MLB Game Picks - Saturday: June 13, 2015

With a 10-5 final tally yesterday, I had a good day except, the Pick of the Day was wrong again as the Diamondbacks beat Madison Bumgarner, 1-0. Sheesh. Of the four other wrong picks, one was Felix Hernandez not making it out of the first inning against the Astros. Say what!? Michael Pineda was totally gruesome against the Orioles. And, of course, I again could not count on Jordan Zimmermann. I am wondering about the health of Pineda and Hernandez too as that is the second time in his last four outings that he has been pulverized.

Saturday's picks:

• The Red Sox over the Blue Jays: This pick assumes a couple of things. First, it assumes that the Red Sox get to R.A. Dickey. I have run into trouble predicting that before. Secondly, it assumes that Clay Buchholz is back to form and will pitch well. Lastly, it assumes that winning streaks have to end some time.
• The Rangers over the Twins: The Twins are starting to come back to earth and the Rangers are really playing well. Colby Lewis and Mike Pelfrey seems like a draw of starting pitchers, so the better offense and home team should win.
• The Indians over the Tigers: At long last, Justin Verlander again takes the mound for the Tigers. He will not go deep in the game and the Tigers' bullpen is suspect. Plus, Carlos Carrasco has the ability to shut down the Tigers.
• The Mets over the Braves: It all depends on Jacob deGrom. If he is good, the Mets win. if not, then Shelby Lewis is also a very good pitcher. How are the Mets winning? Did you see their lineup last night? It's a head scratcher.
• The Rays over the White Sox: I can never trust Jeff Samardzija and Chris Archer has become one of the best pitchers in the AL. The Rays continue to win with mirrors while the White Sox continue to flounder around.
• The Rockies over the Marlins: David Hale has been surprisingly efficient in this his latest MLB incarnation. Mat Latos is just off the injury list and those things always bother me because of pitch limits and rust.
• The Cardinals over the Royals: I don't know why the Cardinals always go back to the same guy when someone gets hurt. But Tyler Lyons again gets the call. Even if Lyons is moderately successful, I think the Cards win as they get to Jeremy Guthrie because they are willing to go to the opposite field. But if Lyons totally sucks, look out.
• The Astros over the Mariners: Mike Montgomery has pitched two great games for the Mariners and has nothing to show for it. It would be great for him to get his first MLB win. But I think he will again be thwarted as Collin McHugh shuts down the Mariners.
• The Brewers over the Nationals: It would be nice for the Nats if someone besides Bryce Harper would start swinging the bat. If the Nats lose, they fall to .500. Not good. Joe Ross goes for the Nats and Jimmy Nelson for the Brewers.
• The Diamondbacks over the Giants: I have always been a big believer in Allen Webster. He is getting his chance for the D-backs tonight and I think he can thrive in a less pressure situation than Boston. He has to keep the walks down though. Ryan Vogelsong is always pretty tough at home.
• The Cubs over the Reds: I like Kyle Hendricks and I like the Cubs chances against Mike Leake. So that's the pick.
• The Orioles over the Yankees: The Yankees have handled Bud Norris in the past. But I don't trust CC Sabathia against a good lineup like the Orioles.
• The Angels over the Athletics: Kendall Graveman has pitched better of late and should be solid tonight. But the fact remains that the A's do not hit lefties well and C.J. Wilson is certainly that. The A's sink deeper into the AL West hole.
• The Dodgers over the Padres: Zack Greinke has had two sub par outings in a row, but I'm guessing he'll break out of that tonight. Ian Kennedy is just not somebody I feel comfortable picking...ever.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Pirates over the Phillies: Both bullpens will be a little gassed, so it will be important for the starters to go deep. I think Gerrit Cole becomes a ten-game winner in this one with Sean O'Sullivan getting the short end.

Yesterday: 10-5, June: 83-76, Season: 461-429, Picks of the Day: 35-31 (-2)

MLB Game Picks - Saturday: May 23, 2015

It is the first day of Memorial Day Weekend and I woke up early to play golf...and it is snowing. What!? Snowing!? Sheesh.

Anyway, my picks are snowballing too as I went 12-3 yesterday after going 9-3 the day before. I'll take a 21-6 run. The only three incorrect picks were two emotions driven ones. I had the Yankees and they couldn't pitch or field. I had the Cubs and they couldn't hold a lead and I had the Rockies who were beat by the voodoo-driven Giants.

Saturday's picks:

• The Yankees over the Rangers: I know. The Yankees are terrible lately. I know. But amidst that terrible is CC Sabathia who has been pitching really well. I'm going with him over Nick Martinez. Martinez has been very consistent and decent for the Rangers.
• The Mariners over the Blue Jays: Robinson Cano hits a homer off of Mark Buehrle and James Paxton continues his good pitching of late.
• The Mets over the Pirates: A.J. Burnett has been pitching really well for the Pirates but in this case, I have to go with Matt Harvey. Harvey has simply been outstanding.
• The Nationals over the Phillies: This pick makes me a bit nervous because picking Stephen Strasburg never works out for me. But he does do better at home and the Nationals are being carried on Bryce Harper's shoulders. Cole Hamels goes for the Phillies.
• The Tigers over the Astros: The Tigers don't have the offense they had a year ago, but they score enough to win if they get good pitching. Kyle Lobstein has been inconsistent, but I like him in this one over Lance McCullers.
• The Indians over the Reds: Well, welcome back Mr. Corey Kluber. Where have you been? Judging from Kluber's last performance, picking against him would be stupid. Anthony DeSclafani is going in the wrong direction for the Reds.
• The Braves over the Brewers: Probably the only thing that could stop the Brewers right now is a very good Shelby Miller. Mike Fiers would have to match him. I don't know, this is a tough one.
• The White Sox over the Twins: You didn't expect the Twins to be that good, right? Chris Sale over Trevor May.
• The Giants over the Rockies: Charlton Chris Heston has been a nice story for the Giants. How will he do at Coors? He faces Jordan Lyles who hasn't been as good as last year. Giants...
• The Giants over the Rockies: Yeah. I'm going with a sweep. Yusmeiro Petit is a nice swing man for the Giants to have. Meanwhile, the Rockies have to dip and give David Hale a start. Not pretty.
• The Marlins over the Orioles: Dan Haren is 2-0 at home in Miami with a 1.80 ERA there. That seems like a good pick even though Mike Wright was outstanding for the Orioles in his debut start.
• The Angels over the Red Sox: I'm not buying Steven Wright as a starter for the Red Sox. And the Red Sox cannot hit lefties. Though Rusney Castillo might help there. I'm going with the Angels behind C.J. Wilson.
• The Cardinals over the Royals: It's hard to pick against the Royals these days. And John Lackey versus Edinson Volquez is a tough pick. I'm going to pick the Cardinals. And much to Bob's surprise, I have been fairly accurate with my Cards picks this season.
• The Diamondbacks over the Cubs: The Diamondbacks are playing well right now and Rubby De La Rosa has been very good. Jake Arrieta gentille Arrieta hasn't been as fine as last year to this point.
• The Dodgers over the Padres: Mike Bolsinger has been terrific for the Dodgers. Ian Kennedy is your average fourth starter. He'll keep the Padres in the game. No more, no less.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Rays over the Athletics: Shield your eyes. The A's are gruesome right now. And Kendall Graveman has a good name to be pitching for them. Nate Karns or Nathan Karns, whichever B-R wants for it's linker, has been very consistent for the Rays.

Yesterday: 12-3, May: 152-122, Season: 316-287, Picks of the Day: 25-20

MLB Game Picks - Tuesday: May 12, 2015

Yesterday was a decent day at 6-4. But the Pick of the Day was wrong....again. The Yankees have won four straight this year at Tropicana Field. Has that happened in the last half dozen years? I shouldn't have picked against them. The Nationals are blasting the ball right now and it looks like they are ready to charge to where they were predicted to be before a slow start made people question them. It's a long season.

Tuesday's picks:

• The Cardinals over the Indians: Carlos Carrasco is a tough customer, but so is Lance Lynn. Lynn, despite his 1-3 record, has only had one bad outing and he's dealt with a lot of bad luck. I think the Cardinals win.
• The Pirates over the Phillies: Sean O'Sullivan has been a fringe MLB pitcher for several years now. He's never bad enough to count out and never good enough to stick. A.J. Burnett is a total wild card every time he pitches. The Pirates have put together a little winning streak here and I expect that to continue.
• The Orioles over the Blue Jays: I have serious misgivings over both starters in this one. Chris Tillman has not started the season well after a great year last year. Mark Buehrle had a good outing last time out after getting blasted twice in a row. Which big offense takes advantage of a struggling pitcher tonight?
• The Tigers over the Twins: Alfredo Simon has looked good, but I still have a hard time buying it over the long season. Kyle Gibson has to have perfect location to succeed. Both pitchers are capable. The Tigers at home.
• The Reds over the Braves: The Reds are playing really well. But this one is hard to pick with the worst to spell pitching match-up ever. Anthony DeSclafani goes for the Reds against Mike Foltynewicz. Come on, guys, what's with that!?
• The Rays over the Yankees: Chris Archer always pitches the Yankees tough and despite two clunkers in a row in his last two outings, I expect him to do it again tonight. Nathan Eovaldi has not lost a game, but he certainly looks shaky.
• The Royals over the Rangers: I was wrong about this pick yesterday, but I'll keep going with the better team. Nick Martinez hasn't lost a start yet, which is amazing. Edinson Volquez pitching in Texas is a bit frightening. But I'll stick with my pick.
• The Cubs over the Mets: Mets fans will get their first chance to watch Noah Syndergaard, another tough name to spell. The kid makes his MLB debut tonight. I still go with Jake Arrieta gentille Arrieta.
• The White Sox over the Brewers: This same pick blew up in my face yesterday. But Chris Sale is a whole different story. The Brewers' offense has come alive, but I'm going with Sale to slow them down. Mike Fiers goes for the Brewers and he has not been good thus far.
• The Astros over the Giants: Collin McHugh is my guy and I have to go with him nearly every time. It has certainly paid off thus far this season. "Charlton" Chris Heston goes for the Giants. Will Heston come out with guns blazing? Sorry, I couldn't resist.
• The Nationals over the Diamondbacks: I am worried about going with the Nats here with Stephen Strasburg on the mound. For one, I am concerned about his health. Secondly, he doesn't pitch well on the road. But I think the Nats will knock Rubby De La Rosa all over the place.
• The Red Sox over the Athletics: The A's have played really poorly thus far in May and the Red Sox are playing better. Much will depend on Justin Masterson. Drew Pomeranz will go for the A's and he has struggled in his last few starts.
• The Marlins over the Dodgers: There are two reasons I'm going this way with this pick. First, Dan Haren has been really good and is home in California to pitch this one. Secondly, the Dodgers are forced to start Mike Bolsinger due to some attrition.
• The Mariners over the Padres: James Paxton has been much better his last two starts but has little to show for it. Ian Kennedy has looked pretty good thus far, but I think the Mariners will get to him.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Angels over the Rockies: I have a hard time ever picking the Rockies on the road. C.J. Wilson has been solid for the Angels. Kyle Kendrick should keep the Rockies in the game.

Yesterday: 6-4, May: 82-68, Season: 246-233, Picks of the Day: 19-17

MLB Game Picks - Wednesday: May 6, 2015

Tuesday was not a very good day. Stephen Strasburg finally pitched well, but for only two innings and couldn't get any run support. I shouldn't ever pick against Bartolo Colon and I should never pick FOR Scott Feldman. I would say, "Live and Learn," but I never do.

Wednesday's picks:

• The Nationals over the Marlins: See? I never do live and learn. But I believe that Max Scherzer will get the run support his teammate did not get as the Nationals score four or so against Tom Koehler.
• The Rockies over the Diamondbacks: If they ever play a game in this series after two straight postponements. I'm still sticking with Tyler Matzek over Josh Collmenter like I did two days ago.
• The Rockies over the Diamondbacks: Robbie Ray gets his first start of the year for the D-Backs. I'm not expecting that to go well. I'm not sure how much better Jordan Lyles will be, but that's the pick.
• The Giants over the Padres: Ian Kennedy used to be the Giant killer. But not so much anymore. "Charlton" Chris Heston has had all good starts except the one at Coors and you can throw that out.
• The Pirates over the Reds: If Gerrit Cole keeps pitching like he has been, that should be a win. Mike Leake will leak at least a little.
• The Yankees over the Blue Jays: The Yankees have made Mark Buehrle's career miserable. That said, he faces CC Sabathia, of who I have no confidence in at this point. This should be interesting.
• The Mets over the Orioles: Jacob deGrom bounced back nicely from his Yankees' fiasco and has a decent overall record in interleague play. I like his chances better than Ubaldo Jimenez, though the latter looks a lot better this year.
• The Braves over the Phillies: The Phillies are REALLY bad this year. The Braves were supposed to be bad but haven't been. Mike Foltynewicz has an impossible name to spell but makes his second start of the season. Jerome Williams goes for the Phillies.
• The Red Sox over the Rays: The Rays don't hit that much, which helps Justin Masterson quite a bit. Alex Colome is a bit of a wild card and I don't know how he will do. He was great his first time out.
• The Indians over the Royals: Yeah, this hasn't been a good pick for me, but I believe (still) in Carlos Carrasco and think he will do just fine. Danny Duffy is so unpredictable. He could be great or not.
• The White Sox over the Tigers: Chris Sale should win. That doesn't mean he will. Alfredo Simon seems like the real deal after I poo-poohed him so much.
• The Dodgers over the Brewers: I should not pick the Dodgers because they are starting Joe Weiland, who has never really made it in the Majors. Wily Peralta is 0-4. That's pretty scary.
• The Athletics over the Twins: Scott Kazmir is my guy and I hate picking against him. Kyle Gibson seems to win his share despite not striking too many people out. In other words, I have no idea here.
• The Rangers over the Astros: I'm not sure about this pick. I don't really trust Colby Lewis. But then again, neither do I trust the Astros' bullpen as starter, Samuel Deduno will be lucky to last five innings.
• The Cubs over the Cardinals: I really love Lance Lynn. But I also love how Jon Lester is getting better each time out. I think Lester corrals the high-flying Cards.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Angels over the Mariners: I feel so much more comfortable with C.J. Wilson than I do with Roenis Elias. And that's the tune I'm singing here.

 Yesterday: 6-8, May: 38-31, Season: 202-196, Picks of the Day: 16-14

MLB Game Picks - Saturday: April 25, 2015

I went 9-5 yesterday with one game awaiting completion after being suspended. The day finally brought me out of a deep early hole and I am above .500 for the season. Gosh, that was an uphill battle. At my lowest ebb, I was seventeen games below .500. At least I feel a little better about things. Once again, there were two extra-inning games and once again, both went against me. That was a common theme last year.

Saturday's picks:

• The Royals over the White Sox: I have little faith in John Danks, I have a little bit more in Edinson Volquez. I am also worried about the health of the White Sox' first baseman.
• The Tigers over the Indians: Alas, Shane Greene did not do well yesterday and that brings us today to Alfredo Simon who is also entering this game at 3-0. Will he fall too? Trevor Bauer has been outstanding for the Indians. Tough call.
• The Reds over the Cubs: Both teams are going to have gassed bullpens. So which team will have a starter rescue it today? I'm going with Anthony DeSclafani, who has been amazing over Jake Arrieta gentille Arrieta.
• The Athletics over the Astros: The A's bullpen blew this yesterday. Perhaps that won't happen today. Scott Feldman goes for the Astros. Meh. Kendall Graveman goes for the A's. Meh. I don't like the match-up. So I'll go with the home team.
• The Yankees over the Mets: The Yankees have been killing aces lately and breaking streaks. And the team nobody likes is tied for first. CC Sabathia is 0-3 and Matt Harvey is 3-0. Something either has to give, or it will continue going in that direction. I am encouraged by the Yankees lately.
• The Nationals over the Marlins: I don't understand either of these teams right now. They are just spinning around going nowhere. Stephen Strasburg has to figure out how to win on the road and in Miami. Tom Koehler will keep his team in the game.  Not confident here.
• The Blue Jays over the Rays: The Rays got a big boost from getting James Loney back and the Rays are slugging remarkably well, which has been unexpected. The Blue Jays suffer when Jose Bautista is hurting and Daniel Norris has struggled thus far. So why am I picking the Jays? Because Erasmo Ramirez is starting for the Rays. That's why.
• The Red Sox over the Orioles: The Orioles have lost five in a row. Wei-Yin Chen isn't a great match-up against the Red Sox who like to go with the pitch. Justin Masterson has been encouraging with recovering strikeout and ground ball rates. Going with Boston.
• The Cardinals over the Brewers: The Brewers are really bad. I mean, they are tank city bad. Wily Peralta is capable of a good day. But the Brewers cannot hit and Adam Wainwright should exploit that.
• The Diamondbacks over the Pirates: Rubby De La Rosa is one of two De La Rosa pitchers pitching today. I'm not sure about him other than that the Pirates won't be familiar with him. A.J. Burnett goes for the Pirates.
• The Rockies over the Giants: The other one, Jorge De La Rosa pitches against the Giants in his second start of the season. The first start didn't go well at all. Tim Hudson has to pitch at Coors. The winner of this game will score double-digits in runs.
• The Dodgers over the Padres: Ian Kennedy is coming off the DL to pitch this one. That makes me uncomfortable. Brandon McCarthy has been really good for the Dodgers and is pitching in a big ballpark. I like his chances. Puig is dinged up again though.
• The Angels over the Rangers: Old friends C.J. Wilson and Colby Lewis square up here and I prefer Wilson at home.  The whole Josh Hamilton thing still bothers me when it comes to the Angels.
• The Mariners over the Twins: James Paxton is such a key for the Mariners and as of yet, has not pitched well. They need him to if they want to dominate the AL West. Trevor May pitched very well his last time out, but I don't trust that. Nelson Cruz is amazing.

And the Pick of the Day

• The Braves over the Phillies: These two teams will struggle this year and will play each other a lot. The pitching match-ups will mean a lot here. That being the case, I'll take Shelby Miller over David Buchanan.

Yesterday: 9-5, Season: 126-125, Picks of the Day: 10-9