Monday, August 29, 2011

Game Picks - Monday: August 29, 2011

Northern Maine got its own tepid piece of Irene and it's still blowing outside. As weak as this storm is now, one can only imagine what it was like when it was howling full steam. It's also somewhat unique thinking that a system like this started in Africa and traveled all this distance. Amazing.

Not amazing were yesterday's picks which fell below the .500 mark for the day. The Yankees only split their double-header with the Orioles, the Rangers beat the Angels (Weaver indeed was not the same on short rest) and the Twins beat the Tigers. The Royals beat the Tigers which shows the vagaries of picking Brad Penny. And the Cardinals won, so it's probably time to stop picking against them every game, eh?

There were some really cool highlights in the day. David Price was rocking and rolling as he struck out fourteen batters. And look, we all know that Rick Ankiel isn't that great a baseball player. But when he throws from the outfield, there are fewer more exciting plays in the game. What an arm!

There are thirteen games on the Monday schedule including a double dip in Citi Field in NY (almost called it Shea!). The season grinds on and August is nearly done:

  • The Mets and Marlins split their double-header: Two teams going nowhere and the natural result is for each team to win a game each.
  • The  Tigers over the Royals: Max Scherzer should beat Luke Hochevar. But this Scherzer/Porcello combination sure is shaky and unpredictable.
  • The Yankees over the Orioles: Alfredo Simon is the kind of pitcher that can shut down the Yankees if he is on. So Freddie Garcia better be as good after he sliced his finger as he was before he did.
  • The Athletics over the Indians: The A's are playing good ball against most teams not named the Red Sox. They are especially hitting well right now. Brandon McCarthy is pitching well while David (Hassle) Huff was rocked the last time he pitched.
  • The Blue Jays over the Bay Rays: The Blue Jays need to break out of their funk and score some runs while they have their best pitcher (Ricky Romero) on the mound. Wade Davis should afford that opportunity.
  • The Phillies over the Reds: One might be tempted to doubt Cole Hamels' health or the recent walkoff performances, but ultimately, the Phillies are simply the better team and Hamels is a better pticher than Homer Bailey.
  • The Astros over the Pirates: Ross Ohlendorf didn't fool anyone in his first start back from a long stint on the DL. The Astros have been decent of late and have their best pitcher (Wandy Rodriguez) on the mound at home.
  • The White Sox over the Twins: Mark Buehrle should beat Kevin Slowey, who hasn't shown much in his last two starts. Buehrle's having a quietly good season.
  • The Diamondbacks over the Rockies: Daniel Hudson was great his last time out but faces a tough line up. Alex White will have his hands full though.
  • The Mariners over the Angels: Blake Beavan is a pretty good pitcher who has already beaten the Angels once this year. Joel Pineiro is better than he's shown this year but he is no Jared Weaver, who would win this game easily if the Angels had left their rotation alone.
  • The Dodgers over the Padres: The Padres have hit better in the second half and Matt Latos is still a tough customer. But Clayton Kershaw? He da bomb.

And the Game of the Day!

  • The Giants over the Cubs: Tim Lincecum does his thing and though Randy Wells has a three game winning streak, he can't keep up with the Freak.

Yesterday: 6-7
Week: 6-7
Month: 216-161
Season: 1090-902
Games of the Day: 92-54

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