MLB Game Picks - Wednesday: June 17, 2015

Yesterday looked so good. Despite being totally wrong about the Yankees / Marlins game (ahem), I finished at 10-5. But that dang Pick of the Day did me in again. I have struggled mightily with that this year, more so than any other year. And the Tigers had the lead too. They simply couldn't hold it.

Wednesday's picks:

• The Orioles over the Phillies: While I have some reservations on Ubaldo Jimenez, I have more about Kevin Correia against the Orioles lineup right now. I hope he knows how to duck.
• The Yankees over the Marlins: The Yankees are different animals at home than on the road. They are nearly a .600 team at home. My one concern is Michael Pineda. I have questions about his health right now and he hasn't looked good. Jose Urena goes for the Marlins.
• The Nationals over the Bay Rays: The series moves to Washington and they clubbed the Rays yesterday. I know. I am picking Jordan Zimmermann again. Woe is me. The Nats win behind him and against Matt Andriese.
• The Blue Jays over the Mets: The Blue Jays get their DH back and that should help. Drew Hutchison should be better than Jon Niese.
• The Braves over the Red Sox: Joe Kelly has been gruesome. He is the Red Sox' Eovaldi. Alex Wood is solid and the Red Sox lose the DH.
• The Indians over the Cubs: This game seems about even, so I ma going with the home team. It will be Shaun Marcum against Tsuyoshi Wada.
• The Reds over the Tigers: David Price has been so good. But he might be out-gunned by Johnny Cueto tonight. Todd Frazier is going bananas at the plate.
• The Brewers over the Royals: I can't see anything good coming out of a Joe Blanton start and Mike Fiers has been much better of late.
• The Pirates over the White Sox: The Pirates don't have to worry about which outfielder to start today because they have the DH. Jeff Locke should be better than John Danks, which isn't hard to do.
• The Cardinals over the Twins: The Twins' slide continues as the St. Louis Hackers...I mean Cardinals prevail with Carlos Martinez on the mound. Tommy Milone goes for the Twins. That's quite the story in St. Louis...and quite embarrassing.
• The Astros over the Rockies:  I don't know what to do with this one. The last time I picked against Brett Oberholtzer, he threw a gem. But he is pitching in Coors. At the same time, Kyle Kendrick has been dreadful at home, just dreadful.
• The Diamondbacks over the Angels: I just have a feeling the D-backs will get to Hector Santiago. Chase Anderson is usually solid.
• The Athletics over the Padres: I am pretty sure that Jesse Chavez, who has come on strong lately, will be better than Odrisamer Despaigne.
• The Mariners over the Giants: Madison Bumgarner usually comes up big against another ace. He's had the best of the duels with Kershaw, for example. But he is in the home of Felix Hernandez. One swing might determine the outcome of this game.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Dodgers over the Rangers: Clayton Kershaw is back in beast mode and my feeling is that Yasiel Puig will have a big day against Wandy Rodriguez.

Yesterday: 10-5, June: 116-105, Season: 494-454, Picks of the Day: 37-33

MLB Game Picks - Friday: June 12, 2015

I picked terribly yesterday. Picture the old knight in the Indiana Jones movie: "He chose...poorly."  Yes, I did. Looking back, I picked way too many visiting teams to win. No matter how bad a team is, home is always an advantage. According to Baseball-reference.com, home teams win 53.4 percent of the time. That is a pretty significant difference. So if I pick six out of nine visiting teams to win, then I am setting myself up for disaster. And disaster it was.

Let's see if I learned anything. Friday's picks:

• The Cubs over the Reds: Heh. Now I am all messed up because I don't want to pick Johnny Cueto because he is not at home. Jason Hammel is pitching very well for the Cubs though and that's my pick.
• The Yankees over the Orioles: I am now worried about the Yankees' bullpen with their closer on the DL. So although I like Michael Pineda much more than Ubaldo Jimenez, the pick has me big time worried.
• The Pirates over the Phillies: It never ceases to amaze me that Kevin Correia somehow always manages to find a job in baseball. But he's back. I will go with Jeff Locke though. Which is my point.
• The Tigers over the Indians: Two very good pitchers square up here in David Price and Danny Salazar. I give the edge to Price because he will go deeper into the game.
• The Mets over the Braves: If Bartolo Colon was pitching on the road, I would take the Braves here because Alex Wood is very good at preventing runs. But at home, Colon can seem to have some really good moments.
• The Rays over the White Sox: This pick is not so much a support of Matt Andriese, though he did pitch well against the Yankees. Rather, it is my long distrust of John Danks as a Major League pitcher.
• The Marlins over the Rockies: Uh...one of these pitchers has to win. Kyle Kendrick is not somebody I ever like to pick. But, Jose Urena hasn't exactly been lighting it up for the Marlins either. Ick. Christian Yelich appears to be over his slump. That helps.
• The Blue Jays over the Red Sox: The Red Sox starting pitching continues to be a problem and I don't see Joe Kelly being able to stop the steamrolling Blue Jays. The key is Drew Hutchison having a good night though.
• The Rangers over the Twins: Is it just me or doesn't it seem that Wandy Rodriguez pitches every other day for the Rangers? I'm not that big on picking him. But Tommy Milone doesn't seem any more appetizing.
• The Mariners over the Astros: You always have to pick Felix Hernandez. The guy is having a phenomenal season. That seems like a much smarter play than Brett Oberholtzer.
• The Nationals over the Brewers: The Nats offense is still a bit of a sputter outfit. Getting Denard Span back helps. Jordan Zimmermann is hard to count on lately. Mike Fiers can't seem to find last year's magic.
• The Cardinals over the Royals: Jaime Garcia traditionally pitches well at home. Yordano Ventura has a history of hitting Cardinal players so that bad blood will need to be watched. This rivalry has become must-see baseball.
• The Angels over the Athletics: One of the few picks from yesterday that worked out. I'm not a big fan of Hector Santiago. But he is pitching better this year than Jesse Chavez.
• The Dodgers over the Padres: Clayton Kershaw is hitting his stride and I don't think tonight will be different. Odrisamer Despaigne has not been very good.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Giants over the Diamondbacks: Madison Bumgarner against Chase Anderson at Bumgarner's home park? Yes. Give me some of that please.

Yesterday: 3-6, June: 73-71, Season: 451-424, Picks of the Day: 35-30

MLB Game Picks - Saturday: June 6, 2015

How can you start a night at 5-0 and end up and 7-8? Somehow, that's how my picking day went. How disheartening! But nothing is more disheartening than hearing about that woman in Boston that got injured with a piece of shattered bat last night. How awful and she was sitting there with her husband and son. Gosh, that is bigger than anything else that happened and more important. Let's all pray that she will recover from this injury!

Saturday's picks:

• The Nationals over the Phillies: The Nats are starting a rookie named Joe Ross and he is making his MLB debut. His MiLB numbers look good, so I am going with him. He was born in 1993. Gosh. Jason Hammel goes for the Phillies.
• The Blue Jays over the Astros: Is this where the Astros come back to earth? We've all been waiting for it while hoping the Cinderella story continues. I think Drew Hutchison makes a better pick than Brett Oberholtzer.
• The Twins over the Brewers: J.R. Graham has been a cracker (sorry, I had to) in long relief for the Twins, so it's not stretch for him to start a game. He throws strikes, therefore, I like him. Matt Garza will never be in my good graces after his quote about pitching for the Cubs.
• The Royals over the Rangers: MLB.com does not list pitchers for this game, but Yahoo says it will be Yordano Ventura versus Wandy Rodriguez. If that is indeed the pitching line, I have to go with the Royals.
• The Red Sox over the Athletics: I think Joe Kelly will put it together this game. And the Red Sox score often against Jesse Chavez. That's my pick and I'm sticking to it.
• The Indians over the Orioles: Matt Wieters came back in a good way, eh? And Adam Jones broke out of his slump last night. Normally, that would be good enough for me. But Danny Salazar is a special talent who can, on any given night, shut down anyone. Ubaldo Jimenez goes for the O's.
• The Rockies over the Marlins: This pick did not work out too well last night. But I'll try again. Chris Rusin has been very good in his two appearances. But both of those were away. How will he do at home in Coors? I assume it will be better than David Phelps.
• The Reds over the Padres: Another pick that was way wrong last night. But what the heck. Michael Lorenzen over Andrew Cashner.
• The Pirates over the Braves: I like that Jeff Locke is a lefty against Atlanta and I don't like the mess that is the Braves' bullpen. Unless Julio Teheran can go a complete game, I go with the hot Pirates.
• The Tigers over the White Sox: The Tigers are in a real funk right now. But David Price should help that and should shut down the White Sox. Meanwhile, the Tigers' sluggish offense should get to John Danks.
• The Yankees over the Angels: All the odds here seem to be stacked against a Yankee win. Adam Warren does not strike fear into any heart and Garrett Richards is a stud. But the Yankees have beaten studs all season.
• The Mets over the Diamondbacks: Chase Anderson is pretty good for the Diamondbacks, but there is some kind of charm in watching Bartolo Colon pitch (and bat). So I'm going with Shrek here.
• The Dodgers over the Cardinals: The Cardinals hardly ever lose. But perhaps today against Clayton Kershaw, that might change. Jaime Garcia has been surprisingly effective thus far.
• The Mariners over the Rays: Felix Hernandez got off track when his home mound got muddy against the Yankees. But he should be back to his old self tonight against the Rays. Alex Colome has been up and down.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Giants over the Phillies: I cannot pick against Madison Bumgarner. It's just not in me to do so. Severino Gonzalez is good and can only hope to keep up.

Yesterday: 7-8, June: 35-32, Season: 413-385, Picks of the Day: 32-27

MLB Game Picks - Tuesday: May 26, 2015

Memorial Day saw the picks just climb over .500 for the day. There were a number of good picks but just as many surprises that evened out whatever success I had. The Yankees and Mets both broke out of long slumps. One was good for the picks and one was bad.  It was a fun day of baseball.

Tuesday's picks:

• The Orioles over the Astros: I'm still not a Scott Feldman fan and Chris Tillman is starting to get his act back together. I don't think the Orioles are done by any stretch of the imagination.
• The Yankees over the Royals: No, I'm not sold on Adam Warren. But I've never been really sold on Jason Vargas either. I think the Yankees hit big again this game.
• The Pirates over the Marlins: Who and what is Jose Urena!? It sounds like an internal organ. He has three MLB innings thus far and no strikeouts. Color me skeptical. I'll go with Jeff Locke.
• The Cubs over the Nationals: The Nats are due for a loss as it has been a while. And Jordan Zimmermann has been a bit shaky. Kyle Hendricks, however, is pitching real well for the Cubs.
• The Blue Jays over the White Sox: R.A. Dickey has his best knucklers at home because of the controlled environment. John Danks always seems to cough up runs.
• The Reds over the Rockies: The Reds have to win some time and it might as well be today. Michael Lorenzen should be in the rotation full time. Jorge De La Rosa is a pretty good pitcher for the Rockies though.
• The Mets over the Phillies: I haven't been able to pick a visiting team yet and I'm getting the willies. But Jacob deGrom should be better than Jerome Williams.
• The Bay Rays over the Mariners: Okay, here is a visiting team pick. Phew! Alex Colome recovered nicely in his last start and I'll never, ever be a J.A. Happ fan, even if he wins ten in a row.
• The Indians over the Rangers: As good as the Rangers are hitting right now, I think they can be stopped by Danny Salazar. He has been that good. Add that to the fact that Wandy Rodriguez isn't what he used to be and I think you have an Indians win.
• The Red Sox over the Twins: The Red Sox will hit Mike Pelfrey. So it all depends on which Clay Buchholz shows up. I think the good one will show up in a big ballpark.
• The Diamondbacks over the Cardinals: If Jaime Garcia is going to win, it will be at home. But I don't know if he has it in him. Frankly, I think the Cards are fed up with him. I'll go with Archie Bradley instead.
• The Tigers over the Athletics: The A's don't hit lefties. David Price is only lefty, but he is one of the best. Jesse Chavez is not going to keep up. Now I'm going with too many visiting teams!
• The Angels over the Padres: Albert Pujols was not amused as he picked up his game-winning single. Take that, Padres! Matt Shoemaker should be better than Odrisamer Despaigne, a name I can now type without looking!
• The Dodgers over the Braves: Clayton Kershaw is always getting the best of the other team's rotation and that happens again today as he squares up with Julio Teheran. This should be a low scoring game.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Giants over the Brewers: Madison Bumgarner is one of the best, if not the best this year. He will need to keep Ryan Braun and company inside the park, but he should be able to do that. Matt Garza goes for the Brewers.

Yesterday: 8-7, May: 170-150, Season: 334-315, Picks of the Day: 27-21

MLB Game Picks - Friday, May 15, 2015

Alas, my streak is over. As the Cal Ripken of bloggers, I hadn't missed a game during the season for over four years. But the wifi at the hotel I stayed (The Senator Inn) was wofo and was unusable during the times I needed to get my posts done.  I was proud of that streak. Oh well.

Friday's picks:

• The Cubs over the Pirates: The Cubbies are hot and just swept the Mets. I'm not sure how well Kyle Hendricks will do, but I think the big bats of the Cubs will get to Jeff Locke.
• The Diamondbacks over the Phillies: Chase Anderson has been pitching very well and although I root hard for comeback kids like Chad Billingsley, I think the D-Backs with this game.
• The Orioles over the Angels: Jered Weaver tried to tell me his last time out that he was not done as a MLB pitcher. I'm not convinced. Wei-Yin Chen needs to pitch well to keep this pick on track.
• The Marlins over the Braves: David Phelps has been holding his own and I'm sure he likes that big ballpark compared to Yankee Stadium. Julio Teheran is a tough customer though.
• The Mets over the Brewers: The Legend of Shrek...er...Bartolo Colon continues, especially at home. Kyle Lohse will feel the Mets' wrath after they were swept by the Cubs.
• The Giants over the Reds: I have to go with Madison Bumgarner here even if he is pitching in that little band box in Cinci. Jason Marquis goes for the Reds.
• The Rangers over the Indians: If you pitch with your left hand, you can pitch forever if you want to. Take Wandy Rodriguez and Bruce Chen. They still have jobs after throwing soft junk for years.
• The Yankees over the Royals: Two undefeated pitchers who are both very tall. Michael Pineda versus Chris Young. There will be two Chris Youngs at the game. Confusing.
• The Twins over the Rays: There are former Yankees everywhere! Too bad they can't develop ballplayers and pitchers (sarcasm). Phil Hughes at home and not in April is a good pick here. Jake Odorizzi has been pitching pretty well.
• The Astros over the Blue Jays: This pick isn't against R.A. Dickey because last time I did that, he won and I was stupid. This is more a pick for Dallas Keuchel who has become one of the league's best starters.
• The Tigers over the Cardinals: The Tigers go flat once in a while, but when their offense is clicking (read Miguel Cabrera), they are pretty unstoppable. I think they will get to Carlos Martinez and Shane Greene will be good enough to win.
• The White Sox over the Athletics: Carlos Rodon sure was impressive in his first start. I am excited about him. I am not as excited about Chaka Jesse Hahn. I'm going with the White Sox.
• The Red Sox over the Mariners: The Red Sox have been playing well since their players only meeting. And Clay Buchholz pitched well his last time out. Besides, I think they will hit J.A. Happ.
• The Dodgers over the Rockies: Clayton Kershaw pitching in Coors is one thing. Him pitching at home is another. He has to be the pick here. Eddie Butler has been hit or miss in his starts.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Nationals over the Padres: Jordan Zimmermann should have a good day and Odrisamer Despaigne is still one of the hardest names to spell.

The other day: 9-6, May: 91-74, Season: 255-239, Picks of the Day: 20-17