MLB Game Picks - Monday: June 15, 2015

We are not going to talk about yesterday. We are going to pretend that it never happened and move on. If you ask me, I will deny all association with it.

Moving forward, Monday's picks:

• The White Sox over the Pirates: The Pirates have been hot, but have only faced nine lefty starters all season. They have handled them well, but Carlos Rodon is a different animal altogether. Francisco Liriano has been good of late.
• The Tigers over the Reds: Neither this year's Anibal Sanchez or Jon Moscot excite me very much, but the Tigers are home and all things considered equal, should win.
• The Braves over the Red Sox: The Red Sox just got drubbed over the weekend. It was a bloodbath. I'm surprised the manager is still there. How can you pick them to win these days? Rick Porcello hasn't been pitching well. Williams Perez seems to bend but not break too much.
• The Yankees over the Marlins: The Yankees lose the DH so Alex Rodriguez sits. But Masahiro Tanaka should overcome that deficiency. Tom Koehler is a decent pitcher though.
• The Mets over the Blue Jays: The Jays lose one of their big bats and again, the law of averages is weighting heavy here with this win streak. Noah Syndergaard has been disappointing. Mark Buehrle is Mark Buehrle. Take the good and the bad.
• The Nationals over the Rays: I am going with this pick thinking Bryce Harper can at least DH today. Someone needs to tell the Rays they aren't this good. And Erasmo Ramirez has been the shock of the century thus far. Gio Gonzalez better have a good day or this pick is going down too.
• The Cubs over the Indians: I love the Cubs this year. I love what they are doing with their youth. I sure wish the Yankees would do that. Jake Arrieta gentille Arrieta has been great of late. Trevor Bauer is having a pretty good season for the Indians.
• The Rangers over the Dodgers: The Dodgers know Yovani Gallardo but he has a chance to be good today. Carlos Frias hasn't run into an offense like the Rangers yet this year so it will be a test.
• The Astros over the Rockies: Any time Dallas Keuchel is on the mound, I like the Astros' chances. Chad Bettis has has some spectacular games himself this season. If he is on, this becomes a bullpen game.
• The Royals over the Brewers: This is two road interleague series in a row for the Royals, which seems unfair. They need their DH. Even so, they did not fare well in St. Louis, so they might take it out on the Brewers. Kyle Lohse will be intent on not letting that happen. Edinson Volquez goes for the Royals.
• The Cardinals over the Twins: John Lackey is so hard to figure sometimes. I think tonight will be one of his good games. The Twins will go with Trevor May, who has been up and down. No DH for the Twins.
• The Angels over the Diamondbacks: Whenever I bash mouth Jered Weaver, he proves to me he can still win games with his swill. The Angels need to hit for this pick to work and Robbie Ray will try to keep that from happening.
• The Padres over the Athletics: Jessie Hahn goes for the A's who lose the DH. Tyson Ross is usually good at home.
• The Mariners over the Giants: Taijuan Walker has had three good starts in a row, so perhaps he is settling down to be the pitcher we expected him to be. Tim Hudson goes for the Giants and pitches these days on knowledge more than stuff.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Orioles over the Phillies: The Phillies get an extra hitter in the lineup. Is that a good thing? Wei-Yin Chen versus Aaron Harang. The hot Oriole offense should stay hot here.

Yesterday: 5-9, June: 97-91, Season: 475-444, Picks of the Day: 36-32

MLB Game Picks - Tuesday: June 2, 2015

Holy cow, there are seventeen games being played today!! The weather played havoc with Monday night's activities and thus we get bombarded tonight. There are sixteen games tomorrow (so far). Wow.

With so many games on tap, I hope I do better than the measly 5-4 I went on Monday. Don't get me wrong, that record is better than being under .500, but it is still mediocre. Mike Fiers shut out the Cardinals. Not much you can do about that but tip your cap. And Felix Hernandez came unglued after the fourth inning, which was totally out of character.

There is a lot to do, so let's get going with Tuesday:

• The Nationals over the Blue Jays: I'm still thinking that Jordan Zimmermann is better than R.A. Dickey in this one. And the Blue Jays lose the DH.
• The Nationals over the Blue Jays: Yes, I am predicting a sweep. Because directly following Zimmermann, the Nats can throw Max Scherzer out there and take care of the second game. Marco Estrada doesn't do much for me for the Blue Jays.
• The Rockies over the Dodgers: This pitching match-up seems weird. Jorge De La Rosa goes for the Rockies and if anyone is used to pitching at Coors Field, it is him. He faces Juan Nicasio, his old friend and teammate who never had as much success at Coors than De La Rosa has. Besides, Nicasio hasn't started all season and if he goes four innings, that will be a lot.
• The Dodgers over the Rockies: I can't guarantee that Zack Greinke will be as successful in Coors Field than at other places. But I can tell you that David Hale hasn't started all season and is a "put it in play" kind of pitcher. Not good for Coors.
• The Reds over the Phillies: Johnny Cueto comes off the disabled list to pitch this one. I have no idea how he will do. I still like him over Sean O'Sullivan and the Reds are playing slightly better of late.
• The Tigers over the Athletics: The Yankees made the A's look far better than they are. But then again, they have a knack for that. The Tigers won't be as kind. Alfredo Simon is doing much better for the Tigers than I thought he was going to do. I think he will be better than Kendall Graveman.
• The Cubs over the Marlins: I'm still trying to figure out why the Marlins chose the manager they did. The whole thing is surreal. For that reason and a whole lot of others, I like the Cubs here behind Kyle Hendricks. Brad Hand goes for the Marlins. Yeah, that's another reason.
• The Red Sox over the Twins: This is the same match-up as what was planned yesterday and I'm still going with Clay Buchholz over Mike Pelfrey.
• The Rangers over the White Sox: Colby Lewis came down to earth in a big way in his last start and was shellacked. I'm going with a rebound today, plus, his team is on a roll. Let's see what this new kid can do too. Jeff Samardzija goes for the White Sox.
• The Astros over the Orioles: Mike Wright has pitched brilliantly for the Orioles. Fluke? Real deal? I don't know yet. I do know that Collin McHugh is the real deal and should be dominant.
• The Indians over the Royals: Once again, you have a Jeremy Guthrie, whose success this season was punctured by a beating by the Yankees. Does he bounce back? Will it make a difference against a good pitcher like Carlos Carrasco?
• The Cardinals over the Brewers: Lance Lynn is a known quantity. I know what he can do. I have no idea about Tyler Cravy who makes his MLB debut for the Brewers. Cravy was a late round draft pick who has done well in the minors. Can he make the jump?
• The Braves over the Diamondbacks. Josh Collmenter has not pitched well of late and yesterday's whoopin' of the D-backs by the Braves makes me nervous to pick them. Besides, Shelby Miller is very good.
• The Rays over the Angels: Chris Archer can be a shut down pitcher and that's why I think he will be today as the Rays have to bounce back from a loss yesterday to the hands of Albert Pujols and Mike Trout. Take care of those two and you win. C.J. Wilson goes for the Angels.
• The Yankees over the Mariners: This one is really hard to predict. CC Sabathia has been decent on the road. And the big ballpark will help him. For the Mariners, we get the MLB debut for Mike Montgomery, a big first round pick for the Royals way back when who fizzled for them and never got anywhere. Montgomery got into the Rays' system and is their wont, they fixed him and he has had good numbers in the minors since. Who knows how well he'll do tonight. I bet he has a change-up after coming from the Tampa system.
• The Pirates over the Giants: A.J. Burnett is 5-1 and is pitching some of the best baseball of his long career. The Giants start "Charlton" Chris Heston, who has done pretty well for himself in his young career. I'm going with the Pirates and for the Giants to lose their fourth in a row.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Mets over the Padres: The Mets are led by Bartolo Colon and once you navigate him, you get the young studs who can really pitch.  Noah Syndergaard has lived up to all the hype thus far. Ian Kennedy has been pretty awful to be honest.

Yesterday: 5-4, June: 5-4, Season: 383-357, Picks of the Day: 30-25

MLB Game Picks - Wednesday: May 27, 2015

I did not have a bad day yesterday. The Cubs over the Nats was a brilliant pick. There were three games that went into extras and two went for me, one against. That matched my output for the day. I did not expect the Red Sox to lose again or the Astros to win again. But both did. Overall, not a bad day.

Wednesday's picks:

• The Indians over the Rangers: This pick was wrong yesterday showing that I just don't get the Indians. Today, Carlos Carrasco is pitching and he is very good. Will that matter? What has gotten into Colby Lewis this year? Is he really this good?
• The Reds over the Rockies: Where are the stars for the Rockies? Why are they OPSing in the 600s? So weird. Mike Leake strikes me better than Kyle Kendrick does.
• The Pirates over the Marlins: Brad Hand is starting for the Marlins. He has appeared in relief a dozen and a half times. I never know what to do with such things. My mind is cleared up some by seeing Gerrit Cole starting for the other side.
• The Blue Jays over the White Sox: This one sounds like a wreck in the making. Marco Estrada versus Jeff Samardzija. The latter has the bigger talent, for sure. But the Blue Jays can hit! I don't know.
• The Yankees over the Royals: Big Chris Young goes for the Royals. Will he again bamboozle the Yankees like the last time? Will the Yankees adjust? Can Michael Pineda bounce back from a really ugly start? We'll find out together.
• The Twins over the Red Sox: Phil Hughes used to get battered by the Red Sox when he was a Yankee. But pitching at home in Minnesota should help today. Rick Porcello is up and down and hard to count on. Is David Ortiz big poopied out?
• The Mets over the Phillies: I haven't picked a visiting team yet. Oh my. I have to go with Noah Syndergaard over Sean O'Sullivan though, right?
• The Mariners over the Rays: Felix Hernandez has never won a game at Tropicana Field. I think that changes today even though he has a tough opponent in Chris Archer.
• The Brewers over the Giants: The Brewers have cooled off a bit and the Giants keep winning. I think that will hit a bump tonight as Ryan Vogelsong should be more to the Brewers' liking than Bumgarner was. A lot will depend on how Mike Fiers pitches.
• The Tigers over the Athletics: There is a lot to think about in this game. Kyle Ryan has been called up to start for the Tigers. He hasn't been faring well in the minors thus far this season and he will not strike out guys. He has decent control though and most importantly, he is a lefty. The A's do not hit lefties at all. That makes me go with him over Scott Kazmir. The one caveat is that Ryan will not go deep in the game and the Tigers' bullpen is a frightening place.
• The Astros over the Orioles: Picking against the Astros has seemed like a futile thing to do. Collin McHugh is one of my favorite young pitchers. If Ubaldo Jimenez has a good outing, things could change, but I'll go with the Astros.
• The Nationals over the Cubs: The Cubs slowed down the Nats yesterday and Jon Lester goes today, which is the good news. The bad news is that Max Scherzer goes for the Nationals. Did you see where Bryant's homer went yesterday!? Wow.
• The Cardinals over the Diamondbacks: Lance Lynn should come up big in this one and I think he will. Josh Collmenter gives the Cards a different look, but he will bend a little at least.
• The Angels over the Padres: This pick didn't go well yesterday and neither team hit at all until the Padres broke out for four runs in extras. It might be low scoring today too as Garrett Richards faces Andrew Cashner.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Dodgers over the Braves: Zack Greinke should do what he does, which is win as a Dodger and Alex Wood should allow a couple of runs at least to give the Dodgers the edge in a close game.

Yesterday: 9-6, May: 179-156, Season: 343-321, Picks of the Day: 28-21

MLB Game Picks - Sunday: May 17, 2015

Oops! I slept in late, so now I'm in a rush! I had another 8-7 day yesterday, the second in a row. Zack Greinke lost. Felix Hernandez lost. What!? I would have picked the Giants if I knew Hunter Pence was coming back. Ah well, the perils of picking baseball games.

I better get right to Sunday, since it's so late here:

• The Braves over the Marlins: Okay, Braves, you win. I'm not getting anywhere picking against you. My gut is telling me that the Marlins' manager will be fired soon. Anyway, Shelby Miller over Henderson Alvarez.
• The Mets over the Brewers: Did I pick the Brewers yesterday? I must have gotten carried away with myself. Wily Peralta goes for them today. He has been nowhere near as effective as last year. Noah Syndergaard gets his first MLB win.
• The Giants over the Reds: There is definitely some kind of magic going on in the Giants' clubhouse. How they keep winning with so-so talent is beyond me. Oh, and Reds, just keep throwing Brandon Crawford first-pitch fastballs. Way to look at your stats guys. Charlton Chris Heston over Anthony DeSclafani.
• The Diamondbacks over the Phillies: The Phillies are giving me fits lately. They aren't supposed to win games. So stop it already. I can't imagine them winning a game started by Sean O'Sullivan. But I could be wrong. Josh Collmenter goes for the D-backs.
• The Royals over the Yankees: Chris Capuano is back for the Yankees. Oh goodie. I can't go there. I'll go with Edinson Volquez instead. Besides, I'm getting nervous picking all these visiting teams to win.
• The Twins over the Rays: I have no idea how the Twins and Kyle Gibson win. But they do.  Chris Archer hasn't been overly ace-like in his last couple of starts.
• The Astros over the Blue Jays: I like Collin McHugh. I have made that clear enough. I also smile at Mark Buehrle because of how he wins. My problem here is that the Blue Jays' bullpen is a colossal mess.
• The Cubs over the Pirates: Boy, am I having fun watching the Cubs play. All that youth! I wish other teams wouldn't hold down their young players (ahem, Yankees). Jake Arrieta gentille Arrieta over A.J. Burnett.
• The Indians over the Rangers: Both of these teams have horrible bullpens as we saw yesterday. Which one will score more? That's the question. I'm going with the Indians and Carlos Carrasco over Nick Martinez.
• The Athletics over the White Sox: The A's will break their slide today with a win behind Scott Kazmir. Jeff Samardzija may have good stuff for the White Sox, but he is a right-handed pitcher and the A's love that.
• The Mariners over the Red Sox: Steven Wright, the knuckleball pitcher, not the comic or my stepbrother, goes for the Red Sox. While I root for him as a knucksie, I have to go with James Paxton, who finally put it together his last start.
• The Dodgers over the Rockies: Mike Bolsinger has been surprisingly good. That makes me nervous here. Kyle Kendrick has been kicking my butt for years here.
• The Nationals over the Padres: Why hasn't Stephen Strasburg become the star that I thought he would be? I don't know really. All I know is that I get killed whenever I pick him. But I keep doing it. Ian Kennedy is solid enough, but the Nats should mash him.
• The Cardinals over the Tigers: The Cards have not figured out how to stop Miguel Cabrera. If they can keep him in the yard, they can win, especially with Lance Lynn on the mound. Alfredo Simon has made me look foolish before though.

And the Pick of the Day:

• The Angels over the Orioles: Mike Wright makes his MLB debut for the Orioles. That is something I hardly ever pick for. Garrett Richards is the bomb anyway, so I have to go that way.

Yesterday: 8-7, May: 108-87, Season: 272-252, Picks of the Day: 22-17