MLB Game Picks - Tuesday: June 10, 2014

I knew the picks were in deep trouble last night when they started 1-6 and despite the late rally, they finished at 4-7. Lonnie Chisenhall had one heck of a night with three homers and nine RBIs (and 15 total bases!) which certainly blew apart that pick. I didn't expect the Rays to get blanked again! Something is totally weird going on down there and David Price can't buy a win. I guess Gavin Floyd had a good game. Stranger things have happened. It was just a night full of bad picks.

But...the Game of the Day was right and I have climbed back to .500 with that feature. Let's see if that nightmare is finally over.

Tuesday's picks:

• The Diamondbacks over the Astros: It is very difficult to pick against the Astros these days. That team is on fire and they are having fun. This pick was wrong yesterday, but I still hate picking Brad Peacock. I don't really like picking Bronson Arroyo at his home park either. Maybe I should just pick the Astros every day for the rest of the season.
• The Orioles over the Red Sox: I was totally shocked by Bud Norris last night, but that guy's career has always baffled me. Chris Tillman has to be so fine to be good, but he has a better chance of that happening than for Brandon Workman to shut down the O's attack.
• The Pirates over the Cubs: I keep picking Francisco Liriano like it was 2013. But it is 2014 and he is 1-6. So I have been wrong a lot with him. But I am stubborn if nothing else. He has the ability to shut down the Cubs. He faces a tough competitor in Travis Wood though.
• The Padres over the Phillies: The Phillies are just a bad team. They keep sinking to lower depths and what can they do? A.J. Burnett was a mistake signing with occasional brilliance every fourth start or so. Today could be one of those days. Ian Kennedy goes for the Friars.
• The Blue Jays over the Twins: J.A. Happ and his mysterious +2 MPH fastball (where did that come from?) will shut down the lefty-struggling Twins. Kevin Correia is still in baseball and that's all I'll say there.
• The Dodgers over the Reds: The Dodgers decided to get well with Puig out and against the Reds? Seems so. Josh Beckett over Mike Leake.
• The Brewers over the Mets: The Mets are heading in the wrong direction after a promising start to the season. Daisuke Matsuzaka could give them a good outing. But I like Marco Estrada better.
• The Marlins over the Rangers: Tom Koehler has had three rough outings out of his last five starts. Colby Lewis has allowed ten earned runs in his last 10.2 innings pitched. Hmm..
• The Indians over the Royals: The Indians caught a bit of a bad break when the Royals got rained out yesterday because then they get Jason Vargas, who is pretty tough on them. But Corey Kluber has become an ace and I am riding him.
• The Tigers over the White Sox: John Danks has had three really good starts in a row. And Justin Verlander hasn't been the ace of old. Miguel Cabrera is hobbling a bit. But I'm still going Tigers.
• The Rockies over the Braves: Mike Minor has been only so-so and I don't like him at Coors. Juan Nicasio is the Rockies' best pitcher at home. I was wrong with this same pick yesterday.
• The Athletics over the Angels: There are certain pitchers who are just good at losing. Hector Santiago is one of those. He is 8-16 in his career. Drew Pomeranz, on the other hand, has been winning, something I wondered if ever would happen for him.
• The Mariners over the Yankees: So the Yankees got rained out yesterday, which means they could skip their weakest starter in Vidal Nuno and go with the scheduled Tanaka. But no, they pushed back Tanaka depriving us of a Tanaka - Hisashi Iwakuma match up that would have been fun to watch. Heck yeah, let's give Nuno all kinds of starts then.
• The Giants over the Nationals: This one could be decided by the bullpens because it wouldn't surprise me if Doug Fister and Madison Bumgarner both threw up eight zeroes apiece.

And the Game of the Day:

• The Cardinals over the Rays: This is a trap, right? There are no games today that look more like a sure thing than this one. Adam Wainwright is the ace. The Rays can't hit. Jake Odorizzi has done nothing. So why does this feel like a trap. It does. I can see it coming...

Yesterday: 4-7, June: 67-56, Games of the Day: 33-33, Season: 520-434

MLB Game Picks - Thursday: June 5, 2014

Yesterday was a struggle from the very beginning when the Mariners blanked the Braves behind Hisashi Iwakuma in very quick order. The struggles continued all day and I was somewhat relieved to finish one game under .500 for the day. I thought it was going to be much worse. The Game of the Day notched its third success in a row. I guess I should keep picking the Yankees to lose. Ouch.

There are eleven games on the schedule today and five are getaway day games. The picks:

• The Giants over the Reds: It is taking me a while to figure out that the Giants are a a really good team. Well, duh, right? It's the every other year thing that confuses me. They were pretty terrible last year. Madison Bumgarner should be better today than Mike Leake.
• The Yankees over the Athletics: Do I dare pick the Yankees to win? They just look terrible lately. But Carlos Beltran will be back and perhaps that will help. Masahiro Tanaka is tough to beat, so perhaps that will help. Drew Pomeranz has looked very good too though.
• The Tigers over the Blue Jays: Every year the Tigers have these stretches where they look like the worst team in the Majors. They are in one of those stretches. Justin Verlander has been one of the reasons with poor pitching. But it would be a trap to expect him to stink again today and come on, J.A. Happ is not this good a pitcher.
• The Rays over the Marlins: The critical mass stage of a losing streak for the Rays has to end some time. Jake Odorizzi isn't exactly the guy who I would think would break the streak, but perhaps they will be inspired to play and win to honor Don Zimmer. Jacob Turner goes for the Marlins.
• The Mets over the Cubs: Jacob deGrom has pitched four games in the Majors and they have all been very well pitched. But he cannot buy a win. So today, he will either break through or have a clunker of a start. I am going with the former. The Mets hit lefties better than the other way around and thus, I am picking against Travis Wood.
• The Angels over the Astros: Each team has picked up a win in this series and I think the rubber match will go to the Angels behind Tyler Skaggs. I just trust him more than Brad Peacock.
• The Orioles over the Rangers: There is nothing flashy about Chris Tillman. His stuff nor his numbers will never blow you away. He just wins a lot, so you can't mess with that. And he has pitched really well in Arlington which is strange. These days, Colby Lewis' heart is larger than his remaining talent.
• The Brewers over the Twins: The Twins are pesky aren't they? They win a lot more than you would think and I had them wrong again yesterday. But gosh, Kevin Correia? No, I can't go there. Wily Peralta for the win.
• The Cardinals over the Royals: Yordano Ventura scares me every time no matter how I pick him. He has lost four straight and hasn't looked good. But his arm is capable of taking over a game and that's the rub. Michael Wacha is much more refined, so that's the pick.
• The Rockies over the Diamondbacks: The Diamondbacks have exploded in this series. Or has the Rockies' pitching imploded? It could be a combination. Despite all that, I have picked against the D-backs each day. And I will today simply because Bronson Arroyo at Coors sounds incendiary. Juan Nicasio goes for the Rockies.

And the Game of the Day:

• The Nationals over the Phillies: Now that he has been healthy, Doug Fister has been everything the Nationals hoped he would be. The Phillies are a bad team that needs to be broken up and Kyle Kendrick is 1-5.

Yesterday: 7-8, June: 29-24, Games of the Day: 29-32, Season: 485-401

MLB Game Picks - Thursday: July 25, 2013

I came close to nirvana. Nirvana, of course, is a 15-0 day. I finished the day yesterday at 13-2. So close! The only two blemishes on the night were the Red Sox losing to the Rays. I should have gone with David Price, who was brilliant. The second was the Nationals, who refuse...utterly refuse to score runs for Stephen Strasburg, who was unbelievable. But the Nationals could not hit Francisco Liriano. You have to tip your cap to Liriano too, but still. So close. So bloody close.

Speaking of bloody, I was very saddened to see that Tim Hudson broke his ankle. Hudson has been a long time favorite here and has always been one of the classiest players in baseball. It was just one of those fluke things that was awful and that will be a big blow to the Braves moving forward. Hudson is not only a class act, but one of the best pitchers of his generation. You cannot replace that.

There are fourteen games on the schedule today which is the exact same thing as happened Monday. Six of the games are day games. Yes! Here are today's picks:

• The Mets over the Braves: This is a very intriguing game. Zack Wheeler can strike out a bunch of Braves as they are that sort of team. But he has to avoid walking people. Alex Wood is starting for the Braves and he is nasty. The lefty strikes people out, does not walk batters and is a ground ball machine. But, he will only be able to go five innings or so. Very intriguing.
• The Nationals over the Pirates: A.J. Burnett is sort of back to being the Yankees' A.J. Well, not that bad, but just bad enough to lose. Gio Gonzalez will get the run support that Strasburg never gets. Although he did not last time.
• The Yankees over the Rangers: There are two facts here that are conflicting. The first is that the Yankees really stink against lefty starters. They are just not built right now for facing them. The second salient fact is that Derek Holland has really funky road / home splits not only this year, but his entire career as a Ranger. He does not pitch nearly as well at home. That will give Hiroki Kuroda a chance to win.
• The Tigers over the White Sox: It is hard to pick the White Sox and Jake Peavy, because you never know if Peavy will still be with the team by the time this game is played. Even if he is, Justin Verlander, as badly as he has pitched, is still a better pitcher and pick.
• The Brewers over the Padres: Yovani Gallardo at home? Yes, please. But will he be traded? Good question. I doubt it. Edinson Volquez goes for the Padres.
• The Rockies over the Marlins: Juan Nicasio has experience pitching at his home ballpark at Coors. The thought of Nathan Eovaldi pitching there is frightening. I have to go with the Rockies even if Giancarlo Stanton hits a bomb or two.
• The Blue Jays over the Astros: You cannot get much worse of a loss than what the Blue Jays put together last night and it sort of epitomized their season. Even so, Mark Buehrle should beat Erik Bedard and the Astros:
• The Red Sox over the Bay Rays: The Rays are playing outstanding baseball. But I think the Red Sox are still the best team overall. John Lackey should be better than Jeremy Hellickson. In fact, I expect the Red Sox to knock Hellickson out early.
• The Cardinals over the Phillies: Kyle Kendrick will have a good game if he holds the Cardinals to four runs. You know what I mean? This team just scores and scores. Lance Lynn has not racked up the wins like I thought he would after the way he started. But he is still good enough to beat the Phillies.
• The Orioles over the Royals: Jeremy Guthrie is capable of having a good game. He is just as capable of allowing the Orioles' hitters to hit a bunch of bombs on him. Miguel Gonzalez continues to win. And there is no sense questioning it. Just pick it.
• The Angels over the Athletics: Dan Straily is tough at home. Why the A's will not commit to him in the rotation is a bit baffling. But this pick goes to the Angels because C.J. Wilson has pitched really well since his Head & Shoulders commercial came out. I doubt the two are related.
• The Dodgers over the Reds: The best pitching match-up of the day pits Zack Greinke against Mat Latos. Both have trouble going deep in games. The winner will be the most efficient today. You cannot pick against the Dodgers these days.
• The Mariners over the Twins: The M's had themselves a little roll going until yesterday. The Twins have been playing well too. But Hisashi Iwakuma is not someone to pick against when going at home. Kevin Correia goes for the Twins.

And the Game of the Day:

• The Diamondbacks over the Cubs: The D-backs have watched the Dodgers zoom by them in the standings and better pick up the pace if they want to keep this a race. Wade Miley has not been great, but is good enough to beat the Cubs. Carlos Villanueva goes for the Cubs.

Yesterday: 13-2  Weeee!

Week: 48-26

Month: 176-112

Season: 853-648

Games of the Day: 66-43

MLB Game Picks - Saturday: July 20, 2013

Last night's picks were like Julio Teheran's season. I would "win" one pick and then "lose" one. And that pattern kept up all night until near the end, I finally got two in a row to finish just one pick over .500. It was not a great start to the post-All Star Break. And the Game of the Day pick was wrong too, which has been rare lately as the Twins beat the Indians.

And how unexplainable is baseball when the Royals and Ervin Santana shut out the Tigers, 1-0, on two hits?

Oh well, back to the drawing board. Here are Saturday's picks:

• The Phillies over the Mets: Jeremy Hefner let me down yesterday. Here I go writing a glowing article about him and he gets crushed. With that painful memory in mind, I am not going to pick Zack Wheeler and will instead go with Cole Hamels, who is finally starting to win some games.
• The White Sox over the Braves: The White Sox will have a nice day off of Paul Maholm and Jake Peavy is back in the rotation to shut down the Braves.
• The Red Sox over the Yankees: Now Almonte is hurt. The Yankees have had lots of luck, but it has been all bad. And yet Fox is still broadcasting the game because it is, "The Rivalry." The news is, Fox, that the Yankees have become the least entertaining club on the planet. Have fun making this one shine. John Lackey over Hiroki Kuroda.
• The Reds over the Pirates: Oh dear, here we go. Pirate angst will start to build. When is the last time A.J. Burnett won a game? It seems like forever. Mat Latos hasn't had any trouble winning at all. This one is all Reds.
• The Dodgers over the Nationals: It is time to face facts. The Nats are not going to come back, are they? They just cannot put it together. Meanwhile, the Dodgers cannot seem to lose lately. Zack Greinke over Gio Gonzalez.
• The Indians over the Twins: The Indians sure are confusing. Are they a good team? Can they contend? One day you say yes and the next you say no. Corey Kluber is just as perplexing. There are times he looks unbeatable and others where he gets knocked silly. I still think he is a better pick than Kevin Correia.
• The Tigers over the Royals: Will Justin Verlander look anything like Justin Verlander? If so, will the Tigers score off of Jeremy Guthrie? The questions abound. The Tigers should win. But that is what I said yesterday.
• The Brewers over the Marlins: Nathan Eovaldi has pitched really well thus far for the Marlins. But can you believe in it? I cannot. He still seems like a 4-A pitcher to me. Yovani Gallardo is solid at home and the only question is whether he will be traded.
• The Mariners over the Astros: Bud Norris sure made a case for himself yesterday to get traded. Not. Erik Bedard will not be coveted by anyone. Perhaps the rest has been good for Hisashi Iwakuma who had a rough patch there for a while.
• The Cardinals over the Padres: The Cards' bullpen was awful yesterday and they still won easily. Lance Lynn is better than Jake Westbrook, who won. So you should figure on Lynn winning too. Edinson Volquez has been better this year though.
• The Rockies over the Cubs: This is the same way I picked the game yesterday and the Cubs won. But Jeff Samardzija is capable of a shutdown game and he had one. I am not so sure Carlos Villanueva can do the same. Juan Nicasio goes for the Rockies.
• The Orioles over the Rangers: Picking against the Orioles like I did yesterday is not a good way to have success. The Orioles are a good team all around and it is okay if Chris Davis strikes out three times in four at bats. There are others that can pick him up. Miguel Gonzalez over Ross Wolf.
• The Giants over the Diamondbacks: The Giants' pitching is rounding into form finally and Matt Cain should keep that going today. Wade Miley can have a good game, but he is nowhere near where he was last year.
• The Angels over the Athletics: Josh Hamilton is slowing putting it together. This pick totally depends on C.J. Wilson having a good game. That is not comforting. Dan Straily sure has been good for a guy who cannot stick in the A's rotation for very long.

And the Game of the Day:

• The Bay Rays over the Blue Jays: I thought the Jays were going to win yesterday. But then the Rays hit four solo homers to tie and then pull away to win. Jeremy Hellickson has been solid for a month and a half now and should win this one unless Mark Buehrle has a good BABIP game.

Yesterday: 8-7

Week: 16-15

Month: 127-86

Season: 804-622

Games of the Day: 63-41

MLB Game Picks - Thursday: May 30, 2013

The picks just cannot seem to get out of their own way lately. There were some really good picks like the Cubs (and Feldman) over the White Sox, the Indians (and Masterson) over the Reds and the Twins over the Brewers. But for every good pick, there was a bad one. And with the postponement in Texas, the picks ended up at .500. Blah.

I, for one, will be glad when this month is over.

And Tim Lincecum. What are the Giants going to do about Tim Lincecum?

Today features a full schedule of fifteen games. That does not happen often on a Thursday. And four of them are day games. That is always fun. Here are the picks:

• The Diamondbacks over the Rangers: The same pitchers are scheduled today as yesterday. I have flip-flopped on my thinking and now think that Brandon McCarthy will be better than Justin Grimm.
• The White Sox over the Cubs: This series will continue to go back and forth as both teams are about equal in skills. Today the pick should be Jake Peavy over Travis Wood who is not having that bad a year for himself.
• The Mariners over the Padres: This is a really tough one. Felix Hernandez was just ordinary his last start but is capable of great things. Andrew Cashner was terrific in his last outing.
• The Giants over the Athletics: I might as well keep trying to be wrong in this series. The A's just keep winning. Barry Zito is going for the Giants today and that will either continue the trend badly or he will be just good enough for the Giants to steal one. The Giants have a chance against A.J. Griffin.
• The Red Sox over the Phillies: Will David Ortiz sit this one out too? What will Franklin Morales give the Red Sox? Can the Red Sox hit Jonathan Pettibone without Ortiz? The Phillies have had their way thus far in this series.
• The Reds over the Indians: This day is starting to frighten me as I keep picking the visiting team to win. So far, I only have one home team in the win column. Ugh. But I still think Homer Bailey is more reliable than Scott Kazmir. And that is how the pick has to go.
• The Pirates over the Tigers: I have gone with the Tigers every day and the Pirates have won two of them. And I never quite believe in Jeff Locke despite his 5-1 record, great WHIP and ERA. So I will switch it up and go that way and hope that Doug Fister does not have one of his Greg Maddux days.
• The Yankees over the Mets: The Yankees have lost four in a row. And that streak depends on a good outing from Vidal Nuno to get them out if it. The bullpen because of Phelps' short outing is already gassed. Yikes! Fortunately, they get Dillon Gee who is quite capable of giving them five or six runs.
• The Nationals over the Orioles: This series is crazy. Between the two team, they hit eight homers yesterday. Chris Davis has been out of his mind. So who will restore order today? Will it be Dan Haren or Freddy Garcia? Not that great a choice, right? Perhaps there will be eight more homers.
• The Marlins over the Rays: If ever there was a chance for the Marlins to win, it is today. The Rays are giving Alex Colome, a 24 year old, non-rated prospect with a crooked cap like Rodney, his Major League debut. The Marlins go with their best pitcher, Ricky Nolasco. But that does not mean the Marlins will win. Just that they have a chance.
• The Braves over the Blue Jays: The Blue Jays have had their way thus far. But Mike Minor should be better than who the Jays have faced so far. R.A. Dickey, on the other hand, could have his knuckler dancing and strike out twelve Braves. Thus is the life of a game picker.
• The Brewers over the Twins: P.J. Walters surprised the heck out of me last time with a good game. Can he do it again? Sure. But I prefer Kyle Lohse in this one, especially in a big ballpark.
• The Cardinals over the Royals: And yet another Major League debut as Michael Wacha, one of the big first round picks in the Albert Pujols free agent loss, and all of 21, gets his chance. How can you pick against him the way Cardinal prospects have been this season? Jeremy Guthrie goes for the helpless Royals.
• The Angels over the Dodgers: Does it not seem like Ted Lilly has been in the majors for about thirty years? The not in this one, though not a strong nod, goes to Jason Vargas.

And the Game of the Day!

• The Rockies over the Astros: The Astros won yesterday. Go figure. The odds are against them winning two in a row. Juan Nicasio goes against Lucas Harrell. Harrell in Coors Field is a scary proposition since his is a finesse guy.

Yesterday: 7-7

Week: 31-27

Month: 220-172

Season: 449-334

Games of the Day: 36-21

MLB Game Picks - Sunday: May 19, 2013

Four games yesterday hung in the balance until the last inning. All four went the wrong way. The Nationals wasted another Jordan Zimmermann beauty and could not score more than one run and lost in extras. A.J. Burnett left with a 2-1 lead after seven. Mark Melancon allowed Houston to tie the game in the eighth and the Astros won in extras. Those freakin' Cardinals tied the game late and the game went into extra innings. The Brewers won. That is the way the day went.

Of course, I should not gloss over the fact that some stinker picks were in there too. I had the Phillies over the Reds. That pick was only off by ten runs. I thought Scott Diamond had a chance against the Red Sox. I thought way wrong. I predicted a high scoring game with the Rockies and Giants with the Giants winning. But the Rockies were the only one of the two that went high scoring.

The bottom line was a 7-8 day, an rare incorrect Game of the Day and a bummer of a week-ender after two very good days that preceded it. Sunday cleans the slate (cliche alert!) and a new week starts.

Sunday's picks:

• The Mariners over the Indians: Justin Masterson was really good against the Yankees in his last start. But he squares up against Felix Hernandez today. If the Mariners score two or three runs, they win.
• The Yankees over the Blue Jays: How can you pick this game any other way? The Blue Jays are already 1-8 against the Yankees this season and today face CC Sabathia. R.A. Dickey might make it interesting but the Yankees should complete the sweep.
• The Diamondbacks over the Marlins: And this pick is not because one of my favorites, Wade Miley, is pitching. It is because I think Miley will hold the Marlins scoreless or close to it to allow his teammates to score two or three runs off of poor Ricky Nolasco.
• The Pirates over the Astros: What kind of uniforms are the Pirates wearing lately? Are they fatigues? They must be because their offense is invisible right now. Even so, you cannot pick the Astros on a regular basis. Lucas Harrell versus Jeff Locke.
• The Braves over the Dodgers: Mike Minor does not always fill me with great confidence, but I have to go with the Braves' offense against young Matt Magill.
• The Bay Rays over the Orioles: The Rays complete the series they have dominated against the Orioles with their best pitcher, Matt Moore, taking the hill today. That should be game, set and match. Chris Tillman has been pretty good, but he is not in Moore's category.
• The Red Sox over the Twins: Can we just say that David Ortiz is incredible? How many times has he been left for dead only to come back and dominate? I do not care if Pedro Hernandez is doing well and is a lefty. The Red Sox have really killed off last year, haven't they? There is only one problem with this pick: John Lackey. Oh boy.
• The Cardinals over the Brewers: Yeah, this pick was wrong yesterday. And yeah, John Gast is pitching and I have no idea how he will do. And yeah, Kyle Lohse could come back to haunt his old team. But you see, this is what the Cardinals do to me. They lull me to sleep and then kill my pick. It is personal at this point. I know it is.
• The Cubs over the Mets: Feldman and Travis Wood have been a nice 1-2 combination lately. I bet you did not know that Wood has a 0.92 WHIP thus far after eight starts. Dillon Gee is always capable of a good game. But I think the Cubs take this one.
• The White Sox over the Angels: The Angels exploded on the scoreboard yesterday. Does that mean they take off now? Are they over the hump? Time will tell. I am too skeptical to pick Jason Vargas despite his league leading change-up. I will instead pick Jake Peavy.
• The Athletics over the Royals: The Royals' offense really confuses me. Sometimes they seem good. Other times, they seem to go in long stretches of coma-like trances. I do not get it. But the A's have Coco Crisp back and A.J. Griffin is tough in his home ballpark and Luis Mendoza seems like a bad idea to pick.
• The Rockies over the Giants: Barry Zito has a meme of pitching a couple of great games followed by a shelling. And he was shelled last time. So this should be a good outing, right? Not in Coors Field. Juan Nicasio goes for the Rockies.
• The Nationals over the Padres: Dan Haren at least seems to get run support that Strasburg and Zimmermann never get. Grrr. So will be the case today as the Nats score five or more against Andrew Cashner and company.
• The Tigers over the Rangers: This has been a fun series of two pretty evenly matched teams. They have taken turns winning and today is the Tigers' turn. Doug Fister over Derek Holland. Miguel Cabrera should hit Holland if he gets pitched to.

And the Game of the Day!

• The Reds over the Phillies: Homer Bailey is a power pitcher whose fastball is averaging over 93 MPH this season. Why is that important here? Because the Phillies have 347 plate appearances against power pitchers and have a combined .493 OPS. Eww. Plus, I still think Jonathan Pettibone has led a charmed life thus far.

Yesterday: 7-8

Last week: 54-41

Month: 139-101

Season: 368-265

Games of the Day: 33-14

MLB Game Picks - Wednesday: May 8, 2013

The day started so well, but like the Atlanta Braves, could not finish well. Too soon? Probably. But anyway, the pick started the evening yesterday at 6-1 with only the Twins messing up the party as Scott Diamond shut down the Red Sox. The big inning for the Twins started on two straight errors by third base replacement, Pedro Ciriaco. Ouch. But the rest of the day limped in at 3-4 and I will never pick the Cardinals as the Game of the Day again. Stupid Cardinals.

Of course, the 9-5 day saw yet another postponed game but benefited by a couple of major blown saves. The Braves and Rays have blown an incredible number of runs in the late innings in the last few days. Elsewhere, Matt Harvey was spectacular but got a no decision as the Mets could not score a run until the tenth inning. And all prayers and thoughts go to J.A. Happ who was struck in the head with a line drive and sent to the hospital.

Wednesday's picks:

• The Braves over the Reds: The Braves will score enough runs off of Mike Leake to not have to worry about closing the game. The only worry here is whether Mike Minor will be good enough to hold back the Reds' offense.
• The Mariners over the Pirates: I hate to pick against A.J. Burnett (I like him, so what?), but the pick has to go to Felix Hernandez even though he will have to bat in this game. The King would probably like that anyway.
• The Cardinals over the Cubs: Freakin' Cardinals. It is the Cubs here, guys. Jake Westbrook goes against Carlos Villanueva, who is actually pretty good. Oh brother.
• The Padres over the Marlins: Ricky Nolasco should pitch well in Petco. But the Marlins will beat the ball into the ground all day against Jason Marquis who has a 1.93 ground ball to fly ball ratio. That is almost as high as Ichiro.
• The Giants over the Phillies: Who knows what Barry Zito will do. And I hate picking against Jonathan Pettibone. But that is the pick.
• The Nationals over the Tigers: These two teams will try to get the game in today. The pitching match-up is the same. Jordan Zimmermann over Anibal Sanchez.
• The Orioles over the Royals: I think the Orioles' offense will overwhelm Luis Mendoza and then the only question is what kind of outing will Chris Tillman have? We will have to find out together.
• The Indians over the Athletics: A.J. Griffin sure looked studly against the Yankees last week with his pitching and his long, blond locks flying. But yeah, at this point, the Indians have a better offense than the Yankees and Justin Masterson is capable of shutting down the A's who are scuffling at the moment.
• The Mets over the White Sox: Normally, I would pick Jake Peavy all the time in this game, but his health has become a question. Jeremy Hefner is not endearing to pick either. Neither team has much of an offense. Oh boy.
• The Red Sox over the Twins: This is Allen Webster's second start? How did I miss the first one? When did that happen? Judging from the outcome, he pitched well. Pedro Hernandez has struck out 3.92 batters per nine innings. That is a tough way to pitch against the Red Sox.
• The Bay Rays over the Blue Jays: The battle of the Ays has gone all the Blue Jays' way thus far. But Matt Moore is a different kettle of fish for the Blue Jays. He should strike out a bunch of Jays and hope he can keep Bautista and Encarnacion in the park. The Jays give the start to Ricky Romero with a hope and a prayer.
• The Astros over the Angels: Okay, why the heck not. Geez, these Angels. What is up there? Bud Norris rarely seems to harness his talent. But the Astros should be able to score a few off of Joe Blanton who is 0-5 so far. Ugh.
• The Brewers over the Rangers: The Rangers are in a funk lately. And Kyle Lohse is a lot better than people think. The guy knows how to pitch. Derek Holland was much better his last time out though, so this pick might blow up if it gets to the Brewers' bullpen.
• The Rockies over the Yankees: Juan Nicasio knows how to pitch at Coors. David Phelps relies on movement that will not happen there. This could get ugly for the Yankees as some of their early Cinderellas are turning into pumpkins.

And the Game of the Day!

• The Dodgers over the Diamondbacks: The D-backs have had an exciting series and I really like Wade Miley. But Clayton Kershaw is a difference maker and you have to pick him at home.

Yesterday: 9-5

Week: 22-16

Month: 47-42

Season: 277-206

Games of the Day: 26-10   Freakin' Cardianals...