Tuesday was a decent day, though early, things did not appear that way. Picking the wrong
side of the Tampa Bay, Cleveland and Baltimore wins started the day off at 3-5. But nearly
all of the late games and picks were correct which saved the day. See, Nicholi? Picking the
Rangers has no relation to them winning or not. The Yankees finally won a game, but it was
a nail-biter, right to the end. Adam Wainwright's performance was huge for the Cardinals
and great news for their fans. The Dodgers pick was only correct because of a total,
embarrassing meltdown by the Diamondbacks' bullpen. That crew pitched three innings and
gave up seven runs. Brutal.
Wednesday is another full day of games and the last one before most teams finally get a
breather on Thursday. All these games are great fun for fans, but it sure must be a grind for
the players. Six of Wednesday's games are during the day. Love that. Here are
Wednesday's picks:
- The Red Sox over the Orioles: Yes, the pick makes little sense. Daniel Bard has been less than spectacular as a starter. Yes, the Orioles are pretty much having their way with everyone. But sometimes, you just have to go with what the gut says. Jake Arrieta goes for the Orioles.
- The Mets over the Pirates: The pick here is that Jon Niese rebounds from his awful start in Toronto and handcuffs the light-hitting Pirates while the Mets squeeze out a few runs against Charlie Morton.
- The Giants over the Brewers: For the first time in forever, Barry Zito was picked to win a game without any reservations here. Marco Estrada goes for the Brewers. The Melkman is up to .360 and Buster Posey is quietly having a very good comeback season.
- The Bay Rays over the Blue Jays: A pick for the Blue Jays would just be wishful thinking here. James Shields will shut them down and Ricky Romero will get dinged up for a few runs.
- The Angels over the Athletics: The A's are melting and Jered Weaver gets the benefits. Jarrod Parker will try to keep it close, but his mates can't score. At all.
- The Mariners over the Rangers: Who is this Kevin Millwood and what have you done with the real one? This picker loves Scott Feldman, but he is being asked to join the rotation without the benefit of being stretched out.
- The Tigers over the Indians: Can this picker ask what has happened to the Tigers this season? How strange is this? Doug Fister hasn't won a game yet. The Tigers are hitting like a collective Brandon Inge. What is the story? Perhaps Zach McAllister can help them...by pitching for the Indians.
- The Yankees over the Royals: Andy Pettitte should have a good day over the lefty- leaning lineup (nice alliterative there) of the Royals. Meanwhile, the Royals have thought better of starting Luis Mendoza (why?) and brought up Will Smith to pitch because he is left- handed. Didn't the Royals get the memo that the Yankees like left-handed pitching? And besides, shouldn't Will Smith make his debut on July 4?
- The Phillies over the Nationals: The only times the Phillies win these days is when Cole Hamels pitches. Which is a double-edged sword in that every time he wins, he gets more expensive after the season. The enigma, Edwin Jackson goes for the Nats.
- The Braves over the Reds: Tommy Hanson is on a nice little roll and Bronson Arroyo is feisty more than he is effective.
- The Marlins over the Rockies: The Marlins might be the hottest team in baseball right now. Carlo Zambrano has been terrific and poor Alex White hasn't won a game all season.
- The Cubs over the Astros: The Astros have done well to take the first two games of this series and they have their best pitcher in Wandy Rodriguez on the mound. But Jeff Samardzija has been terrific and will shut the Astros down.
- The Twins over the White Sox: Whoa. Did this picker just pick the Twins to win? Feeling shaky. But all Scott Diamond does is win. Chris Sale was decent his last time out.
- The Dodgers over the Diamondbacks: The Dodgers stomp on Joe Saunders and tell the D-backs that this is their year. Ted Lilly hasn't lost a game this season.
And the Game of the Day!
- The Cardinals over the Padres: Lance Lynn finally lost a game last time out, but gets the Padres to start a new streak going. The combo of Beltran and Holliday has been terrific for the Cards. Jeff Suppan gets the start for the Padres and has been surprisingly effective. But the Cards know who he is.
Yesterday: 9-6
Week: 23-20
Month; 162-148
Season: 351-297
Games of the Day: 27-20
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