will get the nod for Los Angeles. Ryu has been delivering, with a mark of 7-3, a 1.97 ERA, a 1.01 WHIP, and he in 3-0 in his last 3 turns, with an ERA of only 0.47 and a 0.74 WHIP. Mike Foltynewicz will start for Atlanta and he has pitched well. Foltynewicz is 13-10, with a 2.85 ERA, a 1.08 WHIP, and he is 2-1 in his last 3 starts but his ERA climbed to 4.76. The Braves are 1-4 in their last 5 trips to Dodger Stadium and they have struggled against lefties, going 3-9 in their last 12.
TONIGHT’S PICK: LOS ANGELES DODGERS

The New York Yankees and the Oakland Athletics will meet in the Bronx tonight to decide the AL Wild Card game. The Yanks will have their ace tapping the rubber, Luis Severino. He is 19-8 on the season, with a 3.39 ERA, a 1.14 WHIP, and New York is 22-4 in his last 26 turns at the Stadium. The A’s are going to use relievers as starters and will send the Australian, Liam Hendriks, to start. In 24 innings of work, Hendriks is 0-1 with a 4.12 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. The Athletics have had success against the the Yankees in Oakland but not in the Bronx, where they are 1-4 in their last 5.
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW YORK YANKEES

The Chicago Cubs and the Colorado Rockies will meet at Wrigley tonight to see who goes to the next level. Two southpaws will oppose each other and both have been delivering. Jon Lester gets the nod for the Cubs and Kyle Freeland will go for the Rockies. Lester is 18-6, with a 3.32 ERA, a 1.31 WHIP, and he has not allowed an earned run in his last two starts. Freeland has been on his mark. He is 17-7, with a 2.85 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP but he will be working on just three days’ rest. The Cubs are 51-31 at home and 5-1 in Lester’s last 6 starts against the NL West.
TONIGHT’S PICK: CHICAGO CUBS

Two young guns will square off today in So Cal when the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Colorado Rockies play for the NL West title. Walker Buehler is expected to tap the rubber for the Dodgers and Germán Márquez is expected to start for the Rockies. Both flamethrowers have had impressive seasons. Buehler is 7-5, with a 2.76 ERA, a 0.98 WHIP, and over his last 3 turns he is 1-0, with a 0.90 ERA and a WHIP of only 0.70. Márquez is 14-10 on the season, with a 3.76 ERA, a 1.20 WHIP, and he is 2-1 in his last 3 starts, with a 2.25 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP. Colorado has lost its last four meetings with Los Angeles and are 0-4 in their last 4 trips to Chavez Ravine. The Dodgers capture the West.
TODAY’S PICK: LOS ANGELES DODGERS

The NL West is up for grabs and, with a win today and a Colorado loss, the Los Angeles Dodgers will own the title so losing today is not an option. The Dodgers are expected to turn to Rich Hill to throw strikes. Hill is 10-5, with a 3.87 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. The San Francisco Giants will likely counter with southpaw Andrew Suárez. He has not pitched well this year, with a record of 7-12, a 4.22 ERA, and the Dodgers are 4-1 in their last 5 road games against southies. Todd Tichenor will be behind the dish and the Dodgers are 5-0 in their last 5 games when he is pulling the strings.
TODAY’S PICK: LOS ANGELES DODGERS

The Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants will play a matinée today at AT&T Park. The Dodgers will turn to their ace, Clayton Kershaw, to move them closer to a post-season berth. Kershaw is 9-5, with a 2.53 ERA, and is at the top of his game. The southpaw has won 6 straight and has not lost a game since July 21st. To say Kershaw has dominated San Francisco would be an understatement. He is 13-4 with an ERA of 1.30 in his career at AT&T Park and 22-10 with a 1.58 ERA overall against the Giants. Hunter Pence’s batting average against Kershaw is .186, Evan Longoria’s is .154, and Brandon Crawford’s is .125. The Giants are expected to give the nod to Pudge’s son, Dereck Rodríguez. He has pitched well, with a mark of 6-4 and a 2.50 ERA but San Francisco is 0-6 in his last 6 starts and they are 0-4 in his last 4 turns at AT&T Park. Dodgers get it done.
TODAY’S PICK: LOS ANGELES DODGERS